11/14 Preview – JAD Confirmed To Play, His Focus Tonight + Vitals, Improvements, Photos

WHO: Los Angeles Kings (10-6-1) @ Calgary Flames (6-6-2)
WHAT: NHL REGULAR SEASON GAME
WHEN: Monday, November 14 @ 5:30 PM Pacific
WHERE: Scotiabank Saddledome – Calgary, AB
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: Bally Sports West – AUDIO – iHeart Radio – TWITTER: @DooleyLAK & @LAKings

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP: The Kings are on the road in Calgary to begin a four-game homestand, all against Pacific Division opposition.

HEAD-TO-HEAD: The Kings posted a 1-2-0 record from three, 3-2 games versus the Flames last season, with each team winning only in the other’s building. The trio of Adrian Kempe (2-1-3), Viktor Arvidsson (1-2-3) and Alex Edler (1-2-3) each collected three points from three games played to lead the team offensively.

KINGS VITALS: The Kings took a full-team morning skate this morning in Calgary, following yesterday’s travel day.

This morning’s skate points to Jonathan Quick returning between the pipes, as the first goaltender off following the early twirl. Quick brings with him a 15-9-5 record throughout his career versus the Flames, with a .919 save percentage and a 2.01 goal-against average.

Here is how the team lined up during rushes this morning from the Saddledome –

Kempe – Kopitar – Vilardi
Moore – Danault – Arvidsson
Fiala – Kupari – Grundstrom
Anderson-Dolan – Lizotte – Kaliyev
Andersson

Anderson – Doughty
Durzi – Roy
Edler – Walker
Moverare

Quick
Petersen

The Kings will make at least one lineup change tonight, with forward Brendan Lemieux being placed on injured reserve yesterday with a lower-body injury. Todd McLellan confirmed this morning that forward Jaret Anderson-Dolan will check in tonight, with the skate showing him on a line with Blake Lizotte and Arthur Kaliyev. The pair of Lias Andersson and Jacob Moverare, recalled from AHL-Ontario yesterday, were on late after morning skate, along with Cal Petersen.

FLAMES VITALS: Calgary has been a tale of two records this season, leading to the 6-6-2 record entering tonight’s action. The Flames won five of six to open the season, before losing seven and then winning on Saturday against Winnipeg. To judge this team of of record, however, would be a mistake in Todd McLellan’s eyes.

“The Flames are playing pretty darn good hockey, in my opinion,” McLellan said. “We think about two weeks ago and record and if we listen to everything that’s around a winning streak or losing streak, we’ll be in a whole lot of trouble. They’re playing Darryl hockey, they play in straight lines, they defend well. I don’t see a lot of holes in their game to tell you the truth.”

Goaltender Jacob Markstrom is expected to get the nod between the pipes this evening for the hosts. All-time versus the Kings, Markstrom is 8-3-4, with a .923 save percentage and a 2.56 goals-against average and the Swede has not lost in regulation in his last ten starts against the Kings (8-0-2).

Per Pat Steinberg of TSN 960, here’s how the Flames lined up during yesterday’s practice –

#Flames lines and pairings at practice Sunday:

Ruzicka-Lindholm-Toffoli
Lucic-Kadri-Mangiapane
Huberdeau-Backlund-Lewis
Coleman-Dube-Ritchie
Rooney

Hanifin-Andersson
Weegar-Tanev
Zadorov-DeSimone
Mackey

Markstrom
Vladar

— Pat Steinberg (@Fan960Steinberg) November 13, 2022

Calgary is loaded with former Kings, including forwards Tyler Toffoli, Milan Lucic and Trevor Lewis, as well as Head Coach Darryl Sutter. Calgary is missing just defensemen Michael Stone and Olivier Kylington for this matchup and have been the NHL’s fourth-healthiest team this season with just 11 man games lost.

Notes –

Improvements, In Their Words
The Kings have found their way defensively over the course of a four-game homestand that saw them post a 4-0-0 record. In the final three games, wins over Minnesota, Chicago and Detroit, the Kings allowed zero goals at 5-on-5, cleaning up their own end immensely from where things were at coming in.

Speaking with the team’s two most veteran defensemen – Drew Doughty and Alex Edler – both agreed with that focus.

Doughty – I think we put a little bit more focus on playing better defense. We [were scoring] a lot more goals, but at the same time we were giving up too many, so we had a big focus on fixing that. Goalies are stepping up, playing better, and all of our players have had a conscious effort to be better in our end.

Edler – I think we talked a lot about executing our system and playing well defensively. When you’re good in your own zone, you’ll create offense that way, so we’re focusing on that and I think we did a pretty good job [on the homestand].

What the players are saying has meshed well with what the coaches have been saying.

The improvements defensively has been the obvious narrative and rightfully so, something McLellan has touched on now a few times over the course of the last week. He honed in on a few specifics that he feels have improved, with a focus on details and how they apply for the Kings.

“There’s a lot more awareness of out-numbered situations, puck support, better positions, and that’s allowed us to defend better,” McLellan added. I don’t believe it’s hurt us a lot offensively, we still get opportunities, so that’s been a big part of our improvement. I said this after the game the other day that the really good teams have those details all the time. You’re going have times where they get away on you, but for the most part, you believe in the details, you apply those details and you just motor along. There are some teams in the league that are doing a great job of that right now, I’d like to think that we can become one of them. This road trip for us will be a big test.”

The JAD Hatter
Tonight marks a return to action for Kings forward Jaret Anderson-Dolan.

Anderson-Dolan has not played since the 6-4 defeat against Winnipeg 18 days ago. With a lower-body injury to Brendan Lemieux, which has him on injured reserve, Anderson-Dolan will get an opportunity this evening, a long-awaited one for a player who has put the work in when out of the lineup.

“Just be Jaret Anderson-Dolan, you don’t have to do any more or any less,” Todd McLellan said. “He’s proven to us that he’s ready to play, the work that he’s done away from the rink, his eagerness to be back in the lineup has been noted and we’ll try to put him in situations where we think he could succeed. Every time throughout his career that he’s been called upon to return to the lineup he’s given us some really good games. We expect that from him tonight.”

As practices have come and gone, one staple that we’ve come to see is the visual of Anderson-Dolan being the first player out there and usually the last to leave.

A lot of times in sports, that cliché is used so frequently that you wonder how five players on the same team can be both first and last. With the Kings, Anderson-Dolan has taken the initiative to be on the ice early to practice certain situations and skills to do his best to stay sharp. Being a healthy scratch isn’t easy and it usually comes with exhaustive workouts after practice, designed to simulate the workout element that a game would. He’s taken it all in stride, controlled what he can control, and he’s ready to go tonight.

“[I’ve tried to] make the most of the opportunity to watch games, get out there early and stay out there late, be the guy that’s working the hardest,” he said this morning. “That’s definitely my mindset and something I was trying to focus on. It’s just controlling what I can and being ready for when the opportunity comes.”

Anderson-Dolan re-emphasized the “control what you can control” message when asked about his professionalism throughout the process, something that has been lauded by coaches and executives. He’s taken it in stride and is excited for his chance tonight.

Against the Flames, he’ll get the opportunity to showcase his game in front of friends and family, playing here in his native Calgary. He noted that he’s never played a professional game here in Calgary before, which is exciting, and he added that he’ll have a nice little cheering section at the Saddledome for his return to the lineup.

The hope from McLellan is that Anderson-Dolan will bring his game, with several good qualities about it.

“JAD anticipates well, he’s got a big, heavy body that ca protect and win puck battles, he’s reliable defensively, can play on the penalty kill, he brings a lot of good things……we’re excited about putting him in and we believe he’ll make good on it.”

A Visual Look
Lastly, Insiders, a look inside morning skate from the Saddledome, with a few photos from today’s action.

Kings and Flames tonight with a unique start time of 6:30 here in Calgary, 5:30 for those watching on Pacific time. If the goal was to throw off the routine ever so slightly, perhaps that goal was achieved but here’s to hoping it’s not!