Kopitar, veterans help Kings tie series with Oilers

EDMONTON -- The Los Angeles Kings did not seem too bothered losing the opening game of the Western Conference First Round against the Edmonton Oilers. 

The veteran-laden Kings knew a better effort in Game 2 at Rogers Place on Wednesday could get them right back on even terms.

The veterans led the way with captain Anze Kopitar scoring at 2:07 of overtime to give Los Angeles a 5-4 win and tie the best-of-7 series 1-1. Game 3 is at Crypto.com Arena on Friday (10:30 p.m. ET; MAX, TBS, BSW, TVAS2, SN). 

"Obviously, it helps having 'Kopi' and these guys that have been through it all before, just calming us down and all that kind of stuff in the locker room," said Kings forward Adrian Kempe, who scored two goals. "I think throughout the game (Wednesday), we were up early and then Edmonton came back and I think we stuck with it, and we played pretty solid after that. We kept sticking with it and played our game." 

Los Angeles was run out of Rogers Place in Game 1, falling behind by four goals and rarely threatening in a 7-4 loss. Going into Game 2, the Kings wanted to flip the script and did it by taking an early lead, expanding on it and holding off the Oilers' push. With the win, Los Angeles now has home-ice advantage with the next two games in California. 

"We've got a lot of veteran players, a lot of guys who've done a lot of winning," Kings coach Jim Hiller said. "You need that, to have that kind of poise and focus; refocus, get out there and go again, because it is emotional for everybody. But the players did a really good job of just calming themselves and going about their business and I think the veteran leadership, guys who have won, guys who have been in the finals, we've got a number of those guys who really make a difference in that situation."

The Kings' best players came to play against the Oilers in Game 2. Edmonton was expecting to face a desperate team and despite pulling even twice, could never wrestle control from Los Angeles. 

"I felt like if we were ever able to get the lead, we could have finished the game," Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. "But we were never quite able to do that."

Kopitar had two assists to go with his overtime goal, defenseman Drew Doughty scored on a breakaway, and Kevin Fiala had a goal, while Quinton Byfield had two assists and a massive hit on Oilers captain Connor McDavid in the third period.

"They're a big part of our team and have been throughout the whole season," Byfield said of the veterans. "We all didn't feel good about our first game, so we had a lot to prove this game, and everyone stepped up their game and Kopi led thew way. Leaders lead and that's what he did, we just followed him and it was a lot better."

Byfield set up the overtime winner by knocking down a pass from Mikey Anderson at center and having it deflect into the path of Kopitar, who took the puck to the net and snapped a shot over the shoulder of Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner. 

"I'll try to take credit for that," Byfield joked. "I saw Mikey and the puck bounced on him and got a little high, and I was thinking, 'no icing,' and tried to get a stick on it. 'Kopi' is always in the right spot, always supporting the puck, getting ready to go on the forecheck, luckily it worked out for him, and what a finish."

Kopitar seemed to anticipate the puck was going to bounce in front of him and beat Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse to the spot. It was Kopitar's 25th playoff goal in his 94th playoff game. 

"That's why he's been here for 18 years or however long he's been here," Anderson said. "He's so smart, he always knows where to be. He maybe doesn't always move at top speed, but he can read the play and knows when it's time to kick it into gear and when to slow it down. He knows when to push for offense more or lay back for 'D'. He's obviously our guy here, he's the model and he's the guy we want to have, and he comes through big for us."

Kopitar, the No. 11 pick in the 2005 NHL Draft, has won the Stanley Cup twice (2012, 2014) and ranks first in Kings history in games (1,373) and assists (792), second in points (1,211) and fourth in goals (419). The 36-year-old still sets a standard for the entire organization and was confident Los Angeles would put in a better effort in Game 2. His calm demeanor heading into the game seemed to resonate throughout the team. 

"It was a lot better game in terms of managing and making the right plays than we did in Game 1," Kopitar said. "We came out strong and obviously scored a couple of goals, which always helps. We've talked about that before in the playoffs, there's usually ups and downs within the series, within the game, so you just have to be prepared for that and just kind of go about it the next shift and try to make the most of it."