In their two wins across three games under new coach Jim Hiller, the Kings have managed to frustrate two of the most talented stars in the league, with Edmonton’s Connor McDavid and New Jersey’s Jack Hughes breaking their sticks on the bench in disgust.
This weekend, their back-to-back set will give them the opportunity to consternate more marquee players as they visit David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand and the Boston Bruins on Saturday and Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday.
In Thursday’s gritty, penalty-laden victory over the Devils, the season debut of Viktor Arvidsson lifted the Kings and sunk Hughes a bit. He agitated Hughes into matching minors, after which a vexed Hughes appeared to mouth “people pay to watch me play” during a war of words in the penalty boxes. After their infractions expired, Arvidsson’s backcheck hindered a partial Hughes breakaway, agitating him further and leading to him snapping his stick.
“He’s a ball of fire, and he plays with a lot of passion,” said Hiller of Arvidsson.
“He was easy to find, wasn’t he? He had five shots, he led us in shots and they were chances, he was dangerous. I saw Arvy, that’s Arvy,” Hiller added. “He’s competitive, he found his way to the penalty box. He made that line really dangerous. It’s good to have him back.”
From one of their smaller, pluckier players who missed the Kings’ first 50 games to one of their bigger, more casual forwards that underperformed for most of them, Pierre-Luc Dubois was more immersed in the fight Thursday. He drew three infractions against New Jersey and nearly set up Quinton Byfield for a goal.
“He’s skating. He drew three penalties, and you don’t draw three penalties unless you’re involved,” Hiller said of Dubois, adding that he “seemed to be finding his groove a little bit.”
While Byfield didn’t convert on that chance, his tip-in attempt turned puck recovery and shot from point-blank range produced the game-winning goal on the power play. Byfield now has nine points in his past seven games, as he continues to show the rare mix of speed, power and supple mitts that may make him the best player from the 2020 draft class before long.
“He’s a big body, he’s got good hands and he’s quick. One is to screen, and then two is finding loose pucks. He did both on that goal,” Hiller said.
As the Kings’ fortunes have crash-landed – even with their win Thursday, they’ve won just five of their past 20 contests – Byfield’s game has taken off, as despite missing two games he took sole possession of the team scoring lead between Dec. 31 and Saturday’s game.
That affair will pit them against the Bruins, who have lost three straight games to slip into a points tie with the surging Florida Panthers atop the Atlantic Division. They’re fueled by Pastrnak’s 78 points, a total that’s heads above Marchand’s 50 in the same 54 outings. Pastrnak ranks fourth in points and goals league-wide.
Rookie standout Matt Poitras will likely miss the rest of the season following shoulder surgery. Less clear was the status of former Kings winger Milan Lucic. He had taken an indefinite leave of absence from the Bruins as he faced domestic violence charges, but the case against him was dropped Friday after his wife Brittany declined to testify.
For Pittsburgh, Crosby paces them in scoring with Malkin placing third on the team in points. Between them rests Jake Guentzel, but he’ll miss Sunday’s action and about a month in total after sustaining an upper-body injury in a 5-2 loss to the Florida Panthers on Wednesday.
The Penguins qualified for the playoffs for 16 consecutive seasons, which included three Stanley Cups and four total appearances in the Stanley Cup Final. They remained on course to miss the postseason for the second consecutive campaign, despite having further invested in their veteran core and adding another big name, 2023 Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson, in the offseason.
When: 9:30 a.m. PT Saturday
Where: TD Garden, Boston
How to watch: ABC, ESPN+
When: 3 p.m. PT Sunday
Where: PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh
How to watch: Bally Sports West
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This weekend, their back-to-back set will give them the opportunity to consternate more marquee players as they visit David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand and the Boston Bruins on Saturday and Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday.
In Thursday’s gritty, penalty-laden victory over the Devils, the season debut of Viktor Arvidsson lifted the Kings and sunk Hughes a bit. He agitated Hughes into matching minors, after which a vexed Hughes appeared to mouth “people pay to watch me play” during a war of words in the penalty boxes. After their infractions expired, Arvidsson’s backcheck hindered a partial Hughes breakaway, agitating him further and leading to him snapping his stick.
“He’s a ball of fire, and he plays with a lot of passion,” said Hiller of Arvidsson.
“He was easy to find, wasn’t he? He had five shots, he led us in shots and they were chances, he was dangerous. I saw Arvy, that’s Arvy,” Hiller added. “He’s competitive, he found his way to the penalty box. He made that line really dangerous. It’s good to have him back.”
From one of their smaller, pluckier players who missed the Kings’ first 50 games to one of their bigger, more casual forwards that underperformed for most of them, Pierre-Luc Dubois was more immersed in the fight Thursday. He drew three infractions against New Jersey and nearly set up Quinton Byfield for a goal.
“He’s skating. He drew three penalties, and you don’t draw three penalties unless you’re involved,” Hiller said of Dubois, adding that he “seemed to be finding his groove a little bit.”
While Byfield didn’t convert on that chance, his tip-in attempt turned puck recovery and shot from point-blank range produced the game-winning goal on the power play. Byfield now has nine points in his past seven games, as he continues to show the rare mix of speed, power and supple mitts that may make him the best player from the 2020 draft class before long.
“He’s a big body, he’s got good hands and he’s quick. One is to screen, and then two is finding loose pucks. He did both on that goal,” Hiller said.
As the Kings’ fortunes have crash-landed – even with their win Thursday, they’ve won just five of their past 20 contests – Byfield’s game has taken off, as despite missing two games he took sole possession of the team scoring lead between Dec. 31 and Saturday’s game.
That affair will pit them against the Bruins, who have lost three straight games to slip into a points tie with the surging Florida Panthers atop the Atlantic Division. They’re fueled by Pastrnak’s 78 points, a total that’s heads above Marchand’s 50 in the same 54 outings. Pastrnak ranks fourth in points and goals league-wide.
Rookie standout Matt Poitras will likely miss the rest of the season following shoulder surgery. Less clear was the status of former Kings winger Milan Lucic. He had taken an indefinite leave of absence from the Bruins as he faced domestic violence charges, but the case against him was dropped Friday after his wife Brittany declined to testify.
For Pittsburgh, Crosby paces them in scoring with Malkin placing third on the team in points. Between them rests Jake Guentzel, but he’ll miss Sunday’s action and about a month in total after sustaining an upper-body injury in a 5-2 loss to the Florida Panthers on Wednesday.
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The Penguins qualified for the playoffs for 16 consecutive seasons, which included three Stanley Cups and four total appearances in the Stanley Cup Final. They remained on course to miss the postseason for the second consecutive campaign, despite having further invested in their veteran core and adding another big name, 2023 Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson, in the offseason.
Kings at Boston
When: 9:30 a.m. PT Saturday
Where: TD Garden, Boston
How to watch: ABC, ESPN+
Kings at Pittsburgh
When: 3 p.m. PT Sunday
Where: PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh
How to watch: Bally Sports West
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