To say Game 2 between the Los Angeles Kings and Colorado Avalanche was thrilling or dramatic would be an understatement. Here's what went down on Tuesday night in what was the wildest Stanley Cup playoff game of the year so far.
Game 2 of the first-round matchup between the Los Angeles Kings and the Colorado Avalanche will be remembered for a long time, and not for the reasons you may think.
Though the game finished as a low-scoring affair, and the second straight game of the series to finish 2-1 in Colorado's favor, this was an entertaining contest that had plenty of drama, and not necessarily all on the ice.
Going into the second game of the round, the Kings were looking to even the series after a respectable performance against the Presidents' Trophy winners in Game 1.
But not long into the game, neither team were able to get a rhythm because of stoppages, specifically all the minor penalties that transpired.
In the first period alone, the referees issued seven minor penalties, three to Los Angeles and four to Colorado.
With that, the two teams introduced themselves to the series in a physical way. In Game 1, the hatred and physicality that come in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs were basically non-existent, but that changed in Game 2.
Avs defenseman Josh Manson levelled Kings center Scott Laughton early in the game. Some time after the hit, Laughton talked to ESPN's rinkside reporter and former teammate with the Philadelphia Flyers, Erik Johnson. Laughton recapped the physical battle between him and Manson and said, "No bicycles on the highway," noting he needs to keep his head up.
Not long after that, Kings blueliner Mikey Anderson hammered Avs star Martin Necas with arguably an even harder body check. Necas didn't return to action for some time, but eventually was cleared to get back on the ice.
Despite all those power-play opportunities and an increase in post-whistle scrums, the game remained goalless after the first period.
Then the second period came around, and even more chaos ensued, right out of the gates.
About three minutes into the middle frame, the Avalanche went on the power play from a Jeff Malott boarding penalty. On that kill for the Kings, Quinton Byfield stole a fumbled puck by Cale Makar and a long breakaway. In the nick of time, Makar impeded Byfield in the hands, forcing officials to call a penalty shot.
On the penalty shot, Byfield, who had an abundance of chances in Game 2, made a great move on Wedgewood, but Colorado's goaltender made an incredible stop, keeping the game at zero. Yet, this isn't even the punchline of the chaos in the second period.
In the excitement of the moment, Avs fans banged on the glass in recognition of Wedgewood's massive stop. From all the banging on the glass behind the Kings' bench, the glass shattered in Los Angeles' dugout and the shards fell on top of coach D.J. Smith.
Because of this, the coaches and players needed to clear the bench to protect themselves and their equipment. With that came a lengthy break that lasted around 20 minutes, almost intermission-like, less than four minutes into the period.
Eventually, all the broken glass was cleaned behind the bench and in the stands, and a replacement panel was installed.
The Kings and Avalanche needed to find a way to keep themselves warm after being still for some time. That could be the reason why the game remained without a goal for the rest of the second period, though it wasn't a lack of chances and drama.
The theater continued early in the third period in Game 2, when the Avalanche thought they had finally broken the deadlock.
About 10 seconds into the third, Colorado won an offensive-zone draw back to defenseman Sam Malinski. Malinski fired a shot toward the Kings' netminder, Anton Forsberg, and the goal horn went off just seconds after the fact.
As the Avs celebrated what they thought was a crucial lead in tightly contested Game 2, it turned out the puck never actually went into the net. Instead, the puck landed on top of the netting just beside Forsberg's right post.
From a first-period parade to the penalty box, massive hits, a shorthanded penalty shot, broken glass and a fake goal, this game is still knotted at 0-0.
Quinton Byfield (Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images)Just after the midway mark of the third period, however, Colorado's Parker Kelly was called for high-sticking on Artemi Panarin. This was the fifth power play of the game for the Kings, and they've been unthreatening with the man advantage since.
Nonetheless, Panarin scored the first goal of the game - for real - giving the Kings their first lead of the series. Panarin's been the only player to score for Los Angeles in these playoffs, with the only other goal scored by the Kings from Panarin, also on the power play, in Game 1.
The hope of stealing a game at Ball Arena was short-lived as Gabriel Landeskog tied the game just over three minutes later.
With how this affair transpired, of course, it would require overtime.
Game 2 ended with the fans in Denver on their feet, celebrating Nicolas Roy's first goal of the series as the overtime-winner 7:44 into the extra frame. That caps off the craziest post-season game so far in the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs.
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