Less than a week after the Kings went into Chicago and dominated the Blackhawks, they now welcome rookie sensation Connor Bedard and team to Los Angeles for the first time this season.
Once again, coach Jim Hiller is still looking for more consistency from his squad. Coming off an underwhelming 1-2-0 road trip, they are now hopeful of getting things going on home ice. For what it’s worth, the Kings have been playing much better at Crypto.com Arena as of late. They now hold a record over .500 when playing in front of their fans — something that couldn’t always be said this season — and are 6-2-1 in Downtown LA since Hiller took over.
In a bit of odd scheduling, the Kings will play back-to-back home games this week, something that has only happened a handful of times over the past few decades. Could Viktor Arvidsson return for Tuesday’s matchup with Chicago or is it more likely for Wednesday vs. Minnesota? The only thing really known for sure is that he’s getting “close.” He did practice in a regular colored jersey on Monday in El Segundo, yet Arvidsson did not take regular reps with the second or third lines; nor was he seen working with the power play units. Of course, that could just mean Hiller is thinking about possibly easing him back into action, perhaps not a bad idea considering how much time he has missed this year.
Absent of conclusive information one way or another, we’re penciling Arvidsson in for tonight.
If he draws in, to be blunt, the Kings are a different team with him in the lineup. In just the few games Arvidsson was able to play last month, his presence allowed everyone to slot in where they should offensively, and provided additional offensive options — something the team could have used the past few months. Since January, the scoring in LA has dried up drastically and has not looked anything like where they were in the first half. Putting Arvidsson back in the lineup would certainly help, especially as his team is fighting to secure a playoff position.
Also of note is the Kings salary cap situation. According to Puck Pedia, LA currently has $4.46M in available cap space, which is enough to activate Arvidsson off of LTIR ($4.25M) without having to send anybody down to the AHL. This will temporarily spare Alex Turcotte, who is expected to remain up with the club for now. At some point — and likely before Carl Grundstrom returns in the next 10-14 days — look for Turcotte and/or Jacob Moverare to be returned to the Reign and defenseman Brandt Clarke to be recalled. If so, that would put the Kings at three of their four allowable recalls before the season ends.
Once Grundstrom is ready to return, assuming everybody else is healthy, the Kings will not have enough cap space to keep Turcotte and Moverare up in the NHL. Thus, the next two weeks will be their best opportunity to get a few other players some NHL action.
Statistically Speaking
— The Kings return to Crypto.com Arena with points in each of their last eight games (5-0-2) against the Blackhawks and in 16 of their last 18 overall (12-3-2), dating back to the 2016-17 season. The team’s .778 points percentage (PTS %) vs. Chicago ranks fifth best in that span and third-best among Western Conference teams.
— In those 18 contests, the Kings have allowed 37 goals for a goals against-per-game (GA/GP) of 2.06, the lowest by any one team vs. Chicago.
— Quinton Byfield’s next goal will give him 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.
— Tonight’s matchup is the first game of the Kings tenth set of back-to-back games this season. Prior to this set, the Kings are 10-7-3 in back-to-backs contests this season, with most of their success coming in the first game, where they are 8-1-1. On the second night, LA is 2-6-2.
An all new Kings Of The Podcast episode dropped just in time to preview this week’s homestand:
Kings Projected Lineup vs. Blackhawks
Byfield – Kopitar – Kempe
Moore – Danault – Fiala
Laferriere – Dubois – Arvidsson
Turcotte – Lizotte – Lewis
Anderson – Doughty
Gavrikov – Roy
Englund – Spence
Talbot (starter)
Rittich
Likely healthy scratches: Kaliyev, Moverare
LTIR: Copley, Grundstrom
Key Game Info
Puck drop is set for 7:00 pm Pacific Time and will be televised by Bally Sports.
For those live in attendance, the LA Kings Booster Club will offer their popular ‘Puck for a Buck’ contest — featuring Blake Lizotte 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.
LA Royal Army, another fan support group, has a booth outside section 303. They do watch parties and other fun activities. Stop by and check them out.
Across the Ice
Chicago is coming off a 5-2 victory over San Jose on Sunday.
Here’s how they lined up for that one:
Kurashev – Johnson – Bedard
Foligno – Athanasiou – Reichel
Dickinson – Blackwell – Anderson
Slaggert – Donato – Raddysh
Jones – Vlasic
Tinordi – Megna
Zaitsev – Korchinski
Mrazek
In their last 10 games, the Blackhawks are 4-5-1. As the away team, they’re 5-26-1 this season.
On This Day in Kings History
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