LA Kings at Dallas Stars Preview: Projected Lines, Key Points, and More

After a successful 4-0-2 home stand, the Los Angeles Kings hit the road and begin a three-game road trip tonight against the Dallas Stars.

Look Back at the Last Matchup:

The Kings won the previous matchup between these two teams, a 5-4 shootout thriller that saw a late comeback, a disallowed OT goal, and everything in between. Kevin Fiala led the way with a goal and an assist, while also collecting the eventual shootout winner. David Rittich stopped 26 of 30 shots.

Key Points Against the Dallas Stars:

1. Blended It Up

For the second straight game, Kings head coach Jim Hiller messed around with his forward core in the 3rd period, with it once again sparking the Kings, allowing them to tie the game up and grab a point against the Canucks. This leads to a question I have seen many ask, "Why not start the game with these lines?"

This is a very fair question from fans. While the offense overall has been much better as of late, the Kings are looking for more production from Adrian Kempe and Anze Kopitar, and so far, the changes have worked for Juice. Across the last two third periods, Kempe has collected a goal and two assists for three points, while that line as a whole has dominated play. When looking at Kopitar's line with Alex Laferriere and eventually Alex Turcotte later on, he gets two young players who can skate well and are good on the forecheck, hopefully bringing some life back into Kopitar.

While nothing is set in stone for tonight, it might be time for Jim Hiller to switch up the lines on a more permanent basis.

2. Eyes on Edmonton

How does second place sound, Kings fans?

With a win tonight, the Kings could even themselves in the standings with the Edmonton Oilers in terms of points while still having two games in hand. The Kings have picked a nice time to grab points in seven straight now, as the Oilers are struggling mightily through a tough Eastern road trip, losing five straight.

With another LA vs. Edmonton series appearing likely, a chance at home ice would be key for the Kings. Who knows, maybe a division championship is even possible for LA.

3. Play a Full 60

Its cliche and boring, but it is true. The Kings need to put together a much sharper 60 minutes of hockey tonight against the Stars.

Against Vancouver, the Kings slept their way through two periods before turning it on in the 3rd, which followed a pretty similar script from the previous game against Vegas. This is simply a trend that can not continue, and the Kings are aware of this, with this message being a common theme in the Kings room following the OT loss.

Look for a much more complete performance from the Kings tonight.

LA Kings Lineup Notes:

The Kings were without Drew Doughty on Wednesday against Vancouver, with him officially listed as day-to-day. He is on the trip with the Kings, but there is no update on his availability for tonight. Here is how LA lined up to start the game, with the 3rd period lines seen above.

Look across the ice at the Dallas Stars:

Dallas is coming off a 6-4 loss to the Blue Jackets, but is overall playing some really solid hockey, sitting at 7-2-1 over their last 10. Here is how they lined up in Columbus.

Not much to note stats wise from the last matchup, with Matt Duchene still leading the way with 59 points.

Jake Oettinger, tonight's projected starter, is 27-13-2 on the season with a 2.43 goals against average and .909 save percentage.

Dallas is still without Heiskanen and Seguin, while Lian Bischel is now in concussion protocol after a bad hit he took against the Islanders.

How to Tune In:

Tonight's puck drop is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. PST and 8:00 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!