It was evident that the Kings quickly put Monday’s five-goal loss to the San Jose Sharks behind them on Wednesday night. Returning home, the Kings faced off against the NHL-best 18-4-0 Winnipeg Jets and in an impressive 60-minute effort, silenced them to earn their 12th win game 23 of the 2024-25 regular season.
The Kings jumped ahead of the Jets early on Wednesday, scoring just under two minutes into the game. A Vladislav Namestnikov hooking penalty on Phillip Danault 1:48 into the game put the Kings on an early power play and they instantly scored. An Anze Kopitar won draw made its way back to the point via Alex Laferriere and to the recently appointed power play quarterback Adrian Kempe. Kempe quickly rifled a wrist shot and a net-front Kopitar deflected the puck in past the 15-2-0 Connor Hellebuyck for the early goal. Up 1-0, the Kings kept their foot on the gas pedal the rest of the period, but couldn't add a second goal despite outshooting the Jets 13-5 in the opening 20 minutes.
The second period showcased much of the same as the Kings continued to dictate play in the first half of the middle stanza. Doubling the Kings lead 7:10 into the period was Danault, who snapped a 10-game goalless drought by following up his own in-tight shot and banging in the loose rebound for his second goal of the season. Assisting on the goal was Alex Turcotte, his sixth helper of the season and Laferriere, who picked up his second point of the night and eight helped of the year. The Jets responded 2:12 later on the power play when former King Gabriel Vilardi scored a power play goal, his ninth of season. The teams traded a goal apiece in period two and the Kings again outshot the Jets across the 20 minutes, this time 11-7.
Up 2-1 entering the third period, the Kings locked the Jets offense down and added to their lead while doing so. Picking up a fortuitous goal a quarter of the way into the period was Kevin Fiala, doubling the lead for the second time in the game. Throwing the puck towards the Jets net, the puck deflected off of Jets defenseman Hayden Fleury who was preoccupied and tangled up with Laferriere and into the net. The goal for Fiala is his eighth and snaps an eight-game goalless drought. Sealing the victory, Kempe buried his 11th goal of the season from his own defensive zone into the empty net. In a period where the Jets needed at least one goal, the Kings held their opponent to just two shots.
David Rittich also bounced back after Monday’s game and stopped 13 of 14 shots and earned his 100th career win in the NHL. Rittich becomes the eighth Czech-born to reach the century mark. Rittich now sits six wins shy of passing Michael Neuvirth’s 105 wins to move up to seventh on the all-time Czech goalie wins list.
