Kings’ Iginla draws blood in fight-filled win at Calgary
Jarome Iginla scored his 100th game-winning goal, got an assist and drew blood in a fight during what might have been his Saddledome finale, helping the Los Angeles Kings beat the host Calgary Flames 4-1 in a brutal game Wednesday night.
The animosity stemmed from a game March 19, when Calgary rookie Matthew Tkachuk elbowed Kings defenseman Drew Doughty in the face. Tkachuk, 19, was suspended two games.
Los Angeles’ Kyle Clifford approached Tkachuk near center ice before the game, and players from both teams gathered to exchange words. Tkachuk fought Braydon McNabb in the first period and was dropped to the ice by an uppercut.
Iginla later fought Deryk Engelland, opening a cut on Engelland’s forehead that left blood all over Iginla’s white jersey.
With a clean sweater, Iginla scored late in the second period to put Los Angeles up 2-1. Trevor Lewis, Anze Kopitar and Jeff Carter also scored for the Kings.
Iginla played with Calgary from 1996-2013, and this could be the 39-year-old’s final season. If this was his last game in Calgary, he said goodbye in memorable fashion.
Iginla scored with 46 seconds left in the second during a scramble around the crease. He couldn’t get his shot through, but Calgary defenseman Mark Giordano, lying on his belly, accidentally swept the puck into his own net while trying to pull the puck under goalie Brian Elliott.
Blues 3, Coyotes 1: Vladimir Tarasenko and Patrik Berglund scored, Berglund added an assist and visiting St. Louis beat Arizona for the 11th straight time and the third time in 11 days. St. Louis’ Carter Hutton stopped 22 shots, including a breakaway attempt by Tobias Rieder in the third, before Alex Goligoski scored a power-play goal. The Blues moved closer to a postseason berth, falling short of clinching because the Kings beat the Flames. Capitals 5, Avalanche 3: Marcus Johansson and Evgeny Kuznetsov each had a goal and an assist, Jay Beagle and John Carlson also scored and visiting Washington kept rolling with a win over Colorado. The Capitals (110 points) are on track to clinch the President’s Trophy with the most standings points for the second straight season. The Capitals’ Lars Eller scored into an empty net. Blackhawks 5, Penguins 1: Artemi Panarin and Richard Panik started a four-goal first period for Chicago, and the Blackhawks moved closer to locking up the Central Division title with a victory over shorthanded host Pittsburgh. Marcus Kruger and Marian Hossa also scored during the explosive first period. Tanner Nero added a breakaway goal in the third. The Penguins’ Bryan Rust got a third-period goal.