#LAKings Kings start longest road trip with back-to-back games (Daily News)
The longest road trip of the Kings season will get rolling in back-to-back games this weekend with visits to the Nashville Predators and Chicago Blackhawks.
After a stretch with four non-game days, two practices and a 4-0 loss to Dallas Stars on Thursday, a quick return to competition offered opportunities to refine elements of their game that meandered a bit in the Kings third shutout loss of the season.
Its time to get playing again. I think weve got to get our engine running again and understand moments and situations better than we did, Kings coach Todd McLellan said of the chance to play in Nashville on Saturday.
The Kings have gone winless in three straight games just once this season, something the Western Conference-topping Stars have avoided altogether. The Kings have also avoided coming away empty-handed, generally: Their current two-game losing streak represents the first time theyve lost consecutive games in regulation since Oct. 22, their seventh match of the season.
McLellan called the upcoming six-game journey an odd trip since it spanned 11 days but saw half its games played in the first four nights. Itll also carry the Kings into the All-Star break, but for now a swift pivot into a tightly packed stretch of their schedule seemed favorable to more down time.
Which is probably the best thing that could happen, to go right back at it again. We have three in four nights, wed like to get right back out there and correct it in a game, Kings captain Anze Kopitar said.
One player that would certainly like a fresh start was goalie Pheonix Copley, who turned in perhaps his worst performance in a Kings sweater. Given the schedule, McLellan said hed have to deploy both his goalies during the early part of the trip. After the substandard performance of Copley, whod steadied the position after being promoted from the minors, McLellan was asked if his club had a goaltending problem.
We have goaltending moments, but we have D moments, and forward moments, that dont go our way, McLellan said.
Nashville has certainly not been shy about leaning on its netminder. The Predators Juuse Saros has faced more shots than any other goalie in the NHL this season. Only two goaltenders in league history have surpassed his single-game total of 64 saves made earlier this month against the Carolina Hurricanes.
Offensively, the Preds have been led by Filip Forsberg, who returned on an eight-year contract extension after being the subject of much trade speculation, and captain Roman Josi on the back end.
The Kings won their only prior meeting with the Predators, a shootout victory in Nashville on Oct. 18 that saw the Kings rally with two goals in the final seven minutes of regulation.
Sundays trip to Chicago will be for a rubber match with the Blackhawks, who have split a pair of clashes with the Kings, both of which were decided by a 2-1 score in overtime.
Forward Max Domi is Chicagos leading point producer, with longtime organizational pillars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews behind him. Their future has been a topic of discussion as the trade deadline approaches given their fast-approaching free agency and Chicagos poor performance in the standings, where they rank 31st among 32 franchises.
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Kings at Nashville
When: 5 p.m. Saturday
Where: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville
TV/Radio: Bally Sports West/iHeart Radio
Kings at Chicago
When: 4 p.m. Sunday
Where: United Center, Chicago
TV/Radio: Bally Sports West/iHeart Radio
https://www.dailynews.com/2023/01/20...to-back-games/
After a stretch with four non-game days, two practices and a 4-0 loss to Dallas Stars on Thursday, a quick return to competition offered opportunities to refine elements of their game that meandered a bit in the Kings third shutout loss of the season.
Its time to get playing again. I think weve got to get our engine running again and understand moments and situations better than we did, Kings coach Todd McLellan said of the chance to play in Nashville on Saturday.
The Kings have gone winless in three straight games just once this season, something the Western Conference-topping Stars have avoided altogether. The Kings have also avoided coming away empty-handed, generally: Their current two-game losing streak represents the first time theyve lost consecutive games in regulation since Oct. 22, their seventh match of the season.
McLellan called the upcoming six-game journey an odd trip since it spanned 11 days but saw half its games played in the first four nights. Itll also carry the Kings into the All-Star break, but for now a swift pivot into a tightly packed stretch of their schedule seemed favorable to more down time.
Which is probably the best thing that could happen, to go right back at it again. We have three in four nights, wed like to get right back out there and correct it in a game, Kings captain Anze Kopitar said.
One player that would certainly like a fresh start was goalie Pheonix Copley, who turned in perhaps his worst performance in a Kings sweater. Given the schedule, McLellan said hed have to deploy both his goalies during the early part of the trip. After the substandard performance of Copley, whod steadied the position after being promoted from the minors, McLellan was asked if his club had a goaltending problem.
We have goaltending moments, but we have D moments, and forward moments, that dont go our way, McLellan said.
Nashville has certainly not been shy about leaning on its netminder. The Predators Juuse Saros has faced more shots than any other goalie in the NHL this season. Only two goaltenders in league history have surpassed his single-game total of 64 saves made earlier this month against the Carolina Hurricanes.
Offensively, the Preds have been led by Filip Forsberg, who returned on an eight-year contract extension after being the subject of much trade speculation, and captain Roman Josi on the back end.
The Kings won their only prior meeting with the Predators, a shootout victory in Nashville on Oct. 18 that saw the Kings rally with two goals in the final seven minutes of regulation.
Sundays trip to Chicago will be for a rubber match with the Blackhawks, who have split a pair of clashes with the Kings, both of which were decided by a 2-1 score in overtime.
Forward Max Domi is Chicagos leading point producer, with longtime organizational pillars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews behind him. Their future has been a topic of discussion as the trade deadline approaches given their fast-approaching free agency and Chicagos poor performance in the standings, where they rank 31st among 32 franchises.
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Kings at Nashville
When: 5 p.m. Saturday
Where: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville
TV/Radio: Bally Sports West/iHeart Radio
Kings at Chicago
When: 4 p.m. Sunday
Where: United Center, Chicago
TV/Radio: Bally Sports West/iHeart Radio
https://www.dailynews.com/2023/01/20...to-back-games/