3/22 Preview – Andersson/Stecher In + Edler on New (Old) Partner, Finding Physicality, Playoff Push

WHO: Los Angeles Kings (34-22-8) vs. Nashville Predators (37-22-4)
WHAT: NHL REGULAR-SEASON GAME
WHEN: Tuesday, March 22 @ 7:30 PM Pacific
WHERE: Crypto.com Arena – Los Angeles, CA
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: ESPN+ / Hulu – AUDIO – iHeart Radio – TWITTER: @DooleyLAK & @LAKings

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP: The Kings return home to begin a four-game homestand, with the Nashville Predators in town this evening.

HEAD-TO-HEAD: Nashville won each of the first two meetings of the season, including a 4-2 win in Los Angeles back in early-January. Of the players who collected points in the first two games, only Anze Kopitar is available this evening. Among active defensemen, however, none have more goals versus the Predators than Alex Edler (10), with his total ranking third all-time behind only Nicklas Lidstrom and Dustin Byfuglien.

KINGS VITALS: For the first time in a long time, the Kings held an active, full-team practice yesterday morning in El Segundo. As such, the team ran an optional morning skate today, as has typically been the case coming off of full-team practices.

Goaltender Jonathan Quick was not on the ice this morning and past precedent indicates him making the start this evening against Nashville. Quick is set to return to the net after Cal Petersen played the last two games. All-time against the Predators, Quick is 5-13-2 with a .890 save percentage and a 2.95 goals-against average, one of just three teams in the league he is below a .900 against.

Yesterday, we received a mass-update on the injury situation the Kings are currently facing, with no players expected to return to the lineup this evening. For more on those injuries, click HERE. On the ice today were the trio of Viktor Arvidsson, Tobias Bjornfot and Brendan Lemieux, with Rob Blake indicating yesterday that those were the three individuals closest to joining the full group.

“You use the word progression, mother nature is doing her thing, there’s some healing that’s going on, but red isn’t a real good color,” Todd McLellan added. “We’ll need that to change and it will.”

While none of those three are expected back tonight, defenseman Troy Stecher is expected to make his Kings debut this evening, after he was acquired from Detroit on Sunday afternoon. Stecher arrived in Los Angeles on Sunday evening, took his first practice with the team yesterday morning and is now expected to play in tonight’s game at Crypto.com Arena. A whirlwind of a 48 hours, but with the current list of players out of the lineup, his presence is welcomed.

Forward Lias Andersson is also expected to return to the lineup tonight, his first since March 12 in San Jose. Todd McLellan talked this morning about wanting to see a bit more pace in Andersson’s game tonight, as he readjusts back to the NHL level, believing that it will come out.

With that in mind, here’s how the Kings could align this evening –

Iafallo – Kopitar – Kempe
Moore – Danault – Kaliyev
Vilardi – Byfield – Kupari
Grundstrom – Lizotte – Andersson

Maatta – Spence
Edler – Stecher
Moverare – Durzi
Strand

Petersen / Quick

Todd McLellan did not confirm which defenseman would be out today, so we’ll have to wait and see for sure until closer to puck drop, though a 1-for-1 swap would indicate Austin Strand coming out.

PREDATORS VITALS: Nashville enters tonight’s action on a good run, with seven victories from its last nine games played. The Predators began a three-game road trip yesterday evening with a win in Anaheim over the Ducks.

Goaltender Jusse Saros has played in 11 of Nashville’s last 12 games, though in the one back-to-back they played, the Predators turned to backup David Rittich. In five games played in his career against the Kings, Rittich is 2-2-1 with a .904 save percentage and a 3.04 goals-against average.

Per Brooks Bratton of NashvillePredators.com, here’s how the visitors aligned last night in Anaheim –

Projected #Preds lineup in Anaheim:

Forsberg-Johansen-Duchene
Tolvanen-Granlund-Kunin
Trenin-Sissons-Jeannot
Cousins-McCarron-Tomasino

Josi-Fabbro
Lauzon-Carrier
Borowiecki-Tennyson

Saros
Rittich#NSHvsANA

— Brooks Bratten (@brooksbratten) March 22, 2022

Nashville has been relatively healthy as of late, though regular defenseman Mattias Ekholm is day-to-day with a non-COVID illness and did not play in Anaheim. Defenseman Matthew Benning is the only player currently listed on injured reserve.

Notes –

Canuckleheads
The Kings are expected to reunite the defensive pairing of Alex Edler and Troy Stecher this evening against Nashville.

The two players were the most used pairing on the Canucks from 2016-19 and were one of fewer than 30 pairings around the NHL to log 1,400+ minutes together at even strength. The results were mixed in certain categories, but that duo lined up typically against the other team’s best players most nights. Stecher’s second-most common opponent faced in that span was Connor McDavid. Fourth was Anze Kopitar, sixth was Tomas Hertl and seventh was Johnny Gaudreau. All top-end talent.

In the here and now, though, it’s about finding continuity and consistency, with the Kings hopeful that Edler and Stecher can rekindle that right away.

We heard Stecher’s side of that pairing yesterday, as well as McLellan’s side. Today we spoke with Edler about his thoughts of his new, old, defensive partner.

Edler on Stecher’s game
He plays a good game, he plays solid. He’s a smaller guy, but he plays bigger than he is, he has that no fear mentality going into battles, I think he’s got the right attitude and he plays for the team.”

Edler on why he believes they play well together
I always like his approach and how he goes into battles hard. He understands what it’s like to be a team player, team first, sacrificing himself for the team in all situations. It’s easy to play with a guy like that.

Edler on Stecher playing bigger than his size
I think he does. He’s not that big, but he goes into battles and wins a lot of them. I think that’s his mindset, he wins the battle before he gets into it because he believes he’s going to win it.

Physicality – Where To Find It
The Kings have certainly missed the presence of Brendan Lemieux, who brings a unique style to the Kings lineup. Dating back to when he was acquired via a trade with New York, I think that was the goal, in that he brings something different to the organization.

“I think we miss Brendan Lemieux in that situation for sure, I thought he was very effective when he was in the lineup and healthy,” Rob Blake said yesterday. “He provided that. I think Edler coming back gives us a little bit of that on the backend, that we missed a lot from injury.”

Todd McLellan shared similar sentiments via Lemieux, indicating the value that he brings to the lineup when healthy and able to contribute in that style.

“He brings a lot of value when he’s doing what he needs to do, and he’s a tough one to replace and I don’t think any one individual on our team is going to do that,” McLellan said. “Groups or lines or pairs can provide a lot more of that. It’s that time of the year, it’s big boy time now.”

It’s true that the Kings don’t have a like-for-like replacement for Lemieux that has come in. They can get elements of physicality from different areas, but none are the same, stand up for the teammates, play on that edge, kind of player that Lemieux is. That’s not to mention the physical element to Dustin Brown’s game, which has also been missing.

One such individual who can try to step in to help fill that void is Carl Grundstrom. Lemieux leads the Kings with 13.37 hits per 60 minutes, but Grundstrom isn’t far behind, at 12.79. Hits is an interesting stat, but Grundstrom has been noticeable playing the body in certain situations, adding a bit of that physical presence back into the Kings lineup.

“Grunny plays in straight lines and he plays through people, rather than around them,” McLellan said. “He uses everything that he has physically to invest. He is a valuable player because of that.”

As McLellan pointed out first, however, it’s a by-committee approach and the Kings will need to find physical play more as a collective unit than from individuals over the next few weeks.

Playoff Push
“There’s a lot going on right now, we’re fighting and scrapping for a playoff spot,” McLellan said. “We’re looking for leadership from the veterans to get their game going, and I think we’re starting to see signs of that, so that’s a good thing. The team is scrapping. to get healthy, we’re pushing as hard as we can and trying to cut days off of recovery times and then evaluating young prospects. We’ve been collecting them over the last few years and giving them every opportunity to have an impact. Lots going on right now.”

The push is on for the Kings, sitting in a playoff position as of this writing. The Kings are one point clear of Edmonton, four ahead of Vegas and five ahead of Dallas, with various games in hand in both directions. The Kings got a bit of help last night, with both the Golden Knights and Oilers falling, and all three of those teams play tonight, including Dallas and Edmonton head-to-head.

We check day-by-day here, with the magic number currently sitting at 31.

Kings and Predators, tonight at 7:30 PM from Crypto.com Arena!