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Kings Look To Bounce Back As They Face The Canucks cover image

Shaken by a crushing loss, the Kings seek redemption against a struggling, injury-plagued Canucks squad tonight.

After enduring possibly the worst loss of their season to the Anaheim Ducks on Friday, the Los Angeles Kings (11-6-7) are back home where they will face the Vancouver Canucks (10-13-2) as they look for a bounce back victory. Puck drop is set for 7:00PM ET/10:00PM ET.

Both the Kings and Canucks are on the second night of a back-to-back, meaning this could be a sloppy game where every bounce matters. The more disciplined team will likely walk away victorious. In their last 10, LA is 5-2-3 while Vancouver continues to struggle with a 3-5-2 record in their last 10. 

Kings Projected Lineup

Anton Forsberg (3-2-2) will make his eight start of the season after Darcy Kuemper appeared against Anaheim on Friday. Otherwise, the lineup will stay the same with Doughty and Foegele still sideline due to injury. 

*Indicates Leading Scorer

Forwards

First Line: Kevin Fiala -- Quinton Byfield -- Adrian Kempe*

Second Line: Andrei Kuzmenko -- Anze Kopitar -- Trevor Moore

Third Line: Joel Armia -- Phillip Danault -- Alex Laferriere

Fourth Line: Jeff Malott -- Alex Turcotte -- Corey Perry

Defense

1st Pair: Mikey Anderson -- Joel Edmundson

2nd Pair: Brian Dumoulin -- Brandt Clarke

3rd Pair: Jacob Moverare -- Cody Ceci

Goaltenders: Anton Forsberg (Starter) Darcy Kuemper (Backup)

Canucks Projected Lineup

Kevin Lankinen (4-7-2) is expected to make his 13th start of the season after missing the first two games of the road trip due to a personal reason. He has since joined the Canucks on the road. Vancouver continues to deal with countless injuries as they're one of, if not the most injured team in the NHL this season.

*Indicates Leading Scorer

Forwards

First Line: Evander Kane -- Elias Pettersson* -- Jake DeBrusk

Second Line: Brock Boeser -- David Kampf -- Conor Garland

Third Line: Drew O'Connor -- Max Sasson -- Kiefer Sherwood

Fourth Line: Arshdeep Bains -- Lukas Reichel -- Linus Karlsson

Defense

1st Pair: Quinn Hughes* -- Filip Hronek

2nd Pair: Elias Pettersson -- Tyler Myers

3rd Pair: Marcus Pettersson -- Tom Willander

Goaltenders: Kevin Lankinen (Starter) Nikita Tolopilo (Backup)

History and Facts

  • Kings and Canucks have faced 271 times in the regular season
  • LAK is 118-111-42 while VAN is 121-107-43
  • LAK is 6-4 in their last 10 against VAN
  • LAK is is 2nd in Pacific (29 PTS) while VAN is 7th (22 PTS)
  • Anton Forsberg is 0-4-0 against VAN in his career
  • Kevin Lankinen is 3-0-0 against LAK in his career

Bottom Line

The Kings need to take advantage of a depleted Canucks team on the second night of a back-to-back. Vancouver's centre depth is currently severely outmatched by the Kings centre core. Quinton Byfield, Anze Kopitar, and Phillip Danault must be at their best at the face-off dot to ensure the Kings gain possession as much as possible to wear out the already tired Canucks. After a shocking defeat to the Ducks, a win tonight is a great way to get momentum back in the favour of the Kings. 

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Topics:Game Day