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10/17 Preview – Swing Game in Montreal + In-Game Moments, Turcotte’s Play

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WHO: Los Angeles Kings (1-1-2) @ Montreal Canadiens (2-2-0)
WHAT: 2024-25 Regular-Season Game
WHEN: Wednesday, October 17 @ 4:00 PM Pacific
WHERE: Centre Bell – Montreal, QC
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: Bally Sports West – AUDIO – ESPN LA App – TWITTER: @dooleylak & @lakings

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP: Final stop on the East Coast trip for the Kings, as they visit Montreal to take on the Canadiens.

HEAD-TO-HEAD: The Kings swept the season series one season ago, winning 4-0 both at home and on the road. Overall, the Kings have won in each of their last three games played in Montreal, and their last six games overall versus the Canadiens.

Forward Trevor Moore led the Kings with three goals from two games played against Montreal a season ago, while forwards Quinton Byfield (2-1-3) and Anze Kopitar (1-2-3) also collected three points from the season series.

KINGS VITALS: The Kings enter tonight’s game with four points from four games played, with the result in Montreal defining the season-opening trip.

Without a morning skate today, tonight’s starting goaltender is unclear, but Jim Hiller’s post-game interview in Toronto would suggest that David Rittich will get the nod in net tonight. Rittich has faced Montreal six times throughout his NHL career, posting a 1-3-1 record with a .920 save percentage and a 2.70 goals-against average.

No morning skate today for the Kings, so we won’t know exactly what tonight’s lineup will look like until puck drop. For reference, here’s how they aligned yesterday in Toronto –

The Kings have defenseman Jordan Spence and forward Akil Thomas available to check in, as both players were out last night as healthy scratches.

UPDATE – Per Jim Hiller’s pre-game availability, Spence will check back in, for defenseman Kyle Burroughs.

Additionaly, forward Quinton Byfield will play tonight, after leaving yesterday’s game early in Toronto.

Defensemen Caleb Jones and Andreas Englund made their season debuts yesterday. Jones played 16:40 at 5-on-5, while Englund logged just shy of 14 minutes. They were tagged for one goal as a pairing. As did goaltender Pheonix Copley, who entered the game in relief of Rittich midway through the second period. Hiller said that decision was not performance based, but rather based on managing Rittich’s minutes. That, to me, suggests that Rittich will play tonight in Montreal.

MONTREAL VITALS: The Canadiens have split their start to the season, winning against Toronto and Ottawa and falling to Boston and Pittsburgh.

Per the Montreal team account, here’s how the hosts lined up last time out –

The Canadiens haven’t scored a goal against the Kings in 131:21 of game play over the last three meetings. The last Montreal player, who is expected to play tonight, to score against the Kings was forward Josh Anderson, back in March of 2023.

Montreal forward Cole Caufield leads his team early this season with four goals from four games played, placing him one goal behind Utah’s Dylan Guenther for the league league in the early goings.

Notes –
Storyline Of The Day – Swing Game
Today’s game in Montreal is a swing game for the Kings.

It’s the difference between four points, five points or six points from the five games played on the East Coast.

“Big game,” forward Phillip Danault said. “Obviously, you come back and [we’re] at home, even though we’re going on the road again, but yeah, big two points tomorrow for sure. [It’s a] big one before we come back.”

As Danault points out, the Kings still have two more road games on this “trip”, but I think common logic sees the current situation as a five-game trip and two one offs against divisional opposition. The Kings visit Anaheim and Vegas when they return home, but those aren’t really a part of this swing as much as they are separate.

So, I think tomorrow’s game becomes something that is more interesting with regards to finishing this East Coast swing on a high note.

Regardless of the end result, the Kings know they have improvements to make and strides to take. That much is obvious. Going home with six points versus four, though, is a big difference in a number of ways. If the Kings can win tonight, the feeling around this trip is substantially better. You end with a win and it overcomes some of what went wrong in Toronto and Ottawa. Not from a “everything is better” standpoint. But from a feeling standpoint, with a six-hour flight home and more games to follow.

You’ve had probably taken six points back at the start, too. Decent return in the standings.

Four points, though, which means four consecutive losses to conclude the trip, and things aren’t so rosy heading back to Los Angeles.

“I think it’s huge, I mean, we came away with points in the first three games, so it’d make it a good roadtrip if we came out [in Montreal],” forward Trevor Lewis said. “I think we’ve just got to build off that the second and a little bit in the third there. You see it, I think our whole team sees it and we know what we need to do.”

Hard to call Game 5 of the season “pivotal” by any stretch. It’s not going to make or break the season and it’s not like the Kings are 0-4. You’d really like to see something tonight though, wouldn’t you?

It’s Day 17 on the road and it’s been a long trip, with a lot of ups and downs. The Kings are without a couple of key players and have younger players playing in roles they’re not accustomed to, in systems that are still becoming second nature. That’s going to come with time, but the NHL waits for no one.

Points right now are important. Kings can’t afford to pass them up when they have the opportunity to put some in the bank.

3 To Watch For
– I hate these charts sometimes, but I think this embodies both what can make the Kings good, and what will sink them. Starting at the beginning of the second period, look at that near-vertical line.

By my recollection, the Kings had the first 11 shots on goal of the second period. Lot of scrambles in front of the net. The chart suggests a +17 margin in shot attempts, between the start of the second period and the first goal of the second period. We all knew who scored that goal. It was Toronto. The Kings had a good stretch and then a blown coverage in the defensive zone and it’s all for naught. Could actually say similar things late in the first. The Kings calmed the game down after going down 2-0, they started playing and despite starting to control the puck, a bad pinch, an odd-man rush and it’s 3-0. Again, all for naught. Just cannot happen. Breakdowns in those moments, when you’re up against it, will destroy you. Especially when it’s coming from players who the Kings need to lead the way.

It’s early in the season for everyone, so got to give it some time. But, those were the difficult moments in last nights game for me.

– Impactful game yesterday for forward Alex Turcotte in Toronto.

He drew the praise of his head coach after the game and seemed to have the trust to play, logging more than 14 minutes of ice time. It was a blowout, though, and it’ll be interesting to see what Turcotte earns in a closer game. I think he’s earned a bit more. He’s impressed in all four games, even if eight penalties in the second half of the game in Ottawa limited his time. His statline last night read that he was on the ice for 10 scoring chances for and none against at 5-on-5. Those numbers led the Kings, as did a couple of others.

He was rewarded with the first Kings goal of the evening, on a play he kept alive and then finished from the slot. He took a threaded pass through the neutral zone, kept the play onsides and then dished to winger Andre Lee to his left. He got to a good area and was ready to release quickly when he got the puck back. Good stuff to cap off an impressive night, one of the lone bright spots in Toronto.

– It’s a small moment from last night, and not one that had any impact on the result in Toronto, but good for Pheonix Copley

Copley underwent ACL reconstruction surgery back in January, after suffering an injury in late December, 2023, during a practice. Last night, with the game trending out of hand and the Kings having a back-to-back, Copley entered the game midway through the second period and made 10 saves on 12 shots. This comes after a little rabble rousing in his return to game action with the Ontario Reign on Sunday.

Expecting Copley to be the backup once again tonight, with it appearing likely that Rittich will get the start. On a personal note, though, it was really nice to see Copley back with the NHL squad. Long road to get to this point, more than 10 months from his last NHL game. Good stuff, Pheonix.

Kings and Canadiens, trip finale, at 4 PM Pacific. As noted above, Jim Hiller will address the media around 90 minutes before puck drop and will share any updates here and on social media.

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