Kings suffocate in 6-2 loss against Utah

LOS ANGELES -- For the second time in seven days, the Los Angeles Kings faced off against the Utah Mammoth as the Kings’ regular season has nine games remaining.

Although in a different fashion, tonight’s game ended the same way as Sunday’s matchup did - with Utah (38-30-6) taking the victory over Los Angeles (29-26-18).

In the concluding season matchup, the Kings endured a 6-2 loss to the Mammoth on Saturday night at Crypto.com Arena, handing Utah a 2-1 series record over LA this season.

LA has now lost five of their last six games and the lack of wins couldn't have come at a worse time.

“The one thing about this team is there’s guys that care in there,” Kings interim coach D.J. Smith said in postgame interviews. “So it’d be different if there were one or two guys that just didn’t have it and whatever - everyone didn’t have it … and when that many guys don’t have it, you’re not blaming it on anyone, you’re gonna take it as a group, me (Smith) included.”

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The opening period was uncharacteristic for the Kings, and it only got worse as time progressed.

With help from defenseman John Marino, Alexander Kerfoot scored his fourth goal of the season just 2:31 into the first.

Logan Cooley would find the back of the net twice within three minutes: a snap shot for his 19th goal and a power-play goal as the Mammoth continued to keep the lead.

Anze Kopitar shot the Kings’ lonesome first period goal with assists from Adrian Kempe and Joel Edmundson, but Los Angeles would be down 3-1 to enter the second period.

The effort shown - or the lack of - between the two teams was astonishing to see, considering Utah holds a Wild Card spot in the playoffs and LA does not. And yet each team acted as if the opposite were true.

“Our passing wasn’t good,” Smith said. “We were not sharp in any facet in the game. Maybe other than 10 minutes in the third period where we played a little bit like ourselves. But for whatever reason, it’s not good enough. And against a team that is fighting for the playoffs just like us, it’s just not good enough.”

The Kings’ displayed bad defense all night, allowing Utah to have the shots they wanted, when and how they wanted them.

Kerfoot scored his second goal of the game and Nick Schmaltz scored a power-play goal while the Kings’ offense stayed stagnant during period two.

“We had no legs,” Smith said in postgame interviews. “… We made it hard on ourselves by playing the east-west in the neutral zone and (we) didn’t play fast at all. And when you play that way, you allow the other team to get above you - and that’s what we do to teams - and they were ready right from the get-go. We didn’t start on time tonight and before you know it, you’re just chipping and changing … and we just simply weren’t good enough.”

Adrian Kempe’s 27th wrist shot goal would be the last for the Kings, but continuing the pattern of the game, Utah wasn’t letting up, no matter what.

Mikhail Sergachev finished with four assists as he aided in Jack McBain’s empty-net goal to finish off the game as Utah demolished the Kings on home ice - where they should and need to be winning games.

However, this season that hasn’t been the case.

The Kings hold a 10-16-8 home record and a 19-9-10 away record, and with six out of their last nine games being held in Los Angeles, something has to give.

Drew Doughty said the team needs to have the same mentality that they keep on the road to be held on home ice as well.

"Just go out there, grind, get on the forecheck early,” Doughty said. “Things will start opening up to make plays later on in the game.”

Starting goalie Darcy Kuemper had 11 saves on 16 shot attempts, playing the first two periods before Anton Forsberg entered for the final period, earning 11 saves on 11 shots.

LA went 0-for-2 on the power play with 31 shots on goal while Utah went 2-for-3 and had 28 shots.

Up next:

LA Kings host the St. Louis Blues (31-30-11) at Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday at 6 p.m.

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Matt Coronato extended his point streak to five games with a goal and two assists as the Calgary Flames scored four times in the second period in a 7-3 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday.

Morgan Frost also had a goal and two assists for Calgary. Joel Farabee, Ryan Strome, Olli Maatta, Zayne Parekh and Adam Klapka rounded out the scoring. The Flames finished 5-0-1 on their six-game homestand.

Liam Ohgren, Jake DeBrusk and Nils Hoglander scored for Vancouver. The last-place Canucks have lost five straight.

Getting the start for Calgary, Dustin Wolf had 31 stops to win his third straight.

For the Canucks, Nikita Tolopilo was beaten four times on 11 shots before getting pulled early in the second. Kevin Lankinen gave up three goals on 12 shots in relief.

The Flames entered the game as the league’s lowest-scoring team, averaging 2.47 goals per game. The seven goals ties a season-high output. Calgary also scored seven in a 7-4 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Dec. 8.

Calgary will look to carry its momentum into a difficult six-game road trip that begins Monday against the league-leading Colorado Avalanche.

Up next

Canucks: Visit the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday.

Flames: Visit the Colorado Avalanche on Monday.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

LOS ANGELES — The script couldn’t have been written any cleaner in Hollywood.

On a night that already carried the weight of celebration — a birthday, a bobblehead giveaway, and a packed house of 53,340 at Dodger Stadium — Will Smith delivered the kind of moment that has come to define both his career and this Dodgers team.

Trailing 2-1 in the bottom of the eighth inning Saturday night, Smith turned on a 98-mph fastball and drove it straightaway to center field, a no-doubt, go-ahead home run that lifted the Dodgers to a 3-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks and completed a season-opening sweep.

“Late in innings we never feel like we’re out of the game; it always feels like someone is gonna come up with a big hit,” Smith said postgame. “Tonight it was me that got the big hit.”

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (16) celebrates with right fielder Teoscar Hernandez (37) after hitting a two-run home run during the eighth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Dodger St...

It felt inevitable, even if it didn’t look that way for most of the night.

Smith entered the eighth inning 0-for-3, emblematic of a Dodgers offense that sputtered through seven innings. They managed just four hits through the first five and only one more before Smith’s decisive swing — a quiet night that suddenly roared to life.

And yet, if there’s a setting where quiet nights flip into defining moments, it’s this one — and often, it’s Smith at the center of it.

Saturday marked his 31st birthday. He wasn’t even supposed to be in the lineup. Manager Dave Roberts had planned to give his catcher the night off after two straight starts. Smith had other ideas.

“We always talk about stuff and he was giving me the day off,” Smith said. “I kinda dropped the bobblehead card for tomorrow and he left me in there.”

It was a decision Roberts won’t second-guess.

“When you talk about big hits, clutch, you know Will is at the top of the list,” Roberts said.

The giveaway itself only added to the symmetry. The bobblehead commemorated Smith’s go-ahead home run in the 11th inning of Game 7 of the 2025 World Series — another pressure moment, another lasting image. Saturday became a real-time sequel.

“It’s fun,” Smith said. “You dream of those situations. I just feel prepared, feel calm, feel under control, not trying to do too much.”

Before the late-inning drama, Tyler Glasnow quietly authored a strong Dodgers season debut. The right-hander went six innings, allowing two runs on four hits while striking out six on 90 pitches.

His only real trouble came early. Corbin Carroll helped manufacture both Arizona runs — scoring in the first and driving in another with a sacrifice fly in the third — but Glasnow settled in from there.

“As the game went on, I got a better feel,” Glasnow said, noting improved command of his two-seamer.

From there, the Dodgers’ bullpen continued its early-season dominance. Alex Vesia and Will Klein combined for two scoreless innings, keeping the deficit at one and setting the stage for Smith.

Then came the trumpets.

For the second straight night, Edwin Díaz emerged from the bullpen to the now-familiar blare, and for the second straight night, he delivered. A clean ninth inning sealed his second save and preserved a perfect start for a bullpen that has yet to allow a run through three games.

“It’s great to have one of the, if not the best closer in the game,” Roberts said. “You can see the anticipation from the fans… right when Will hit the homer, everyone knew what else is to come.”

Earlier, it was Freddie Freeman who kept the Dodgers afloat. He reached base in his first three at-bats and sparked the offense with an RBI double in the sixth — the 548th of his career, tying Alex Rodriguez for 33rd all-time.

That swing nudged the Dodgers back into the game. Smith’s finished it.

A birthday. A bobblehead. A packed stadium. A late-inning comeback.

For the Dodgers, it was a perfect night. For Will Smith, it was just another reminder: when the moment finds him, he rarely misses.

Whether it's self-made or forced upon you, the decision about which football team to support is usually taken before you learn to ride a bike or even tie your shoelaces.

At such a young age, you're clearly oblivious to what you're are signing up for. You're subjected to an unwritten contract, where blind devotion is exchanged for intermittent moments of joy - and large amounts of heartache and pain.

And best of all… it's a lifelong pledge of loyalty.

Or is it?

Most would say 'yes'. And you might be directed to page one, rule one of the official football supporters charter – if such a document existed.

It would appear, in a world where someone can divorce and remarry, switch political allegiance or renounce a religious faith, ending a relationship with a football club is largely unheard of.

And changing allegiance to another team? That would be considered a mortal sin by the vast majority of football fandom.

But can you really STOP supporting your football team?

• Can you ever stop supporting your football team?

'I've got them tattooed to me'

Dylan, 21, didn't choose Oldham Athletic - the club chose him. The Latics are his local team and his family have followed them for generations. Speaking to BBC Sport, Dylan said he doesn't think he could ever turn his back on them.

"I wouldn't ever be able to. I've got them tattooed to me. I absolutely love my club. I go home and away, not missed a game since 2024," he says.

"If I had to stop going to games, I would still follow the results.

"When you get brought up as a football fan, it's supporting your team no matter the result.

"We've been in the Premier League and down as low as the National League. Yes, I prefer the win and the three points, but it's not about that, it's about the atmosphere, the people you meet and just the team in general."

Football fans are, of course, wide ranging but to understand those who may be considered extreme we only need to remember 'fan' is short for 'fanatic'.

"Watching a football game can sometimes be a reflection or window into other people's lives of their hopes and desires," explains Dr Richard Simpson a psychologist at Leeds Trinity University.

"I think there's multiple levels of attachments people develop, they form a love for their team, for their community. It's not a romantic love but we build emotional bonds, we create memories and experiences. If we look at social media for example people sometimes have their club as part of their name, so they lead with that. It becomes who they are."

It also makes perfect sense that fans often see their club as an extension of themselves. The money they spend on matchday tickets or replica shirts contributes in part to the stadium rebuild or transfer fee for a new player.

A natural by-product is when their chosen club is performing well they feel an element of success in their own lives. However, the same can be said in reverse.

"You've got to stick through the thick and thin. That's what makes football, football," Wolves fan Reco tells BBC Sport.

"I'm sure we all know a glory hunter here and there, but it's not what being a football fan is about. It's about the highs and the lows. I've seen us play down in League One. I've seen us play in the Europa League and at Wembley.

"Right now, it's not going so good, but the journey is what makes being a football fan worthwhile and it's what gives you a closer connection to your team and the fan base around you who share that love for your club."

When your team have won every trophy possible

However, as the sport continues to grow and reach new audiences, we are seeing differing takes on what it is to be fan.

There are many who support a top-tier side and also a local team further down the footballing pyramid.

Many fans also keep a close eye on a chosen team from another major European league. Then there are those who prefer certain players to clubs and so might switch who they support based on a transfer. This could be compared to those who might follow a Formula 1 driver and so would focus on whichever team they were currently driving for.

Yet for those who consider themselves football purists there can only ever be space in their heart for one team.

But ironically for Manchester United fan Steve it is a full heart that is central to why he turned his back on the club he had supported for decades – Manchester United.

"My first game was in 1978, at home against Spurs. Most of my family are [Manchester] City fans but all my friends supported United, so I had to choose between being popular at home or at school," he says.

"In the end I choose school because I didn't want to be bullied."

Steve eventually became a season ticket holder and says he did not miss a match for 47 years. All that changed on 24 May 2017 when Manchester United beat Ajax 2-0 in Stockholm.

"We were so lucky as United fans going through the [Sir Alex] Ferguson era, chasing titles and then building on that and trying to get to the next level of winning European trophies," Steve says.

"I'd seen them win every single trophy, FA Cups in the 70s and 80s, the Cup Winners Cup in '91, Premier League titles and, of course, the Champions League in 1999.

"I always said that if United won the Europa League – the only trophy I'd never seen them win – I'd pack it in. So when they did that night in Sweden, it felt like the last piece of the jigsaw had been completed.

"When you finish a jigsaw you can either look at it and enjoy, or you can smash it up and start again. I didn't want to start again."

Being in the minority

Steve admits his personality traits means in most situations not just football - it is all, or nothing. Since making the vow he hasn't been back to Old Trafford and barely keeps up with news of the club. He does, though, miss the faces he used to see week in week out.

The time he used to spend at football Steve now shares between family, horse racing and rugby. And how does he feel having stopped supporting his football club?

Liberated.

"Listen, plenty of people pointed the finger at me when I was saying, 'I don't want to do this anymore', thinking it was in some way linked to United not being as good as they used to be," he says.

"But everything just got tiresome, you know, and I just thought, how long do I want to keep running my life around something that doesn't feel like it wants me. To me, it was a pretty easy thing to do and it's easy once you make the decision to stop doing something.

"You'd be surprised how quickly it becomes background noise then."

Steve is in the minority though. Speak to most football fans and their longest relationship may be between them and their club.

So, Can you stop supporting your football team?

The obvious answer is yes – why so many of us refuse to do so might be a more pertinent question.

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