The Los Angeles Kings are set to play the Chicago Blackhawks for the third and final time this season. The Blackhawks have struggled for most of the season and currently have the second fewest wins in the entire league with only 20 but two of those have been against the Kings. In November, the Kings would lose 4-3 in a shootout at home, and earlier this month, they lost their second game by a final score of 5-1 when they played in Chicago.
In both games, there is a case to be made that the Kings out-played the Blackhawks and based on 1,000 simulations run by MoneyPuck for each game, the Kings would have won over 70% of the time in each game according to the Deserve To Win O'Meter. It is certainly not official but highlights just how much the Kings were in control.
Right now, the Los Angeles Kings are fighting for a playoff spot and they can't afford to let games they should win slip away. The margin of error is shrinking and they need two points to keep pace with the Edmonton Oilers and Vegas Golden Knights.
Based on how the first two games went, these are three things the Los Angeles Kings must do to finally win against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Contain Ryan Donato
While Connor Bedard is the star on the Chicago Blackhawks, the player who stood out the most in both games was Ryan Donato. He was a player who had a lot of interest around the trade deadline but the Blackhawks would elect to not trade him before the deadline.
In the two games that the Kings have played the Blackhawks, he has had one goal, two assists and seven shots. He would also have the highest Expected Goals for the Blackhawks in both games so while Los Angeles can't forget about Bedard, Donato is the player they need to make sure doesn't beat them.