Kings defeat Coyotes in overtime, advance to Stanley Cup finals

GLENDALE, Ariz. – Dustin Penner sent the Kings into the Stanley Cup finals and sent Phoenix fans into a tizzy.

Penner chipped in a rebound with 2 minutes 18 seconds left in overtime giving the Kings a 4-3 victory at Jobing.com Arena on Tuesday. The victory sent puts the Kings in the finals for the second time in franchise history.

Jeff Carter swooped in on net, but goaltender Mike Smith turned away his shot. The puck bounced to Penner, who put the shot between Smith’s legs.

The Kings set an NHL record with their eighth road victory during the playoffs.

The Kings’ best chance to win in regulation came on a shot by Mike Richards, which caught Smith in the mask and ricocheted harmlessly away from the net.

The Coyotes squandered a two-man advantage five minutes into the third period when Phoenix’s Martin Hanzal was sent off for interference. The Kings killed the remaining penalty.

A rash of activity produced four goals during a 10-minute span in the second period, yet left the score tied.

A scramble in front of the net gave the Coyotes the lead six minutes into the second period. A Rostislav Klesla shot hit Kings’ defenseman Slava Voynov, who was in front of goaltender Jonathan Quick. Marc-Antoine Pouliot beat Voynov to the puck, sliding into the net for a 2-1 lead.

The Kings pushed back five minutes later, outworking the Coyotes for one of the few times in the first two periods. Colin Fraser sent the puck back to the blue line, where Drew Doughty got a shot threw traffic and past Smith.

Penner picked up a loose puck in the Coyotes’ zone and crashed the net. Penner slipped a pass to Richards, who chipped a shot into the net for a 3-2 Kings’ lead 13 minutes in the period.

Taylor Pyatt rushed up ice and centered a pass, with the puck going off Keith Yandle and into the net to pull the Coyotes even, 3-3, 16 minutes into the period.

The Coyotes put the pressure on quickly, with Kings not getting their first shot on goal for 11 minutes.

Doughty was sent off for delay of game after dislodging the net during play. Radim Vrbata got a shot off on a rush that goaltender Jonathan Quick was barely able to deflect into the corner. Moments later, Vrbata centered a pass to Hanzal, whose shot was deflected in by Pyatt.

Another Kings penalty -- too many men on the ice -- led to another goal, this time by the Kings.

After Anze Kopitar won a draw in the Phoenix zone, Doughty fired from the blue line and Kopitar tipped the puck past Smith. It was the Kings fifth short-handed goal of the playoffs.

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