LA Kings vs Arizona Coyotes projected lineup, betting preview

After a wild game against Seattle, the LA Kings will look to tighten things up against the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday.

Projected Lineups

LA Kings (12-9-4)

Here was the Kings’ lineup in their 9-8 loss on Tuesday:

Tonight's @LAKings Line Rushes –

Fiala – Kopitar – Kempe
Moore – Danault – Arvidsson
Vilardi – Lizotte – Grundstrom
Anderson-Dolan – Kupari – Kaliyev

Anderson – Doughty
Durzi – Roy
Edler – Walker

Quick
Petersen

— Zach Dooley (@DooleyLAK) November 30, 2022

The one certain change is that Cal Petersen will not be on the roster for Thursday’s game. The 28-year-old netminder was placed on waivers on Wednesday after a poor start to the season. The team canceled their practice and media availability on Wednesday, so any lineup updates will not come until sometime on Thursday. That said, I wouldn’t expect much to change from Tuesday’s lineup.

Arizona Coyotes (7-10-3)

Here are the most recent line combos for the Coyotes:

Keller – Boyd – Schmaltz
O’Brien – McBain – Fischer
Crouse – Bjugstad – Maccelli
Ritchie – Hayton – Kassian

Valimaki – Moser
Nemeth – Stetcher
Chychrun – Gostisbehere

Vejmelka

LA Kings fans will get a first-hand look at oft-rumored Jakob Chychrun on Thursday as he has returned to the Coyotes’ lineup after a lengthy absence. Chychrun playing again has his name swirling around the rumor mill, but the team’s asking price remains high.

Clayton Keller is off to a nice start this season, with 21 points in 20 games.

Also, Arizona quietly has one of the better rookies in the NHL in Matias Maccelli. The 22-year-old is third in rookie scoring with 13 points in 18 games.

5-on-5

Here’s how the two teams match up at 5-on-5 per Natural Stat Trick

Like most teams that play Arizona, it’s a mismatch on paper. That said, the Coyotes have been hanging around games and their seven wins on the season already have them outside the bottom four in the NHL. The Kings are the better team possession-wise by a wide margin.

Special Teams

Believe it or not, the Coyotes’ Special Teams have performed quite well this season. At 23.2%, the power play is 13th in the NHL, while their penalty kill is 16th at 79.2%.

Don’t look now, Kings fans, but the LA power play is approaching the top ten. Their 23.6% is good for 12th in the NHL. The penalty kill struggles continue as they gave up three more power play goals on Tuesday night. Their kill ranks 27th at 72.3%.

Betting Odds

Let’s take a look at the odds, courtesy of our partner Betstamp (promo code: hockeyroyalty).

*Note: the odds below are for sports books offered in New York. Refer to available sports books specific to your state.
**Odds as of 9:30 am ET/6:30 am PT may have changed since this was published.

The Kings come into this one as heavy favorites. The best number in the market is -250, and that’s offered at a handful of books. The underdog Coyotes are available at +220 at FanDuel.

The total is set at six across the board, with FanDuel offering the Over at -114 and BetMGM offering the Under at Even Money.

There was a lot of noise after the 9-8 loss on Tuesday, and we started to see some changes with Petersen being waived. If the Kings don’t answer the bell against Arizona following that loss, I don’t know when they will. I’d strongly consider LA at -250 here.

DraftKings Player Props

Sponsored by DraftKings (promo code THPN)

With the pressure starting to be felt in the organization, I’m going to look to the leadership to lead the way. Anze Kopitar is +195 to score and -160 to pick up a point.

Phillip Danault has quietly put together another nice season in his second season in LA. He is +140 to pick up an assist.

For Arizona, why not get in on some Jakob Chychrun action! He is +425 to score and +500 to record a point with the man advantage. Rookie Matias Maccelli is +135 to pick up a point.

Good luck, and enjoy the game!

Follow me on Betstamp @JWPatarino!

(Main Photo Credit: Photo by Juan Ocampo/Getty Images)