Before LA’s season-long road trip finally comes to an end and they return home for the Christmas holiday, there’s one more showdown with some old friends in our nation’s capital. It’s the second half of a back-to-back against one of the best teams in the National Hockey League at the moment, the Washington Capitals.
There’s no need to slowly wade into the ocean, this will be the first time the Kings will be facing off with PL Dubois since a summertime trade that sent the centerman to D.C. in exchange for goaltender Darcy Kuemper. On a less emotionally charged note, defenseman Matt Roy will also be taking on his former team. After being selected by the Kings in the seventh round of the 2015 NHL Draft, the Michigan native went on to spend seven years with the organization after leaving college. He first broke in with AHL Ontario and eventually went on to earn a prominent role in Los Angeles before signing with Washington after becoming an unrestricted free agent.
For coach Jim Hiller and the Kings, the hope is that there is enough energy left within the group to get one more win on their fifteen-day roadie. A 3-1-2 record so far is nothing to sneer at, but there have definitely been some points left on the table and LA would love to collect another two before the break.
With Darcy Kuemper playing yesterday in Nashville, it looks like he won’t get the opportunity to face his former club. Instead, it will be David Rittich between the pipes against a high-flying Capitals offense.
Given the back-to-back games, we’d also expect Hiller to go with a 12+6 configuration (although that’s not a guarantee). It would allow Andre Lee to slide in at forward, marking his first appearance since being recalled. It also wouldn’t be surprising to see Andreas Englund or Kyle Burroughs take the defensive spot previously held by Jacob Moverare, giving the team a little extra muscle.
Statistically Speaking
— Coming off an overtime loss yesterday, the Kings will be looking to continue their impressive performance under Hiller. Since he took over as coach, in the immediate game following an initial loss, the Kings hold an 19-5-1 record.
— Through 33 games played on the season, the Kings 2.55 goals-against-per game (GA/GP) is the lowest in the NHL.
— Kevin Fiala had a pair of goals during the Kings last visit to D.C. (Jan. 7, 2024), and enters play today with 11 points (4G, 7A) in 14 career games against the Capitals.
— Vladislav Gavrikov looks to tie his career long four-game point streak set earlier this season, as he enters today’s contest with five points across his last three appearances.
— Anze Kopitar is set to play in his 1,407th regular season NHL game, tying long-time Capitals captain Dale Hunter for the 42nd-most in League history.
Kings Projected Lineup vs. Capitals
If there are any key changes during pregame warmups, this article will be updated.
Turcotte – Kopitar – Kempe
Foegele – Byfield – Jeannot
Fiala – Danault – Laferriere
Lee – Helenius – Thomas
Anderson – Gavrikov
Edmundson – Clarke
Englund – Spence
Rittich (starter)
Kuemper
Likely scratches: (F) Moore and (D) Burroughs, Moverare
Injured Reserve: Doughty, Kaliyev, Lewis
Key Game Info
Puck drop is set for 2:00 pm Pacific Time and will be televised locally by FanDuel Sports. Additionally, a Kings radio feed is available on the ESPN LA app (which is the new home for Kings radio this season, they’ve moved off of the iHeart platform).
More on the ongoing TV situation here.
Across the Ice
Washington is coming off a 3-1 win over Carolina on Friday. Here is how they lined up for that contest:
Mangiapane – Strome – Wilson
McMichael – Dubois – Protas
Vrana – Lapierre – Raddysh
Duhaime – Dowd – Miroshnichenko
Fehervary – Carlson
Sandin – Roy
Chychrun – van Riemsdyk
Lindgren
On This Day in Kings History
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