It’s all about Ovechkin, or is it? His chase to pass Wayne Gretzky’s goal mark has captured the attention of the national media and hockey fans worldwide. However, with the Great 8 still being far enough away from breaking the all-time record on Thursday night in Los Angeles — he’s nine goals back of Gretzky — that leaves the Kings and Capitals with other things on their mind.
None bigger than the giant elephant in the room, PL Dubois will make his return to Crypto.com Arena. It will be his first game in LA since the trade last summer that sent the high-priced center to our nation’s capital and brought goaltender Darcy Kuemper back for his second tour of duty with the Kings. There’s certainly money on the board in both locker rooms.
Lost in all of this, defenseman Matt Roy will also be making his return to LA too, after signing a long-term deal with the Capitals during free agency last July. By contrast with the Dubois situation, Roy’s return will definitely be met with appreciation and welcoming cheers from the home faithful.
Focusing on the game itself, this is yet another benchmark test for an LA team that is in the hunt for home ice advantage come Game 83. A win could see them pass up Edmonton in the Pacific Division standings, making tonight one of the biggest games in recent memory for this team.
For a deeper dive on Dubois returning to SoCal, be sure to check out this week’s KOTP episode:
Statistically Speaking
— Ovechkin and Anze Kopitar will go head-to-head for the 27th time in their careers, with Kopitar and the Kings holding a slight edge in the all-time series. LA has been victorious in 14 of the previous 26 matchups.
— Kevin Fiala has scored three goals over the Kings’ last two contests against the Capitals and enters tonight’s game with 12 points (5G, 7A) in 15 career games against the D.C.-based franchise.
— Vladislav Gavrikov notched his 28th career goal in Tuesday night’s win against the Islanders, part of his third career plus-4 outing.
— With his 33-save performance vs. the Islanders, Darcy Kuemper (20-8-7) became the fourth goaltender on a new team this season to reach the 20-win mark, joining Logan Thompson (28 w/ WSH), Kevin Lankinen (22 w/ VAN) and Jacob Markstrom (22 w/ NJD).
— Quinton Byfield has goals in four straight games, becoming just the third Kings player since 1990 to have such a streak while under the age of 22.
— Earlier this season, Ovechkin scored 15 times in his first 18 games before suffering a leg injury vs. Utah on Nov. 18. He has scored 18 times since he returned on Dec. 28. With 33 goals total on the year, in just 49 games played, he’s already surpassed the 31 goals he scored last season in 79 games.
Kings Projected Lineup vs. Capitals
If there are any key changes during pregame warmups, this article will be updated.
Kuzmenko – Kopitar – Kempe
Foegele – Danault – Moore
Fiala – Byfield – Laferriere
Jeannot – Helenius – Turcotte
Anderson – Doughty
Gavrikov – Spence
Edmundson – Clarke
Kuemper (starter)
Rittich
Likely scratches: (F) Lewis, Thomas and (D) Burroughs, Moverare
Key Game Info
Puck drop is set for 7:30 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 Phil Danault 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
Washington is coming off a 7-4 victory over Anaheim on Tuesday. Here is how they lined up for that contest:
Ovechkin – Strome – Wilson
McMichael – Dubois – Protas
Mangiapane – Eller – Raddysh
Duhaime – Dowd – Beauvillier
Sandin – Carlson
Chychrun – Van Riemsdyk
Fehervary – Roy
Thompson
On This Day in Kings History
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