Adrian Kempe iced the game with an empty netter late, grabbing his second goal of the season, both of which have come on the empty net.
The Los Angeles Kings got back into the win column and grabbed their first home win this season on Tuesday, beating the Arizona Coyotes 6-3 at Crypto.com Arena.
It was a slow start for the Kings, going down 1-0 3:00 minutes in after a few poor board plays led to a Jack McBain rebound goal.
The goal against woke the Kings up though and they began to grab all the momentum.
Anze Kopitar opened up the scoring for Los Angeles, with a power-play goal off a fantastic feed from Kevin Fiala.
Trevor Lewis gave the Kings the lead a few minutes later, burying a rush play that he started after Blake Lizotte's centering pass went off a skate and right to Lewis in the slot.
Trevor Moore then doubled the Kings' lead two minutes later, putting home a backdoor feed from Phil Danault. It was a quickfire three goals from Los Angeles that flipped the game on its head.
It was a back-and-forth second, with Nick Bjugstad getting the Coyotes within one after depositing Lawson Crouse's rebound.
Lizotte answered back with a goal soon after though. Lewis and Carl Grundstrom forced a sloppy pass up the wall with a fantastic forecheck, which Drew Doughty picked off before finding Lizotte in the slot. Lizotte made no mistake, giving the fourth line their second of the night.
Late in the period, the Coyotes brought themselves back within one with a tic-tac-toe play on the power play. Nick Schmaltz found Logan Cooley at the top of the left faceoff circle, who delayed for a second before finding Clayton Keller on the right flank for a one-timer.
It was a beautiful goal and one the Kings' penalty kill couldn't do much about. Sometimes, you just get beat by a great play and this was one of those times.
After a big penalty kill early, Fiala got his first of the season. Vladislav Gavrikov's slapshot snuck in behind Karel Vejmellka and Fiala spun off his defender to deposit into the empty net.
Adrian Kempe iced the game with an empty netter late, grabbing his second goal of the season, both of which have come on the empty net.
Here are three takeaways from the Kings' victory:
Kevin Fiala Was at the Top of His Game:
Despite being productive, at least with his passing, Fiala hasn't been at his best this season, but that changed on Tuesday.
After being criticized by Todd McLellan after Saturday's game against the Boston Bruins for not registering a shot on goal, Fiala registered a team-high four shots and had seven shot attempts.
It was more than just the shots or the two points though, it was Fiala's overall play.
He was controlling the pace of the game when on the ice and always looked in control.
Attacking at speed on one play and stopping up to let plays develop on the next, Fiala completely took over at times.
Games like that make Fiala's high-risk, high-reward playstyle feel worth it. When he's on, there are few better than him.
A Strong Performance From the Fourth Line:
A lot of focus this season has been on the Kings' forward depth, particularly in the top nine, but their fourth line showed today that they can impact games too.
They scored two big goals for the team, putting them up 2-1 in the first, and hitting Arizona back after they got within one in the second.
Dangerous on the forecheck and diligent defensively, it was the exact kind of game you want from a fourth line.
The line itself is happy to announce they can make a big impact too.
"I mean, everyone wants to make a difference in the game, and when you can do it on the scoresheet, that's the best feeling ever," said Lizotte. "We take a lot of pride in the little things, but it is nice to get rewarded on the scoresheet."
You can't expect two goals from your fourth line every night, but when you do get contributions from them on the scoresheet, it's a huge bonus.
Lewis and Lizotte also had a big impact on the penalty kill going 3-4 on Tuesday. They weren't out there for the one goal against as they continue to play a major part in the improvement on the kill.
Pheonix Copley With a Bounce Back Performance:
It was a tough first start for Pheonix Copley against the Carolina Hurricanes in game two, but a strong bounce-back performance from him on Tuesday.
Was he amazing? No, but he gave the Kings exactly what they needed, solid goaltending.
He finished with 24 saves on 27 shots and -0.03 goals saved above expected.
More importantly, he came up big a few times on the penalty kill in the third period to keep the Kings in the game.
It isn't the kind of performance that will ever steal you a game, or make you think he's a #1 goalie, but it's a solid performance for a 1B-type goalie.
If he can provide that level of performance consistently, the Kings are in a decent spot with their goaltending.