LA Kings vs Montreal Canadiens Preview: Projected Lineups, Key Points, and More

The Los Angeles Kings begin a six game homestand tonight against the Montreal Canadiens.

Look Back at the Last Meeting:

The Kings won the first game on the season series against the Habs, picking up a 4-1 victory back in October. The Kings got goals from all across the lineup as Mikey Anderson, Alex Laferriere, Andreas Englund, and Adrian Kempe all scored. David Rittich stopped 26 of 27 shots.

Key Points Against the Montreal Canadiens:

1. Money Against Montreal

The Kings have won the previous seven meeting against Montreal, with you having to go back to November of 2019 to find the last Canadiens win.

LA has scored at will against the Canadiens, averaging 3.85 goals across that span including four goal performances in all of the last three meetings. Defensively the Kings have been great as well, allowing just 1.28 goals against per game, including just one goal against in those previously mentioned recent three games.

Pair this with Montreal's current five game losing streak and you have a nice path to victory for the Kings.

2. Drew's Home

For the first time since April 28th of last year, the Crypto.com Arena faithful will hear Drew Doughty's name called during the pregame lineup read.

There is not much stat-wise to look at for this one in comparison to words. There might not be a player on the Kings roster who feeds off the crowd better than Doughty. His energy, passion, and overall game seem to thrive when the "Drewwww" chants rain down, and hopefully for tonight, he can put on a show for the fans.

For those of you planning on attending tonight, be loud for Drew.

3. Tout le monde marque !

There has been plenty of goals scored in the second half of back-to-back games for the Montreal Canadiens this season.

The offense has been great for the Canadiens, scoring 24 goals across seven games for an average of 3.42. When looking at these games, it has been Cole Caufield leading the way offensively with five goals. But, while they score at a great pace in these games, the Canadiens can't seem to keep the puck out of their net.

In those seven games, the Canadiens have allowed a crazy 26 goals, or an average of 3.71 per game. It has been a nightmare both defensively and in net, as despite the winning record in these games, Montreal carries a negative goal differential.

Look for LA to have a big night offensively.

LA Kings Lineup Notes:

After missing the final game of the road trip, Kings defenseman Mikey Anderson has been skating on his own, remaining on a day-to-day basis. Considering he was not with the main group, I would not expect him tonight, but nothing is confirmed. Here is how LA lined up in Carolina last weekend:

Look Across the ice at the Montreal Canadiens:

Montreal is coming off a 4-3 win in San Jose last night, putting an end to their five-game losing streak. Here is how they looked.

The Habs offensive game is heavily carried by Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki, as they are the only forwards with more than 30 points. When looking at the defensive core, rookie Lane Hutson has been dynamite offensively, collecting 40 points in 53 games so far.

Expect goaltender Jakub Dobes to get the start. The Czech-born goalie has been great since his call-up, sitting at 5-1-1 with a .927 save percentage.

Montreal will be without defensemen Kaiden Guhle and forward Emil Heineman due to injury.

How to Tune In:

Tonight's puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PST and 10:30 p.m. EST and is available to watch on FanDuel Sports Network West, with pregame coverage beginning 30 minutes prior. An audio-only feed is available on the ESPN LA App. Go Kings Go!