Joe Patarino 
The LA Kings return to action on Saturday to honor Dustin Brown and play host to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Projected Lineups
LA Kings (28-18-7)
With some injured players skating again, here’s how the Kings skated at practice on Friday, per LA Kings Insider Zach Dooley:
Byfield – Kopitar – Kempe
Moore – Danault – Arvidsson
Fiala – Lizotte – Iafallo
Anderson-Dolan – Lemieux – Kupari – Kaliyev
Anderson – Doughty
Durzi – Roy
Edler – Walker
Copley
Quick
It’s worth noting that Gabriel Vilardi also was on the ice in a non-contact jersey.
Pittsburgh Penguins (26-16-9)
Here’s how the Pens skated in Anaheim on Friday:
Penguins' lines/pairings vs. Ducks. Letang is out due to illness, Friedman gets back in. No other changes.
Guentzel-Crosby-Rakell
Zucker-Malkin-Rust
McGinn-Carter-Kapanen
Poehling-Blueger-ArchibaldPettersson-Petry
Dumoulin-Friedman
Joseph-RuhwedelDeSmith starts
— Taylor Haase (@TaylorHaasePGH) February 11, 2023
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 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 50.9 | 52.7 | 51.1 | 52.6 | 7.9 | 0.922 | 1.000 |
| Los Angeles Kings | 51.3 | 52.0 | 51.7 | 52.3 | 7.9 | 0.901 | 0.981 |
Special Teams
| Team | PP% | PK% |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 22.6 | 81.2 |
| Los Angeles Kings | 24.0 | 74.2 |
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 8:30 am ET/5:30 am PT may have changed since this was published.
The LA Kings are slight home favorites on Saturday, with BetRivers offering -111. Multiple books have the visiting Penguins at Even money. The total on this game is 6.5. If you like the Over, BetRivers is offering Even Money. FanDuel’s -108 on the Under is the best price for a low-scoring game.
It should be an emotional night at Crypto.com Arenea with the Kings honoring Dustin Brown. They’ve had plenty of time off, and the Penguins just played last night. The two teams are pretty even at 5-on-5, and the Kings have had a slight edge in the last 25 games. I don’t hate the -111 on the hosts in this one.
News & Notes
- This will be the first game for the LA Kings since their December 31st overtime loss in Carolina. That capped off a six-game road trip where the Kings went 3-2-1, picking up points in four of the six games.
- As was reported by LA Kings Insider, Zach Dooley, Trevor Moore, and Arthur Kaliyev returned to the ice for Thursday’s practice, while Gabriel Vilardi returned on Friday. Vilardi was in a non-contact jersey, while Kaliyev and Moore both appear ready to go.
- Since the All-Star Break, the Penguins picked up an overtime win against Colorado at home and a 4-1 win in Anaheim last night against the Ducks.
- Goaltender Tristan Jarry returned to practice this week for Pittsburgh. With Casey DeSmith starting on Friday, expect Jarry to get the nod in net on Saturday.
- Kris Letang missed Friday’s game with an illness, but he could be back for Saturday’s game.
- The Kings will honor former captain Dustin Brown on Saturday. The 18-year Los Angeles Kings’ winger led the LA Kings to two Stanley Cups in three years, in 2012 and 2014.
- LA made a roster move involving a goaltender on Friday, but it wasn’t a trade. The Kings inked Pheonix Copley to a one-year deal worth $1.5 million.
- The Kings enter Saturday in the top Wild Card spot in the Western Conference. They’re tied in points with Edmonton and Seattle, who are second and third, respectively, in the Pacific Division, and five points up on Minnesota and Calgary, who are battling for the final Wild Card position.
(Main Photo Credit: NHL.com)