LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Kings got another milestone performance from Adrian Kempe on Saturday night, but it wasn’t enough to avoid a 2-1 overtime loss to the Calgary Flames.
Kempe opened the scoring with his team-leading 11th goal of the season, giving the Kings an early advantage and cementing his place in franchise history. The 29-year-old winger recorded the 40th game-opening goal of his career, breaking a tie with Butch Goring and Ziggy Palffy for sole possession of sixth place on the Kings’ all-time list.
Alex Laferriere and Joel Edmundson picked up assists on the goal, which came during a strong first period for Los Angeles. Laferriere’s helper was his seventh of the season and extended his point streak to two games, while also moving him to within one point of tying Corey Millen for the 10th-most career points by a third-round draft pick in franchise history. Edmundson’s assist was his 11th of the season, tying Kevin Fiala for third-most among Kings skaters.
Calgary responded with sustained pressure as the game wore on, outshooting the Kings 38-21 overall and eventually forcing overtime. The Flames capitalized in the extra session to snap Los Angeles’ momentum and secure the road victory.
Despite the loss, the Kings were sharp defensively for much of the night. They killed off all four Calgary power plays and finished a perfect 4-for-4 on the penalty kill, though they were unable to convert on their own two power-play opportunities. Faceoffs were nearly even, with Los Angeles winning 51.4 percent of the draws.
Veteran defenseman Drew Doughty reached another personal milestone, skating in his 60th career game against the Flames. He became the first defenseman and seventh skater in Kings history to play that many contests against Calgary.
The defeat dropped the Kings to 14-8-9 on the season, keeping them third in the Pacific Division and sixth in the Western Conference. Calgary improved to 13-16-4, remaining seventh in the Pacific.
Los Angeles will not practice Sunday as it travels to Dallas. The Kings are scheduled to hold a morning skate Monday at American Airlines Center ahead of their matchup with the Stars, as they look to rebound quickly from a tightly contested loss.