Column: For goalie Joonas Korpisalo, working overtime in playoff debut with Kings no big deal
EDMONTON, Canada — Despite facing the NHL’s top two scorers and being pelted with 40 shots by the Edmonton Oilers’ explosive offense, goaltender Joonas Korpisalo had a relatively painless night Monday in his postseason debut with the Kings.
After keeping the Kings in a game the Oilers had threatened to break open in the first period, his night was extended by 9 minutes and 19 seconds of sudden-death play before Alex Iafallo’s power-play goal capped an astonishing comeback for a 4-3 victory. For Korpisalo, who played a five-overtime game for Columbus against Tampa Bay in the 2020 playoff bubble and made 85 saves — the most since the NHL began consistently tracking shots in the 1950s — the brief extra session Monday was a piece of Stanley Cup cake.
“Just one overtime,” he said Tuesday. “I’m pretty happy with that.”
Korpisalo said the adrenaline generated by Monday’s dramatics made it difficult for him to sleep, and he was among the players who skipped Tuesday’s optional practice. The small group on the ice included forward Gabe Vilardi, who missed the last nine games of the season and the playoff opener because of an undisclosed injury. Coach Todd McLellan said when Vilardi is ready to play, “he’ll find his way into the lineup for sure,” but wouldn’t promise Vilardi will return Wednesday in Game 2 at Rogers Place. Winger Kevin Fiala, still injured, did not join the team in Edmonton.
Vilardi pronounced himself ready, pumped up after watching Game 1 from the press box and later the locker room.
“That was crazy. Just shows how cool our team is, really,” said Vilardi, who ranked fifth on the team in goals (23) and seventh in points (41) in 63 games. “We’re down two and it didn’t look too good going to the third and then we just battled back. Fun game.”
Alex Iafallo scores on the power play in overtime as the Kings rally from 2-0 and 3-1 deficits to defeat the Edmonton Oilers in their playoff opener.
It was fun for the Kings because Adrian Kempe showed his smarts and sniping skills in a two-goal effort, because 35-year-old captain Anze Kopitar stepped up to produce his first career four-point playoff game, because Iafallo scored his first career playoff overtime goal to silence a loud and hostile crowd, and because Korpisalo was calm and clutch when the noise and pressure mounted.
Korpisalo, acquired by the Kings on March 1 with now-indispensable defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov for longtime goalie Jonathan Quick and a first-round draft pick, said he learned Sunday he would start the opener when he saw his name on the bulletin board in the locker room. Choosing him over Pheonix Copley, who rescued the Kings early in the season when their goaltending betrayed them, was the right move based on Korpisalo’s postseason resume with Columbus in upsetting Toronto and playing a close, five-game series against eventual Cup champion Tampa Bay. The Kings didn’t trade two-time Cup winner Quick and risk alienating the teammates who had become his close friends to make Korpisalo a backup.
The 28-year-old Finn validated the choice Monday by not allowing the Oilers to pad leads of 2-0 and 3-1, keeping the gap small enough for the Kings to reel them back in.
“We had a lot of good looks to make it 3-0 throughout the second period. A lot of good looks,” said scoring champion Connor McDavid, who drew two penalties but was held without a point largely due to the tenacious checking of Phillip Danault’s line and the defensive diligence of Drew Doughty and Mikey Anderson.
“And if it becomes 3-0, it’s maybe a different game,” McDavid said, “but I thought the goalie stood in there and made some good saves.”
By contrast, Oilers rookie goalie Stuart Skinner rated his own performance in his first playoff game as “pretty average.” That won’t cut it this time of year. “I wasn’t terrible but I wasn’t amazing. So I know I have a lot better to do, and that’s very exciting,” he said. That’s also an area the Kings potentially can exploit.
Korpisalo’s good playoff resume with Columbus was a factor in McLellan’s decision for him to start Game 1, as was Korpisalo’s swift mental and strategic transition from a going-nowhere team to the playoff-bound Kings.
“Replacing Jonathan wasn’t the intent. It was acquiring a goaltender that could come in and play,” McLellan said. “It wasn’t the replacement factor. It was, ‘We’re welcoming you here. You’re part of our team right now. You came with a teammate, which usually makes it easier. We’ll try and let you in on how we play as quick as we possibly can.’ Predictability is important for goaltenders. I think that’s been able to help him adjust quickly. He’s been a good player for us.”
Korpisalo has been so effective that Doughty recently joked he has been trying to persuade the goalie and Gavrikov to stay with the Kings instead of leaving as unrestricted free agents after the season. That drew a laugh from McLellan.
Designating Joonas Korpisalo as the starting goalie with Pheonix Copley as step in will give the Kings the best chance of making a long and successful playoff run.
“Drew should give them some of his salary and then we can keep them all,” the coach said. “I think that’s a really good sign of how quickly these two have adapted to our environment and how quickly our group has accepted them. Usually when that’s happening you have a pretty good team.”
The Kings were good enough to stun the Oilers in Game 1, but they also won the opener against the Oilers a year ago and lost in seven games. McLellan said Monday’s victory was a “good effort. It was a resilient effort. But I’m not sure it’s a series-winning effort.” With Korpisalo as sharp as he was in Game 1, whether the game is long or relatively short, the Kings’ chances of upsetting the Oilers are looking better by the day.
Go beyond the scoreboard
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