Happy Mothers Day from Glendale, Ariz., where those of us inside Jobing.com Arena are chilling out of the 100-plus degree heat outside. Twenty minutes remain in Game 1 of the NHL Western Conference finals and this one between the Los Angeles Kings and Phoenix Coyotes is far from over.
The Kings have outplayed the Coyotes overall, but they can't put away the plucky home team. After winger Dwight King (appropriately named) finished a 2-on-1 by taking a pass from teammate Mike Richards and scoring at 8:02 of the second period, the Kings went on a power play. But the Coyotes turned them back.
At 4:22 of the second, Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown had a chance to team up for a two-goal L.A. lead, but Brown's shot was stopped. Less than a minute later, Richards had a redirect almost go in, but it was saved.
Basically, the Kings could be easily ahead in this game. But the Coyotes went from four first-period shots to 14 in the second. One of those 14 found the net, as playoff ace Mikkel Boedker scored with 1:55 left to tie the game again.
Shane Doan provided the pass from behind the net to Boedker for the shot, but no way Doan can collect the loose puck for that pass if not for teammate Antoine Vermette, who kept Kings' defenseman Drew Doughty from getting to it.
Doan has been a force, leading the game in hits given with six. It's looking more and more like the goaltenders -- the lead characters for both teams going into this series -- will decide with their ability get to pucks who wins Game 1.
Boedker has four playoff goals this past month, including Sunday, and Doan has four assists with five for Vermette. Daymond Langkow has an assist in the game, his sixth of the postseason.