Alex Iafallo scored two goals and an assist, and the Kings broke a six-game losing streak to beat Montreal Canadiens 5-2 on Saturday afternoon at the Staples Center.
Arthur Kaliyev and Rasmus Kupari scored each in power play, Anze Kopitar and Matt Roy had two assists each, and the Kings (2-5-1) won for the first time since the start of the season. Cal Petersen scored 26 saves.
Josh Anderson scored his second game in a row, but the Canadiens (2-7-0) failed to score in a row for the first time this season. Jake Allen scored five goals in 38 shots.
After scoring just six goals in seven games in the second period, the Kings received two against Montreal, with special teams putting them in the forefront after being largely absent during the slide without a win.
Matt Roy, left, and Viktor Arvidsson are smiling after a goal in the second period.
(Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)
Kalii kicked a strong wrist kick from the left circle and put the Kings in the lead 2-1 at 12:19. It was his second goal of his career and the first in a power game.
The Kings equalized to 1 when Viktor Arvidsson defeated Allen at 4:31 with a wrist from the right circle.
The Kings transferred the momentum to the third third, while Kupari scored for the second consecutive game and took the result 3: 1 1:53 in the third.
Iafallo increased the lead to 4-1 at 5:37, and at 14:16 the Kings scored their third goal in power-play.
“I feel like we’ve been working on it in practice and we haven’t been doing well in recent matches, ah [today], what we wanted to focus on was punching shots, no matter where they came from, ”Iafallo said.
It was the Kings ’first game with more goals in a strong game since beating the Vegas Golden Knights in the opening night, and the three-to-five outbreak came after they had scored two to 21 in the last six games.
“It gave us a pillow. That gave us some consolation. That gave us confidence, “Kings coach Todd McLellan said.” We’ve been waiting for that to happen. ”
Kings striker Alex Iafallo (19) scored Canadiens goalkeeper Jake Allen for one of his two goals in the third period.
(Kyusung Gong / Associated Press)
He added: “And when you score like that in a power game, other parts of your game come along. You become confident. I think that might be the difference in the game. “
The Canadiens took a 1-0 lead at 18:22 of the first third with Anderson’s right wrist shot from the right circle. Despite the numbers, Anderson and Christian Dvorak were still able to beat the Kings, with Anderson finishing over the sprawling Phillip Danault.
Anderson have scored two goals and one assist in their last two games.
Ben Chiarot scored with 2:20 left in the third and at 5-2.
Montreal had a lengthy team meeting after the defeat.
“It takes a certain level of competition, a certain level of work to win this league every night. And right now, we’re not ready to give that consistently. And our results show that,” Chiarot said.
An unfortunate return
Canadiens striker Tyler Toffoli played for the Kings for the first time after spending the first eight seasons in Los Angeles, where 2014 was a key part of the team that won the Stanley Cup. Toffoli was recognized with a video tribute in the first part and received applause when he was declared a beginner, but said the welcome reception was spoiled by Montreal’s poor play.
“It was really nice,” Toffoli said. “I’ve spent many good and good years here and it’s sad that it was washed away by bad effort.”
Game notes
This was Kopitar’s third multi-point game. The Kings captain has not scored a point in the previous three games. … Kings defender Olli Maatta has received his 100th career assist. … Kings striker Lias Andersson made his debut of the season after missing the first seven games due to a groin injury. … Kings striker Brendan Lemieux has returned after missing six games while in COVID-19 protocol.
Next
The Canadiens visit the Ducks on Sunday, while the Kings host the Buffalo Sabers the same afternoon.