On January 1, the NHL played just one game. The Los Angeles Kings host the New Jersey Devils in their first game of 2025.
game review
In the first quarter, each team started slowly. The only notable moments were Paul Cotter receiving a minor penalty for hooking Quinton Byfield and Anze Kopitar for catching Luke Hughes (Luke Hughes) received his first penalty of the season. The Devils took 15 shots to the Kings' eight. The Devils had the better ball control in the first quarter, but neither team was able to score on their chances.
With 6 minutes and 23 seconds left in the second quarter, the Kings took the lead between the two teams. Jacob Movillare passed the puck to Jordan Spence, who fired the puck into the neutral zone. Andre Lee grabbed the puck and skated in front of the two Devils on either side of him. He got up and fired the ball into the net, scoring the first goal of his NHL career. Timo Meier equalized for the Devils six minutes later. Unfortunately, the goal was disallowed due to goalie interference. Since each team only gets two more minutes of penalties, there's still 20 minutes of work to do; it's still anyone's game.
Early in the third quarter, the Devils went on their third power play of the night. Alex Turcotte was sent to the penalty area after tripping L. Hughes. Once again they failed to benefit from the manpower advantage. Soon after, the Devils gained an extra man advantage. Cote was sent to the box for roughing Brandt Clark. On their man advantage, Byfield was awarded his second penalty of the night for tripping Brett Pace. With that call, it's time for 1 minute and 16 seconds of 4-on-4 hockey. Although the Kings had a great chance towards the end of the four-on-four game, Jake Allen had other plans and made a great glove save. As the Devils' 41 seconds of power play time expired, the Kings put another point on the scoreboard. Mitch Anderson caught the puck in the Devils zone and passed it to the Kings zone where it was caught by Warren Fogel. Byfield fired the puck toward the net. Fogel passed to Byfield, who shot for the Kings' second goal of the game.
The Devils were already down two points, so in an attempt to mount a comeback, they stretched the keeper. The Kings were the only team to benefit from this, though, scoring an empty-net goal. L. Hughes shot into the net, and Anderson made up for the missed ball. He passed to Fogel, who in turn passed the ball to Adrian Kempe. Kempe's shot from the center of the ice hit the back of the empty net. The Devils had another chance to mount a comeback when Turcotte was sent to the end zone on a double minor from high-sticking Ondrej Palat. It didn't matter though, the Devils couldn't score even with a 6-on-4 advantage. The Kings won this game on January 1st.
next game
Both the Kings and Devils will take some time off on Saturday, January 4th to get back into fighting shape. The Kings will look to keep their momentum going when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning.
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