Coyotes beat slumping Kings on Fischer's OT goal
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Christian Fischer scored at 2:42 of overtime off a rebound of Christian Dvorak's shot and the Arizona Coyotes overcame two blown leads to beat the slumping Los Angeles Kings 3-2 on Friday night.
Scott Wedgewood stopped 23 shots while filling in for the injured Antti Raanta as Arizona finally beat a Western Conference foe after starting the season 0-8-2 against their rivals. The Coyotes also won for only the second time this season at Gila River Arena -- both times in overtime -- and now are 2-7-1 there.
Kings backup goalie Darcy Kuemper stopped Alex Goligoski on an unimpeded breakaway early in the overtime, but couldn't make the save on the winning goal as Dvorak's wrist shot deflected wide and Fischer, skating wide, put it into the net for his sixth goal.
Despite Kuemper's 30 saves, the Kings lost for the seventh time in eight games after starting 11-2-2. They've scored only 11 goals during those seven losses.
Marian Gaborik, playing for the first time this season after missing 22 games with a lower-body injury, set up the Kings' initial tying goal by captain Anze Kopitar, his 10th, early in the second period during a delayed penalty.
Trevor Lewis scored the second tying goal for the Kings early in the third period, nudging a loose puck in the crease past Wedgewood from a couple of feet away, as Los Angeles twice came back from Arizona leads.
Brendan Perlini and Oliver Ekman-Larsson also scored for the Coyotes. Ekman-Larsson, a defenseman who has two goals and five points in his last four games, beat Kuemper with a slap shot from the left point on a power play at 10:17 of the first -- the first goal allowed by Kuemper in 117 minutes and 33 seconds.
Perlini scored for a third consecutive game, making it 2-1 late in the second by redirecting Goligoski's slap shot and causing it to quickly change direction as it sailed by Kuemper.
Kuemper, who started as the Kings played the first of two games in as many nights, is 3-0-2 in his career against Arizona.
Arizona didn't draw a penalty until Wedgewood was called for holding behind the net with 4:38 remaining, but the Coyotes killed off that penalty. The Coyotes were 1-for-4 on the power play.
NOTES: Kings RW Marian Gaborik (lower-body injury) played for the first time since April 9; he missed the first 22 games of this season. Gaborik needs four goals to reach 400 for his career. ... Coyotes G Antti Raanta (upper-body injury) remained out after getting injured in the first period Wednesday against San Jose. He also will miss, at a minimum, the Saturday night game against Vegas. ... With the Kings playing a back-to-back and G Jonathan Quick stuck in a six-game losing streak, backup G Darcy Kuemper started. ... The Coyotes scratched RW Mario Kempe, the brother of Kings LW Adrian Kempe, for a fourth consecutive game. ... Kings C Alex Iafallo's Minnesota-Duluth team beat Coyotes C Clayton Keller's Boston U. team in the NCAA West Regional final in March.