NHL scores 2015: Kings continue playoff march, Rangers win in Long Island

The beat goes on.

Mar 11, 2015, 12:00 PM UTC

Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

Here come the Kings. Again. Right on schedule.

Los Angeles took down the Colorado Avalanche at home on Tuesday, bringing them within a single point of the Western Conference's final playoff spot. They're nearing the culmination of their annual climb up the standings that began nearly a month ago.

I suppose we were all fools for thinking they wouldn’t be charging towards the playoffs this late in the season. But it really felt like this was finally the year. Los Angeles struggled to score and keep goals out of their net (which is the point of hockey) for an even longer stretch than in previous years.

And yet, if you look at results from this season and last season you’ll find the similarities are remarkably similar. Both iterations of the Kings went about 20 or so games where they came out as victors just a handful of times. And then they woke up and began marching towards the playoffs, knocking teams below them as they climbed further up the ladder.

The Jets should be sweating right now after a few shaky performances and missed opportunities. The Kings have been gunning for their playoff spot for a month, and now they're right at their front door.

Scores

Stars 2, Flyers 1

Rangers 2, Islanders 1

Blue Jackets 4, Hurricanes 3 (SO)

Boston Bruins 3, Ottawa Senators 1

Lightning 1, Canadiens 0 (OT)

Blues 5, Jets 4

Wild 6, Devils 2

Kings 5, Avalanche 2

3 things we learned

1. Tyler Johnson is an unstoppable force of mayhem and destruction.

Okay, maybe that's exaggerating a bit. But there's no question the Lightning winger is already one of the premier goal-scoring threats in the NHL in just his sophomore season. The guy is a force to be reckoned with when the puck is on his stick, as he showed yet again in Montreal. Carey Price was excellent, but Johnson was better in the third period and overtime before scoring the game-winner.

Tyler Johnson had four shots on goal for the #TBLightning in the third period and OT. The #Habs had two.
— Аrpon Basu (@ArponBasu) March 11, 2015

2. Martin Brodeur still has a thing for his old team.

Martin Brodeur watching the Devils while Blues are playing. #Awkward pic.twitter.com/nRMykeB0kn
— Seth Rorabaugh (@emptynetters) March 11, 2015

3. Cam Talbot continued his impressive run as a starter.

It's hard to believe the New York Rangers goalie had just 21 games under his belt before taking over as starter when Henrik Lundqvist got hurt. He's played superbly, going 11-2-3 with a .918 save percentage in Lundqvist's absence. His best moment came on Tuesday, leading the Rangers to a 2-1 win in their final trip to Nassau Coliseum.

Impact Moment

The Jets can't really afford to let points slip away from them at this point. They're clinging to the edge of the Western Conference playoffs and had a big chance to distance themselves from Los Angeles in the race for the final playoff spot on Tuesday. Tyler Myers tied the game in St. Louis late, but a tremendous gaffe by Ondrej Pavelec cost them a huge point.

Stat of the Night

Here’s a fun Tyler Johnson note: the kid has 52 goals in 162 career NHL games. That means his career shooting percentage is roughly 32 percent. That’s either completely unsustainable or the first sign of a remarkable career.