Los Angeles Kings Host Vancouver Canucks In a Battle for Pacific Positioning
This afternoon the Los Angeles Kings will host the Vancouver Canucks. Puck-drop is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. PST at Staples Center.
The Kings enter the matinée game after a tough 3-2 loss to the Anaheim Ducks. L.A. currently sits at 4th in the Pacific Division and 9th in the Western Conference.
The Kings are 1 point behind the Calgary Flames with 1 game in hand. That game is this afternoon.
L.A. is also 2 points behind the Winnipeg Jets and 3 points behind the Minnesota Wild.
Vancouver is coming off a 6-2 blowout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Canucks are 2nd in the Pacific Division and 6th in the Western Conference. If the Kings are able to take both points this afternoon, without giving up any, the two teams will be tied in the standings.
The Kings are 3-0-0 against the Canucks this season, outscoring Vancouver 12-3 over that span of games. The most recent meeting was on March 12th, a 4-0 victory for L.A. in Vancouver. Two of the games have been played in Vancouver, one at Staples Center.
After tonight the two teams will meet once more on April 6th at Rogers Arena. A sweep of the Canucks would bolster the Kings playoff chances.
The Kings are expected to go the lineup that follows:
Los Angeles Kings
Forwards:
Marian Gaborik – Anze Kopitar – Dustin Brown
Trevor Lewis – Jeff Carter – Tyler Toffoli
Dwight King – Nick Shore – Justin Williams
Kyle Clifford – Andy Andreoff – Jordan Nolan
Defensemen:
Robyn Regehr – Drew Doughty
Jake Muzzin – Matt Greene
Brayden McNabb – Andrej Sekera
Goaltenders:
Jonathan Quick
Martin Jones
Expect Jonathan Quick to start between the pipes until the Kings clinch a playoff spot. That might be until the start of the playoffs, in which case Quick will continue to start all games. It’s going to be a long haul for the tough goaltender who has stacked up a ton of games in his young career.
Alec Martinez was activated off of Injured Reserve yesterday. Despite his activation, he is not expected to be in the lineup. However there are some rumors that he might play . . . NHL.com is stirring up a bit of confusion.
Should that be the case here is what the revised D-core is expected to look like:
Defensemen (revised) –
Jake Muzzin – Drew Doughty
Brayden McNabb – Andrej Sekera
Alec Martinez – Matt Greene
Martinez may be in uniform, but it’s unlikely they’ll throw him on the ice for 16+ minutes of time. He’ll contribute and rotate in with Matt Greene as the 3rd pairing.
Due to some of his play as of late Robyn Regehr is likely the odd-man out.
Jarret Stoll is still out. No word yet on his time-table, as he is still suffering from an undisclosed upper-body injury.
Andy Andreoff will make his fourth appearance in a row, suiting up for his 17th NHL game this season.
Vancouver players to keep an eye on:
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Puck Prose
One thing to note off the bat, Canucks star goaltender Ryan Miller is out for the remainder of the regular season. Miller was a big free agent signing for Vancouver this past off-season. Miller has been one of the reasons the Canucks have been so successful this season.
With Miller out, the Canucks will either start backup goaltender Eddie Lack or Jacob Markstrom. Neither has fared very well since Miller has gone missing.
One Vancouver skater to watch is Kevin Bieksa. Bieksa isn’t a scoring defensemen, and he’s not one that is a top puck mover creating plays. However, Bieksa is a rock in the defensive zone and he’s a leader on the team.
Bieksa has 3 goals, 10 points, and a -3 plus/minus in 48 games this season.
Bieksa has been on Vancouver for his entire 10-year NHL career. He’s been in some pretty big games and gone deep into the playoffs. He knows what it takes to win, and he’s a personality that loves to battle. He’s not going to make it easy for the Kings offense.
Zack Kassian is another former Buffalo Sabre that has found his way to Vancouver (the other being Miller). Kassian has been hot as of late, skating with the Sedin twins on the Canucks first line. In 42 games this season Kassian has 10 goals, 16 points, a -5 rating and 1 power-play goal.
In his last 10 games Kassian has 5 goals.
The good news for the Kings is that Zack Kassian is apparently out. Kassian has not made the trip with the Canucks and is said to be suffering from a back injury.
Clearly Daniel and Henrik Sedin are two players the Kings need to be aware of. As usual the twins are the top two scorers on the team; each with 15 goals and 61 points in 70 games this season.
The Sedin twins are the face of the Canucks franchise. L.A. needs to make sure they are shutdown.
It’s an important game for the Kings who need 2 points out of every game.
Go Kings Go!
Next: These Aren't Your Same L.A. Kings
Mar 12, 2015; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks forward Linden Vey (7) faces off against Los Angeles Kings forward Anze Kopitar (11) during the first period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports