The Kings’ seven-game win-streak came to an end, as did their perfect road record in a 4-2 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks Monday night at the United Center.
Things looked to be pointing in a positive direction for the Kings until Chicago’s Patrick Kane took over the game in the third period, netting the game-tying goal, and dishing out a phenomenal assist on Teuvo Teravainen’s game-winner.
Kane wasn’t the only Blackhawks forward to have a major impact on Monday night’s outcome; Jonathan Toews gave Chicago a 1-0 lead six minutes into the contest, then assisted on his club’s fourth and final goal of the evening.
The Kings were able to wash out the Blackhawks early lead when Alec Martinez ripped a shot past Corey Crawford to tie the game with just over five minutes to play in the first.
Kyle Clifford disrupted Chicago’s defense with a strong hit on the forecheck, corralled the puck, and found Martinez atop the point with a soft pass that the defenseman one-timed home for his first goal of the season.
Four minutes later, Anze Kopitar gave the Kings their first, and what would end up being their only lead of the game.
Jake Muzzin caught a puck rimming up the sideboards of Chicago’s zone and fired a shot on net, which Corey Crawford couldn’t handle cleanly. Kopitar, who fled to the front of the net while reading Muzzin’s decision, handled the loose rebound and tucked a shot past Crawford’s glove side.
Neither club affected the scoreboard in a tightly played second period; the Kings took a 2-1 lead into the third.
In the opening moments of the third, Patrick Kane gained possession of the puck in Chicago’s zone, stickhandled through the neutral zone, and used Alec Martinez as a screen to fire a wrist shot high to Jonathan Quick’s glove side from the top of the left circle.
With 11 minutes to play, Kane fed Teuvo Teravainen a backhand pass from behind the Kings’ net, which the Blackhawks forward buried, to give Chicago a 3-2 lead.
The Kings had an opportunity to work with a power play when Ryan Garbutt was called for a holding infraction with three minutes to play, but the Blackhawks capitalized on the Kings’ aggressive attack, Artem Anisimov scoring a shorthanded goal to give Chicago a two-goal lead with 1:33 to play.
Jake Muzzin (2A) led all Kings players in points scored (2), Marian Gaborik in shots taken (5), Milan Lucic in hits delivered (7), Drew Doughty in shots blocked (4), and Drew Doughty in minutes played (29:33). Jonathan Quick made 22 saves in the loss.
The Kings will cap off their two-game road trip Tuesday night before returning to Los Angeles for a five-game home stand when they take on the St. Louis Blues at the Scottrade Center, the puck scheduled to drop just after 5:30PM PST.