It’s time to get on a roll.
The Kings return home on Tuesday to face the visiting Blue Jackets following a successful 3-1-0 road trip in which it seemed head coach Jim Hiller got some of the confidence and swagger back in his team. They have four wins in five tries under his tenure thus far, and now there is an opportunity to take advantage of three teams below them in the standings during this week’s homestand.
Following Columbus, LA will face Nashville on Thursday, and then Anaheim on Saturday. What do all three have in common? Currently, none of them are in a playoff position, and the Predators are the only ones with a realistic chance of changing that down the stretch.
Good teams beat bad teams on home ice, that’s how you establish yourself as a legitimate playoff-caliber group. LA did their part on the road. Now, it’s time to keep up the momentum at Crypto.com Arena, where they have struggled mightily this season.
For as much talk as there was about the Kings struggles during December and January, the fact is, they are still very much in the hunt for one of the Pacific Division’s top three spots. They trail Edmonton by just three points, and Vegas by six points. LA also has two games in hand on Vegas, which is only a good thing if you win those contests.
A big factor contributing to the recent success of Hiller’s squad is the re-emergence of depth scoring; something that had been missing since the first couple months of the season. Adrian Kempe may be ready to return from his winter slumber, potting two goals in Sunday’s game at Pittsburgh. Rookie defenseman Brandt Clarke scored his first career goal (in spectacular fashion) on the trip, as well. When a team has three dangerous forward lines, as well as multiple defensemen putting the puck in the net, a team becomes much more dangerous — obviously.
Now, Hiller and the Kings need to transfer those performances to home ice.
Among the only lineup questions heading into tonight are who will start in goal and what about Arthur Kaliyev? The latter scored against the Blue Jackets the only other time to the two clubs met this season. Perhaps that will help sway the decision to let him play his second consecutive game after sitting out five.
As for the goaltending, David Rittich has been getting the bulk of starts under Hiller, but Cam Talbot had a nice bounce back performance in Pittsburgh. We’ll have to see what today’s morning skate brings.
The last time these two teams met, Pheonix Copley picked up a 4-3 overtime win for LA. It was his final victory of the season. Either Cam Talbot (15-13-5, 2.58 GAA, .911 save percentage) or David Rittich (8-2-3, 2.25 GAA, .919 save percentage) will get the start. Neither has faced the Blue Jackets yet this season.
Statistically Speaking
— Kevin Fiala is riding a seven-game point streak vs. Columbus (2G, 8A), dating back to Jan. 10, 2019.
— With Alex Turcotte in the lineup, LA is 5-1-1 this season.
— Russian forward Dmitri Voronkov has seven goals in his last 10 games for Columbus. The 23-year-old is also third among NHL rookies for goals (14) and tied for fourth in points (27).
— Blue Jackets forward Johnny Gaudreau has picked up at least one assist in six straight games (tied for the second longest streak in CBJ history). He also has nine helpers over his past 11 games; yet hasn’t potted a goal in 16 games.
— Columbus defenseman Zach Werenski has points in four straight games (1-3-4) and broke a 38-game goal drought in San Jose on Saturday.
Kings Projected Lineup vs. Blue Jackets
Fiala – Kopitar – Kempe
Moore – Danault – Arvidsson
Laferriere – Dubois – Byfield
Lewis – Turcotte – Kaliyev
Anderson – Doughty
Gavrikov – Roy
Englund – Clarke
Talbot (starter)
Rittich
Likely scratches: Anderson-Dolan, Spence
Injured: Copley, Grundstrom, Lizotte (all on LTIR)
Key Game Info
Puck drop is set for 7:30 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 Jordan Spence 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
Columbus is coming off a 4-3 victory against the Sharks on Saturday.
Here’s how they lined up for that one:
Gaudreau – Jenner – Roslovic
Chinakhov – Voronkov – Marchenko
Johnson – Sillinger – Danforth
Texier – Kuraly – Oliver
Werenski – Boqvist
Provorov – Severson
Bean – Gudbranson
Merzlikins
In their last 10 games, the Blue Jackets are 4-5-1. As the away team, they’re 8-12-6 this season.
On This Day in Kings History
On February 20, 1971, the @LAKings had their first sellout at The Fabulous Forum. An announced crowd of 16,005 fans saw Bruins forward Phil Esposito score his 50th goal of the season, and witnessed the #LAKings overcome a three-goal deficit in a 5-4 win versus Boston.#GoKingsGo pic.twitter.com/e2V5S2rl7P
— The Kingstorian (@Kingstorian) February 20, 2024
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Game day graphic created by ALoImages
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Why is Englund-Clarke the projected pairing when they’ve played under a minute of 5v5 together each of the last three games?
MM,
Can you give me a decent reason why it wouldn’t be the end of the world if Trevor Lewis sit a game or two here and
there ? Don’t get me wrong, I like Lewis and think he has done a fine job this year. But I think we all would like to see a line of nothing but younger players such as
JAD-Turcotte-Kaliyev. The three of these players are all seasoned enough to be given a try on their own without the assistance of an old vet like Lewis.
Assuming ‘penalty kill’ wood be the reason coaches would give.