LA Kings Game Notes: 2-1 OT Win vs Jets Extends Winning Streak to 5 Games  – The Hockey Writers Los Angeles Kings Latest News, Analysis & More

Something needs to be said about the determination and resilience of the 2024-25 Los Angeles Kings, who continue to climb up the mountain no matter who or what stands in their path. Even amidst all the issues and concerns the Los Angeles area is facing right now with the wildfires, this team showed up against the top dog in the Central Division.

“Yeah, we played well. We were, and right from the start, we were on our game. I was worried about it for a lot of different reasons, we talked about some of them, but yeah, I’m proud of them. They came out and played hard in a really tough building, that’s a really good team,” said head coach Jim Hiller. 

Following a postponed game against the Calgary Flames on Wednesday, the Kings began their five-game road trip which started last night against the Winnipeg Jets, a team they defeated 4-1 in late November. The Kings continue to find ways to keep on rolling and they did just that again, knocking off the Jets 2-1 in overtime and extending their winning streak to five games. 

That was for you, LA

https://t.co/6YjatzGMpR#GoKingsGo pic.twitter.com/RkRssmrpbS

— LA Kings (@LAKings) January 11, 2025

The extra frame of hockey used to be nightmare fuel for the Kings, which saw them lose five straight, but it has now begun to turn in the opposite direction. They have won the last two contests that have required overtime. Adrian Kempe, doing what he does best, called game by picking his spot in the top right corner.

Kings Remain Comfortable Battling Out Games 

The Kings are winning games more consistently than ever right now. What makes these wins even more impressive is the fact that most of them are tight games. The Kings aren’t blowing teams out and we know that a lot of the time they rely on that third-period push in order to come out with two points. 

It’s resiliency and discipline that has the Kings sitting in second place in the Pacific Division with multiple games in hand. They are comfortable grinding out games whether they are behind, ahead, or even. 

This is the type of hockey that teams need to be content with when it comes to the playoffs. As in, low-scoring, tight-checking games where there isn’t much space and one mistake could be the end of your season. To see this team play games like this on a regular basis – and come out successful most of the time – provides some positive insight into what we could potentially see in the playoffs. 

Not only that, but the Kings have shown us they can win in multiple ways during these close games. When they are down they find ways to push offensively, and when they are up they stick to what they do best and lock it down defensively. Whether they need that goal, need that big save, or need that combined effort to make it difficult for opponents to generate chances, the Kings are finding ways to get it done. 

Strong Defensive Effort Played Key Part

No one is really surprised that the Kings and Jets only combined for two goals in regulation. Both teams rank in the top five for the fewest goals against per game. Both of these clubs take pride in the way they defend. It’s not only their identity but one of the main reasons why both of them sit in the top five in the Western Conference.

Last night’s game could have gone either way but the Kings were picture-perfect in their own end from puck drop. Active sticks were key for the Kings last night. They broke up plays, created turnovers, deflected shots and passes, got bodies in shooting lanes, and all around made it difficult for the Jets to set up clean looks and ultimately test goaltender Darcy Kuemper. While neither team was able to generate much of anything offensively, the Kings just gave up less. 

After the first period, the Kings gave up just four shots and only one high-danger chance to the Jets’ four. In the second, just five shots and zero high-danger chances. The Kings kept everything to the outside and most of what Kuemper had to face was routine. 

The Kings came into enemy territory in a hard building to play in and delivered one of the best defensive performances of the season. The Kings have been hot at home but some of that magic seemed to carry over last night on the road. 

Power Play Is in Need of Desperate Attention 

This group does so many things so well and they continue to get results, so it’s hard to look at anything in a negative light. While most of what is surrounding the Kings right now is positive, the power play is the one thing awful thing about the team that has remained since the start of the season. 

Just 2-for-19 on the power play in the last 11 games is beyond disappointing. It’s kind of crazy that the Kings are 7-2-2 in their last 11 and have scored a total of 34 goals during that span. While this obviously attests to how good the Kings are at 5-on-5, it makes us wonder how different some of these games could have gone if they were able to convert on the power play more than 10% of the time. 

A perfect example is last night in Winnipeg. The Kings had three power-play opportunities and did nada on all of them. Not only did they not take advantage of the power play, they could barely generate chances on them, finishing the night with three total shots on three power plays. At this point, it might be better for the Kings to decline the man advantage because it seems that once they get that extra time and space, they collapse.

It doesn’t help that while they couldn’t capitalize on three opportunities, the only goal the Jets scored, which ended up being enough to push the game to overtime, came on the power play. Special teams affect games in a big way. If the Kings found a way to get just one goal on the power play, maybe they wouldn’t have sweated one out in overtime.

To have that kind of performance on the power play against the 11th-worst penalty kill in the NHL is where things start to get concerning, especially for a team that is as good as the Kings. 

It’s not just that they aren’t finding the back of the net. It starts with the breakout, the zone entry, and the ability to actually set up the power play in the offensive zone. All of it is a struggle right now for the Kings and it’s an area that needs not only desperate attention but a complete revamp of the units. Clearly, having five of their top players out together isn’t working. Even though they have been able to work around a dysfunctional power play, sooner or later it’s going to start costing them valuable points. Something has got to give.

Six wins in a row is what the Kings will be looking for as they finish off the second leg of a back-to-back tonight in Calgary against the Flames. The Kings have had four back-to-backs this season so far and they have been pretty successful, winning all four.