Los Angeles, CA --- The Los Angeles Kings (41-23-9) face the Winnipeg Jets (51-19-4) on a chilly Tuesday evening at Crypto.com Arena. As the Kings go into this match, they face perhaps their biggest test of the season against a formidable Stanley Cup playoff opponent. 

Heading into the game, the Jets are 23-13 on the road, and don't shy away from making noise in their opponent's ice, yet at the same time the Kings also maintain their home ice competitive edge with a 27-4-4 record at home this season.

Notably, this game is also the same day as Kings left wing Warren Foegele's birthday.

FIRST PERIOD

As the Kings hope to clear the Jets for a season sweep this match, the Jets started off with aggressive pushes towards the Los Angeles net. The first period gets rolling, and within eight minutes of back and forth, LA Kings right wing Trevor Moore scores for the Kings and draws first blood for Los Angeles, 1-0. The Kings upset the Jets with their puck play, and transitioning from rushing the net to making plays towards the goal.

And, as I write this, center Anze Kopitar strikes again for the Kings! The Kings blindside the Jets with their puck play, with each of their offensive pushes succeeding because of their speed and agility towards the Winnipeg net. This goal makes it a 2-0 game.

The latter half of the first period came around, and while both teams are playing clean hockey with no penalties, the Jets have kept their aggression on the ice. The Kings take ten shots to the Winnipeg net, and throughout this first period they surprised the Jets by protecting the middle zone on their offensive zone, and being creative in their defensive front. 

SECOND PERIOD

The second period skates around, and throughout the first half of the period both teams match up well. Los Angeles left wing Andrei Kuzmenko has been crucial in the Kings' offensive pushes during each push, assisting his team with his puck play down the rink. As I write this, after nearly half a game of clean hockey between both playoff contenders, Winnipeg are the first to draw a penalty with a tripping penalty against Los Angeles left wing Kevin Fiala.

Near the end of the Kings power play, Moore had a close call shot onto the Jets net, yet that shot was ultimately blocked. Less than 30 seconds after that play, Winnipeg Jets center Cole Perfetti drove toward the Kings net, landing the Jets' first goal of the night and closing the scoring gap, 2-1.

The Jets inch closer to a goal, yet Kings goaltender Darcy Kuemper has let one slip by him, keeping this game as close as it can be against a worthy opponent.

AS I WRITE THAT, KUZMENKO COOKS FOR THE KINGS WITH A CLEVER NO LOOKER INTO THE JETS NET! 3-1 NOW. HE DID THAT ALL ON HIS OWN, PROVING TO BE ESSENTIALC FOR THE KINGS. HE FOOLS THE GOALTENDER FOR A GOAL.

As the second period draws to a close, the Kings try for insurance goals near the end, but are thwarted twice by Winnipeg goaltender Connor Hellebuyck. The LA defense so far in the night have shown up to the moment, and the Kings have been starting to unlock more chemistry with this hockey line, especially with Kuzmenko in the lineup.

THIRD PERIOD

The third period rears its head around the corner, and so far in the game both teams have been relatively clean hockey. The Kings have outshot the Winnipeg Jets 19-15, and so far the roles have been reversed with Los Angeles placing pressure on Winnipeg. Now, the Kings have drawn their first penalty of the night with defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov tripping one of the Jets players, granting the Jets their first power play of the night. Fortunately, the Jets were unable to take advantage of their power play.

As the latter half of the third period rolls around, the Jets keep their offensive pressure on the Kings net. There is a lot of back and forth between these teams, and during this offensive pressure Kuemper saves the goal. So far tonight, the stickplay from the LA Kings has not disappointed, but as soon as I write that the Kings get a penalty called on them for tripping another Jet player. 

Despite the penalty, the Kings have burned time off the clock playing good defense and keeping possession of the hockey puck.

Ok, now with less than two minutes to go, the Jets leave their net empty and play with a man advantage and burn away time.

BUT THAT WAS ALL FOR NAUGHT AS THE KINGS TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE EMPTY NET FOR ANOTHER GOAL. LA KING RIGHT WING ADRIAN KEMPE TAKES THE ADVANTAGE AND CLOSES THE DOOR ON THE JETS' NIGHT.

With this win over the Jets, the Kings maintain their second place standing in the Western Conference even with the Edmonton Oilers' surprise victory against the Las Vegas Golden Knights. This win also solidifies the season sweep with the Winnipeg Jets, despite them being the number one team against nearly every other team in the NHL. The Kings even beat them while the Jets shot less than 20 shots during each game this season.

The Stanley Cup Playoffs can be unpredictable of course, but this win offers the Kings a good blueprint for success against their competition as the playoffs inch closer and closer.