Let’s talk history for a quick minute.
On this date in 1984, the Kings recorded their most lopsided win franchise history, a 12-1 victory over the Canucks. With Marcel Dionne, Mark Hardy, and Doug Smith each scoring two goals, LA established new team records for most goals (12) and power play goals (6) in a single contest.
More recently, the Kings have found additional success against the Canucks, as well. LA has recorded points in nine of their last 10 matchups with Vancouver — posting a 6-1-3 record.
However, coach Jim Hiller and his group of players will likely enter tonight’s matchup with the Canucks simply looking to shake off the disappointment of 24 hours ago.
Friday afternoon at the Honda Center, they held a two-goal lead over the Ducks with about 10 minutes remaining in regulation. The Kings ended up losing that game in a shootout, so it’s time to ‘Park and Ride,’ as the saying goes.
Tonight brings a quick turnaround, as coach Jim Hiller’s squad returns home to Crypto.com Arena, where they’ll host the Canucks for the first time this season.
Had the Kings won yesterday, they would have taken the ice tonight in first place. Even so, they’re still in the thick of the Pacific Division battle. And with parity throughout the league right now, that’s life in the NHL during 2025-26. It’s a jumbled mess and three-point games reign supreme.
On a more positive note, Alex Turcotte had his best game of the season on Friday afternoon, picking up his first goal and playing key minutes late in the game. Getting Turcotte going could be huge for LA — especially considering the lack of production coming from their other centers. Anze Kopitar and Phil Danault have yet to show their best stuff, and Quinton Byfield has struggled to consistently find the back of the net thus far. Therefore, the play of Turcotte becomes that much more important.
Lineup-wise, Warren Foegele isn’t expected to play after being referred to as day-to-day by Hiller (lower body). The only change likely to occur would be in net, where Anton Forsberg will most likely get the nod in goal. While the team’s goaltending has improved drastically since early October, there has occasionally been a theme of goals allowed on “stoppable shots” that keeps creeping back into the narrative. Getting a solid performance out of Forsberg will be crucial if LA is to end this back-to-back set with a win on home ice.
Statistically Speaking
— Adrian Kempe has four goals and seven points over his last five games against Vancouver.
— Jacob Moverare skated in his 100th career NHL regular-season game yesterday afternoon in Anaheim. By doing so, Moverare became the 18th different blueliner from the 2016 NHL Draft to appear in 100 NHL regular-season contests.
— Anze Kopitar and Corey Perry are each set to skate in their 71st career regular-season game against Vancouver on Saturday night, both of which are tied for second-most among active players behind Brent Burns (83 GP).
— Kevin Fiala became the first Kings skater this season to reach the double-digit marker in goals with his 10th tally of the season at Honda Center yesterday.
What You May Have Missed
For more Kings talk, including a debate on Hiller’s current line combinations and defensive pairings, be sure to check out this week’s KOTP episode:
Kings Projected Lineup vs. Canucks
If there are any key changes during pregame warmups, this article will be updated.
Kuzmenko – Kopitar – Moore
Fiala – Byfield – Kempe
Armia – Danault – Laferriere
Malott – Turcotte – Perry
Anderson – Dumoulin
Edmundson – Clarke
Moverare – Ceci
Forsberg
Kuemper
Likely scratches: (F) Foegele (lower body injury, day to day), Helenius and (D) N/A
Injured Reserve: Doughty
How to Watch the Game
Puck drop is set for 7:00 pm Pacific Time and will be televised locally by FanDuel Sports. Additionally, a Kings radio feed is available on the ESPN LA app.
Get to know new Kings play-by-play voice John Kelly by checking out his interview here. He tells some interesting stories about joining the Kings broadcasts and what it was like calling games against them for most of his career.
Across the Ice
Vancouver is coming off a 3-2 loss to San Jose on Friday. Here’s how they lined up in that matchup:
Kane – Pettersson – DeBrusk
Garland – Kampf -Boeser
O’Connor – Raty – Sherwood
Bains – Sasson – Karlsson
Hughes – Hronek
Pettersson – Myers
M Pettersson -Willander
Patera
On This Day in Kings History
MORE LA KINGS NEWS:
Follow @mayorNHL
Continue reading...