Jets fall 4-1 to the Los Angeles Kings

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This article was published 02/04/2025 (185 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

LOS ANGELES — The self-inflicted wounds weren’t necessarily plentiful, but they sure were costly.

Poor puck management proved to be the undoing of the Winnipeg Jets as they fell 4-1 to the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday at Crypto.com Arena.

An errant breakout pass and a pair of neutral-zone turnovers all led directly to goals as the Jets had their three-game winning streak snapped by a Kings team that feasts on opponents that make mistakes in transition.

“A lot like us, they’re really structured and they’re really disciplined in their structure, so they make it difficult to create,” Jets captain Adam Lowry said after the morning skate. “Sometimes it’s a frustrating game. It’s not one of those games where you have a lot of time or a lot of space with the puck on your stick and you’re making clean plays.

“And they’re very patient, so if you feel like the game isn’t going your way, you start to try and push the envelope a little more and that’s where they become very dangerous.”

That’s precisely what the Kings were when the Jets were unable to get the puck in deep.

First, it was David Gustafsson, whose dump-in was broken up, leading to a rush goal by Kings captain Anze Kopitar.

Then Logan Stanley had his pocket picked by Andrei Kuzmenko as the Jets defenceman tried to get around him just past the red line.

Stanley lost his balance and crashed into the boards in front of the bench, while Kuzmenko went in and scored to restore a two-goal cushion the Kings would not relinquish.

“They’re one of the best analytic teams without the puck and in their end of the rink. They do a pretty good job of clogging up the middle of the ice,” Jets head coach Scott Arniel said on Tuesday morning. “You’ve got to work for every inch of the inside to get any kind of scoring opportunities — or even speed in the neutral zone.”

Los Angeles won all three games in the season series, with Winnipeg earning a single point in an overtime loss on Jan. 10.

The Jets, who slip to 51-20-4, continue a three-game road trip on Thursday at T-Mobile Arena against the Vegas Golden Knights.

Let’s take a closer look at this one:

THE RACE – The Jets entered the contest with a four-point cushion over the Dallas Stars in the chase for top spot in the Central Division standings and failed to extend it.

That leaves the door open for the Stars to pull within two points on Thursday as they take on the Nashville Predators, who figure to be in a sour mood after getting thumped 8-4 by the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday.

The sprint to the finish line figures to feature plenty of drama, but with the Stars riding a six-game winning streak, the Jets lead could be down to two points by late Thursday night.

The final head-to-head meeting of the regular season is scheduled for Apr. 10 in Dallas and the winner of that contest — provided it’s not a three-point game that goes into extra time — figures to go a long way in determining the top seed in the Western Conference.

THE MOMENTUM SHIFTER — After Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck was called for tripping Kevin Fiala, Arniel had a decision to make regarding who would serve the bench minor from the players that were on the ice.

Since Cole Perfetti doesn’t kill penalties, Arniel sent him to the box and after surviving the two minutes, Morgan Barron blocked a shot by Quinton Byfield and found a streaking Perfetti, sending him in on an odd-man rush with Kyle Connor.

Perfetti sold the passing option well enough to freeze Darcy Kuemper before beating him to the blocker side with a perfect shot.

The goal was the 17th of the campaign for Perfetti, who has pulled within two goals of his career high with seven games left in the regular season.

THE KEY PLAY — Kuzmenko restored a two-goal cushion late in the second period, stealing the puck from Stanley and sneaking his shot past Hellebuyck.

THE THREE STARS

1. Andrei Kuzmenko, Kings, The trade-deadline acquisition scored a goal, added an assist.
2. Anze Kopitar, Kings, scored a goal, added an assist.
3. Cole Perfetti, Jets, scored a goal, generated four shots on goal.

THE SIGHTING — Near the end of the morning skate, Jets’ defenceman Neal Pionk made his way to the bench and waited patiently to skate onto the ice.

Although he tried his best to stay under the radar, Pionk’s teammates greeted him with a hearty round of stick taps, coupled with a little hooting and hollering.

Pionk reacted by showing a bit of his personality, going with a polite wave to the crowd — even though the building was nearly empty.

“I thought he was just the social organizer for these trips,” Arniel joked before getting serious. “It’s nice to see him back. That was his first time on the ice and you heard the response. The boys were happy to see him — as are the coaches.”

With Pionk hitting the next target on his road to recovery, is there any update on the timeline for his return?

“Now it’s all conditioning and feel,” said Arniel.

Pionk’s return may not be imminent, but he’s inching closer to getting back on the lineup and there’s still time for him to suit up in the regular season to knock off the rust before the Stanley Cup playoffs arrive.

EXTRA, EXTRA — Jets defenceman Luke Schenn left the morning skate early after he stiffened up and was a late scratch. He was replaced by Haydn Fleury, who moved onto the third pairing with Stanley, who played on his off-side. Colin Miller was bumped up to the second pair with Dylan Samberg. There’s no doubt the Jets missed Schenn’s presence on the ice, especially in a game where real estate was tough to come by.

Manitoban Joel Edmundson, who was chosen in the second round (46th overall) of the 2011 NHL Draft by the St. Louis Blues, chipped in an assist in what was his 600th NHL game. The Kings defenceman found the errant pass at the left point and his shot was tipped home by Trevor Moore to open the scoring at 8:28 of the first period.

Jets goalie Eric Comrie is on the trip and dressed as the backup, but he remains on baby watch, so Winnipegger Chris Driedger is on the road trip as insurance after he was recently acquired in a trade with the Florida Panthers for fellow netminder Kaapo Kahkonen. Driedger has appeared in five games with the Manitoba Moose.

The Jets’ other healthy scratches were defenceman Ville Heinola and former Kings forward Jaret Anderson-Dolan. Anderson-Dolan has seven goals and 19 points in 51 games for the Moose.

Former Moose sniper Jeff Malott was in the Kings’ lineup for the fourth time this season, skating on the fourth line with Trevor Lewis and Samuel Helenius. Malott signed with the Kings as an unrestricted free agent after spending four seasons with the Moose. Malott has 23 goals and 51 points in 61 games with the Ontario Reign.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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