Takeaways: LA Kings 7, Blues 6 – They held on

After dominating the first 20 minutes, the LA Kings were able to fend off a late St. Louis Blues rally for a 7-6 victory on Sunday night.

Thanks for visiting, Blues 👋#GoKingsGo pic.twitter.com/wlBGsi6mOu

— LA Kings (@LAKings) March 27, 2023

Goal Breakdown

First period:

LAK: Viktor Arvidsson (23), ASST: Kevin Fiala (47), Phillip Danault (33)

LAK: PP Alex Iafallo (12), ASST: Viktor Arvidsson (29), Phillip Danault (34)

that's some pretty power play passing 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/yc4dAaQktD

— LA Kings (@LAKings) March 27, 2023

LAK: SH Adrian Kempe (35), ASST: Trevor Moore (17)

STL: PP Brandon Saad (18), ASST: Robert Thomas (45), Sammy Blais (11)

LAK: PP Viktor Arvidsson (24), ASST: Sean Durzi (28)

LAK: PP Trevor Moore (9), ASST: Philip Danault (35), Sean Durzi (29)

Second period:

STL: Justin Faulk (9), ASST: Tyler Pitlick (8)

STL: Pavel Buchnevich (24), ASST: Sammy Blais (12), Calle Rosen (10)

Don't go to sleep yet 'cause this one is just getting good. #stlblues pic.twitter.com/W5P46i2mAe

— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) March 27, 2023

STL: PP Jordan Kyrou (32), ASST: Robert Thomas (46), Justin Faulk (30)

Third period;

LAK: Adrian Kempe (36), ASST: Vladislav Gavrikov (11)

STL: Kasperi Kapanen (14), ASST: Pavel Buchnevich (40), Nick Leddy (19)

LAK: PP Drew Doughty (8), ASST: Kevin Fiala (48)

STL: Jordan Kyrou (33), ASST: Brayden Schenn (36), Torey Krug (24)

Stats

Goals:

STL: 6

LAK: 7

Shots:

STL: 22

LAK: 31

Power-plays:

STL: 2/2

LAK: 4/5

Here are the three takeaways from Sunday’s 7-6 victory

Too close for comfort

After leading 5-1 after 20 minutes and everything going right, the LA Kings took their foot off the gas pedal just enough to allow the St. Louis Blues to make it a game. A three-goal second period by the Blues turned a comfortable 5-1 lead into a 5-4 game. The Kings were able to hold on for a 7-6 win, a performance the Kings may not want to repeat again.

For the first time in a long time, Pheonix Copley had a bad game, posting a -3.07 goals saved above expected (GSAx) according to the moneypuck website. Last night was the first time the Kings allowed more than two goals in a game since February 28th in a 6-5 shootout win over the Jets. Two points are two points at this time of the year, but I’m sure the Kings want to avoid anything like that happening again.

Arvidsson and Danault combine for six points

The second line of Viktor Arvidsson, Phillip Danault, and Kevin Fiala had their fingerprints all over this game. They were even great when on the power play, albeit split up. When Rob Blake traded for Arvidsson and signed Danault in the summer of 2021, it signaled the Kings were looking to take that next step in the rebuild.

FIVE IN THE FIRST AND WE ARE FIRED UP pic.twitter.com/3QHgGVpofv

— LA Kings (@LAKings) March 27, 2023

Both players were vital to the LA Kings’ success last season and even formed the “Nice Line” with Trevor Moore. Arvidsson is heating up at the right time as he now has five goals in his last three games and six goals in his last five games. Meanwhile, Phillip Danault recorded three assists in the first period and now has ten points in his last nine games. Both players combined for six points in a five-goal first period for the LA Kings.

Power play comes alive

It’s always great to get reinforcements back at this time of the year. The Kings welcomed back both Kevin Fiala and Sean Durzi to the lineup after missing the last six and seven games respectively. Not only did Fiala bring more depth to the forward group and Durzi bringing more offense to the blue line, but the biggest contributions they made were also on the power play. Fiala had an assist on the man advantage while both of Durzi’s helpers were on the man advantage also.

3 points for Arvy and we're not even done with the 1st 🥵 pic.twitter.com/FK9Xr8HeEj

— LA Kings (@LAKings) March 27, 2023

Just by them coming back into the lineup you can see it makes everything flow much better with the chemistry both power-play units have. Everyone can go back to their normal spots on the power play. The Kings had four shots on goal in their five power-play attempts and each shot on goal found the back of the net. After their four-goal night on the man advantage, the Kings’ power play is now tied for second in the NHL at 25.7%. That’s a huge difference from where it was at this point of the season last year. Jim Hiller may as well have been the best coaching/assistant coach hire from the offseason.

UP NEXT: The LA Kings hit the road for a four-game road trip starting Tuesday in Calgary. The game starts at 6 pm PT and can be seen on Bally Sports West

Featured image credit: Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press