Avalanche at Kings
The Los Angeles Kings haven't had much reason to smile this season, but a shutout by a rookie goaltender to complete a 2-0-1 road trip is as good a reason as any for the cellar-dwelling club. The Kings hope Cal Petersen continues his success on Wednesday when they open a three-game homestand against the high-powered Colorado Avalanche, who are averaging an NHL third-best 3.55 goals per contest.
"He played well all the way through the trip. We're in a bit of a tough spot, so we really needed him to play well, and he played well," Los Angeles coach Willie Desjardins said of Petersen, who made 29 saves in Monday's 2-0 win over St. Louis. The 24-year-old Petersen has turned aside 116 of 122 shots in parts of four games while filling in for fellow netminders Jonathan Quick and Jack Campbell, who are sidelined with meniscus tears. Petersen likely will be tested by a Colorado club that features a top line consisting of Mikko Rantanen (NHL-best 32 points), Nathan MacKinnon (team co-leading 13 goals) and captain Gabriel Landeskog (13 goals, league high-tying plus-13 rating). Rantanen capped a three-point performance on Sunday by scoring a power-play goal with 1.3 seconds remaining in overtime as the Avalanche improved to 3-0-1 in their last four games with a 4-3 win at Anaheim.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, Altitude (Colorado), FS West (Los Angeles)
ABOUT THE AVALANCHE (10-6-4): Rantanan also set up a pair of goals on Sunday to boost his point total to eight (three goals, five assists) in his last four games while MacKinnon notched his fifth three-point performance of the season to give him 11 points (five goals, six assists) in his past seven. "You just had the feeling that with some of the chances that they were able to create, that they would be difference makers," Bednar said of the celebrated top line. Tyson Barrie set up MacKinnon's second-period goal versus the Ducks, pushing his point streak to five games (one goal, five assists) while giving him 203 career assists -- four shy of John-Michael Liles' franchise record for a defenseman.
ABOUT THE KINGS (7-12-1): Petersen's first career shutout came on the same night that fellow rookie Matt Luff secured a milestone of his own. Playing in his sixth game since being recalled from Ontario of the American Hockey League, the 21-year-old Luff converted a sweet saucer pass from Adrian Kempe and lifted a shot past Jake Allen for his first NHL goal with just over eight minutes remaining in the second period. "I just kind of blacked out and shot my shot and it went in," Luff said.
OVERTIME
1. Colorado G Philipp Grubauer has recorded at least one point in six consecutive outings (4-0-2).
2. The Kings won all three encounters against the Avalanche last season.
3. Colorado C Alexander Kerfoot will play in his 100th game on Wednesday.