Game Preview: Los Angeles Kings at the Detroit Red Wings
Tonight at 4:30 p.m. the Detroit Red Wings will host the Los Angeles Kings at Joe Lewis Arena.
It’s the Kings second game in as many nights. The Kings come limping into Detroit with a number of injuries and a recent shutout loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins not 24-hours ago.
Hopefully the Kings dress up as hockey players tonight. Last night they were dressed as goons, giving six power play opportunities to the most effective power play team in the NHL. On Beggars Night, the Kings played like they were up begging for a win.
Jan 18, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick (32) watches the puck after it bounce off the post in the third period at Joe Louis Arena. Detroit won 3-2 in a shoot-out. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
The Red Wings last game was Wednesday night against the Washington Capitals. The Wings picked up 2 points beating the Capitals 4-2, rallying late in the third period.
While Johan Franzen is out on Injured Reserve, Detroit’s stars Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk are healthy and rolling. Zetterberg leads the team with 12 points in 8 games. Datsyuk has 5 points in 4 games after recovering from injury and rejoining the team.
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Consistent contributors Justin Abdelkader and Gustav Nyquist are tied for the team lead with 5 goals each. They are two players to watch out for. Almost like a Red Wings version of Tanner Pearson and Tyler Toffoli, though Abdelkader is a bit older, entering his sixth NHL season.
Another game changer for the Wings won’t even play in the game. It’s their head coach Mike Babcock, who is probably the best hockey coach in the world. Darryl Sutter is certainly in the upper echelon of head coaches as well. Tonight is a matchup of two of the best minds in hockey.
It will be entertaining to see how the generals deploy their teams and what systems, matchups and adjustments they instruct their players to execute. The Kings, should be wary on such a haunting night, as Babcock is known to change his strategies mid-game, revitalizing his troops and swinging momentum in the Red Wings favor.
There was no official morning skate today because the team arrived in Detroit late last night, and are coming off of back to back games.
L.A. Kings Insider Jon Rosen reported this morning that David Van der Gulik is headed back to Manchester, following his one game emergency call-up. This means that either Anze Kopitar or Trevor Lewis will be in the lineup tonight. As of this afternoon Lewis is still designated on the Injured Reserve. Kopitar may dress, but it doesn’t seem likely.
The other wild card is forward Marian Gaborik who has been out since the Kings third game of the season against the Winnipeg Jets. Gaborik could be dress tonight, giving the Kings 18 skaters. The ghost of Marian Gaborik has been haunted by injuries throughout his career. Last season Gaborik was healthy for only 41 games. Gaborik has suited up for 70 or more games in 7 out of his 14 NHL seasons.
Jonathan Quick should get the start in goal, as Martin Jones played in Pittsburgh last night.
In the early sample size of this season the Kings have been quite streaky. After dropping their first two games they won six straight. Now the Kings are on a two game losing streak. On the final night of October, it would be nice to turn over a new leaf and get back to winning.
Hopefully tonight they can jump on the Red Wings, tricking them out of the gate. Getting the lead with Jonathan Quick in the net is a recipe for success. Against the Red Wings the Kings need to dictate the momentum and style of play, if they want to walk out of Joe Lewis Arena with a Halloween Treat.