The Edmonton Oilers fell flat Saturday night in Los Angeles, getting throttled 4-0 by the Los Angeles Kings.
“We had one player show up and play — Darnell Nurse,” head coach Ken Hitchcock said after the game. “He was our best player by a mile. He was one of the most competitive players on the ice and that’s all we had.”
LISTEN BELOW: Ken Hitchcock
Kyle Clifford worked around Caleb Jones and beat Mikko Koskinen to open the scoring 3:15 into the game. After the Oilers failed on numerous attempts to clear the puck later, Tyler Toffoli made it 2-0. Then, Jeff Carter sniped on a two-on-one to make it 3-0. Koskinen was pulled after allowing three goals on eight shots. The Oilers managed only three shots in the first period.
Talbot made the Oilers’ best play of the second period, stopping Ilya Kovalchuk on a Kings power play in the final minute of the frame.
Anze Kopitar beat Talbot over the right shoulder halfway through the third for his 300th career goal.
Jonathan Quick made 16 saves for his 300th career win.
“We didn’t compete. Their best players were their best players. We didn’t compete,” added Hitchcock. “There’s been too much of this go on in the first 41 games. We win one, and then we take our foot off the gas. That’s exactly what we did.”
“These games are so important down the stretch, we’ve got to find a way to make sure we’re prepared,” Oilers forward Alex Chiasson said. “I don’t think that has anything to do with effort, I think that’s just preparation.”
LISTEN BELOW: Alex Chiasson
The Oilers, who have lost seven of their last eight to drop to 19-19-3 on the season, will visit Anaheim Sunday.
Catch the game on 630 CHED with the Face-off Show at 4:30 p.m. The game will start at 6 p.m.