Sam Malinski #70 of the Colorado Avalanche is mobbed by teammates after scoring past goalie Darcy Kuemper #35 of the Kings during the third period of a NHL hockey game at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Sam Malins ki (not pictured) of the Colorado Avalanche scores past goalie Darcy Kuemper #35 of the Kings during the third period of a NHL hockey game at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) A official goes down during the third period of a NHL hockey game between the Kings and the Colorado Avalanche at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Anze Kopitar #11 of the Kings just misses a goal against goalie Mackenzie Blackwood #39 of the Colorado Avalanche during the third period of a NHL hockey game at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Goalie Darcy Kuemper #35 of the Kings blocks the shot by Jere Innala #22 Colorado Avalanche during the third period of a NHL hockey game at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Goalie Darcy Kuemper #35 of the Kings eyes a shot on goal by Martin Necas #88 of the Colorado Avalanche during the third period of a NHL hockey game at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Anze Kopitar #11 of the Kings after scoring against the Colorado Avalanche during the second period of a NHL hockey game at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Warren Foegele #37 of the Kings falls on the ice as he reaches for the puck against Sam Malinski #70 of the Colorado Avalanche during the first period of a NHL hockey game at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Goalie Darcy Kuemper #35 of the Kings blocks a shot by Valeri Nichushkin #13 of the Colorado Avalanche during the first period of a NHL hockey game at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kevin Fiala #22 of the Kings shoots past Parker Kelly #17 of the Colorado Avalanche to score a power play goal during the first period of a NHL hockey game at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Show Caption1 of 10Sam Malinski #70 of the Colorado Avalanche is mobbed by teammates after scoring past goalie Darcy Kuemper #35 of the Kings during the third period of a NHL hockey game at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 12, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Expand LOS ANGELES — The Kings made another leap toward home ice in the first round, taking advantage of the Colorado Avalanche’s diluted lineup to prevail 5-4 at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday afternoon. They took a two-goal lead, retroceded it and then twice re-established it to ultimately move four points ahead of the Oilers for second place in the Pacific. Those rivals will square off in Edmonton on Monday. The Kings sat four points behind division-leading Vegas, pending the Golden Knights’ result against Nashville on Saturday night. Elsewhere, 2014 Kings Stanley Cup hero, Alec Martinez, announced his retirement and skated in his final NHL game for Chicago on Saturday. Colorado was missing at least eight players because of injury or rest, including their No. 1 center and top four defensemen: Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Devon Toews, Jonathan Drouin, Josh Manson, Ryan Lindgren, Ross Colton and Miles Wood. Colorado was locked into a first-round matchup with the Stars that’ll kick off in Dallas. “I’ll take every win. They were missing a few guys, but they’re a pretty good team [even] without those guys,” Kings coach Jim Hiller said. “It just goes to show you the depth that they have. It’s going to be a heck of a series with Dallas. I’ll take that win all day long.” Kevin Fiala scored two goals, while Quinton Byfield and Alex Laferriere notched a goal and two assists apiece in a contest wherein their line percolated early and often. Anže Kopitar produced a goal and Andrei Kuzmenko contributed two assists to accumulate 12 points in his past seven outings. Darcy Kuemper snapped his streak of two or fewer goals allowed at 15 appearances, giving up four on 26 shots. Brock Nelson bookended the scoring for Colorado with a power-play marker and a point-blank tally. In between, Valeri Nichushkin scored a goal and assisted on one by Sam Malinski. Artturi Lehkonen chipped in two assists. Mackenzie Blackwood made 28 saves. Kuemper started the Kings off on the right foot by foiling Lehkonen with a fast-switch pad save. Yet the first period was far from a goaltending clinic as 11 combined shots elicited three goals, two of them by the Kings. Consecutive penalties were a theme, with Colorado taking two in a row following the Kings’ opening blow and the Kings being whistled twice in 22 seconds in the middle of the frame. The Kings faced seven shorthanded situations in four periods after facing seven in the previous four games. Byfield scored 4:03 after the puck dropped, getting the game’s first goal for a third straight time. As was the case against the Ducks on Thursday, Kuzmenko earned the primary assist, this time with a slick pass that he turned back from below the right circle to Byfield between the hash marks for his career-best 22nd goal. Kuzmenko would earn his fifth assist in four periods with another primary helper. He found Fiala zooming into the zone and toward the high slot, where his show-and-go move shook Parker Kelly, allowing him to find both a lane and an angle for his 33rd goal of the campaign. Colorado would grab a goal back from its extended two-man advantage. The first of two first-period penalties for Kyle Burroughs and Trevor Moore’s infraction left the Kings vulnerable for three of the Avs’ in-season additions: Nelson, Charlie Coyle and Martin Necas. Coyle feathered a cross-ice pass for Nelson’s 300th career goal. Burroughs was on the ice for the second goal and the Kings dropped down to five defensemen immediately afterward. In the end, Burroughs had more penalty minutes (4:00) than ice time (3:42). On that play, Nichushkin capitalized on some defensive confusion down low, making a five-on-five situation look similar to the five-on-three one from Colorado’s first goal, sneaking through traffic to find a velvety feed from Lehkonen, 2:13 into the second period. “That’s a really good team, playing for home ice. I thought we came out and competed the way we needed to [in order to] win a hockey game,” Colorado coach Jared Bednar said. The Kings would respond with two unanswered goals at 10:57 and 16:02. Byfield’s faceoff win allowed Brandt Clarke, who played in his 100th career game, to zip down below the right faceoff circle and slide a pass into the slot for a one-timer that became Laferriere’s personal-best 18th goal of the year. “(Clarke) made an unbelievable play. We talked a little bit before that faceoff,” Laferriere said. “We wanted him to come down the wall. That’s exactly what he did. Then he had to beat a guy, cut to the middle and make an unbelievable pass. It shows how special of a player he is.” Kopitar made it consecutive games with a goal, this time netting his 21st marker of 2024-25 with a backhanded bid to clean up Adrian Kempe’s rebound. In the third period, the two teams traded goals, with Malinski halving the Avs’ deficit off a silky setup from Nichushkin off the rush at 9:18 before Nelson scored in tight with 2:40 to play. Between Colorado’s successful forays, Fiala deposited what would stand as the game-winner. He swiftly redirected Laferriere’s pass into the low slot. Fiala’s second goal of the game, fourth in two games, sixth in five games and team-leading 34th of the season also set a new career-high. “He’s such a mature player now. You can look at the progression he’s had all year. He’s not cheating the game as much anymore,” Laferriere said. “He’s been a really good player for us recently.” Related Articles Kings look to take advantage against depleted Avalanche Kevin Fiala, Kings power their way to rout of Ducks in final meeting of season Kings and Ducks ‘gotta fight for space’ in Freeway Faceoff finale Doughty, Gibson among nominees for Bill Masterson Memorial Trophy Kings edged by Kraken in rare home loss ...read more read less