Kings at Sharks Tonight 7:30 p.m. PST
The Los Angeles Kings will face off against the San Jose Sharks at 7:30 p.m. PST in “The Sharktank” – SAP Pavilion arena in San Jose tonight.
It’s a preview of what opening night will look like on October 8th when the Kings face off against the Sharks. The only difference is opening night the Kings will have home ice advantage, and some added inspiration as they raise their second Stanley Cup banner to the rafters.
L.A. Kings Insider Jon Rosen reports the Kings lines at the morning skate were as follows:
Forwards:
Jordan Nolan – Anze Kopitar – Dustin Brown
Dwight King – Mike Richards – Justin Williams
Kyle Clifford – Andy Andreoff – Trevor Lewis
Tanner Pearson – Jordan Weal – Adam Cracknell
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Puck Prose
Defensemen:
Jake Muzzin – Drew Doughty
Robyn Regehr – Slava Voynov
Alec Martinez – Matt Greene
Jeff Schultz – Brayden McNabb
Goalies:
Jonathan Quick
Martin Jones
This could be the first time we see Quick between the pipes for the Kings in the preseason. Quick is recovering from offseason wrist surgery to repair an injury that was sustained during the second round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Anaheim Ducks. It might be a better decision to rest Quick for the preseason and ensure he is fully healed; ready to return in top form for the start of the regular season. The counterpoint is Darryl Sutter may want to allow Quick an in-game test run to see how the wrist holds up. If Quick does get the start it will be interesting to see if he plays the full 60-minutes or splits time with Jones.
After an impressive performance against the Ducks the Kings are likely to rest forwards Jeff Carter and Tyler Toffoli. Carter scored a hat-trick in Sunday night’s game that gave the Kings a 4-2 victory. Toffoli has been dominant. Living up to the hype he created for himself with his 2014 playoff performance. Toffoli is currently second in NHL preseason scoring with 1 goal and 5 assists in 3 games.
The Kings can only dress 20 players, which means in all likelihood the defensive pairing of Schultz and McNabb will be out of the lineup. Schultz and McNabb have a battle going that’s worth keeping an eye on during the Kings 2014 training camp as they compete for the seventh and final defensive roster spot. McNabb has been more of a standout thus far in the preseason, and has seen increased ice time as a result.
Apr 30, 2014; San Jose, CA, USA; San Jose Sharks right wing Brent Burns (88) fights for the puck with Los Angeles Kings defenseman Jake Muzzin (6) during the third period in game seven of the first round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs at SAP Center at San Jose. The Kings defeated the Sharks 5-1. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Drew Doughty will be playing in his first preseason game after missing time due to an upperbody injury. The young superstar is one of the NHL’s best defensemen, so if Quick is starting there will be some added comfort with Dewy in the lineup protecting him.