The Los Angeles Kings had an opportunity to clinch a playoff spot in Anaheim on Tuesday, all they had to do was beat a Ducks team that was 2-8 in their last 10 games.
However, they came away 3-1 losers in a game they appeared to take for granted.
You can't take any team lightly in the NHL and it looks like the Kings learned that lesson last night.
They came out strong in the first 10 minutes, taking a 1-0 lead courtesy of an Akil Thomas goal, but it was all downhill after that.
Their was a complete lack of intensity from the team from top-to-bottom.
Thomas grabbed the Kings' lone goal and was the bright spot for the team.
His motor never stopped and he played with a physicality and intensity the rest of the lineup lacked.
To their credit, the Ducks made life difficult for LA and played a strong game in their own right.
Lukas Dostal put together a strong performance in net and Trevor Zegras showed up in what was a big game for the Ducks.
Even with all that said, the blame lies on the Kings for this loss. If they play to their ability, they beat that Ducks team more often than not.
Jim Hiller's post game comments made it clear he wasn't happy with the effort.
"I’ll look at our forecheck early, we were physical on the forecheck, but we didn’t have a lot of pushback the rest of the game," said Hiller. "We wanted an easy game, that was clear, and we got an easy game, except the other team beat us."
It's important to remember that the sky isn't falling for the Kings and they'll likely still clinch.
However, it's games like these that leave people with low confidence heading into the playoffs.
That inconsistent play and effort won't lead to good results come game 83.
The Kings have an opportunity to bounce back on Thursday against the Calgary Flames, a team they've struggled against this season.