Utah HC Downs Los Angeles In Overtime In Historic Home Pre-Season Opener

The electricity was palpable from the minute the doors opened.

And it ended with a star player celebrating the first-ever win in franchise history in an arena all their own.

The Los Angeles Kings were able to rally from an early deficit, but the Utah Hockey Club only needed 19 extra seconds thanks to Clayton Keller's winner to put them away Monday night, 3-2, in front of a sold-out, raucous crowd of 11,131 fans at Delta Center.

It echoed the previous meeting between the two clubs in El Segundo at the Rookie Face-Off just last weekend, when the Kings erased a 3-1 deficit late in regulation before Utah won it after barely touching the puck in overtime.

Related: Three Takeaways From Utah HC's 2nd Rookie Face-Off Game Against Los Angeles

"Right from the get-go, (the atmosphere) was great," head coach Andre Tourigny said. "The stands are so steep, you felt like the fans were almost sitting on the bench with us."

Those fans made a difference as Utah HC raced out to a 2-0 lead with power-play goals from Lawson Crouse and Alex Kerfoot, with Crouse's goal sending the home crowd into a frenzy.

The din only got louder as Kings forward Jeff Malott answered Liam O'Brien's challenge for a fight on the ensuing face-off.

But Malott was able to swing the momentum early in the second period; his goal cut the lead in half, and Alex Turcotte found the back of the net to tie the game late in the session.

Despite the deadlock, Utah's fans were relentless in creating a home-ice advantage.

The fans' energy paid off when Clayton Keller picked up a turnover near the right circle and beat Kings goaltender Carter George with a wrist shot through the five-hole to send the Delta Center into bedlam.

"It's something really special," Crouse said. "We love (the fans) having that energizing impact in the game, and it gives us a huge edge.”

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