Kings Road to the Playoffs

Are the Kings in the playoffs? Not yet. But with any luck this could be their first appearance in nearly half a decade! Just as an interesting exercise, let’s take a look at the road they’ve got ahead of them, as well as some simple predictions for how they’ll do. Obviously my predictions are nearly infallible, though I’d be curious if anyone has a different view.

Here’s the underlying premise. With the Kings “magic number” down to 10 points (the amount they need to assure themselves a playoff berth) they’ll need five wins in the next ten games to guarantee a spot. Can they do it? No sweat. Here’s how the next few weeks play out:

March 27th v. Dallas Stars –WIN, The Kings have had the Stars’ number all year, and I have to imagine they’ll be eager to snap this two game losing streak when they play Dallas on Saturday.

March 29th v. Minnesota Wild – WIN, Minnesota has been struggling, showing only a 5-4-1 record over the past ten games, and the Kings will need to win games against “lower” teams in the standings if they’re going to expect to do anything in the playoffs.

March 30th v. Nashville Predators – LOSS, For whatever reason this is the opposite phenomenon of the Stars. I obviously am hoping for a big win to get the confidence going, but let’s be realistic and chalk it up as a loss.

April 1st v. Vancouver Canucks – OVERTIME LOSS, Luongo has proven to be a challenge all season, and this game will be no different. Kings will keep it close, but ultimately come up short.

April 3rd v. Anaheim Ducks – WIN, I can’t predict anything but a win against the hated Ducks. Gotta do the same here.

April 6th v. Anaheim Ducks – WIN, see above.

April 8th v. Phoenix Coyotes – LOSS, Going into this game, the Kings already have nine of the needed ten points, but I’m going to predict that by the end of this day, the Kings will have locked in their playoff spot. The only question will be against whom.

April 10th v. Edmonton Oilers – WIN, Everyone beats the Oilers. Sorry, but they’re terrible this year.

April 11th v. Colorado Avalanche – LOSS, It would be nice to go into the playoffs on a better note, but by this point the young team is already looking forward to the playoffs, and a head to head matchup with either the Sharks or the Coyotes.

Verdict: The Kings will go 5-3-1 in the last nine games of the season, and the Kings will be in the playoffs, my prediction is that they’ll be slotted at #5, and with any luck they’ll have the chance to pick off a slumping Sharks team, or a Coyotes team that’s cooled off and is ready to return to Earth after their blistering streak of late.