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Kings wrap 4-game trip with back-to-back in Buffalo and Boston

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With a rousing rally at their backs, the Kings will play two matches in a 30-hour span across Sunday and Monday with visits to Buffalo and Boston to wrap up their four-game road trip.

They surmounted a two-goal, second-intermission deficit against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday, completing their fifth comeback after trailing through 40 minutes this season. They have overcome two-goal deficits three times in their past eight games, having fallen behind by two in the first period of their victory over Vegas on Feb.18 and in the second stanza of their win against Arizona on Feb. 19.

On Friday, they were powered by winger Viktor Arvidsson’s hat trick. He opened the scoring, but the Kings found themselves trailing 3-1 after Columbus piled up three second-period goals in 46 seconds, the fastest trio of tallies in Blue Jackets franchise history. After winger Dustin Brown’s goal off a fortuitous bounce, Arvidsson netted the equalizer late in regulation and the game-winner with a minute left in overtime.

“We’ve shown the whole year that we have character in the room, people that want to win and who know what it takes to win, so it’s just an awesome group to be a part of,” Arvidsson said.

Arvidsson registered five shots on goal and two more attempts were near misses, with one striking the post and the other banging off the crossbar. Twelve of Arvidsson’s 18 goals – second best on the team – have come in 2022, and he leads the Kings in shots.

While his willingness to challenge opponents, push tempo and generate shot attempts made him an alluring fit for the Kings’ system, Arvidsson had scored 25 goals over his past two campaigns, a mark he is on pace to surpass in his first season as a King.

Arvidsson had previously been a devastating weapon in the Nashville Predators’ attack, particularly on their run to the 2017 Stanley Cup Final, when they beat the Ducks in the conference finals.

“When I was [coaching] in Anaheim, he was in a yellow sweater and he used to do that a lot,” acting coach Trent Yawney said of Arvidsson’s offensive outburst.

Arvidsson has given the Kings an explosive component and center Anze Kopitar has continued to provide a steadying presence in all areas of the ice.

Kopitar ranks third in the NHL in faceoff percentage, typically checks the opposing team’s top line and has been a beacon of offensive consistency. Before being shut out last week in losses to Boston and Dallas, Kopitar last went two games without a point on Jan. 8. He had recorded 21 points in 18 games in the interim, and he assisted on Arvidsson’s game-winning goal Friday.

Next up, Arvidsson, Kopitar and the Kings (30-19-7) will confront the Buffalo Sabres (18-30-8) and Boston Bruins (33-18-4). They beat Buffalo 3-2 on Halloween and were obliterated by the Bruins 7-0 on Feb. 28.

Forwards Tage Thompson and Jeff Skinner pace the Sabres in scoring, though trade acquisition Alex Tuch has been Buffalo’s most productive player on a per-game basis. He has 23 points in 24 games since recovering from shoulder surgery. Buffalo has not qualified for the postseason since 2011 and appears poised to extend its streak of playoff absences.

Boston is on track to make the playoffs for the 13th time in 15 seasons, a run that has included three appearances in the Final as well as a Stanley Cup in 2011. Seven Bruins accumulated two or more points against the Kings in their previous meeting, including leading scorers David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand as well as top defenseman Charlie McAvoy. Winger Jake DeBrusk burst forth with a natural hat trick as part of a four-point night.

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Kings at Buffalo

When: 10 a.m. Sunday

Where: Keybank Center, Buffalo

TV/Radio: Bally Sports West/iHeartRadio

Kings at Boston

When: 4 p.m. Monday

Where: TD Garden, Boston

TV/Radio: Bally Sports West/iHeartRadio

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