The Kings are in Vancouver, taking on the Canucks as they look to remain in the playoff race.
The Kings are coming off a big 3-2 shootout win against the Nashville Predators, and they look to win 3 straight. On the other hand, the Vancouver Canucks are coming off a 2-1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights and are currently on a 3-game losing streak. The Kings are looking to give the Canucks their 4th straight loss tonight, as a win today would guarantee that the Kings remain at least 1 point back of the Predators for the final wildcard spot.
Projected Kings Lines
Here are the projected lines for the Kings tonight:
Artemi Panarin - Anze Kopitar - Adrian Kempe
Trevor Moore - Quinton Byfield - Alex Laferriere
Joel Armia - Scott Laughton - Jared Wright
Jeff Malott - Samuel Helenius - Taylor Ward
Mikey Anderson - Drew Doughty
Joel Edmundson - Brandt Clarke
Brian Dumoulin - Cody Ceci
Anton Forsberg
Darcy Kuemper
Projected Canucks Lines
Here are the projected lines for the Canucks tonight:
Drew O’Connor - Elias Pettersson - Jake DeBrusk
Liam Ohgren - Marco Rossi - Brock Boeser
Max Sasson - Teddy Blueger - Linus Karlsson
Curtis Douglas - Aatu Raty - Nils Hoglander
Zeev Buium - Filip Hronek
Marcus Pettersson - Tom Willander
Elias Pettersson - Victor Mancini
Nikita Tolopilo
Jiri Patera
Injuries and Line Changes
Key Factors
One factor in tonight's game is goaltending: Forsberg has posted a save percentage above .920 in his last 4 games, and if he continues to play like this, it could be a factor in the Kings sneaking into the playoffs.
Another way is, once again, the duo of Kempe and Panarin, who have been incredible for the Kings and a major bright spot on the offence. The Kings' depth has also stepped up recently as Joel Armia and Scott Laughton found the back of the net.While this game is against the Canucks, the Kings have to make sure to take care of business. If the Predators win and the Kings lose, the Kings will be 2 games back with only 4 games remaining, so every game is more important as the season continues.