3-5-2
7-6-1
Artemi Panarin returned to Madison Square Garden in black and silver and wasted no time haunting his former club. Flanked by a vintage three-point night from Drew Doughty, the Kings delivered an emphatic 6-3 punch to a stunned Rangers squad. Los Angeles pounced immediately. Taylor Ward finished a crisp setup just 75 seconds into the opening frame, and Brandt Clarke doubled the cushion before five minutes had elapsed. While J.T. Miller briefly answered for New York, Doughty buried a feed from Panarin late in the first to restore control. Panarin then drove the dagger himself early in the second, snapping home a power-play marker before Mikey Anderson piled on. The Rangers clawed within two late in the third through Tye Kartye, but Joel Edmundson snuffed out any comeback drama just 29 seconds later. Darcy Kuemper turned aside 23 shots to lock down a much-needed victory, giving Los Angeles a jolt of confidence as their eastern road trip continues.