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11/2 Preview – Everyone “Should Be Good” Tonight + Notes on Kaliyev’s Play & The Big “E”

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WHO: Los Angeles Kings (5-2-2) @ Ottawa Senators (4-4-0)
WHAT: NHL REGULAR-SEASON GAME
WHEN: Thursday, November 2 @ 4:00 PM Pacific
WHERE: Canadian Tire Centre – Kanata, ONT
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: Bally Sports West – AUDIO – iHeart Radio – TWITTER: @DooleyLAK & @LAKings

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP: The Kings Eastern trip continues tonight in Ottawa as they Kings visit the Senators for the first time this season.

HEAD-TO-HEAD: The Kings were led last season by forward Anze Kopitar, who collected three points (0-3-3) from the two games played against Ottawa. Forward Arthur Kaliyev had two goals from the two games versus the Senators, while forwards Phillip Danault and Kevin Fiala had two points apiece.

KINGS VITALS: The Kings held a mostly full-team practice yesterday in Ottawa, leading into an optional morning skate today at Canadian Tire Centre.

The Kings have used a consistent lineup over the course of the last seven games, but had a few players under the weather yesterday, causing them to miss that day’s skate.

Defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov, along with forwards Jaret Anderson-Dolan, Phillip Danault and Kevin Fiala missed yesterday’s practice, with Todd McLellan indicating yesterday that the team felt it was better to have those players stay back at the hotel to rest up in advance of tonight’s game. All four were on the ice this morning. Were tonight’s game scheduled for yesterday, McLellan indicated that they would have been ready to go, pointing to full availability tonight.

“If we played yesterday, they would have been in the lineup, but they earned some time to rest and they needed it,” McLellan said this morning. “You know how that is when you get on the plane and a bug starts going around, you try to but it off as quickly as we can. That’s what yesterday was for and we should all be good today.”

Goaltender Cam Talbot was not on the ice during today’s morning skate, making him tonight’s projected starter against the Senators. Talbot has posted a lifetime record of 5-4-0 against his former club, with a .914 save percentage and a 2.54 goals-against average.

With everyone expected to be ready to go, here’s how the Kings aligned on Tuesday, with no changes expected tonight –

SENATORS VITALS: Ottawa snapped a three-game losing streak on Saturday, with a win over Pittsburgh, their most recent game to date.

Goaltender Joonas Korpisalo was reported to be in the “starters net”, per TSN 1200, making him tonight’s projected starter this evening against his former club. Korpisalo has faced the Kings twice in his NHL career, posting a 1-1-0 record with a .889 save percentage and a 3.41 goals-against average.

Per TSN 1200, here’s how the Senators aligned during practice on Tuesday –

Defenseman Thomas Chabot (1-3-4) and forward Tim Stutzle (0-4-4) led the Senators last season with four points from two games played against the Kings. Ottawa is equal to LA in goals from defensemen this season, with the teams tied atop the NHL standings with eight apiece.

Notes –
Arty Ontario
Todd McLellan admitted there was a bit of concern for Arthur Kaliyev coming off of his suspension earlier in the season.

Kaliyev put in a lot of work during the offseason, work that the Kings asked of him, but his four-game suspension wound up costing him nearly two weeks of game action. Two preseason games and two regular-season games stretched 13 days and Kaliyev was limited to just practice time until the Kings went to Winnipeg to begin their road schedule. Fortunately for McLellan, Kaliyev eliminated just about all of those concerns with the way he came back. He hit the ground running in Winnipeg, scoring in that game, and he’s showcased the things, day in and day out, that the Kings want to see from him.

“I don’t want to lie, we were a little concerned with a two-week break, based on his suspension, on how he would respond physically, more than than hands and timing and all that type of stuff, but his engine has improved immensely over the summer,” McLellan said this morning. “He’s come in and he’s contributed nightly and quietly goes about doing his job, so far so good.”

For Kaliyev, it’s hard work paying off.

He committed to the program he was asked to this summer and the results are extremely noticeable. He’s a step quicker on the forecheck. He’s stronger in board battles and he’s improved his wall play. It hasn’t come at the expense of power-play time, in which he scored from his spot on the right side of the umbrella on Tuesday, and he’s still got the shot we all know about. It’s actually come with added ice time, as Kaliyev has skated in the top nine for the entire season to date, something he has not done for this long of a stretch in his career to date.

“I’m feeling stronger out there and [Phil and Trevor] are doing what they usually do, winning puck battles and everything,” Kaliyev said. “I’m just trying to keep it going and keep it consistent.”

Danault and Moore are used to being a puck possession line and in the early days of this season, Kaliyev is currently the Kings player with the highest percentage of shot attempts controlled when on the ice. With Kaliyev in action, the Kings are just shy of 65 percent of attempts controlled, a good indicator that the Kings have control of the puck when 34 is on the ice. Seven-game sample sizes are exactly that, but right now, Kaliyev and his line are getting it done.

“We’ve been pretty good of knowing where each other are out there and I think we’re all battling hard, winning pucks and keeping pucks alive,” Kaliyev added. “We want to keep pinning them down there, keep playing that way and we can all find each other. I think if we keep going that way, I think it can bring great things for us as a line if we keep going that way.”

A goal apiece for Kaliyev and Danault on Tuesday gives that line nine goals this season, tops amongst the Kings offensive units. While Danault and Moore had an existing identity as a line, Kaliyev has now become a part it himself. For a player who always oozed top-six potential, it’s been great to see him earn and thrive in that type of role this season. As he said himself, he’s just got to keep it going, consistently.

The Big “E”
How about Andreas Englund getting the party started on Tuesday.

There’s two-fold benefits there.

The Kings naturally were happy to get the goal, coming shortly after a penalty kill, to open up a lead against the Toronto Maple Leafs in their building. No matter who got the goal, there’s a benefit there. To see their heart-and-soul guy, the bruiser on the backend, be the one to get it though? Little bit of an added boost.

“To see him get his first goal, that gave us a little bit of a boost,” McLellan said after Tuesday’s game. “To score first and to have Big E do it, it was a motivating moment for our group.”

His teammates were certainly pretty fired up for him as well.

When the guy who does all of the little things, and makes the dirty plays, puts one in the net, it fires up everybody. Cam Talbot gave Englund a bit of encouragement on the bench after the game, noting it doesn’t always have to be a rocket of a shot to go in, but adding that Englund has a hard, heavy shot when he does use it. Phillip Danault added to the congratulations, noting that to see the guy who stands up for his teammates get rewarded is a deserving moment for a hard-working player.

“It’s a great achievement,” Danault said. “He’s been playing well, he’s stepping up for guys and fighting for us. He’s dedicated, so he deserves that, I’m really happy for him.”

Englund is certainly not here simply to put the puck in the net. As he approaches 100 career NHL games, Tuesday’s tally in Toronto was the first of his career at this level. Englund is a physical presence and a player who contributes in a lot of different ways. Among players with at least 100 minutes played this season at 5-on-5, Englund leads the NHL in penalties drawn per/60 and leads the Kings in hits per/60.

Englund is a physical player, who works hard in his own end to defend, while also showing a willingness to take a hit to make a play and a desire to stand up for his teammates when necessary. In terms of goals against, no Kings defensemen has been on the ice for fewer goals against, per/60, than Englund has so far this season. An effective fit here in the early goings.

“I think our structure, the way we play, complements his game I believe and he’s very much appreciated in the locker room. All of those things bode well for him.”

Just like Kaliyev, it’s a consistent message for Englund – keep it going. If he continues to play the way he has in the early goings, all signs point to him doing exactly that.

Kings and Senators tonight, 4 PM Pacific, as LA looks to keep the momentum rolling on the road.

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