It’s a back-to-back situation this weekend for Los Angeles, as they will go head-to-head with St. Louis tonight for the third time in about a week before heading to Las Vegas for a showdown with the Pacific Division leading Golden Knights tomorrow night in Vegas.
Saturday should mark a new beginning for the Kings. It’s been a rough two weeks for the club, given they are winless in their last five contests. Now that the trade deadline is done and gone, the big question is, ‘Will their newly acquired right-shot forward make a difference?’
LA GM Rob Blake added Andrei Kuzmenko to the roster on Friday, a player looking to land on solid ground again after scoring 39 goals just two seasons ago. It’s a move that was made for a very specific reason: to boost the offense and aid an ineffective power play. Where he slots in the lineup will be up to coach Jim Hiller, but there is no doubt the Kings are a bit deeper than they were 48 hours ago.
Kuzmenko arrived at LAX around 8pm last night and should be good to go for tonight, where he’s due to make a little bit of franchise history right at the start:
Hiller is set to meet with the media a few hours before game time. As is usually the case — and Blake even joked about during his press conference yesterday — where the Kings coach starts Kuzmenko doesn’t necessarily indicate where he’ll end up later in the game.
For their third and final game vs. the Blues, look for the Kings to go with a traditional 12+6 configuration, including Brandt Clarke paired with Joel Edmundson on defense. Clarke and Sammy Helenius were temporarily assigned to AHL Ontario, but have since been recalled. The reasoning and process was all explained here.
Based on Friday’s practice alignment, it at least appears as if Hiller is ready to reunite Drew Doughty and Mikey Anderson. We’ll have to see what he has to say later today.
Statistically Speaking
— Kuzmenko had points in five his last seven games, prior to the trade. In his NHL career, he has one power play goal in six career contests against the St. Louis Blues.
— Vladislav Gavrikov now has 99 NHL assists after recording his 18th assist of the season in his last outing. He now sits one assist shy of becoming the eighth defenseman selected in the 2015 NHL Draft to reach 100 career assists.
— Captain Anze Kopitar (20G) is one of only five active players League-wide to have scored at least 20 career goals against the Blues.
— The Kings are 11-3-5 on Saturday games this season, outscoring opponents by a combined total of 56-43.
— Hiller’s squad have won three of their four home games played against opponents from the Central Division on Saturdays this year.
Kings Projected Lineup vs. Blues
Below is a guestimate with the addition of Kuzmenko. If there are any key changes during pregame warmups, this article will be updated.
Foegele – Kopitar – Kempe
Kuzmenko – Danault – Moore
Fiala – Byfield – Laferriere
Jeannot – Helenius – Turcotte
Anderson – Anderson
Gavrikov – Spence
Edmundson – Clarke
Kuemper (starter)
Rittich
Likely scratches: (F) Lewis, Thomas and (D) Burroughs, Moverare
Key Game Info
Puck drop is set for 5:00 pm Pacific Time and will be televised locally by FanDuel Sports Network. 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.
For those live in attendance, the LA Kings Booster Club will offer their popular ‘Puck for a Buck’ contest — featuring Drew Doughty for this game. Just $1 could win you an autographed puck from an NHL star. Visit their table outside sections 317-318 on the upper concourse for more information.
Across the Ice
St. Louis is coming off a 4-3 victory over Anaheim on Friday. Here is how they lined up for that contest:
Neighbours – Thomas – Buchnevich
Holloway – Schenn – Kyrou
Joseph – Sundqvist – Bolduc
Toropchenko – Faksa – Walker
Fowler – Leddy
Broberg – Faulk
Suter – Tucker
Binnington
On This Day in Kings History
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