Kings 3, Coyotes 2 (SO)
Jarret Stoll netted his 20th goal of the season in the first period and added the pivotal shootout tally as the Los Angeles Kings clinched a postseason berth with a 3-2 home triumph over the Phoenix Coyotes on Wednesday.
Kyle Clifford also tallied in regulation and Michal Handzus was successful in the first round of the shootout for Los Angeles (36-28-6), which moved past the idle Nashville Predators (43-26-11) and into fourth place in the Western Conference standings.
After permitting a shootout tally to Radim Vrbata in the second round, Jonathan Quick preserved both the win and the postseason berth by stopping Lauri Korpikoski. The 25-year-old Connecticut native finished with 33 saves.
Lee Stempniak and Taylor Pyatt collected a goal and an assist apiece and Vernon Fiddler set up a pair of tallies for Phoenix (42-25-13), which fell to 9-2-3 in its last 14 games. With the shootout loss, the Coyotes pulled even with the Predators for fifth place.
Ilya Bryzgalov turned aside 31 shots and remains one victory shy of becoming the franchise's all-time wins leader. The 30-year-old Russian is currently tied with Bob Essensa witn 129 wins.