Blackhawks 4, Kings 3: Patrick Kane followed a four-point performance by scoring his second goal of the contest with 3:45 remaining in the third period to snap a tie as visiting Chicago forced a pivotal Game 7 in the Western Conference final.

Kane also set up defenseman Duncan Keith's tying goal, Ben Smith tallied for the second straight contest and Corey Crawford made 26 saves for the reigning Stanley Cup-champion Blackhawks, who will host the decisive contest on Sunday. The winner will host Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final on Wednesday against the New York Rangers, who posted a pair of one-goal victories over Chicago in the regular season while splitting two meetings with Los Angeles.

Drew Doughty scored and set up a goal while fellow defenseman Alec Martinez and Dwight King also tallied for the Kings, who will look to prevent their third three-game losing streak of the playoffs on Sunday.

With the contest tied at 3-3, Kane accepted Brandon Saad's drop pass in the right faceoff circle before examining his options. The reigning Conn Smythe Trophy winner elected to wheel toward the middle of the ice before wristing a shot from between the circles that beat Jonathan Quick (21 saves), who was screened by Andrew Shaw on the left doorstep. The eventual game-winning goal was Kane's fourth of the 2014 playoffs.

After his wrist shot from the slot at 5:32 of the third period knotted the contest at 2-2, Doughty set up Martinez's bid that sailed between the legs of both defenseman Brent Seabrook and Crawford just over two minutes later for a power-play goal. Keith forged a tie at 11:34, collecting Kane's brilliant diagonal backhand feed before wiring a shot past Quick from the upper edge of the left circle.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Tensions flared at the end of the second period as Quick and Crawford butted heads after the former swatted at Shaw to set off a skirmish. Crawford waited for Quick at the blue line and the two had words before their collision. ... Kane converted a give-and-go with captain Jonathan Toews at 1:12 of the second period for the team's first power-play goal on the road in 24 opportunities. The Blackhawks' previous tally with the man advantage away from home came in Game 1 of their first-round series versus St. Louis on April 17. ... Steve Ballmer, the former Microsoft CEO and expected new owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, joined star G Chris Paul in attendance at Staples Center. Also on hand were actors Will Ferrell, Colin Hanks and Eric Stonestreet, former Galaxy star David Beckham and broadcaster Al Michaels.