Kings coach D.J. Smith showered with broken glass during playoff game vs. Avalanche

DENVER — An excited fan banged on the glass behind the Los Angeles Kings bench after a Scott Wedgewood penalty-shot save in the second period Tuesday, leading to the pane breaking and shards showering Kings coach D.J. Smith.

A trio of nearby fans said the fan was in the second row and reached over the front row seats and hit the top of the pane.

“He was basically just wailing on it as hard as he could,” said Avalanche fan Mike McNish, who went to the game with his 13-year-old daughter, Madison, and was sitting in the front row to the right of the broken pane.

“It dropped straight down,” added Kings fan Kyler Croskrey, who was to the left of the pane. “Then we heard it crumble in front of us.”

The Kings bench was not pleased with the development.

“Some of the coaches were a little upset with the guy who did it,” McNish said. “Said a couple choice words to him.”

“A bunch of the players were cussing,” Croskrey added. “They were like, ‘What the f—? Jacks—.’”

Croskrey said she believed the glass-banging fan was moved to a new section after the pane broke. An Avalanche spokesperson did not yet have details on whether the fan was moved or ejected.

The broken glass led to a 19-minute delay. Half a dozen stadium workers shoveled glass away and eventually added a new pane. The Kings all left the bench to avoid broken glass, and Smith and the coaches returned to the dressing room. Players from both teams milled around the ice. At one point, a group of Kings players knelt in their offensive zone, chatting. Opponents Nazem Kadri and Drew Doughty, both from London, Ontario, at one point chatted while skating around.

The arena DJ played lively music to keep fans entertained, and the video board showed Broncos coach Sean Payton. The crowd erupted when the stadium workers installed a new pane of glass.

Smith returned to the bench after the delay.

Wedgewood made his penalty shot save on Quinton Byfield, who drew a hook on Cale Makar after the star defenseman misplayed a puck at the blue line on an early-period Colorado Avalanche power play.