Johnson and Sutter talk LA power play and goaltending

LA Kings – Jack Johnson (photo by Dimur)

The Kings lost 1-0 to the Jets in overtime last night, on a goal by Evander Kane. Earlier in the game, Winnipeg’s young forward had tried starting a fight with LA defenseman Jack Johnson after taking umbrage with a hit put on teammate Blake Wheeler. Not much happened though and both guys ended up in the penalty box, with Kane getting an extra two minutes.

In 23:34 of total ice time – second only to Drew Doughty among all players in the game – Johnson finished the night with one shot on goal, two hits and two blocked shots.

After things were over, he shared these thoughts…

On the overall game – “Our goalie played a phenomenal game. But, at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how well he plays – if we can’t score a goal, we’re in trouble. I thought it was a pretty hard fought game. When teams play the way they do today, it’s a bounce here or there that can win or lose you a hockey game.”

On both teams killing off a 5-on-3 power play – “It cost us the game, you can say that. We had plenty of chances throughout the game to score. But, that was huge for both teams. They had one fairly late in the game, which could have won it for them. There were plenty of chances for both teams though.”

On any regrets from the loss – “We regret not scoring. We don’t hang our heads though, it was a hard fought game. Looking back, we took three out of four points on the road. So, it was pretty good. If we can take three out of four on the road every time, that’s a pretty good season.”

On the Kings play of late – “I think we’re a little bit more energized. But, we’re still having trouble scoring goals. That hasn’t quite been solved yet. Last night we won. But, I thought our goalie stole us the game in Chicago. We only scored two goals and then tonight we didn’t score any. Fortunately for us, we have some incredible goalies back there to give us a chance.”

Bonus quotes from coach Darryl Sutter…

On the Kings not scoring with a 5-on-3 power play – “I don’t think it was a turning point, it was 0-0. I thought we stayed with it and played hard…We’re having trouble scoring. So, you have to give our guys credit just the way (they played). We gave up one goal in two games on the road. What are you going to do?”

To read quotes from the Jets locker room – where the Winnipeg players had plenty of praise for the Kings – click here…or see the linked articles below for more stories.

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