Los Angeles Kings have to win at home
One of the big differences this season compared to the previous three meetings in the playoffs is that the Los Angeles Kings have home-ice advantage as they finished second in the Pacific Division with the Oilers finishing third.
However, the Kings have not necessarily been great at home in the playoffs the previous three seasons. In fact, in eight playoff games against the Oilers they only have a 2-6 record and lost their last four home playoff games.
One of the reasons the LA Kings were able to finish second in the Pacific Division was because they were excellent at Crypto.com Arena. They had the best home record in the entire NHL at 30-5-4 and by having home ice the first two games of the series will be in Los Angeles.
If the Kings can win the first two games in this series, it should give them a lot of confidence heading to Edmonton and if they split those two games they could be returning to Los Angeles with the chance to win the series and advance for the first time since the 2014-15 season.