After five straight starts by Pheonix Copley, Kings coach Todd McLellan is expected to hand the net back to Jonathan Quick tonight in Arizona. Having last played December 11 against Columbus, the 36-year-old goaltender stopped 18 of the 21 shots en route to a victory over Arizona earlier this month. He’ll now be looking to extend the Kings current winning streak to five games.
Defensively, Jordan Spence could draw back in after resting last night in favor of Sean Walker. In a perfect world, Alex Edler would sit out night two of a back-to-back set. However, given the lack of left shot D available to McLellan, it might not be as easy as desired. Walker sliding to the left, with Spence on the right side may be the way to go here.
Up front, Brendan Lemieux was activated earlier this week, indicating he’s ready to return after missing 25 games due to injury. We’d assume he’ll draw in at LW4 tonight. Either Jaret Anderson-Dolan or Carl Grundstrom would end up as the odd man out in that lineup configuration. Beyond that, we’re expecting Arthur Kaliyev to take another game off after blocking a shot vs. Anaheim on Tuesday. That would give him a full week of recovery before the Kings host Vegas on December 27 back in Los Angeles.
LA Kings Projected Lineup vs. Arizona Coyotes
Fiala – Kopitar – Kempe
Iafallo – Danault – Moore
Arvidsson – Lizotte – Vilardi
Lemieux – Kupari – Grundstrom / JAD
Anderson – Doughty
Durzi – Roy
Edler / Walker – Spence
Quick
Copley
Scratches: Anderson-Dolan, Kaliyev, Walker
ICYMI: Brandt Clarke is at the World Juniors with Team Canada
Additional Game Notes
Tomorrow night in Arizona…#ReverseRetroDoubleDown pic.twitter.com/tSaV4FWj26
— The Mayor | Team MM (@mayorNHL) December 23, 2022
Puck drop is set for 6:30pm PST and will be televised by Bally Sports West.
In Arizona’s last game played, they were defeated 5-2 by the Golden Knights in Vegas on Wednesday.
Here’s how the Coyotes lined up for that one:
Squad. pic.twitter.com/xRUGHQU1vR
— Arizona Coyotes (@ArizonaCoyotes) December 22, 2022
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Lineup image created by ALo Images
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