The Kings of Los Angeles saw their 2024-25 season end in match 4, after a defeat of 6-4 Thursday evening in Rogers place in Edmonton.
Only 79 seconds from the match, the Kings took an early advance, the fifth time in six games that they scored the first goal of the match. The Kings have executed well in transition, the striker Alex Laferriere finding the striker Kevin Fiala with a bank passing from the wall, before Fiala nourished the attacker Quinton Byfield on a breakaway. Byfield died at his forehand and defeated the goalkeeper of Edmonton Calvin Pickard on the blocker side for his third goal in the series and an advance of 1-0.
The Oilers responded less than two minutes later, however, capitalizing on a Netfront race to equalize the game to one. After the striker, Connor Brown, had blocked his shot at the front, he recovered the rebound and progressed towards the slit. His shot between the circles diverted the striker Adam Henrique and in the former goalkeeper of the Kecy Kuemper kings, to equalize things early.
The Kings restored their advance on the next quarter of work, however, taking a 2-1 lead in the first four minutes of the match. Attacing the rush, striker Phillip Danault fed the defender Brandt Clarke on the right wing. The young defender chose his place and sent his shot after Pickard, high-end above the blocker and for his second goal from the series, visitors back on a goal.
Again, Edmonton has pushed back to tie things, with the fourth goal of the match in the first six minutes of play. Coming on the first play of the game, the Connor McDavid striker checked the washer in the right circle and put on a pass in the slit to transmit Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who collected and fired quickly, beating Kuemper 2-2.
Edmonton took his first lead in the match just under 13 minutes after the start of the match, striker Zach Hyman scoring his second goal in the series. During a victory in the game in the offensive zone, the Oilers checked the washer to the nurse of defender Darnell at the left point. The nurse’s shooting was deflected by Hyman on the way and in the hosts, the hosts fired in front for the first time in match 6.
After the second period went back and forth for almost three -quarters of the 20 minutes, Edmonton took a lead in several goals. Combining in 4 against 3, the oilers made three correct readings and finally struck the defender Darnell Nurse as a trailer. The nurse beat Kuemper Clean on the block side with her wrist shot, undisputed in the slit, while the hosts took an advantage of 4-2.
The hosts opened an advantage of three goals just over 90 seconds after the objective of the nurse, again capitalizing on the race. By driving the net, the Trent Frederic striker made his way in the top of the Plé, where he finished in a little traffic in front of the Kuemper net for his first goal in the series and the biggest lead in the match for Edmonton.
With just inside two minutes to play in the second period, the Kings withdrew a goal to put themselves in a pair towards the second intermission. Rush, Fiala nourished a Jordan Spence charged through the slit, where the defender pulled a shot for the first time in front of Pickard and in striker Samuel Helenius providing the screen in front. With the secondary assistance, Helenius resumed his first point of career playoff series, the Kings pulling at 5-3.
With Kuemper on the bench for the additional attacker, the Kings returned to a goal while the defender attracted Doughty slipped a shot through the good point, which escaped everyone in front, with the exception of striker Anze Kopitar, deviating for his second goal in the series, carrying the 5-4 score. Edmonton added an empty goal with only a second on the clock to bring us to a 6-4 final.
Listen to Kopitar, striker Adrian Kempe and head coach Jim Hiller after the defeat of the end of the season tonight.
Anze Kopitar
Adrian Kempe
If it is the most difficult of the four series to take for him, with the team they had
Yeah, I think yes. I mean, more recently too, for sure, but I think that this year …… two previous seasons, two playoff series, I have the impression that we may not have been close enough to be as good as they are. This series had the impression, in addition to the last home match we had, it was as if we were the best team. Yes, we could not close the games we should have. So it came back and bit the decline in us.
If it will ultimately be games 3 and 4, he returns back as the decisive part of the series
Yeah for sure. I think the match 4 may be our best match in the series as a whole. Yes, three too, I think that after two periods, we were really solid. It’s difficult, it fears when you play as many more than five games out of six, to go out like that. We have to regroup.
If he had the impression that the team had enough in the tank in matches 5 and 6, after having invested as much in matches 1-4
Yeah, I think yes. Obviously, it is difficult if you play a lot and you may not be used to playing as much in the regular season, but once you got a few games, you know, I have the impression that everyone was fine, I hope everyone was fine. I’m quite used to it, so I feel like I have enough gas at the end of the games and at the end of the periods, that’s for sure.
On if she has trouble determining why kings cannot find a way to pass the ilers
No. I think this series was because we could not finish the games. We couldn’t hit empty sharp. We had about 9 or 10 tests where we did not understand it. I’m not saying that we win these games, we win the series, but it would have been a different momentum in match 5 and match 6 for sure. It was the biggest difference manufacturer. That’s all I have to say.
Jim Hiller
On if this season is the most difficult to accept from its three series here
They are all hard, I can tell you, but yes, depending on how we started the series, how we had played the last two months of the season, how we started the series, how we did not manage to close a couple, how we had a real match 5 difficult for our team, we played so unusual of our team. We then arrived this evening, (the journalist) said that they scored a lot of goals, I thought that we probably deserved more than four myself. We had a lot of chance, especially in the third period. It sometimes happens when you hang out, it’s easier.
If he sees it as a missed opportunity for his team
100%. It is a missed opportunity. It’s very clear. Yeah, this is a missed opportunity for us. Above all, we had an excellent purchase of our players. We think we could have won the series. We think we should have won the series. We didn’t do it.
If there is that there is a mental block, the four defeats coming against Edmonton
No, no, I’m not going to go. We had our chances of doing it and we did not do it.
On the difficulty of recovering the momentum after Edmonton took control of the series.
I thought we recovered it tonight, to be honest, I thought we had played well. I know they had 2 against 1 when we press the end. I don’t know what chances were at the end. They surpassed us, in my mind, in a game and overtime, I will also give them overtime, there is no questions. We lose the series, this part does not really matter.
If he regrets the deployment of certain players earlier in the series, with hindsight
No.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mbbql4dqu0
Notes –
• The attacker Quinton Byfield (1-0 = 1) scored his third goal of the qualifiers for the Stanley 2025 Cup, his fourth point (3-1 = 4) of the series, to open the scoring in match 6 of this evening in Rogers Place. According to the NHL PR, the goal of the center arrived 1:19 in match 6, scoring the second fastest to start a potential elimination match in the history of the Kings, dragging only Wayne Gretzky (0:52 in match 7 of 1989 DSF against EDM).
• Defender Brandt Clarke (1-0 = 1) drew his second goal from the playoffs at home, tied for the second among the skaters selected in the NHL 2021 draft with Logan Stankoven (2G) by Carolina and Wyatt Johnston (2G) from Carolina behind Matthew Knes of Toronto (3G). Clarke is the first Blueliner among his draft cohort to find the back of the net in the STANLEY Cup qualifiers and is joined by Luke Hughes from New Jersey (0-2 = 2) as the only defender with several post-season points.
• Defender Jordan Spence (1-0 = 1) scored his first goal in career playoffs, assisted by striker Samuel Helenius (0-1 = 1), who recorded his first point in career playoffs on the game.
• Captain Anze Kopitar (1-0 = 1) scored his second goal from the 2025 eliminatory series, his ninth point (2-7 = 9) of the playoffs.
• The striker Kevin Fiala (0-2 = 2) completed his third and fourth aid in the series, bringing him to a total of seven points (3-4 = 7).
• Fiala recorded 30 points (14-16 = 30) in her career in 49 games in playoffs and is one of the three skaters of Swiss nationality to be recorded as a
Many, joining Nashville Blueliner Roman Josi (12-33 = 45) and the Winnipeg attacker Nino Niederreiter (17-21 = 38), who both played more than 90 games in the playoffs.
• The striker Alex Laferriere (0-1 = 1) took his second assist in the playoffs, his fourth career series in career (1-3 = 4) to equalize the 10th point most and the eighth assists among the skaters selected in the RNH 2020.
• The striker Phillip Danault (0-1 = 1) recorded his sixth decisive pass of the series on the goal of Clarke. With the assistant, from Victoriville, Quebec,
Increased his total career in the 19-point playoffs (7-12 = 19). In doing so, he equaled Steve Kasper (6-12 = 18) for the fourth assists and broke a draw with Kasper for the unique possession of the fourth point most by a skater born in Quebec in the history of the playoffs.
• The defender drew Doughty (0-1 = 1) recorded his third assist in the playoffs on the goal of Kopitar’s fence.
• According to the NHL PR, the Kings and the Oilers combined for four goals in the first 5:55 am, scoring the third fastest goals to open a potential game, after match 6 of the 1965 semi-finals between the Canadians and the Maple Leafs (3:49) and match 5 of the Stanley 2016 Cup final between the Penguins and the Sharks (5:06).
The Kings will organize exit interviews in the coming days, following the conclusion of the 2024-25 season.
