Los Angeles Kings Take on the Carolina Hurricanes Tonight
The Storm comes to Los Angeles tonight when the Kings host the Carolina Hurricanes at Staples Center. Puck-drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PST.
Tonight will be the second and final time the two teams meet during the regular season.
Their first meeting was two and a half weeks ago on Sunday, November 2nd. The game was in Carolina, where the Hurricanes were able to take advantage of the home ice atmosphere and sneak out a win, 3-2 over Los Angeles.
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The Kings lineup shouldn’t change all that much from Tuesday’s game against the Florida Panthers. L.A.’s lines are expected to be as follows:
Forwards:
Marian Gaborik – Anze Kopitar – Trevor Lewis
Dwight King – Jeff Carter – Tyler Toffoli
Justin Williams – Mike Richards – Dustin Brown
Kyle Clifford – Jarret Stoll – Tanner Pearson
Jordan Nolan – Andy Andreoff
Defense:
Jake Muzzin – Drew Doughty
Robyn Regehr – Brayden McNabb
Jamie McBain – Matt Greene
Goalies:
Jonathan Quick
Martin Jones
From L.A. Kings Insider Jon Rosen, it looks like Quick will get the start tonight in goal.
It is unclear where Tanner Pearson will play in the Kings lineup tonight. Head coach Darryl Sutter has been mixing up the lines on a regular basis as of late. Pearson was on fire early in the season scoring 7 goals in 8 games, but has since cooled down, and tapered off. Pearson currently has 7 goals, 10 points, and a +11 plus/minus in 19 games.
The Carolina Hurricanes are expected to start the same lineup they used to beat the Kings in early November.
Forward Alexander Semin will be a healthy scratch, while Brad Malone suits up in the lineup. Defensemen Jay Harrison will return to the lineup after missing three games with a lower body-injury, which means NHL veteran John Michael-Liles will be a scratch.
Cam Ward is expected to play between the pipes for Carolina.
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Players for the Kings to watch are Carolina’s top line forwards.
Franchise player Eric Staal is healthy and in his groove, scoring 5 goals and 11 points in 13 games, after missing the Hurricanes first five.
Jiri Tlusty and Elias Lindholm accompany Staal on that first line, and they are right behind Staal with 10 points in 18 games each. Tlusty also leads Carolina with 8 goals.
Lindholm scored a goal and an assist in Carolina’s victory over L.A. earlier in November.
Second line center Riley Nash leads the Hurricanes with 13 points in 18 games. Nash has shown he’s a speedy player with a nose for finding the puck around the net.
Carolina defensemen Justin Faulk is the leader on the blue line with 12 points in 18 games. Faulk is considered by many to be Carolina’s top defensemen, demonstrating that he can play at a high level in the NHL. Faulk’s fault is that he struggles with consistency. Though many could argue the entire team’s chief struggle is with consistency.
Carolina enters the game coming off of a 6-4 win in Dallas against the Stars.
L.A. has won two straight after being shutout by the Stars at home. The Kings are an NHL best 9-2-1 at home. KingNation will be in attendance to help the Black and Silver continue that distinction.
The Kings will have to play all out to get this win, and a little payback. The Kings need these two points if they want to continue to move up in the ultra-competitive Pacific Division.
Wily prediction for the game’s result: Kings win 2-1 in the shootout.
Bonus wily prediction: Dewy Doughty gets his second goal of the year tonight.
Go Kings Go!
Nov 2, 2014; Raleigh, NC, USA; Los Angeles Kings defensemen Drew Doughty (8) skates with the puck against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena. The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Los Angeles Kings 3-2. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports