The LA Kings visit one of the NHL’s best teams, the Carolina Hurricanes, to end their six-game road trip on Tuesday.
Projected Lineups
LA Kings (28-18-6)
Here’s how the Kings lined up in Saturday’s loss to Tampa Bay:
Tonight's @LAKings Line Rushes –
Byfield – Kopitar – Kempe
Iafallo – Danault – Arvidsson
Fiala – Lizotte – Anderson-Dolan
Lemieux – Kupari – FagemoAnderson – Doughty
Durzi – Roy
Edler – WalkerQuick
Copley— Zach Dooley (@DooleyLAK) January 28, 2023
We’ll learn more if the Kings skate on Tuesday morning, but other than Pheonix Copley coming back between the pipes, we may see a very similar lineup.
Carolina Hurricanes (32-9-8)
The Hurricanes handed Boston their third-straight loss on Sunday; here was how they lined up:
Teravainen – Aho – Jarvis
Svechnikov – Kotkaniemi – Necas
Martinook – Staal – Fast
Noesen – Stastny – Stepan
Chatfield – Burns
Skjei – Pesce
de Haan – Coghlan
Andersen
5-on-5
Here’s how the two teams match up at 5-on-5 per Natural Stat Trick
| Team | CF% | xGF% | SCF% | HDCF% | SH% | SV% | PDO |
| Los Angeles Kings | 51.6 | 52.2 | 51.8 | 52.7 | 7.8 | 0.902 | 0.980 |
| Carolina Hurricanes | 59.8 | 59.8 | 59.9 | 58.3 | 7.8 | 0.917 | 0.997 |
The Carolina Hurricanes have been one of the best-possession teams in hockey over the past handful of years, and this season is no different. They completely control the shot-share at 5-on-5 using a very fast, very aggressive style of play. Their goal will be to have the Kings on their heels right from puck drop.
Special Teams
| Team | PP% | PK% |
| Los Angeles Kings | 23.7 | 75.0 |
| Carolina Hurricanes | 18.7 | 81.9 |
If there’s a flaw in the Hurricanes, it is their power play. For as much as they control play at even strength, without the elite finisher, they struggle to score with the man advantage. They thought they acquired that this off-season with Max Pacioretty, but he has recently reinjured his Achilles and will miss the remainder of the season.
Betting Odds
Let’s look at the odds, courtesy of Betstamp.
*Note: the odds below are for sports books offered in New York. Refer to available sports books specific to your state.
**Odds as of 10 am ET/7 am PT may have changed since this was published.
As expected, the LA Kings come into this one as road underdogs, with DraftKings offering the best number at +180. The best number on Carolina is at BetMGM, -200. The total on the game is six, with BetRivers offering the best number on the Over at -102, while FanDuel’s -110 is the best price on the Under.
While it isn’t as tough of a schedule spot as the game in Tampa Bay, I think this line is fair. A road game before a lengthy break against one of the top teams in the league. I’m staying away from this game.
News & Notes
- Martin Necas has been on a tear lately, with four goals and two assists in his last five games. Two of those goals were overtime winners in back-to-back games against Dallas and San Jose. He leads the Hurricanes with 45 points in 49 games.
- Longtime San Jose Sharks defenseman Brent Burns leads all Carolina defensemen in points (34) and is tied with Necas for the team lead in power play points (15).
- Frederik Andersen has started six games since his return to injury. He has won five of them and hasn’t allowed more than two goals in any appearance. The Hurricanes have had strong goaltending this season, no matter who has been between the pipes. On the season, Anderson is 10-3 with a 2.38 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage.
- The two teams met in early December, with Carolina winning in Los Angeles, 4-2. It was a fairly even game at 5-on-5, with Carolina edging LA in shot attempts (50.5% CF%) and expected goals (52.7% xGF%) per Natural Stat Trick. The Kings really struggled with the Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis, and Martin Necas line, who had nearly 67% of the shot attempts at 5-on-5.
- For the Kings, expect Pheonix Copley to come back in net. Jonathan Quick certainly wasn’t bad against Tampa, but the 2022-23 season continues to be a struggle for the two-time Stanley Cup champion.
- Adrian Kempe leads the Kings again in goals with 20. He is scoring .65 points per game, in line with his .69 points per game from his 2021-22 career year.
- After scoring in back-to-back games on January 7th and 9th, Viktor Arvidsson has just one goal in his seven games since. That is his only point during that stretch.
- Drew Doughty has quietly found his offensive production over the past month. Since December 31st, Doughty has scored one goal and ten assists during those 13 games. He had just four assists in the prior 13 games.
(Main Photo Credit: NHL.com)