The Los Angeles Kings are closing out the month of February the way they started it and that is on the road against one of the best teams in the NHL. The Kings secured a 4-2 win against the Carolina Hurricanes and will hope for a similar result tonight against the Dallas Stars.
It hasn't been that long since the two teams met as the Kings secured a 5-4 shootout victory over the Stars on February 7th. This will be the third meeting between the two, the Kings also won a matchup in December by a final score of 3-2, but this will be the first meeting where the Kings are on the road.
The Dallas Stars have been an excellent home team this season with a 20-7-1 record and have outscored opponents 93-64 in those games. Meanwhile, the Kings have struggled on the road with a 12-14-5 record.
Final Score Prediction: Dallas Stars 3, Los Angeles Kings 2
The good news for the Kings is that they are expected to have Drew Doughty back for this game as he was a surprise scratch before the game on Wednesday. Along with Doughty, Darcy Kuemper should be in net, and the Kings should have new lines up front with Adrian Kempe playing alongside Quinton Byfield and Kevin Fiala.
However, as mentioned previously the Stars have been an excellent home team and in the games prior to the one tonight, ones played at Crypto.com Arena, they have been very close.
The biggest concern going into tonight's game is how the Los Angeles Kings start the game. The past two games, the Kings have not been able to play a complete 60 minutes of quality hockey as they struggled in the second period against the Golden Knights and the first two periods against the Vancouver Canucks.
If they follow a similar trend, the Stars could jump out to an early lead that will be tough to overcome for Los Angeles. The Kings should be able to keep it within reach but ultimately they suffer their first loss of the month.