Music: {allcanada} Kings score twice in final minutes, defeat Canucks

Thursday, January 1, 2015

{allcanada} Kings score twice in final minutes, defeat Canucks

Casablanca / Soap Life Documentry / Abbey Road - The Beatles

VANCOUVER -- The Los Angeles Kings were rewarded late for dominating the Vancouver Canucks in shots, scoring twice late in the third period to defeat the Canucks 3-2 at Rogers Arena on Thursday.

Forward Justin Williams tied the game 2-2 on a power play with 2:07 remaining and Jarret Stoll gave the Kings their first lead 53 seconds later.

Los Angeles outshot the Canucks 40-16, but fell behind 2-0 before forward Dwight King started the comeback with 5:21 left in the second period.

Goalie Jonathan Quick made 14 saves and the Kings salvaged a three game Western Canadian trip by ending a five-game road losing streak.

Forwards Alexandre Burrows and Radim Vrbata scored for the Canucks, who lost in regulation for the first time in five games.

Ryan Miller made 37 saves, but Williams beat him over the left shoulder from below the left faceoff dot as the Kings converted their fourth power play against a penalty kill that had stopped 37 of the previous 39 chances.

Stoll put the Kings ahead with 1:14 left, taking a cross-ice pass from forward Tanner Pearson and slapping a bouncing puck past Miller's blocker to continue the Kings mastery of the Canucks. Los Angeles has won both meetings this season and six of the past seven.

The teams traded chances in the opening minutes, with Quick getting his right pad on two early shots in tight and Pearson hitting the post behind Miller from the slot.

Miller, who was pulled after allowing four goals on 22 shots in the first game against the Kings in November, got his glove on a chance from the slot by Anze Kopitar 7:30 into the game. Miller extended his right pad to stuff Los Angeles forward Tyler Toffoli alone in front of the net after a giveaway by Daniel Sedin and stopped King on a 2-on-1. The Kings had a 12-3 shot advantage, but the Canucks opened the scoring at 12:18 with captain Dustin Brown in the penalty box for tripping Jannik Hansen deep in the Vancouver end.

Vrbata shot the puck at the net from the top of the left faceoff circle and it bounced off Daniel Sedin's skate, off Quick's right pad and right to Burrows, who banged it between Quick's legs.

Los Angeles had a chance to tie the game on the power play early in the second period, but didn't manage a shot against the Canucks third-ranked penalty killing and Vrbata scored 11 seconds later.

Forward Chris Higgins' centering pass to Henrik Sedin off the rush bounced off the skate of defenseman Alex Martinez and right to Vrbata cutting into the slot for a quick far-side shot over Quick's blocker.

That was Vancouver's only shot of the second period before the Kings, who hit the post on a power play seven minutes into the period, solved Miller with 5:21 left in it.

A short pass from Mike Richards left King with a breakaway as he cut through the top of the crease. Miller reached out to stop his initial attempt with the paddle of his stick, but the rebound bounced back to King, who had time to lift it over the sprawled goalie.

The Canucks were outshot 30-10 after two periods and leaning heavily on Miller, who was making his fifth straight start for the second time this season.

Let It Be - The Beatles / Endless Summer - The Beach Boys