NHL Player News
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Trevor Moore LW | LA
Kings' Trevor Moore: Continues success on top line
Moore notched two assists in Wednesday's 4-2 loss to the Avalanche.
Head coach Jim Hiller shuffled the lines, and Moore got a big promotion to play alongside Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe. The trio combined for both of the Kings' goals in the loss, but those lines may not stick together for long after the team mustered just 15 shots on net. Moore has been one of the Kings' best players lately with two goals and seven assists during his seven-game point streak. For the season, the two-way winger has 12 points, 42 shots on net, 19 hits and a plus-2 rating through 18 contests.
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Anze Kopitar C | LA
Kings' Anze Kopitar: Adds two more assists
Kopitar notched a pair of assists in Wednesday's 4-2 loss to the Avalanche.
Kopitar helped out on both of Adrian Kempe's first-period tallies. With six helpers over his last five games, Kopitar has stayed productive despite some struggles with creating chances for himself. The 37-year-old center has five goals, 15 helpers, 18 shots on net, 11 blocked shots and a plus-3 rating through 18 appearances in a top-line role this season.
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Adrian Kempe RW | LA
Kings' Adrian Kempe: Scores both goals in loss
Kempe scored a pair of goals on four shots in Wednesday's 4-2 loss to the Avalanche.
Kempe tallied twice in the first period, but the Kings had trouble generating any offense after that. The 28-year-old continues to run hot and cold -- this was his fifth multi-point effort over the last 10 games, and he's been held scoreless in the other five games in that span. Overall, Kempe has seven goals, 16 points, 50 shots on net, 21 hits, 10 PIM and a plus-4 rating across 18 appearances in a top-line role.
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David Rittich G | LA
Kings' David Rittich: On hook for loss in relief outing
Rittich allowed a goal on five shots in Wednesday's 4-2 loss to the Avalanche, who also scored an empty-netter.
Darcy Kuemper (undisclosed) left the game in the third period with the game tied at 2-2. Rittich entered and gave up the second goal of Mikko Rantanen's hat trick, which ended up being the decisive tally. Rittich is down to 5-4-0 with a 2.71 GAA and an .887 save percentage through nine appearances (eight starts) this season. The 32-year-old would likely take over as the starting goalie if Kuemper misses time, while Pheonix Copley would be a candidate to be promoted from AHL Ontario.
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Logan O'Connor RW | COL
Avalanche's Logan O'Connor: Picks up helper in win
O'Connor provided an assist in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Kings.
O'Connor snapped a six-game point drought with the helper. The 28-year-old has often seen top-six minutes this season, though he was on the third line Wednesday. He'll likely stay there moving forward, as the Avalanche are expected to get back Valeri Nichushkin (suspension), Jonathan Drouin (upper body) and Miles Wood (upper body) for Friday's game versus the Capitals. O'Connor's picked up just three points with 20 shots on net, 28 hits and a minus-3 rating over 17 appearances, though he may be able to do more in a smaller role that's better suited to his skills.
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Cale Makar D | COL
Avalanche's Cale Makar: Registers assist in win
Makar notched an assist and went plus-2 in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Kings.
Makar set up a game-tying goal by Mikko Rantanen in the second period. The helper was Makar's second point over the last four games -- he's slowed down a little since his 13-game season-opening point streak ended. The star defenseman still has a fantastic 25 points, 47 shots on net, 23 blocked shots, 14 hits and a minus-5 rating through 17 appearances.
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Nathan MacKinnon C | COL
Avalanche's Nathan MacKinnon: Distributes three assists in win
MacKinnon recorded three assists, three shots on goal and a plus-3 rating in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Kings.
MacKinnon helped out on an Artturi Lehkonen goal in the first period as well as both of Mikko Rantanen's third-period markers. November has been kind to the reigning MVP -- MacKinnon has two goals and 13 helpers over six games this month. Overall, the superstar center leads the NHL with 33 points (seven goals, 26 assists) while adding 67 shots on net, 12 hits, 11 blocked shots, 12 PIM and a plus-4 rating over 17 outings.
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Artturi Lehkonen LW | COL
Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Pair of points in win
Lehkonen scored a goal on three shots, added an assist and went plus-2 in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Kings.
Lehkonen tied the game at 1-1 in the first period and helped out on a Mikko Rantanen empty-netter in the third. This was Lehkonen's third multi-point effort in five games since he returned from offseason shoulder surgery. He's at three goals, three assists, 15 shots on net, four hits and a plus-4 rating. The 29-year-old should remain in a top-six role even with Valeri Nichushkin (suspension), Jonathan Drouin (upper body) and Miles Wood (upper body) expected back Friday.
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Mikko Rantanen RW | COL
Avalanche's Mikko Rantanen: Natural hat trick in win
Rantanen scored a natural hat trick, added an assist, fired seven shots on goal and went plus-3 in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Kings.
Rantanen set up an Artturi Lehkonen tally in the first period and then went on to score the last three goals of the game. The hat trick gave Rantanen 12 goals on the season, good for a share of the NHL lead through Wednesday's action. He's surged to the mark with eight goals and two assists over his last five contests. The Finnish winger is at 25 points, 54 shots on net, 14 PIM and a plus-3 rating across 17 appearances this season.
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Alexandar Georgiev G | COL
Avalanche's Alexandar Georgiev: Faces little traffic in win
Georgiev stopped 13 of 15 shots in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Kings.
The Avalanche's defense was superb after the first period, giving the Kings hardly anything to work with over the final 40 minutes. Georgiev was able to limit the damage to two goals by Adrian Kempe en route to his third straight win. The 28-year-old Georgiev improved to 4-5-0 with a 3.56 GAA and an .863 save percentage across 10 starts this season. He's trending in the right direction and appears to have the trust of head coach Jared Bednar once again. The Avalanche have a tough test up next when they host the Capitals on Friday.