Coyotes Shut Down Kings, Keep Stanley Cup Hopes Alive
2012 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs
Los Angeles, CA
Captain Shane Doan scored two goals and the Phoenix Coyotes kept their flickering Stanley Cup hopes alive with a 2-0 win over the Los Angeles Kings in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals at the Staples Center.
Doan took a pass from Ray Whitney and backhanded a shot past Jonathan Quick at 14:19 of the first quarter to give the Coyotes an early advantage.
Doan added his second goal in the 11:10 mark of the second period from an assist by Antoine Vermette, who won a faceoff in the right circle of the offensive zone.
Doan flicked a shot that went off the stick of Kings defenseman Rob Scuderi and past Quick. It bounced off the camera in the net and back out quickly, so play went on but the goal was confirmed after an official review.
Doan's two goals increased his postseason total to five while Whitney, who led the team with 72 points in the regular season, collected his first point in seven contests.
Vermette, who was acquired from Columbus just before the trade deadline in February, now leads the Coyotes with 10 points in this postseason. He and Doan are tied for the team lead with five goals.
Goalie Mike Smith shut down the Kings' offense with 36 saves.
After winning eight playoff games in a row and 11 of 12 to start the 2012 postseason, the Kings will face an energized Coyotes side in Phoenix on Tuesday and try to close out the series and advance to their second Stanley Cup finals.
Then led by hockey legend Wayne Gretzky and Luc Robitaille, the Kings first made it to the Stanley Cup finals in 1993 but lost to the Montreal Canadiens in five games.
The Coyotes, for their part, have the chance to become the fourth team in NHL history to come back from a 3-0 deficit and win a series.
The Toronto Maple Leafs came back and beat the Detroit Red Wings in the 1942 Stanley Cup final.
The New York Islanders, in only their third NHL season, bounced back against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round of the 1975 playoffs.
In 2010, the Philadelphia Flyers came back from 3-0 deficit against the Boston Bruins and won in the Eastern Conference semifinal.
Coyotes Shut Down Kings, Keep Stanley Cup Hopes Alive
Twitter: @ihavenet
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