LA Kings: Three things you must know ahead of matchup with Sharks
The LA Kings and Sharks will renew their rivalry for a two-game set. Here are three things to know ahead of Tuesday’s series opener.
Entering Tuesday’s matchup with the San Jose Sharks, the LA Kings are riding a three-game losing streak and have yet to win in the month of February. The Sharks have lost three of their last four and had a couple of games postponed with the Golden Knights due to COVID cases within the Knight’s organization.
The Sharks lost a big staple in their organization when Joe Thornton signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs, ending a 15-year run with the club. Other notable offseason moves included the acquisition of goalie Devan Dubnyk and forward Ryan Donato. The club also signed two veterans in Matt Nieto and Patrick Marleau. The latter was traded to the Penguins last season but decided to return home for his 21st second with San Jose.
Both the LA Kings and San Jose Sharks are bottom feeders in the West Division, and on paper, these two clubs are evenly matched. The Kings enter Tuesday night’s matchup with a -139 money line, per our friends at the Action Network.
Here’s how these two teams match up on paper.
The Sharks lead the all-time series 96-79-7 and have won the last 8-of-12 in this series, including a surprising 7-4 record at Staples Center in the last three seasons. Patrick Marleau had a season-high four points (two goals, two assists) and a +5 rating against the LA Kings last season.
Here are three things you should be aware of heading into the matchup.
1. Erik Karlsson still struggling with Sharks
As the former 15th overall pick of the Ottawa Senators in the 2008 NHL Draft, Erik Karlsson became one of the premier point-producers along the blue line. Prior to the 18-19 season, the Senators traded Karlsson to the San Jose Sharks for quite the haul. Karlsson scored just three goals in his first season with the Sharks, but he chipped in 42 assists.
The 30-year-old signed a Drew Doughty-type extension to remain in San Jose – an eight-year deal worth $92M. He didn’t play particularly well in 19-20, tallying six goals and 34 assists, quite the dropoff from the 18-19 season. To add insult to injury, through ten games this season, he has just three points – three assists, to be specific.
He continues to be part of the team’s first powerplay unit, which has been a primary factor why the Sharks’ play on the man advantage has been abysmal. Karlsson recently spoke with The Athletic reaffirming he is indeed healthy, but he’s just not getting it done as previously noted. Advanced metrics indicate Karlsson has the worst expected-goals differential on the club — 5.06 goals for to 8.86 goals against.
2. Just like LA Kings, the Sharks are still trying to find the right line combinations
The LA Kings are in a similar position as the Sharks these days, meaning they really have one consistent line to expect points from. San Jose’s first line of Evander Kane, Logan Couture, and Kevin Labanc has combined to score 21 points, half of the team’s top six point-producers.
Sharks head coach Bob Boughner has made the message loud and clear for his players, indicating he’s not afraid to reduce a guy’s minutes if he feels that player isn’t playing up to snuff.
“It’s not meant to be mean or cruel or anything like that,” Boughner said. “What it’s meant to be is, yes, you’re sending a message, but I’m going to play the best guys, the guys that are going and that give us the best chance to win. If you’re not one of those guys, you’ve got to look in the mirror and ask yourself why.”
From guys like Kane, who as noted is a major contributor, down to Timo Meier playing on the third line, Boughner has fluctuated each player’s minutes in an effort to get the right line combinations and ultimately two points in the standings.
Don’t be surprised if the initial lines on Tuesday don’t look the same at the end of the game.
3. Expect a big night from Anze Kopitar
On the LA Kings side, captain Anze Kopitar has been one of the roster’s most consistent players. The 33-year-old already has 14 points in 11 games, and he’s historically played very well against San Jose. Of course, much of that is expected due to the number of times the Kings play the Sharks each year.
In 74 career games, Kopitar has 21 goals and 37 assists for 58 points, second-most against any time in his career, except for the Anaheim Ducks, where he has 67 points in 72 career games. With Andreas Athanasiou and Blake Lizotte still in the NHL’s COVID protocol, the Kings have struggled to get anything going in terms of secondary scoring.
Kopitar has been a steady force, continuing to get his teammates involved in the scoring, hence his 12 assists in 11 games. The Kings will need Kopitar to continue his dominance of the Sharks tonight in order to get the team back on track.
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I wouldn’t call Tuesday a must-win for the Kings, but the remainder of February’s schedule could prove to ultimately sink the Kings if something doesn’t turn around.
My (hopeful) score prediction: LA Kings 4, Sharks 2