A win tonight would give the Kings a little mini-streak and it could even be the sign of something bigger brewing. Recent history is also on their side, as LA holds an eight-game home point streak (6-0-2) against San Jose, dating back to March 2022.
It won’t be easy against the Sharks, though. Coach Jim Hiller will have several key regulars out the lineup, including captain Anze Kopitar. As a result, he’s being forced to make a myriad of changes.
In addition to Kopitar, Hiller and the Kings will be without Corey Perry’s services. He’s been designated “non-roster playing status” for tonight so he can return home to be with a sick family member.
Meanwhile, forwards Joel Armia and Trevor Moore will also miss tonight’s game. So, enter Andre Lee and Taylor Ward from AHL Ontario.
As noted in the article above, Lee has been on quite a tear lately, amassing seven goals in his past eight games played. The 6-foot-5 native of Sweden currently leads the Reign in goals (15) and points (27). He’s expected to play alongside Sammy Helenius — a tandem that has proven to be quite effective in the past. How much playing time they’ll receive remains to be seen, as Hiller plans to with an 11+7 alignment vs. the Sharks.
Meanwhile, Ward is believed to be headed for top line duty, opposite Alex Laferriere, who will be playing center. The latter even stayed out late after morning skate, continuing to work on faceoffs with Development Coach Jarret Stoll.
While special teams were only worked on for a limited time at this morning’s skate, if the following holds, it would be quite the shakeup:
Overall, the Kings enter tonight’s game after two impressive wins over Minnesota. This has also put LA back in the thick of things in a tight race atop the Pacific Division.
Thus, even with a reconfigured lineup, Hiller will be looking for more of the same — especially when it comes to discipline and drive. Since the calendar year flipped, his group has been playing much better hockey than they were just a few weeks ago. They’re more competitive, consistent, and dangerous on offense. This is partially because Andrei Kuzmenko is beginning to once again look like the player the Kings acquired last season. As Hiller said after Monday’s victory, “The Kuz is back.” Playing alongside Kevin Fiala, the two have found some magic that is driving the offense for the Kings over the last six games or so. This is likely part of the reason that line is one of the few things not changing tonight.
In goal, Darcy Kuemper has now made three starts since returning from his respective injury, and he is starting to look more confident in net over every passing game. With back-to-back wins over one of the top teams in the league, it would be surprising to see Hiller not go right back to Kuemper tonight and ride the hot hand.
Statistically Speaking
— Laferriere is set to skate in his 200th career NHL game on Wednesday vs. San Jose. He would become the ninth different active Harvard alumnus, and 18th overall, to reach the 200-game mark in their career.
— Byfield notched an assist in his 300th career NHL game on Monday vs. Minnesota. He is the eighth different skater from the 2020 NHL Draft to appear in as many games and now has five points in his last five games, dating back to Dec. 27, 2025, versus Anaheim.
— Turcotte skates into tonight’s meeting with San Jose with assists in consecutive games after finding the scoresheet in each of the teams’ victories against the Minnesota Wild at Crypto.com Arena earlier this week.
What You May Have Missed
Kings Projected Lineup vs. Sharks
If there are any key changes during pregame warmups, this article will be updated.
Ward – Laferriere – Kempe
Malott – Byfield – Foegele
Fiala – Turcotte – Kuzmenko
Lee – Helenius
Anderson – Doughty
Edmundson – Clarke
Dumoulin – Ceci
Moverare
Kuemper (starter)
Forsberg
Likely scratches: (F) Armia, Kopitar, Moore, Perry and (D) N/A
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.
Across the Ice
San Jose is coming off a 5-2 victory over Columbus on Tuesday. Here’s how they lined up in that matchup:
Eklund – Celebrini – Chernyshov
Regenda – Wennberg – Toffoli
Skinner – Dellandrea – Graf
Goodrow – Ostapchuk – Reaves
Orlov – Liljegren
Ferraro – Iorio
Dickinson – Leddy
Nedeljkovic
On This Day in Kings History
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