As expected, the Los Angeles Kings just couldn’t help but wait until the last possible second to try and squeeze themselves back to life. Despite their best efforts and Jonathan Quick’s return in net for the defending champs, the Flames of Calgary were just too good and help their own 3-1.
But believe it or not, the Kings style of play nearly (miraculously) payed off again.
Calgary knocked first on the scoring door with two goals within three minutes of each other mid-way through the frame — thanks to Johnny Gaudreau and Jiri Hudler.
From that point on, it would remain 2-0 in favor of the Flames until the third period came around. Jordan Nolan cut the Calgary lead in half with a goal right on the money five minutes into the action. As you can imagine, this aided in building the climax and really set the stage for nearly another crazy Kings comeback victory.
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But the champs fell just short.
A questionable move by head coach Darryl Sutter by not pulling Quick off the ice earlier may have cost the Kings dearly. Los Angeles was in the offensive zone and had the puck for nearly forty seconds with just over a minute to go but still Quick was not being pulled to the bench for an extra man as hockey allows.
And after being pulled moments later, the Flames got an empty net goal and made it an impossible 3-1 to overcome.
I guess we only can imagine the what-if now.
The Kings, though, have baffled us before, so it was no unfamiliar territory until the final buzzer sounded and it was clear that we had not come out victorious.
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But you can’t win everything. Sometimes it takes losing to really create the classic form of a champion.
The Kings still get to end the season with a bang as they face the San Jose Sharks on Saturday night in Staples Center. It’s safe to say that the crowd will be one-hundred percent Kings fans, as any Sharks cheers will be immediately drowned out by a “Sharks suck!” or the good ol’ “Go Kings, GO!”chant.
The Kings will even have one of the better mascots in the building to help fans cope with the idea of not being in the playoffs for the first time in roughly half a decade.
Bottom Line: The Kings will be back with a vengeance
Regardless of the fact that the Kings fell short this time around, the 2015 NHL Playoffs are going to be a sight to behold. New and improved teams like the Calgary Flames, Vancouver Canucks, Minnesota Wild, New York Islanders, and even the Winnipeg Jets are going to put a new spin on what it means to be an underdog, as at least one of them will make it to the second round.
Maybe further.
They’ve taken notes on how the Kings have had success as a low seed before, I can promise you that. And as the playoffs kick off next week, even though it didn’t end how the L.A. faithful hoped it would, it was a season to remember nonetheless.