Avalanche win Game 4, sweep Kings in Western Conference 1st Round
Colorado will play either the Dallas Stars or Minnesota Wild in the second round. That series is tied 2-2 after the Wild’s 3-2 overtime win on Saturday.
“When you’re hoping for obviously a deep and long run, the least amount of games you can play are definitely going to be a benefit,” Wedgewood said. “Home ice helps. You’re going to be sleeping in your bed for a couple extra nights. … Little extra time to prepare and heal up is obviously going to pay off, and obviously get ready for whoever comes next.”
Joel Edmundson scored the lone goal for the Kings, who were the second wild card from the West. Anton Forsberg made 27 saves.
“I mean, Games 1-3 could have gone either way. I thought we had a real chance in Game 2 and 3, didn’t get it done,” Los Angeles forward Trevor Moore said. “Credit to them. They’ve obviously been the best team all year in the League, so close wasn’t good enough.”
Anze Kopitar played the final game of his 20-season career with the Kings. The 38-year-old center had announced on Sept. 18 that the 2025-26 season would be his last in the NHL. Kopitar helped Los Angeles win the Stanley Cup in 2012 and 2014, and became the franchise’s all-time leader in points (1,316) on March 14. He replaced Dustin Brown as captain prior to the 2016-17 season.
“No one’s bigger than the team, and ‘Kopi’ showed that every single day that I was here, everyone was the same,” Kings interim coach D.J. Smith said. “These things that go by the wayside, that star players in sports today, a lot of them don’t do anymore, ‘Kopi’ is a throwback and a classy, classy human being.”
