National Hockey League
Los Angeles 3, Montreal 2
When: 10:30 PM ET, Thursday, March 2, 2023
Where: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, California
Referees: Gord Dwyer, Chris Schlenker
Linesmen: David Brisebois, Trent Knorr
Attendance: 16974

Gabriel Vilardi had a goal and an assist for the Los Angeles Kings in a 3-2 win against the visiting Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night.

Alex Iafallo and Anze Kopitar also scored and Pheonix Copley made 19 saves for the Kings, who have won three of four to move into a tie in points with the Vegas Golden Knights atop the Pacific Division standings.

Josh Anderson and Denis Gurianov scored and Jake Allen made 30 saves for Montreal, which had won three of four.

Vilardi gave Los Angeles a 2-1 lead at 7:27 of the third period when a centering pass caromed to him at the side of the crease and he stuffed the puck in the net.

Kopitar scored with a wrist shot at 8:30 to stretch the lead to 3-1, but the Canadiens quickly cut the deficit back to a goal.

Gurianov scored with a slap shot from just above the left circle at 9:39, his first goal with Montreal since he was traded from the Dallas Stars on Sunday.

The Kings had to kill a penalty 25 seconds into the game when Blake Lizotte was whistled for high-sticking Jesse Ylonen.

The Canadiens went back on the power play after Vladislav Gavrikov was called for interference at 8:19, and Anderson scored on the man-advantage 55 seconds later for a 1-0 lead.

Montreal tried to center a pass that went off the stick of Kings forward Adrian Kempe and headed toward the crease. Los Angeles defenseman Mikey Anderson tried to sweep it aside, but it went off Josh Anderson and into the net for his 18th goal of the season, one shy of his total last season.

The Kings tied it at 7:42 of the second.

Los Angeles lost a faceoff in the Montreal zone, but the Kings quickly got the puck back and Vilardi passed to Iafallo, who scored his ninth goal of the season with a wrist shot from the slot.

Allen was coming off a 38-save effort in a 3-1 road win against the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday night.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Montreal   Los Angeles
Josh Anderson 1 Points Gabriel Vilardi 2
Josh Anderson 1 Goals Gabriel Vilardi 1
Mike Matheson 1 Assists Gabriel Vilardi 1
Josh Anderson 1 Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Jake Allen .909 Save Percentage Pheonix Copley .905
Jake Allen 30 Saves Pheonix Copley 19
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Montreal 21 2 1-3 4-4 8 28
Los Angeles 33 3 0-4 2-3 6 29
Upcoming Games
  • Los Angeles will play their next game at home against St. Louis. The Kings have a W/L % of .514 after a win and .607 after a loss.
  • Montreal will play their next game on the road against Anaheim. The Canadiens have a W/L % of .346 after a win and .486 after a loss.