LOS ANGELES — The Kings entered the third period trailing, but exploded for four unanswered goals to topple the Pacific Division-leading Vegas Golden Knights, 5-2, on Monday night at Crypto.com Arena.
Trevor Moore scored two goals before Warren Foegele, Kevin Fiala and Joel Edmundson tacked on three more that made the difference as the Kings improve to 14-1-1 in their past 16 homes games. Quinton Byfield’s four assists gave him a career-high in points and Foegele added an assist as well. Darcy Kuemper made 19 saves to win his fourth consecutive decision, adding to his team’s NHL-best home record (18-3-2).
Former King Brayden McNabb and captain Mark Stone each deposited a goal for Vegas, which had its three-game winning streak snapped. Ilya Samsonov halted just 14 of 19 shots.
The Kings have now won two of three meetings with Vegas this season, having lost 6-1 on Oct. 22 and won 6-3 on Oct. 30. Not surprisingly, the home team has won each game between two of the NHL’s best teams on home ice.
With the victory, the Kings not only won a four-point game against division-leading Vegas, which now holds a five-point lead over the Kings, but inched to within three points of second-place Edmonton, which was idle.
Edmundson’s slap shot with 4:32 remaining and Fiala’s backhand with 2:19 to play added insurance.
A backhanded connection between Byfield and Foegele gave the Kings the lead, 8:31 into the third period, and stood as the game-winner. Byfield protected the puck and dragged two defenders with him before whipping a backhand pass against the grain for Foegele. He was met at the near post by a lunging Samsonov, only to go to the far post and slip the puck home on his backhand.
The Kings equalized a mere 42 seconds into the closing frame. Kuemper’s long clearing attempt eluded a pinching Alex Pietrangelo along the wall. The puck leaked into the neutral zone, where it was settled by Foegele for Moore, who darted ahead to deliver a short-side snipe. That marked the second goal of the game and 10th of the season for the Thousand Oaks native, who had 31 goals last year.
In the second period, Vegas struck twice unanswered to hold a 2-1 lead at the second intermission off goals at the 10:26 and 16:41 marks. In between tallies, Vegas defenseman Noah Hanifin also saved a goal by swiping the puck off the goal line.
The visitors earned their first edge of the evening when Hanifin’s high shot was tipped underneath and through Kuemper by Stone, Vegas’ captain.
The Golden Knights had knotted the score when Tomáš Hertl walked off the left-wing wall and into the slot, drawing a crowd that included Byfield. He had neglected the trailing McNabb, to whom Hertl silkily slipped a pass into the high slot. The former King McNabb beat Kuemper for the equalizer.
The early going was all Kings as they outshot Vegas 8-2 initially, in part because they’d earned the game’s first two power plays, the second of which produced the game’s first goal, 10:30 into the contest.
Byfield, who later took two penalties that the Kings killed, hammered a shot from the left circle that Moore deflected past Samsonov after grinding for position.
That goal was the difference in a period where Vegas made a late push that Kuemper beat back, channeling his inner Jonathan Quick on both sides of the Kings’ second shorthanded stretch, tracking the puck expertly and dominating with his pad work.
More to come on this story.