A new calendar year is upon us, and to help ring in 2025, the Kings are set to host Jack Hughes and the New Jersey Devils for a late afternoon affair on Wednesday.
It’s been a successful start to the five-game stretch at home thus far, as LA has orchestrated two straight come-from-behind wins against a pair of talented clubs in Edmonton and Philadelphia. For their next contest, things are shaping up to be quite the showdown between two of the NHL’s top teams. Diving a little deeper, perhaps the Kings are out for some revenge too after New Jersey beat coach Jim Hiller’s squad just a couple of weeks ago back on the East Coast. Mix in the fact the Kings are the second-best team on home ice this season (12-2-1) and there’s plenty of reason for optimism heading into puck drop.
Pacific Division standings show a tight race shaping up. The Golden Knights — winners in nine of their last 10 starts — have begun separating themselves from the pack a bit, creating a six-point lead over the Kings. Just below them, Los Angeles, Edmonton, and Vancouver are in a heated race to fill out the other playoff positions, as well as to earn home-ice advantage in any Round 1 series.
On the roster/injury front, the Kings have some reinforcements on the way, although nobody is ready quite yet. As we reported in the article linked below, Trevor Lewis is on track to return this coming Saturday. Trevor Moore has resumed skating but has yet to practice with the team. For more on the Drew Doughty and Arthur Kaliyev situations, see here:
Kings Roster Updates: Notes on Doughty, Lewis, Moore, Kaliyev, Moverare
Statistically Speaking
— Anze Kopitar is now tied with Dave Taylor for third-most goals in Kings history with 431 (more on that in our history section below).
— LA enters play with a 5-2-1 record against opponents from the Metropolitan Division this year.
— Sammy Helenius currently sits fourth amongst rookies with 67 hits this season.
— The Kings are 34-14-6-2 at home all time against the Devils, including defeating New Jersey in the 2012 Stanley Cup Final.
MayorsManor Post-Cup Interview with Teary-Eyed Willie Mitchell
Kings Projected Lineup vs. Devils
If there are any key changes during pregame warmups, this article will be updated.
Turcotte – Kopitar – Kempe
Foegele – Byfield – Jeannot
Fiala – Danault – Laferriere
Lee – Helenius
Anderson – Gavrikov
Edmundson – Clarke
Moverare – Spence
Burroughs
Kuemper (starter)
Rittich
Likely scratches: (F) Kaliyev, Thomas and (D) Englund
Injured Reserve: Doughty, Lewis, Moore
Key Game Info
Puck drop is set for 3:00 pm Pacific Time and will be televised locally by FanDuel Sports Network. Additionally, a Kings radio feed is available on the ESPN LA app (which is the new home for Kings radio this season, they’ve moved off of the iHeart platform).
More on the ongoing TV situation here.
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.
Across the Ice
New Jersey is coming off a 3-2 loss in Anaheim on Tuesday. Here’s how they lined up for that contest:
Palat – Hughes – Bratt
Meier – Hischier – Noesen
Cotter – Haula – Mercer
MacDermid – Lazar – Bastian
Dillon – Hamilton
Siegenthaler – Kovacevic
Hughes – Pesce
Markstrom
On This Day in Kings History
On January 1, 1994, @LAKings legend Dave Taylor scored his last career NHL goal in a 7-4 win versus the Toronto Maple Leafs. Taylor scored his 431st career goal, and Wayne Gretzky's three points gave him the league lead in scoring with 66 points in 38 games.#LAKings #GoKingsGo pic.twitter.com/eK4FqQhudm
— The Kingstorian (@Kingstorian) January 1, 2025
MORE LA KINGS NEWS:
World Juniors: Pair of Winner-Take-All Games on NYE for LA Kings Prospects
Game day graphic created by ALoImages
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