Kempe scores to lead Kings over Islanders 3-2

NEW YORK (AP) — Adrian Kempe scored his team-leading 26th goal of the season and the Los Angeles Kings held off the New York Islanders 3-2 on Friday night.

Trevor Moore and Anze Kopitar also scored for the Kings and Darcy Kuemper stopped 21 of the 23 shots he faced.

Emil Heineman scored twice for the Islanders, and Ilya Sorokin made 24 saves. Bo Horvat added two assists.

Kempe scored on a wrist shot with 1:32 remaining in the first period to put the Kings up 3-0. Kempe now has five goals and four assists in his last six games.

After the game, the Islanders stayed on the ice and shook hands with Kings captain Kopitar, who is playing in his 20th and final season in the NHL.

Kings: Visit the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.

Islanders: Host the Calgary Flames on Saturday.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin (30) protects the net from Los Angeles Kings' Alex Laferriere (14) during the first period of an NHL hockey game Friday, March 13, 2026, at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Los Angeles Kings goaltender Darcy Kuemper (35) and Cody Ceci (5) protects the net from New York Islanders' Anders Lee (27) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Friday, March 13, 2026, at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Los Angeles Kings' Jeff Malott (39) fights for position with New York Islanders' Carson Soucy (4) and goaltender Ilya Sorokin (30) during the third period of an NHL hockey game Friday, March 13, 2026, at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin (30) protects the net from Los Angeles Kings' Jared Wright (53) during the third period of an NHL hockey game Friday, March 13, 2026, at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Los Angeles Kings' Anze Kopitar (11) celebrates after scoring a goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game as New York Islanders' Casey Cizikas (53) and goaltender Ilya Sorokin (30) watch Friday, March 13, 2026, at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

MIAMI (AP) — Austin Wells hit a walk-off three-run homer in the seventh inning that ended the game under a tournament rout rule, and the Dominican Republic beat South Korea 10-0 Friday night to reach the World Baseball Classic semifinals.

Seeking its second title and first since 2013, the Dominicans play the United States or Canada in a semifinal on Sunday in Miami. The Dominicans are 5-0 in the tournament, have outscored opponents 51-10 while batting .312 and with 14 homers tied the WBC record set by Mexico in 2009.

Fernando Tatis Jr. drove in two runs and has 11 RBIs in the tournament. He is tied for third in a single WBC, trailing only Masataka Yoshida’s 13 for Japan in 2023 and Wladimir Balentien’s 12 for the Netherlands in 2017.

Wells, who entered as a defensive replacement in the top of the seventh, reached down and drove a first-pitch cutter from Hyeong Jun So off the front of the second deck in right. Wells was born in Arizona to a mother is of Dominican descent.

He hit the Dominicans' second walk-off homer of the tournament after Juan Soto's drive that ended a 12-1 group stage win over the Netherlands.

Backed by three runs in the second inning and four in the third, winner Christopher Sánchez struck out eight in five innings of two-hit ball.

South Korea, which lost a semifinal in 2006 and the final in 2009, had been eliminated in the first round three straight times before reaching a quarterfinal this year. The South Koreans had two hits, batted .222 and finished with a 5.91 ERA.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. walked against loser Hyun Jin Ryu and scored the game's first run from first base with a head-first slide on Junior Caminero’s double into the left-field corner. Julio Rodríguez followed with an RBI groundout and Tatis had a run-scoring single.

Soto scored on Guerrero’s double in a four-run fourth, hooking an arm around catcher Dong Won Park with a head-first slide.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

South Korea starting pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin reacts on the mound during the second inning of a World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against the Dominican Republic, Friday, March 13, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

Dominican Republic's Juan Soto celebrates after hitting a single during the third inning of a World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against South Korea, Friday, March 13, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

Dominican Republic's Agustin Ramirez runs home on a single by Fernando Tatis Jr. during the second inning of a World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against South Korea, Friday, March 13, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Dominican Republic's Austin Wells runs the bases after hitting a three-run home run to end the game early in the seventh inning of a World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against South Korea, Friday, March 13, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)