A lesser opponent, but a challenging game.
Tonight, the Kings are set to take on the last-place Canucks in downtown Los Angeles as the homestand continues for DJ Smith’s club, who have only lost in regulation twice over their last 10 matchups.
Over the last few weeks, much of the focus has been on the wild-card race between Nashville and Los Angeles. Deservedly so, considering only one of the two clubs is getting into the postseason most likely. However, over the course of that battle, something is happening in the pacific division.
Right in front of the Kings are the Anaheim Ducks, who are in an absolute free fall. They have fallen out of first place and into third in the division. If Los Angeles is able to win tonight, all of a sudden, there is just a two-point difference between the two Southern California clubs.
Overall, tonight is a massive night for the Kings fight to reach game 83 around the league. Utah and Nashville are set to square off, and Anaheim and San Jose will have a showdown of their own just down the 5 Freeway. The goal for the Kings is to take care of their own business and let the rest of the West beat up on each other as much as possible.
No lineup changes are expected from Smith, unless he chooses to go back to Darcy Kuemper in net. The move seems unlikely given how well Anton Forsberg is playing, however. The hot hand gets the start down the stretch, and it is very clear right now whose hand is hotter between the two counterparts.
They Said It
Trevor Moore on the team’s mindset going into the final five regular season games:
I think confidence is high. I think we’re playing good hockey right now. We’re staying aggressive. Obviously, we’re going to overtime a lot, but I think we feel good about our game. We feel like we’re able to win every night, and that’s always good.
Moore on Kopitar as a leader:
He’s definitely one of those leaders who gets to know each person individually as a person. You’re not nervous around him. He’s very open. You can ask him advice about anything and he’ll give it to you. He’s not a guy who’s gonna go yell at people. He’s a guy who has that aura around him — you want to do the right things because he’s doing the right things.
DJ Smith on trying to balance days off vs. intense practices at this time of year:
I just think this team has to be on their toes all the time. I don’t think [we should be] sitting back — rest is one thing, but you have to be sharp. [Wednesday’s practice] was quick, but it was sharp, and it turns our nervous system on and gets us ready for a big game.
Smith on Scott Laughton, who teammates rave about:
Just a good guy. Even when I had him in junior, when he was the big dog, he didn’t act like a big dog. He’s always looking out for his teammates. He’s been around the league a long time, that he doesn’t take himself too seriously. And he understands how to play the game, and he plays the game hard. I think guys respect the way he plays and respect that he’s a good teammate. The intangibles in the dressing room are great. But don’t look too far past how hard he plays on the ice — that’s what allows him to gain that respect in the dressing room.
Smith on Laughton in the faceoff circle:
Well, you learn over the years. You look at all the young guys in the league that start their first year — 38 percent, 40 percent. John Tavares was in the 40s for the longest time, and then all of a sudden you figure out what works for you — how to cheat properly, I guess, is what the best guys do in the league. They all have their own knacks, but over time they find a way. These veteran guys — Kopitar’s at 57 [percent] and change or whatever he is. You look at the top guys in the league — they start low, then they figure it out over time. And obviously Laughton’s been in the league a long time, and he’s figured out ways to win faceoffs. What I would say a lot for him is he’s willing to be level. He’s got his nose ranked down there. He’s not afraid to take a stick to the face, and that allows you to get that extra three, four, five percent.
Smith on Kuzmenko’s progress:
He’s doing fine. There’s some talk that he may skate a little bit more, but we don’t think he’s there quite yet. We’ll see in another seven, ten days where he’s at. But we’re going to have to take care of our own business to allow him an opportunity to maybe get back in.
Kopitar on if he’s finishing off his career the way he wanted to this season:
Well, I’d like to be comfortably in the playoffs right now. But that’s not the case. We’re focused on obviously making the playoffs. Me personally, I’ve tried to soak it all in, tried to enjoy every minute, every second of it. It’s a fight right up until the end, so it’s been fun. These are the games you want to be involved in. Like I said, you wanna be in the playoff spot, but we’re fighting for it. So it’s exciting and it’s good to be a part of these games.
Kopitar on what he remembers from conversations with Dustin Brown when he was winding down his career in his final regular-season games:
Not a whole lot, no. He didn’t announce it until later on anyway. It was just trying to enjoy my time with him, really. At that point, we’d been playing together for 17, 18 years. So just trying not to take anything for granted, which is hard, because you’re playing with the guy for 17 years. He’s been my linemate for about 16 and a half of those. I guess it’s kind of a shock when you start thinking that he’s not gonna be here anymore. It always happens that way, right? You’re trying to almost turn the clock back and reminisce — all the good, the bad, the everything. I remember those last games. I was just trying to feed him as many pucks as I could so he could score goals and just enjoy the time.
Statistically Speaking
— Fresh of his fourth career four-point game last Saturday, Adrian Kempe netted the game-deciding goal in Monday’s shootout win over Nashville for his 22nd career shootout goal and fifth as the game-decider. His 22 shootout goals are the second-most in Kings history and tied for third-most among Swedish players in NHL history. Only Mika Zibanejad (31) and Nicklas Backstrom (29) have more.
— Anze Kopitar is set to play in his 73rd career game against Vancouver, and 38th at Crypto.com Arena. Among active skaters, Kopitar’s 44 assists and 62 points against the B.C.-based club are the second-most behind Edmonton’s Connor McDavid.
— Quinton Byfield and Adrian Kempe both have points in each of their last five games versus the Canucks, dating back to Nov. 7, 2024.
— In the Kings’ last outing against Vancouver on March 26, goaltender Darcy Kuemper turned aside all 19 shots faced to earn his 11th career shutout with the Kings, surpassing Stephane Fiset (10) and Kelly Hrudey (10) for the fifth-most shutouts in franchise history.
— Drew Doughty has 29 points in 49 career regular-season contests against Vancouver, tied with Mark Hardy for the most by a defenseman in Kings franchise history.
Kings Projected Lineup vs. Canucks
If there are any key changes during pregame warmups, this article will be updated.
Panarin – Kopitar – Kempe
Moore – Byfield – Laferriere
Armia – Laughton – Wright
Malott – Helenius – Ward
Anderson – Doughty
Edmundson – Clarke
Dumoulin – Ceci
Forsberg (starter)
Kuemper
Likely scratches: (F) Joseph, Turcotte and (D) Moverare
Injured Reserve: Fiala, Kuzmenko (injury status updates here)
How to Watch the Game
Puck drop is set for 7:30 pm Pacific Time and will be televised by FanDuel Sports. Additionally, a Kings radio feed is available on the ESPN LA app.
More on the Kings’ changing TV situation for next season can be found here.
Across the Ice
Vancouver is coming off a 2-1 defeat against Vegas on Tuesday. Here’s how they lined up in that matchup:
O’Connor – E Pettersson – DeBrusk
Ohgren – Rossi – Boeser
Sasson – Blueger – Karlsson
Douglas – Raty – Hoglander
Buium – Hronek
M Pettersson – Willander
E N Pettersson – Mancini
Tolopilo
On This Day in Kings History
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