LOS ANGELES— Don’t look now, but “That 70’s Line” has been recast and the results are phenomenal. Tyler Toffoli scored the first hat trick of his promising career and the Kings finally got the Calgary monkey off their back by beating the Flames 5-3 at Staples Center on Thursday.
With forward Tanner Pearson out indefinitely with a broken leg, Dwight King replaced him on the line with Jeff Carter and Toffoli aptly named because of the jersey numbers of the players on the line and a play on the hit FOX series, That 70s Show.
“The line was really good,” said Kings head coach Darryl Sutter. “They were our best forwards by a long shot”
Toffoli scored for the third consecutive game after returning to the Los Angeles lineup in February after battling mononucleosis. The young forward finished with three goals and an assist, his first hat trick in 120 career games.
“I feel like my game is at a whole new level right now,” he said after his performance.
Jordan Nolan also scored for the Kings who piled on in the third period. Carter had three assists as he eclipsed 500 points in his career The Kings are now 12-0 when Carter scores more than a point in a game.
“It’s a big win for us,” said the Kings center. “We’ve been in these games before, and a lot of them in the past couple of years. Not a lot needs to be said in this room. If you looked around the room before the game, you could tell that everyone was ready.”
The Flames had defeated the Kings on three consecutive occasions this season and surprisingly are ahead of Los Angeles in the standings as both teams compete for a playoff spot.
Mason Raymond had two goals for the Flames who now lead the Kings by just three points for the 8th and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Flames rookie Johnny Gaudreau known as “Johnny Hockey” had an assist in the game.
The Kings got off to an early 1-0 lead but quickly saw that slip away in the second period in a span of 32 seconds. David Jones scored on the power play for the Flames and Raymond scored just seconds later to give Calgary the 2-1 lead.
“They outplayed us for most of that game,” said a dejected Jones. “They brought their A-game.”
Jamie McBain missed a golden opportunity to tie the game at the end of the second period when he found himself with a wide open net and the puck on his stick. McBain’s shot flew over the net instead.
A minute later the equalizer would come thanks the man of the hour. Toffoli scored his second goal after a Jake Muzzin shot deflected off Jeff Carter’s stick and ricocheted to Toffoli who was wide open on the right hand side of the net.
The Kings didn’t look back from there as they scored three unanswered goals before surrendering Raymond’s second of the night.
Calgary goalie, Jonas Hiller, who celebrated his 33rd birthday on the evening, was pulled with 11:39 left in the third period after giving up 5 goals on 40 shots and was replaced by Karri Ramo.
“I just wanted to give Ramo some playing time with a 3-goal deficit,” explained Calgary head coach Bob Hartley. “Sometimes it just changes the game but that game could have been over after 40 minutes.”
Jonathan Quick made 15 saves for his 20th win of the season.
Game Notes:
Before the game the Kings honored former head coach Barry Melrose, who led the Kings to their first Stanley Cup appearance in 1993. In honor, of the legendary coach, the Kings wore their vintage purple and gold uniforms during the game. Jeff Carter scored his 500th career point on his second assist of the game.
© 2024 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
