Adrian Kempe scored six seconds into overtime — tied for the fastest OT goal in NHL history — to lift the Los Angeles Kings to a 5-4 win against the visiting Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night in the regular-season finale.
Viktor Arvidsson scored two goals, including the game-tying tally during six-on-four play with 1:21 left, and he added an assist for the Kings, who leapfrogged the Vegas Golden Knights for third place in the Pacific Division.
Kempe, Quinton Byfield and Trevor Moore each had a goal and an assist, Phillip Danault had three assists and Cam Talbot made nine saves for Los Angeles, which will face the Edmonton Oilers in the first round for a third straight season.
Tyler Johnson, Joey Anderson and Ryan Donato scored five minutes apart early in the third period to give Chicago a 4-3 lead. Donato finished with two points. Lukas Reichel also scored and Arvid Soderblom made 30 saves for the Blackhawks, who ended the season on a six-game losing streak and with the second-fewest points in the NHL.
Ducks 4, Golden Knights 1
Frank Vatrano scored a hat trick and Lukas Dostal stopped 32 of 33 shots as Anaheim beat host Vegas.
The Golden Knights’ defeat, coupled with the Los Angeles Kings’ 5-4 overtime victory against the Chicago Blackhawks, dropped Vegas down to the second Western Conference wild card. Vegas will open the playoffs against the top-seeded Dallas Stars.
Jackson LaCombe had a goal and an assist, Ryan Strome registered two assists and Lukas Dostal stopped 32 shots for the Ducks. Jack Eichel scored and Adin Hill finished with 19 saves for the Golden Knights, who had a six-game home winning streak snapped.
Avalanche 5, Oilers 1
Valeri Nichushkin scored twice in Colorado’s four-goal first period, Nathan MacKinnon had two assists to reach 140 points and the Avalanche beat Edmonton in Denver.
MacKinnon, who finished second in scoring in the NHL, set the franchise record for points in a season, topping Peter Stastny’s 139 points in 1981-82 with the Quebec Nordiques. Mikko Rantanen, Josh Manson and Zach Parise scored and Justus Annunen made 25 saves for Colorado.
Dylan Holloway scored and Calvin Pickard turned away 13 shots in relief of Stuart Skinner, who logged nine saves on 13 shots in the first period for the Oilers.
Jets 4, Canucks 2
Nikita Chibrikov scored the game-winner in his NHL debut as host Winnipeg earned its eighth victory in a row, defeating Vancouver.
The Jets’ Cole Perfetti scored twice and Gabriel Vilardi added a goal. Laurent Brossoit made 18 stops for the Jets, who will host the opener of their first-round playoff series against the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday.
Conor Garland had a goal and an assist and Elias Lindholm also tallied for the Canucks, who had gone 3-0-1 in their previous four games. Thatcher Demko turned aside 22 shots for Vancouver, which will host the Nashville Predators to open the postseason on Sunday.
Flames 5, Sharks 1
Calgary enjoyed a milestone night as it concluded the season with a home-ice victory over San Jose.
Adam Klapka scored his first NHL goal, Blake Coleman reached 30 goals for the first time in his career in a two-point game and defenseman MacKenzie Weegar hit 20 goals for the first time. Kevin Rooney and Oliver Kylington also scored for the Flames, who missed the Stanley Cup playoffs for the second consecutive season.
Fabian Zetterlund notched a power-play goal with 8.9 seconds remaining for the Sharks.
Kraken 4, Wild 3
Tye Kartye scored the go-ahead goal with 2:40 remaining and Seattle held on to beat Minnesota in the season finale for both teams in Saint Paul, Minn.
Yanni Gourde scored two goals for Seattle, which snapped a four-game losing streak. Matty Beniers added a goal, while Oliver Bjorkstrand and Brandon Tanev each had two assists. Joey Daccord stopped 21 of 24 shots.
Kirill Kaprizov, Mats Zuccarello and Brock Faber scored one goal apiece for the Wild. Matt Boldy logged two assists, and Marc-Andre Fleury turned aside 23 of 26 shots.
–Field Level Media