The good and the bad of Game 2 so far for the Phoenix Coyotes is this: They got off to a better start in Game 2 as opposed to Game 1 of the NHL Western Conference finals against the Los Angeles Kings, but they find themselves down 1-0 after giving up the all-important, tone-setting opening goal of the game.
The Kings outshot the Coyotes 15-9, and while that's better than 16-4 from Game 1, one can only wonder if the Coyotes are starting to realize that this Kings team might be destined for even bigger thing, as in, the Stanley Cup. L.A. is trying to go 7-0 on the road in the playoffs and has dominated all three playoff opponents so far.
That said, there are two periods left to play. Coyotes coach Dave Tippett shook up the top three lines, opening the game with his second line as the starters (Shane Doan, Antoine Vermette and Ray Whitney in place of Mikkel Boedker) in an apparent attempt to jumpstart the attack. It seemed to work, with new combinations of players coming onto the ice, but the Coyotes couldn't turn it into a goal.
Whitney's nice stick handling produced a quality shot with 14:35 left in the period at the Kings' Jonathan Quick saved. The Coyotes killed a penalty, but Drew Doughty's shot was redirected by teammate Dwight King for a goal with 6:45 to play.
The puck sailed over Mike Smith's stick side. Smith was otherwise stalwart in goal again, keeping Phoenix from trailing by more with his saves.