The Los Angeles Kings could clinch home-ice in the first round of the playoffs as early as Saturday evening. The magic number right now stands at four but the Edmonton Oilers are set to play the San Jose Sharks on Friday night and if they were to lose and the Kings win against the Avalanche on Saturday, they have guaranteed themselves second in the Pacific Division and home-ice advantage.
Nothing is guaranteed in hockey but the LA Kings might be catching a break against the Avalanche, a team they have lost to already twice this season and haven't been able to beat.
According to Bailey Curtis of The Hockey News, the Avalanche will be leaving for their road trip without Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar as neither will make the trip. In addition to those two, the Avalanche will be missing four other players in Ross Colton, Jonathan Drouin, Ryan Lindgren, and Josh Manson.
The absence of MacKinnon and Makar is a big loss for Colorado as MacKinnon is currently leading the NHL in assists and points while Makar is second in Colorado in points with 92.
LA Kings could be getting closer to full health against the Avalanche
While the Avalanche are going to be without important parts of their team, the Kings are getting closer to being back to full health. Earlier in the week, Alex Turcotte was a full participant in practice without a non-contact jersey and Saturday's game could be the first he plays in since the end of March.
In addition, Zach Dooley tweeted on Friday that Drew Doughty was practicing without a non-contact jersey. This doesn't guarantee that he will play against the Avalanche as the Kings have been focused on having the team as healthy as possible for the playoffs but it is hard to imagine that Doughty won't play at any point through the rest of the regular season.
It will be interesting to see who returns against Colorado for the Los Angeles Kings and while it won't be everyone, at the very least Alex Turcotte should have a chance to play in this game.