The LA Kings will try to extend their winning streak to five when they play the Avalanche in Colorado on Thursday evening.
Projected Lineups
LA Kings (37-20-8)
The Kings have had two days in a row off, but here’s how they lined up in practice on Wednesday per LA Kings Insider Zach Dooley:
Byfield – Kopitar – Kempe
Fiala – Danault – Arvidsson
Iafallo – Lizotte – Vilardi
Grundstrom – Kupari – MacEwen
Moore – Anderson-Dolan – Kaliyev
Anderson – Doughty
Gavrikov – Roy
Edler – Walker
Spence
Copley
Korpisalo
It appears to be a possibility that Zack MacEwen will play his second straight game for the Kings.
Colorado Avalanche (35-21-6)
Here’s how the Avalanche skated in their 6-0 win over the Sharks on Tuesday:
Lehkonen – MacKinnon – Nichushkin
Rodrigues – Compher – Rantanen
Cogliano – Eller – O’Connor
Nieto – Newhook – Malgin
Toews – Makar
Girard – Byram
MacDermid – Johnson
Georgiev
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 | 52.1 | 52.8 | 52.7 | 53.9 | 8.3 | 0.900 | 0.983 |
| Colorado Avalanche | 51.3 | 50.7 | 52.0 | 48.4 | 7.7 | 0.930 | 1.007 |
Injuries have hurt the Colorado Avalanche this season but they are still above average in most of their 5-on-5 metrics. When (if) they get fully healthy, they will be dangerous.
Special Teams
| Team | PP% | PK% |
| Los Angeles Kings | 24.7 | 76.0 |
| Colorado Avalanche | 22.8 | 78.8 |
Though the Kings are 1-for-8 on the power play in their last three games, they still boast a top-five power play in the NHL.
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.
The LA Kings come into this one as underdogs, which is probably to be expected despite the winning streak. That said, the +140 that BetRivers is offering is too much, in my opinion. +140 is an implied probability of 41.7%, and while I think the Kings should be underdogs, I think this is closer to a coin flip than that. DraftKings has the best price on Colorado at -155.
The total on the game is six at most places, though FanDuel does have 6.5 available. From a value standpoint, the best prices are at Caesars for the Over six (-120) and DraftKings for the Under six (+105)
 News & Notes
- This will be a matchup between two games playing some of their best hockey of the season. LA has won four straight games, and both teams are 7-2-1 in their last ten.
- The Avs are still dealing with some significant injuries, with Gabriel Landeskog, Erik Johnson, and Josh Manson among the team’s handful of injuries. Though, Landeskog and Johnson are both skatings.
- Former LA King Kurtis MacDermid left Tuesday’s game; his status is up in the air for Thursday.
- The Kings called up defenseman Jordan Spence from Ontario on Wednesday. Sean Durzi left Tuesday’s game early and did not skate at Wednesday’s practice. For now, it looks like Spence will be the odd defenseman out on Thursday.
- Since Joonas Korpisalo arrived in LA, the team has played three games and alternated goaltenders in each one. If the rotation continues, Korpisalo would be in line to get the start against Colorado.
- Quinton Byfield picked up an assist on Tuesday, giving him points in four straight games.
- Adrian Kempe scored his 30th goal of the season against Washington. He is on pace to comfortably pass last year’s career-high of 35.
- If you want to watch the game with fellow LA Kings fans, join in on the Hockey Royalty Live Stream via the Hockey Royalty YouTube channel! Like, subscribe, and enjoy the game!
(Main Photo Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports)