When the Kings welcome the Buffalo Sabres for a Halloween matinee, both clubs could still be a little spooked from their sinuous victories Thursday.
The Sabres (6-4-3, 15 points) surmounted a pair of two-goal deficits to mount a 7-3 advantage against the Ducks, only to find themselves fending off a frenetic rally in the final gasp of a white-knuckled 7-6 win.
In their past two triumphs, which had a flop in Chicago sandwiched between them, the Kings (4-6-2, 10 points) exploited suspect goaltending and gained confidence in the process. They sprinted out to a 5-1 lead over the Ottawa Senators on Thursday after they cashed in on a five-minute power play for a vicious check that removed defenseman Brandt Clarke from the action.
From there, however, they were outscored 4-0 and forced to give the fans an unwelcome bonus session, eventually securing two points in overtime.
“Pucks were just going in and it deflated us a little bit,” Kings team captain Drew Doughty said. “That can never happen again, ultimately, but we played really good hockey for a long time and we won the game, so we’ll just take it.”
Doughty said that 3-on-3 overtime situations were strongly emphasized by new Kings coach Peter Laviolette and his staff, something that differed from Laviolette’s predecessors.
Quinton Byfield, who scored the overtime winner off assists from Doughty and Artemi Panarin, said that 2025-26, the Kings knew they couldn’t afford to remain subpar in OT.
“Last year, we set the record for overtime games, and in a lot of them, we were on the wrong side of it. We probably lost 10 or 15 points because of it, so it’s very important that we can get better,” Byfield said. “It’s the difference between third and first in the division or making the playoffs.”
Not only did Byfield deliver the game-deciding goal, he had a primary assist on Trevor Moore’s marker, which also accounted for another of Doughty’s three assists. Byfield’s two points doubled his season total on a night when he went head up with the player drafted behind him in 2020, Tim Stützle, who had three assists of his own.
“We need (Byfield) to be one of our best players every night if this team wants to (get) where we want it to go,” Doughty said.
Doughty has racked up six of his seven points this season in his past two appearances, between which he sat for a loss in Chicago. He’ll need to continue producing if Clarke is sidelined due to the upper-body injury he sustained off Thursday’s reckless hit by former King Hayden Hodgson.
Clarke is on track to top all Kings defensemen in scoring and blocked shots for consecutive campaigns. He sits tied for second in points among all Kings skaters. A resurgence from Doughty would be even more timely in Clarke’s potential absence.
If Clarke is out, it would almost undoubtedly mean Cody Ceci would draw back into the Kings’ lineup. Though his underlying numbers have been stronger than last year’s woeful showing, Ceci has been a harbinger of failure for the Kings this season. They’re 0-5-2 with Ceci in skates but 4-1-0 with him in street clothes.
Buffalo’s Tage Thompson will surely have his No. 72 circled on the white board after a hat trick and five-point outburst against the Ducks elevated him into the team scoring lead. Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin was a Norris Trophy finalist last year.
His cohorts, 2021 No. 1 overall pick Owen Power and former Duck Olen Zellweger, have contributed considerably. Power has 11 points in 13 games, including two overtime game-winners, while looking like an elite rearguard. Zellweger has six in his past eight matches.
Buffalo (6-4-3, 15 points) at Kings (4-6-2, 10 points)
When: 1 p.m. Saturday
Where: Crypto.com Arena
How to watch: ABTV