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Having scored 20 goals and dished 19 assists in 55 career regular season games against Los Angeles, there are few teams that Corey Perry has had as much success against.
It took just one shot in 43 seconds to seal the deal in overtime for him to find it again.
Perry scored both goals for the Ducks and Anton Khudobin made 31 saves as Anaheim knocked off the Kings 2-1 to complete the sweep of the preseason series for the fourth time since the 05-06 season on Tuesday night at STAPLES Center.
Skating on a line with center Rickard Rakell and left wing Jiri Sekac, Perry lead the team with six shots as the unit generated 11 of Anaheim's 30 for the game. After a fairly even first period, the Ducks took control of play in the second by out-shooting the hosts 15-8. Los Angeles turned things around in the third period, with a 16-7 shot advantage that Khudobin and the Ducks weathered before the overtime heroics.
For the three-on-three extra session Rakell, Perry, and Cam Fowler controlled play from the get-go, never allowing Tanner Pearson, Tyler Toffoli, and Christian Ehrhoff the opportunity to gain possession. Rakell won a battle in the near corner, cleaving the puck from Pearson and centering it for Perry who slipped away from the marking of Ehrhoff far post. The former Hart and Maurice Richard Trophy-winner made no mistake, having enough time to blast a slap shot home to the blocker side far post.
Anaheim had jumped ahead 7:47 in to the second period, as Sami Vatanen chipped the puck behind the net. Rakell beat his man to it, swinging it out front for a hard charging Perry to slide past Kings goalie Jhonas Enroth on the rebound for a 1-0 advantage.
It lasted until nearly a minute remained in the middle frame, when Andy Andreoff curled in to space at the near circle after taking a feed from Jordan Nolan. The wing then threw the puck at the net in to traffic, pinballing home off the skates of Kyle Clifford who was parked on the top of the crease to send the teams tied 1-1 to the third period.
Khudobin continued his string of impressive preseason play against the Ducks California rivals, having backstopped a 2-1 win in San Jose with 23 saves against the Sharks. He made a brilliant pad save going post-to-post on a cross-slot feed by Dwight King to Toffoli, denying a rush chance with less than five minutes to play in the first. For much of the night Khudobin did well to knock rebounds beyond danger areas, and staying vertical to deny high shots including an Ehrhoff slot chance with his right elbow in the third period. Through two exhibition appearances he's posted a .962 save percentage.
In a game that at times had the intensity of a regular season meeting, Josh Manson squared of with Milan Lucic after the LA offseason acquisition sent Chris Wagner crashing into the end boards nearly six minutes in to the second period. Manson acquitted himself well, lasting over a minute with the 6'3", 235 pound forward and looking no worse for wear after. Later in the third period Clifford tried to goad Perry in to a fight, but with the Anaheim scorer uninterested Kevin Bieksa stepped in to oblige the Kings scrapper.
The Ducks close preseason play with a pair of games at Honda Center, first facing the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday, October 1 at 7 PM and closing exhibition play on Saturday, October 3 at 6 PM against the San Jose Sharks. Thursday's contest against Colorado will be broadcast on Prime Ticket.