WHO: Los Angeles Kings (25-17-7) @ Arizona Coyotes (12-32-4)
WHAT: NHL REGULAR-SEASON GAME
WHEN: Saturday, February 19 @ 6:00 PM Pacific
WHERE: Gila River Arena – Glendale, AZ
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: Bally Sports West – AUDIO – iHeart Radio – TWITTER: @DooleyLAK & @LAKings
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP: The Kings conclude a quick two-game swing to the desert tonight in Arizona, with a showdown against the Coyotes.
HEAD-TO-HEAD: The Kings picked up one point from the only prior meeting of the season against Arizona, a 2-1 overtime defeat in Los Angeles. Brendan Lemieux scored the only goal in that game, with Blake Lizotte collecting the assist. Anze Kopitar led all skaters in the head-to-head series last season with eight points (1-7-8) from eight games played, and the captain is over a point per game in his career versus Arizona with 84 points (22-62-84) from 83 games played
KINGS VITALS: The Kings conclude the back-to-back set tonight in Glendale, following an impressive 4-3 win in Vegas yesterday evening over the Golden Knights.
Considering the back-to-back, the expectation is that goaltender Cal Petersen will get the nod this evening against the Coyotes, following Jonathan Quick’s victory yesterday. Petersen is in line for his sixth career appearance against Arizona, bringing with him a 2-2-0 record, a .915 save percentage and a 2.80 goals-against average from the prior five.
The team did not hold a morning skate today in advance of tonight’s contest. While there were questions surrounding the team’s third line entering last night’s action, that unit responded with perhaps their best game of the season as a trio, with McLellan indicating last night that they will get another game together today in Arizona.
With that in mind, coming off of an impressive victory that lacked passengers, we’ll expect the same lineup here this evening against the Coyotes. Last night’s alignment, and thus tonight’s projection, is listed below –
Iafallo – Kopitar – Kempe
Moore – Danaut – Arvidsson
Athanasiou – Byfield – Brown
Lemieux – Lizotte – Kaliyev
Anderson – Doughty
Maatta – Roy
Bjornfot – Durzi
Petersen / Quick
As was the case yesterday, the Kings have forward Carl Grundstrom and defenseman Jacob Moverare at their disposal if they did choose to make any lineup changes tonight in Glendale.
COYOTES VITALS: Arizona is back in action tonight for the first time in eight days. The Coyotes had an early start to their return from All-Star Break, with three games in four nights, followed by more than a week in between tonight’s game and their last time out, a 4-3 home defeat against Tampa Bay.
Per Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports, goaltender Karel Vejmelka will make the start this evening at Gila River Arena. Vejmelka was excellent in his first appearance against the Kings, as the rookie netminder made 37 saves on 38 shots in the 2-1 overtime victory in Los Angeles back in November.
While it’s been a minute, here’s how Arizona lined up last time out against the Lightning –
Tonight's squad. ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/gVd5xEW27c
— Arizona Coyotes (@ArizonaCoyotes) February 12, 2022
Expect to see forward Barret Hayton back in action today for Arizona, with the young forward set to return to the lineup for the first time since January 6.
Third Line Pushes Back
I think it’s a really good reflection on both coach and player – or players – when a coach is critical of a player or a line publicly and that line responds the right way just hours later.
That was the case yesterday in Vegas. In the morning, after skate, Todd McLellan challenged his third line in his pre-game press conference, highlighting their individual abilities and their on-paper ability to be a dynamic line, while lamenting the fact that it hadn’t happened yet. Per McLellan, it was three players not offering their best, either individually or as a line. Last night, however, that was far from the case.
Andreas Athanasiou looked like he was shot out of a cannon from his first shift on, with a near breakaway goal on his first shift and an actual breakaway goal later in the period. Byfield was around the puck all night, with a few shifts that made you really notice his combination of abilities. Brown was the glue of it all, physical in open ice, while making plays in tight areas to help others. While that line had left many wanting more in recent games, there wasn’t much more to want after yesterday’s showing.
The puck possession metrics showed 15 shot attempts for, compared to just five against. The scoring chances were 12-4 and the high-danger chances were 4-1, all in favor of the LA trio. The 10:49 they played at even strength was their highest output since their first game together on Long Island in late-January, while their 15 shot attempts were three more than their last three games combined.
Perhaps sometimes a bit of a push is what is needed, and when the players take that push the right way and respond positively, it’s a great reflection on them for their approach and their attitude. It’s a good look on the coach too, for understanding how to do it. However things were communicated and received behind closed doors seemed to have worked.
Getting that kind of an output from the third line on a more consistent basis moving forward, with four lines ideally going together, makes the Kings a pretty scary team to come up against.
Avoiding The Letdown
— Eric (@kingsgifs2) February 19, 2022
Tell me last night was an emotional win without telling me last night was an emotional win?
At the end of the day, every point counts the same, every two points count the same……when it comes to the standings, that is. The human element of hockey, however, is that not every two points are the same. I mean, just look at that reaction above, from the coaches included. Last night meant a little bit more. To the players, the coaches, the staff and the fans, there was something extra to not only beating Vegas in their building but doing so by playing the way that the Kings did last night.
That brings us to tonight. The Kings arrived in Arizona early this morning, with a quick turnaround heading into today’s matchup against the Coyotes. Not only are the Kings coming off of a short flight and longer-than-usual bus ride considering Glendale’s proximity to the airport, but they’re coming off of an emotional victory over a team they’re fighting tooth and nail with for a playoff berth.
That doesn’t make those two points count any more than tonight’s two points, however. There are two extremely important points on the line this evening in Glendale. Every two points for the Kings are important right now, saddled in a tight and competitive race for playoff spots in both the Pacific Division and Wild Card arenas.
Having the right mentality will be important, as will be the preparation that the Kings put in from the time they left the rink last night in Vegas to the time they arrive at the one this afternoon in Arizona. The Kings hit the road in search of four points, not just two, and that will require them to be at their best this evening against a Coyotes team that hasn’t played a game in eight days.
Career Years
Lastly, how about a couple of acknowledgments for the Kings.
– Adrian Kempe reached, and then surpassed, 20 goals for the first time in his NHL career last night. He scored his sixth-game winning goal of the season, tied for fourth in the NHL, and is now the only player in the league with multiple overtime goals and shorthanded goals so far this season.
– Phillip Danault also surpassed his previous career-high in goals with his 14th goal of the season. As Russell Morgan of Hockey royalty found, no player has more even-strength goals than Danault since January 1. But he can’t score!
– Since that same January 1 date, Danault’s wingers, Viktor Arvidsson and Trevor Moore, are both over a point-per-game, with Arvidsson’s stretch pass to Danault on the game-tying goal extending his fun. Moore is also a ridiculous +18 in that span, +8 better than his nearest teammate. He was also born in Thousand Oaks, CA if you didn’t know.
Kings and Coyotes, tonight at 6 PM Pacific to cap off this quick jaunt to the desert. Another important two points on the line tonight, Insiders!
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