LOS ANGELES — There’s been a lot of change for the Los Angeles Kings lately. Super-star Artemi Panarin traded in, the firing of Jim Hiller and a trade deadline that saw Corey Perry and Warren Foegele depart with Scott Laughton and Mathieu Joseph being added.
Even though it looked different, it was still a similar story for the Kings as it has been all season on Saturday afternoon.
Despite dominating play for the majority of the game, the Kings were unable to hold a one-goal lead with five minutes remaining in the game and gave up two goals in 49 seconds in a 4-3 loss against the Montreal Canadiens.
“It's real tough,” interim head coach D.J. Smith said. “When the game's on the line, you've got to make plays. And six minutes to go, their top guys made plays.”
Nick Suzuki and Juraj Slafkovsky are fixtures in the Canadiens’ top line, and the two of them took over the game when it mattered most. With five minutes left while chasing a goal and on the power play, Slafkovsky rifled a one-timer past Darcy Kuemper to tie the game, with Suzuki notching an assist on the play. Less than a minute later, Slafkovsky sent a cross-ice pass to Suzuki so he could cash in on a one-timer of his own to take the lead.
Slafkovsky finished the night with two goals, both assisted by Suzuki.
“I thought we outplayed them pretty much for 59 minutes of the game,” forward Alex Laferriere said. “So yeah, it definitely stings.”
The Kings outshot the Canadiens 39-23 total, but it was mainly the first period that the Kings had full control of the game. The Canadiens showed that they were the team playing their second game of a back-to-back by committing three penalties and lacking the ability to settle into the game. By the end of the first period, the shots were 16-1 in favor of the Kings.
Despite the loss, there are positives that the Kings can take away from this game. Their five-on-five play was one of the best efforts of the season, outshooting the Candiens 30-22. According to Evolving Hockey, the Kings generated 3.83 expected goals for at five-on-five, which is the third-highest total for them this season.
“They're working, but they're working smart,” Smith said. “We're starting to play heavier in the (offensive) zone. I still think we can get a lot more pucks to the net. In the back end, every chance you can to sling it or get it there. And then the forwards got to continue to do a good job of climbing on the goalie.”
Even though the power play was 0-for-3 on the day, it still generated nine shots on goal and has continued to look far more dangerous since the addition of Panarin.
Another bright spot was the contributions of a couple of newcomers.
Jared Wright collected his first NHL point in just his third NHL game with an assist on newly acquired Laughton’s goal.
Laughton was traded to the Kings from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for a 2026 third-round pick on Friday’s NHL trade deadline. He only had 12 points in 43 games with the Maple Leafs this year, but Smith told reporters before the game that Laughton has “a little more offensive touch, maybe than some people have given him credit for.”
The two have history, as Smith was Laughton’s bench boss for the Oshawa Generals in the Ontario Hockey League in 2012-2013 and Smith was an assistant coach for Team Canada in the 2022-2023 World Championship.
“The relationship's been there for about 15 years,” Laughton said. “He did a lot for me as a junior player. I think he's a great coach. He gets a lot out of you. He's very vocal and knows the game and cares about his players. So I'm super excited to play for him.”
Being traded at the deadline is no easy experience, as the player traded needs to figure out how to get himself and his belongings into his new city as fast as possible. Laughton said the trade went through at around 4:30 p.m. ET and he tried to get on a plane at 7:00 p.m. to Los Angeles, but the flight was delayed, so he landed in Los Angeles late Friday night.
“I think everything from off the ice is harder than once you get on the ice, but it's nice to get into a game right away,” Laughton said. “Great group of guys, positive on the bench, a lot of talk.”
With this loss, the Kings now move to 25-23-14 with 64 points, three points out of the last wild card spot.
“Time is running out,” Laferriere said. “We have 20 games left now, and we need every single point.”
