ANAHEIM — The Kings won a Black Friday Freeway Faceoff, thanks in large part to a resplendent NHL debut from goalie Erik Portillo, who triumphed 2-1 against veteran John Gibson and the Ducks on Friday afternoon at Honda Center.
Alex Laferriere scored the game-winning goal and assisted on Alex Turcotte’s tally. The 24-year-old Portillo was radiant in his debut, stopping 28 shots on a day when his team was out-shot by double digits.
Ryan Strome scored the Ducks’ only goal while Gibson took his first loss in regulation this season, making 16 saves in the process.
The Ducks threatened during the third period but never more so than with 15 seconds to play when Troy Terry received the puck in the slot all alone, only to be denied first by the pad of Portillo and then by diving defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov, who mopped up the rebound. The Ducks could get no closer, though the final horn wasn’t the end of the action since a 10-man melee broke out as the clock read 00:00.
Midway through the third period, Portillo’s debut was disrupted by an issue with his skate blade that couldn’t be rectified in a timely manner, meaning David Rittich had to make his seventh straight appearance. It proved ephemeral as he faced and stopped just one shot in his 83 seconds before Portillo re-entered the action.
The Kings had taken then first lead of the game a mere 78 seconds into the final period.
Brandt Clarke intercepted Alex Killorn’s pass in the Kings’ zone. His outlet pass found Laferriere, who was stood up in the neutral zone by Ducks captain Radko Gudas. Phillip Danault continued skating, drove the puck to the net to flick a soft shot off his backhand to create a rebound, which Laferriere knifed home for his 10th goal of 2024-25. It was his first goal since Nov. 9 but also his second straight multi-point game after he notched two assists in Wednesday night’s victory over the Winnipeg Jets.
Forty minutes came and went, but the game remained deadlocked at the second intermission, 1-1.
Though Clarke didn’t connect on his lacrosse-style shot attempt, the Kings pulled even at the 10:46 mark of the second period. A neutral-zone giveaway by Trevor Zegras sent Laferriere off a two-on-one rush with Turcotte, who finished the counterattack by roofing a short-side wrist shot. It was Turcotte’s second goal of the season and first since Oct. 16.
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Only 2:48 into the middle period the Ducks came up with the game’s first goal and Strome’s sixth of the season. Former Junior King Drew Helleson’s point shot was tipped downward by Strome, and though Portillo came up with the initial save, he had little chance on Strome’s backhanded swipe at his own rebound. Strome had the game’s first shot on goal, meaning he was the first shooter to be stopped by Portillo and the first shooter to score on him.
In the first period, the seasoned Gibson and the raw Portillo dueled to a scoreless draw as their sides each killed a penalty. Portillo’s baptism included menacing shots from the slot by Olen Zellweger and Killorn, the latter being one of three shots during a dangerous Ducks power play. The low-scoring Ducks went 0 for 3 with the man advantage.
Ducks forward Leo Carlsson missed his second straight game with an upper-body injury.
UP NEXT
The Kings host Ottawa on Saturday, and the Ducks host the Senators on Sunday.
More to come on this story.