The Los Angeles Kings pounded the New Jersey Devils 4-0 on Monday to move to the brink of claiming the franchise’s first Stanley Cup and concluding their unlikely playoff run in true Hollywood fashion.
The brilliant Jonathan Quick recorded his third shutout of the post-season, while Anze Kopitar, Alec Martinez, Jeff Carter and Justin Williams all scored to hand the Kings a commanding 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
The Kings can now finish off the Devils and hoist the Stanley Cup on home ice if they can complete the unlikely sweep with a Game 4 win at the Staples Center today.
Photo: Reuters
The victory was another step in a remarkable journey for the Kings, who scraped into the post-season as the eighth seeds after losing more games than they won, but they have reigned supreme in the playoffs, boasting a 15-2 record.
Only one team, the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, have clawed back from 3-0 deficit to steal the Cup, but the cautious Kings are not planning a victory parade just yet.
“We’re going to keep pushing forward,” Los Angeles’ Justin Williams told reporters. “We’re a focused group right now, we’re not going to let anything get in our way. We certainly don’t want to get back on that plane. We’re tasting that we’re close and that should drive us even more.”
Boasting a perfect 10-0 on the road in the post-season, the Kings showed they could be just as dominant at home, with Quick stopping all 22 shots he faced to demonstrate why he is the leading candidate for the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Stanley Cup’s most outstanding player.
Quick has received plenty of support, with defensemen throwing themselves in front of shots, while the rest have been swallowed up by the Kings netminder, who has surrendered just two goals in three games on more than 70 shots.
“You need outstanding goaltending to win playoff games,” Kings coach Darryl Sutter said. “He’s given us that.”
Following a scoreless opening period, the Devils had the early run of play in the second, but again it was the Kings who were on the scoreboard first when Martinez jammed home a loose puck from a goalmouth scramble after Martin Brodeur had denied Dwight King twice from close range.
The Kings added to their lead with 4 minutes, 53 seconds left to play in the second when Kopitar took a pinpoint feed from captain Dustin Brown and redirected it past a helpless Brodeur.
After a pair of 2-1 overtime nail-biters in New Jersey, the Kings ended the drama early with powerplay tallies at the start of the third period from Jeff Carter and Justin Williams, sparking chants of “We want the Cup” from the ecstatic home fans.
In an extraordinary post-season that has seen the Kings set a string of records and firsts perhaps the most impressive is that they have charged to 3-0 leads in all four series.
The Devils had their chances and they enjoyed a four-minute man-advantage late in the opening period when Carter was sent off for high-sticking, but they could not convert any of their five power plays. Los Angeles are 12-for-12 on the penalty kill in the finals.
GUNNING FOR A WIN: The victory sending Arsenal to the final for the first time in six years was cathartic for a team who had lost their previous four semi-finals Arsenal on Tuesday reached the League Cup final for the first time in eight years as Kai Havertz sealed a 1-0 win against Chelsea in the semi-final second leg. Mikel Arteta’s side had put themselves in pole position in the first leg and Havertz came off the bench to finish the 4-2 aggregate victory in the closing moments at the Emirates Stadium. It was a cathartic triumph for the Gunners, who had lost their previous four semi-finals in last year’s UEFA Champions League and League Cup, the 2022 League Cup and the 2021 UEFA Europa League. In their first final for six years,
Ademola Lookman on Thursday scored on his Atletico Madrid debut in a 5-0 rout of Real Betis Balompie that sent Diego Simeone’s team to the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey. David Hancko, Giuliano Simeone, Antoine Griezmann and Thiago Almada also scored for Atletico as they advanced to the last four for the third straight season. Atletico are trying to reach their first Copa final since winning the competition in 2012-2013. Hancko opened the scoring for the visitors in the 12th minute and Giuliano Simeone added to the lead in the 30th, before Lookman got his first goal for Atletico on a fast
SUPERSTAR DELIVERS: Victor Wembanyama scored 29 points and pulled down 11 rebounds to propel the Spurs to a 135-123 victory over the Dallas Mavericks The Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday shook off the early exit of injured star Luka Doncic, rallying without him in the second half for a 119-115 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. Austin Reaves, again coming off the bench in his second game back from a 19-game injury absence, scored 13 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter, drilling a pair of back-to-back three-pointers to give the Lakers their first lead of the game early in the final frame. “Losing Luka, you know nothing’s going to be easy after that because he does so much for us, but we bonded together,” said
DEADLINE DAY: Rennes’ Jacquet had been linked with a transfer to Chelsea earlier this month, but was reportedly put off the move due to the Blues’ bloated squad Liverpool on Monday won the race to sign Stade Rennais defender Jeremy Jacquet on the quiet final day of the English Premier League transfer window, while Crystal Palace swooped for Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Jorgen Strand Larsen despite the collapse of Jean-Philippe Mateta’s move to AC Milan. The Reds agreed a reported fee of up to ￡60 million (US$82 million) for the highly rated Jacquet. However, the 20-year-old will not join the Premier League champions until the summer despite Liverpool’s need for defensive reinforcements. Jacquet had been linked with a transfer to Chelsea earlier this month, but was reportedly put off
RSS