Looking for a bounce-back effort tonight, the Kings are in Calgary to take on the Flames. It’s the third of four games on the road for LA and marks their final regular season stop in Alberta. They have split the first two games in Canada this week, most recently suffering another demoralizing deafest at the hands of the Oilers two nights ago.
The final ten games remaining will have huge implications on who LA matches up with when postseason play begins next month. Since coach Jim Hiller’s group last took to the ice, Vegas has leapfrogged over them for third place in the Pacific Division. If the Kings fail to crack the top three of the Division, it looks like a series with Dallas, Colorado, or Vancouver is most likely. However, third place is still where the math says the Kings will end up.
And that could be a worry for Hiller. Not because of the inevitable matchup with Edmonton, by because getting there could be a process that’s not as easy as it looks on paper. For weeks, there has been talk about the Kings having an easy schedule to finish out the year. Sure, they only have to leave Southern California one more time this season, for a short stint in San Jose. They’ll also face eight non-playoff teams in their next ten games. Yet, this is not the time to take any of these games or opponents lightly. Every matchup is critical; they need to stack up wins to solidify playoff positioning. It’s hard to flip a switch suddenly when game 83 comes around. Coaches want their teams playing good hockey leading up to the playoffs.
Shifting focus back to tonight, there are even more questions to be answered.
Defenseman Jacob Moverare was sent back to AHL Ontario, then suddenly recalled yesterday after it was learned that the Kings were ‘a little banged up’ on the backend. Story here:
Will his services be required vs. Calgary? And if so, who if anybody is coming out of the lineup?
How does that impact Arthur Kaliyev, because the plan was to play him in Calgary?
What about the goaltending? David Rittich hasn’t started since facing Minnesota 10 days ago. We’ll assume Big Save Dave is getting the nod for this one.
One question can definitively be answered, though. Carl Grundstrom will not play tonight. Full story here:
Statistically Speaking
— Quinton Byfield enters tonight with a four-game point streak. He is also one goal away from recording his first career 20-goal season. The last Kings player to record at least 20 goals in a season at age 21 or younger was Anze Kopitar in 2008-09.
— Arthur Kaliyev seventh goal of the season on Thursday marked his 71st career point (35G, 71A), giving him the 12th-most points among skaters selected in the 2019 NHL Draft. That’s a rather remarkable stat considering he hasn’t been playing consistently, and has almost exclusively been a bottom-6 forward when in the lineup.
— LA has generated some offense while on the PK, as well. They sit tied for fourth in the league with 10 goals on the kill, trailing only St. Louis (11), Dallas (12), and Philadelphia (15).
Kings Projected Lineup vs. Flames
Byfield – Kopitar – Kempe
Moore – Danault – Fiala
Laferriere – Dubois – Arvidsson
Lewis – Lizotte – Kaliyev
Anderson – Doughty
Gavrikov – Roy
Englund – Spence
Rittich (starter)
Talbot
Likely scratches: Moverare
Injured: Turcotte
LTIR: Copley, Grundstrom
Key Game Info
Puck drop is set for 6:00 pm Pacific Time and will be televised by Bally Sports.
A fun pre-game story on Hiller and his history with Calgary can be viewed here.
Across the Ice
Calgary is coming off a 5-3 defeat by St. Louis on Thursday.
Here’s how they lined up for that one:
Huberdeau – Backlund – Coleman
Kuzmenko – Kadri – Pospisil
Zary – Sharangovich – Hunt
Greer – Rooney – Coronato
Hanley – Andersson
Weegar – Miromanov
Okhotiuk – Pachal
Wolf
In their last 10 games, the Flames are 2-8-0. As the home team, they’re 18-17-1 this season.
On This Day in Kings History
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