The Los Angeles Kings have reached the mid-point of their seven game road trip as they prepare to play the Penguins on Tuesday night. The trip to this point has been pretty successful with wins in two fo their first three games and they have another, what should be, winnable game.
At one time, the Penguins were one of the best franchises in hockey and while they still have some players from that team, notably Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, they don't have the same impact they once did. The Penguins are entering this game 13-14-5 and sitting in fifth place in the Metropolitan Division.
Over the past five games, the Penguins have alternated losses and wins but haven't really faced tough competition to this point. They have losses to the New York Rangers, who the Kings just beat 5-1 on Saturday, Colorado and Ottawa. However, surprisingly they have a win over the Toronto Maple Leafs and is why the Los Angeles Kings can't take this game lightly.
What the Los Angeles Kings must do to get the win
The Los Angeles Kings are entering this game 25th in the NHL in shots at 832 but the focus today against the Pittsburgh Penguins needs to really increase those numbers. They have not been a high-volume shot team but the Penguins goaltending and defense hasn't been able to stop opposing teams from getting shots on net.
In fact, the Penguins have allowed the second most shots in the NHL at 1,024 and the second-highest goals-against average at 3.72. The focus in this game is to get shots on net and try to create rebound opportunities. According to MoneyPuck, the Kings lead the league in rebound goals at 15 while the Penguins have allowed the 9th most rebound goals at 10. I believe this will be the difference in the game and why the Kings will win their third road game of this trip.