9/30 Preview – Tonight’s Lineup + Boys On The Bubble, Copley, Turcotte

WHO: Los Angeles Kings (3-1-0) vs. Utah Mammoth (0-3-1)
WHAT: 2025 Preseason Game 5
WHEN: Saturday, September 30 @ 6:00 PM Pacific
WHERE: Idaho Central Arena – Boise, ID
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: SLVR via Samsung TV Plus, LAKings.com – AUDIO – ESPN LA 710, ESPN LA App & LA Kings App – TWITTER: @dooleylak & @lakings

TODAY’S MATCHUP: The Kings are back in action this evening in Idaho as they make the trip North to take on the Utah Mammoth at Idaho Central Arena, home of the ECHL’s Idaho Steelheads.

HEAD-TO-HEAD: The Kings and Mammoth will square off twice in the next three days, with today’s meeting in Boise followed by a game in Utah on Thursday. The Kings won all three meetings during the 2024-25 regular season, including a 4-2 win in Utah in April.

KINGS VITALS: Look for a bit less experience in today’s Kings lineup, with several players looking to make an impression in what could be their final game of the exhibition season with the big club.

Here is the expected game group for this afternoon’s tilt –

Forwards (12) – Alex Turcotte, Akil Thomas, Jeff Malott, Martin Chromiak, Andre Lee, Taylor Ward, Glenn Gawdin, Liam Greentree, Francesco Pinelli, Samuel Helenius, Cole Guttman, Andrei Kuzmenko

Defensemen (7) – Kyle Burroughs, Joe Hicketts, Jacob Moverare, Jack Millar, Samuel Bolduc, Kirill Kirsanov, Brandt Clarke

Goaltenders (3) – Erik Portillo, Pheonix Copley, Isaiah Saville

As noted over the past couple of days, this could be the final opportunity for several players on the NHL roster bubble to make a strong impression. Just about everybody in that mix is playing tonight in Idaho, which should lead to ample opportunity to impress against the Mammoth. More on that below.

MAMMOTH VITALS: Looks like a mixed group

Per Catherine Bogart of the Utah team website, here’s the projected Mammoth game group for tonight’s contest –

Mammoth's morning skate:
F: Hebig, But, Douglas, Crouse, Carcone, Agozzino, O’Brien, Yamamoto, McCartney, Iginla, Beaudoin, Smith, Cooley* (non-contact)

D: Simashev, Marino, Lamoureux, Perunovich, DeSimone, Schmidt, Durzi, Cole

G: Stauber, Villalta, Vejmelka

— Catherine Bogart (@CatherineBogart) September 30, 2025

Looks like a mixed group tonight for the Mammoth, headlined by former Kings defenseman Sean Durzi and former Ontario Reign goaltender Matthew Villalta. Certainly some veterans in the lineup, as is the case with the Kings, but overall it’s a lot of guys likely in a similar boat as with Los Angeles, battling for final roster spots.

Storyline Of The Day – Bubble Boys
Been saying it for awhile now. Today’s the day.

Looking at tonight’s Kings lineup, one thing is very clear. This is a showcase opportunity for several players looking to make their mark on the Kings coaching staff and management team, as they look to extend their stay with the NHL club.

In tonight’s lineup are the following forwards – Jeff Malott, Akil Thomas, Andre Lee, Samuel Helenius, Taylor Ward, Liam Greentree. Consider those six players to be squarely on the bubble.

Malott, as has been covered, has perhaps separated himself from the group in terms of his play early in camp. Malott has three points from his first three exhibition games, and that’s great, but his overall level of play has been high as well. He’s the front runner for the LW4 spot on Opening Night next week, which opened up with Corey Perry’s injury before training camp. Malott has skated with Alex Turcotte and Joel Armia over the last couple of practice days and with a strong finish to camp, he could find his way into the lineup for Game 1.

That still leaves 1-2 roster spots available, though, depending on if the Kings start the season with 13F / 8D or 14F / 7D. Both are options, and with Jacob Moverare and Kyle Burroughs also in the lineup, there’s another one to watch for this evening.

Helenius said he feels much more comfortable this time around, after playing 50 games with the Kings last season. He’s a guy who now needs waivers to be assigned to the AHL and that gives him a good standing, on top of his play last year. Helenius said he’s worked hard on faceoffs this season and the Kings see him as their 4C somewhere down the line. Any injury or opportunity likely sees Turcotte move up with Heleniui sliding into his spot.

Akil Thomas has shone well thus far in the preseason, with Kings Head Coach Jim Hiller complementing his game after the 3-1 win over the ducks on September 20. Thomas has good versatility, playing both center and wing during the preseason, and he’s got a point to prove after last year didn’t go the way he wanted.

“Trying to look at every game as a playoff game for me, obviously fighting for a spot,” Thomas said. “I feel pretty good about my game and kind of a little frustrated I didn’t bury a couple chances [I’ve had], but ultimately, I’m getting the chance, which is good.”

Same approach for Lee. He’s a different player than Thomas. He’s a winger through and through and he brings ideal size for the fourth line with a game that’s taken a big step forward over the last 12 months. When Lee was assigned back to the AHL in January, it was the the intention of getting him into more situations where he’d focus on his play with the puck, making plays and getting more comfortable there. He was effective as a banger, a checker, playing eight minutes per game on the fourth line. But the Kings wanted him to grow and his time back with the Reign helped in that area.

“I want to take advantage of the opportunity, the more games the better, I would say,” Lee said. “My mindset going into those games is just to play my game, I know what they want from me and what they expect from me, and I try to do that to 100 percent and show them that I’m ready to play.”

Greentree is the organization’s top prospect and is unable to play in the AHL this season. It’s Kings or OHL. Greentree could be a candidate to at least get nine NHL games to start the season, without the first game of his entry-level contract kicking in, and tonight’s game could be his final chance to make his mark and extend his time with the Kings. He’s impressed thus far and he’ll get another chance to do so this evening.

Look for the Kings to reduce their roster size over the next 48 hours. How certain players perform tonight, adding to their body of work throughout the preseason, could be the final piece in determining how those moves shake out for select players.

3 To Watch For –
– Expecting to see goaltender Pheonix Copley make his preseason debut this evening against Utah.

Copley trains in Boise in the summer and although he is not an Idaho native, there’s a bit of a homecoming there with his time spent in Idaho. Copley didn’t get into any preseason action a season ago as he was recovering from an injury and he wound up leading the Ontario Reign with 42 appearances, posting a 24-17-1 record in the process.

Copley is back in a similar role, as a veteran number three or four goaltender in the organization, who has proven capable of stepping in at the NHL level when called upon. Good chance for him to get some preseason minutes tonight in Idaho. The Kings would like to see a healthy Erik Portillo take the reins in the AHL, ideally elevating his play into a potential backup role at the NHL level, but he’s coming off a back injury that cost him the final three months of the 2024-25 season. A Portillo/Copley tandem is pretty solid at the AHL level, with both capable of stepping up and stepping in should an injury occur with the Kings in net.

– The Kings preseason leading scorers are all expected to dress tonight. Forwards Jeff Malott (2-1-3), Alex Turcotte (1-2-3) and Liam Greentree (0-3-3) have all collected three points thus far in the preseason, with Turcotte getting his points from two games played compared to three apiece for Malott and Greentree.

Joining that trio is the defensive duo of Jacob Moverare and Kyle Burroughs, who lead the Kings from the blueline with two points apiece.

Preseason scoring doesn’t count for a heck of a lot in the grand scheme of things but with the Kings’ veterans expected to play on Thursday and Saturday, a chance for those players and more to rack up some additional points, playing higher in the lineup than they might when the full complement of NHL players are available.

– On that note, could be a nice opportunity for Alex Turcotte to center the team’s top forward line tonight.

While I don’t have exact lines just yet, Turcotte could get the opportunity to play with Andrei Kuzmenko. The two were on a line during Game 81 of last season, with Anze Kopitar given a game off to rest before the playoffs, and Turcotte collected two points in a 6-5 win over Seattle. Wouldn’t be surprised to see the two playing with Malott on what would be the first line for the evening.

Turcotte is viewed as a plug and play guy should there be an opportunity higher in the lineup. He’s versatile, can play both center and wing and his energy level makes him a good fit in a few different places. Good chance for him to run tonight, with the top three centers all not playing, as a leader for this forward group.

Kings and Mammoth, in what is a relief to be writing something that isn’t Ducks. 6 PM Pacific for tonight’s game, the last game of the preseason on LAKings.com and SLVR before FanDuel SN takes over on Thursday!