TODAY’S MATCHUP: The LA Kings will look to bounce back off of one of the season’s worst defeats last night, as they host the Edmonton Oilers for the first time since Game 5 of last year’s playoffs.
HEAD-TO-HEAD: The Kings skated to a 4-3 shootout win over the Oilers when these teams met at Rogers Place last month. Defenseman Brandt Clarke led the way with a multi-point game, as he netted two primary assists. Over the last five seasons, forward Adrian Kempe has scored 21 goals against Edmonton between the regular season and playoffs, the most in the NHL in that span.
KINGS VITALS: The Kings had just a few guys on the ice today, considering the back-to-back situation.
Unconfirmed, but would expect to see goaltender Darcy Kuemper between the pipes tonight for his first start out of the break, after goaltender Anton Forsberg got the nod last night against Vegas. Kuemper has a lifetime record of 13-4-4 against the Oilers, with a .924 save percentage and a 2.22 goals-against average. Both goaltenders skated this morning, but Kuemper was off earlier.
For reference, here’s how the Kings lined up last night, which was a bit of a deviation from yesterday’s lineup projection –
Panarin – Laferriere – Kempe Byfield – Kopitar – Moore Foegele – Turcotte – Kuzmenko Armia – Helenius – Perry
Dumoulin – Doughty Edmundson – Clarke Anderson – Ceci
Looking at todays skate, would not be surprised to see Taylor Ward and Jeff Malott potentially check in. Both players were off earlier, while forward Samuel Helenius was on later, but those numbers dont fully add up either, thats one too many. Jim Hiller will address the media from Crypto.com Arena to disclose anything closer to puck drop if there is anything to learn.
OILERS VITALS: Similar to the Kings, Edmonton played last night and did not hold a morning skate in advance of tonight’s playoff rematch.
Per the Edmonton team account, here’s how the Oilers lined up during last night’s 6-5 defeat in Anaheim
Draisaitl & McDavid are back from the Olympics & in the lineup while Jarry starts for the #Oilers vs. the Ducks.@PlayAlbertaCA | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/5sq6d2J0N7 — Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) February 26, 2026
The Oilers were led by forward Leon Draisaitl when these teams met back in January. Draisaitl found the back of the net twice when these teams met last month in the 4-3 Kings victory. Over the last five seasons, Draisaitl has scored 26 goals against the Kings between the regular season and the playoffs, more than any other player around the NHL in that span. Draisaitl ranks fifth in the NHL with 80 points entering tonight’s action.
Storyline Of The Day – Hard To Move Past Yesterday I feel that sometimes, you just gotta say it.
Last night’s loss was simply unacceptable. I think you could argue it was the worst one of the season.
I get it. It’s the NHL and every player in the league deserves to be there. Vegas came into Los Angeles and worked their bags off. They checked relentlessly and got rewarded for their honest effort. Fine. But from the perspective of the Kings, that game became as much of a must win as you could ask for when it came out that five key players for the Golden Knights would not play. Despite missing Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, Mitch Marner, Shea Theodore and Noah Hanafin, Vegas dropped six goals at Crypto.com Arena and not only won but did so in a deserving fashion.
One team looked hungry and tenacious and it wasn’t the team that entered the game three points out of a playoff spot with close to a full complement of healthy players. It was the team with several AHL callups, the team which openly rested players for the long haul.
You just can’t lose that game. And the Kings did.
Were at the stage, 26 games in 51 days, where weve got to get points, weve got to play and get points, Jim Hiller said. There was an opportunity [last night] to get two, we didnt get them, and we cant let opportunities slip by. We have to ready and focused to get get two [against Edmonton], we have no other choice. We had a lot of meetings, we had a lot of practices, but you have to go out there, execute and get the points.
You actually wonder if this team just might have the audacity to win tonight. Seems to be the MO, at times. Feels like it’s happened a couple of times where the Kings lose the game they have no business losing, only to come back the following night and win a game they have no business winning, including the Winnipeg/Edmonton series in January. A few scheduled 1-1 records that have been 1-1, just not the way youd have thought. They have been faced with this scenario before and, to their credit, theyve found some wins in these types of games. That’s just narrative, though.
Its hard right now to look beyond last night. There’s just no way to explain it. The Kings were gift-wrapped a game against a high-caliber opponent without arguably their five best players. Vegas prioritized the stretch run, the long haul, in resting those players. Drew Doughty was in that boat for the Kings, he played in the same game as those five players, but said he needed to play because the Kings need wins. He is, of course, correct. Doughty needed to play and if others played for the Kings, they would have needed to play also.
But here we are. The team that was willing to lose the game last night fought tooth and nail to earn the win. The team that couldn’t afford to lose did, passing up an incredible opportunity to start off the stretch run with two points.
You look at the margin for error the Kings are staring down, with now 25 games remaining in the regular season, and what was already thin is now even thinner. The Kings actually got the results they’d have wanted around the league last night, with Seattle and Utah losing, while the Anaheim/Edmonton game ended in regulation. But they did not get the most important result, their own, as they couldn’t get the job done against the Golden Knights. A disappointment to say the least.
Now, the task moves on. All it can do.
That one hurts, but youve got to keep moving forward, forward Quinton Byfield said. [Tonight] is a massive game as well, theyre right there in the standings, so were trying to make a run here and get in, so its a big game.
The games will come hot and heavy through the end of the season. No time to lick the wounds. Kings shouldnt have any issues with energy, though. Id give the Olympians a pass, but the bulk of the team hadnt played in three weeks. Should be a pissed off team with more than enough in the tank. Time to show theres still something in there.
