Following a couple of early chances, Chicago managed very little against All-Star Cam Talbot. Los Angeles chased Blackhawks goalie Arvid Söderblom in the first period with four goals on 14 shots.
After scoring a total of 14 goals in back-to-back wins, the Chicago Blackhawks couldn't muster much in a 5-0 loss to the Los Angeles King on Friday night.
The Blackhawks were off the puck most of the night by the heavier Kings and th the like of 6-foot-4, 225-pound Pierre-Luc DuboisA couple of chances early against All-Star goalie Cam Talbot. A couple later in the game. None went in.
Other than that, it was all Kings.
A wide-open Anze Kopitar had two goals off terrific cross ice feeds from 21-year-old Quinton Byfield as Los Angeles scored four goals in the first period.
The Kings built the lead on their first 14 shots to chase starting Chicago goalie Arvid Söderblom with 3:41 left in the opening frame. Petr Mrazek relieved and blocked 22 of 23 shots.
Another Shutout
The last-place Blackhawks were blanked for the 10th time after winning two straight games for only the second time this season. Chicago had topped Arizona 7-4 on Sunday and Anaheim 7-2 on Tuesday as Connor Bedard broke out with three goals and five assists in the two contests.
Connor Bedard was kept at bay.On Friday, Bedard was limited to three shots on goal and attempted one that was blocked in a minus-1 night.
“They really played well and they're a big, heavy team,” Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson said. "We had a hard time, you know, winning puck battles and I think that was a big difference tonight." See following video.
Pierre-Luc Dubois, Alex Laferriere and Jordan Spence each had a goal and an assist to help Los Angeles rebound from a 3-1 loss at St. Louis on Wednesday. The Kings strengthened their hold on third place in the Pacific Division and a Western Conference playoff spot.
“Two points in October are the same as two points in March, but you can really see the difference two points can mean in the standings,” Dubois said. “Still a lot of hockey to be played, but we're happy with a result like tonight.”
Roster Updates
Blackhawks prospect Landon Slaggert played in his first pro game. The 21-year-old forward was selected in the third round of the 2020 draft.
After the loss, Chicago recalled forward Lukas Reichel from Rockford of the AHL and assigned forward Zach Sanford the minor league affiliate. Reichel was the 17th overall pick in the 2020 draft and regarded as Chicago's second-best forward prospect behind Bedard entering the 2023-24 season.
Game Flow
The Kings connected three times in a span of just under five minutes early in the first period.
Dubois scored his 15th goal 3:10 into the game on power-play. Spence’s wide shot from the slot bounced off the backboards, and Dubois ripped in the puck from the left circle on a sharp angle.
Laferriere got his 10th at 5:33 on a mid-air deflection of Matt Roy’s drive from the top of the right circle.
Kopitar made it 3-0 at 8:03, firing into a wide-open net from the right circle after taking Byfield’s pass from the left side. Both the feed and Kopitar eluded Chicago rookies Bedard and Kevin Korchinski.
Kopitar scored again at 14:09, this time from the left edge of the crease, after Byfield reached him with a nifty backhand pass from the right circle.
Spence made it 5-0 at 2:31 of the third when his shot from a sharp angle hit Mrazek and slithered in.