Dancing in the Reign: Koivu knocks off Kings; Late goals give Anaheim 2-1 Victory

In a game in which the Kings never really played well, Saku Koivu was able to steal the game with a late 3rd period goal, and snag a win for the Anaheim Ducks with a 3rd-round shootout goal. For the second consecutive game, Koivu has recorded a game-tying goal late in the 3rd period. Anaheim, who now stands at 10th place in the Western Conference with 85 points, continue to hold on the their slim playoff hopes. The Kings remain at 7th place in the Western Conference with 95 points. Goaltender Jonathan Quick returned to the starting lineup with a solid performance; Stopping 32 of Anaheim’s 33 shots. Quick was a positive note to a Kings team that struggled tonight. This is a good sign, after Quick sat behind Jonathan Bernier for two consecutive games. Jack Johnson, who has been playing well lately, including a superb game Thursday against Vancouver, recorded the Kings only goal of the night. Below are my notes on tonight’s game:

– Solid effort from Ryan Smyth to contain a loose puck on a first period Kings power-play. Smyth, who was able to set his feet and control the puck inside the zone, fed an open Jack Johnson on the point, who released a one-timer that deflected off Anaheim’s Troy Bodie to beat goaltender Curtis McElhinney.
– I was impressed with Jonathan Quick‘s performance tonight. With two consecutive games on the bench behind Jonathan Bernier, Quick looked sharp. Able to get some rest and concentrate on practice time, it certainly showed as though it paid off. Quick has consistently showed his ability to rebound from sub-par performances, and he did so tonight; Even in a losing effort.
– With the Anaheim Ducks desperate for points as they try to maintain their stake in the Western Conference playoff race, Saku Koivu came up huge. Koivu buried a rebound while crashing the net after a shot of his own, tying the game late with only 1:32 remaining. Koivu clinched a Ducks victory beating Jonathan Quick up top to the right in the final round of the shoot-out.