Armia’s 2 goals lead Kings to 4-2 win over Mammoths – Hockey Writer – Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings (14-8-7) travel to Salt Lake City to take on the Utah Mammoths (14-14-3) on Monday night. Darcy Kuemper guarded the net while Czech Karel Vejmelka stepped up for the Mammoths. The Kings will take on the Kraken in their next game on Wednesday, December 10th in Seattle, coming away with the win and two points.
Kings lead 2-0
The Kings dominated the first quarter with Alex Laferriere’s hard hit on Utah’s Nate Schmidt. Los Angeles converted shot after shot, but Utah goalie Vermelka held his ground and denied any chance to score. The Kings briefly lost momentum when Warren Foegele was whistled for his first penalty kick of the season. Kuemper made a couple of great saves to ensure the Mammoths couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity.
The Kings’ relentless pressure paid off at the 12:10 mark when veteran Adrian Kempe scored his tenth goal of the season on a backhand shot. Two minutes later, at 9:52, Joel Armia hit an incredible shot to put the Kings up 2-0. Clearly frustrated with Los Angeles’ momentum, Utah players were more aggressive against the Kings in the remaining minutes until the end of the game. The Kings returned to the locker room, took control and took a two-goal lead while the Mammoths regrouped and tried to get on the board.
Utah tried to tie it up but had no luck
The second period started with a bang for the Mammoths, as Dylan Gunther fired right away, scoring Utah’s first goal of the game just seconds after 20 minutes. The Kings then made a mistake as they accepted an early penalty, with Kempe heading into the penalty area. That mistake alone gave the Mammoths a chance to fight back and tie the game.
Vermelka remained sharp and quick with impressive saves, denying goal opportunities from Drew Doughty and Alex Turcotte. Although the Kings tried to score another goal, they had no luck. At the end of this quarter, Los Angeles led 2-1 and was ready for the third quarter.
Kings win 4-2
The final frame saw the Kings’ consistent control of the puck and neutral zone. At 16 minutes and 33 seconds, captain Anze Kopitar regained the two-goal lead and made it 3-1. Los Angeles appears to be completely in trouble, while Utah is in trouble. Despite Kuemper’s impressive performance, the Mammoths found the back of the goalkeeper’s net at 7:45. Clayton Keller scored his tenth goal of the season to narrow the deficit to 3-2. That gave Utah some energy, and the Mammoths got a couple of hits, including Nick Schmaltz’s Laferriere and Brandon Tanev’s Cody Ceci.
But the Kings fought back and stayed cool under pressure. Armia scored his second goal of the night with less than two minutes remaining in the final period to seal the win and give the Kings two points in their first road win in December. The famous “Mom Tour” continues as the team is whisked off to the next road trip city.
