Kings’ playoff hopes fading
They’ve lost four of five after failing to score at Edmonton, ending 0-2 trip.
EDMONTON 2 KINGS 0
EDMONTON, Canada — Cam Talbot made 35 saves for his second consecutive shutout and seventh of the season Monday night as the Edmonton Oilers ended an eight-game homestand with a 2-0 victory over the Kings.
Patrick Maroon and Milan Lucic scored for the Oilers, who won their fourth in a row to move one point ahead of the Calgary Flames and into a tie for second place in the Pacific Division with the Ducks.
Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid each had two assists.
McDavid leads the NHL with 82 points.
Jonathan Quick stopped 29 shots for the fading Kings, who have lost four of their last five games, further dashing their playoff hopes.
Maroon batted the rebound of McDavid’s shot out of midair and past Quick only 64 seconds into the game.
It was Maroon’s 25th goal of the season, 13 more than his previous career high.
The Oilers made the score 2-0 on the power play with seven minutes left in the opening period as Lucic corralled a loose puck in the crease and slid it under Quick for his 17th goal.
The goal ended a streak of 34 consecutive penalty kills on the road for the Kings.
The Oilers outshot the Kings, 15-7, in the first period, but the Kings recovered and had 28 shots on goal the rest of the way as Talbot stood tall in net.
The Kings had a power play late in the third period but were unable to get anything past Talbot, who made his league-high 65th start of the season.
Talbot’s seven shutouts are the most for an Oiliers goalie since the 2000-01 season, when Tommy Salo had eight.
The Oilers lead the fivegame season series, 2-1.
Tkachuk suspended
Flames rookie Matthew Tkachuk was suspended two games for elbowing Kings defenseman Drew Doughty in the face.
Tkachuk will sit out games Tuesday at Washington and Thursday at Nashville, the NHL’s department of player safety announced Monday night.
The 19-year-old forward hit Doughty in the face with his left elbow during the Flames’ 5-2 victory Sunday. Despite Tkachuk’s having no disciplinary history, the league ruled the elbow to be reckless and forceful enough to warrant a suspension.
Tkachuk, son of former NHL forward Keith Tkachuk, will forfeit $10,278 in salary.
The fifth pick in the 2016 draft has 13 goals and 33 assists in 68 games.