Kings rolling toward playoffs no matter what pundits say
The Kings will conclude a fruitful stretch, with 10 of 11 games at home and one that has seen them capture 16 of a possible 18 points thus far, with a back-toback set this weekend.
Today, they’ll welcome the Winnipeg Jets, whom they last faced in a 6-5 overtime win on Feb. 28. It’ll be the rubber match since the Jets won the first meeting Oct. 27. Then the Kings will wrap up their homestand with a Sunday matchup with the St. Louis Blues, seeking a sweep in a season series that’s seen them win twice, on Halloween and March 4, by a combined tally of 9-3.
The teams directly above (Vegas) and below (Edmonton) the Kings in the standings are also set to square off today. A Vegas loss in regulation and a Kings sweep would put the Kings back in a points tie for first place in the Pacific Division and Western Conference.
Yet across the continent, championship buzz has been limited for the Kings. The Athletic modeled the Kings’ chances at winning the Stanley Cup after this month’s trade deadline at just 1%, placing them among “the rest,” a category burgeoning with bubble playoff teams and alsorans.
“None of us really care (what the pundits say),” coach Todd Mclellan said after the Kings’ 8-2 win over Calgary. “We just play and we’re going to try and keep it that way as long as we possibly can.”
As they relish their low profile, the Kings are on the mend.
Defenseman Sean Durzi (upper body), the Kings’ second highest-scoring defender who last played March 6 against Washington, increased his level of participation in team activities throughout the week. Winger Kevin Fiala (lower body), who leads the Kings in scoring and has been out since March 9, rejoined the group on a limited basis. Forward Gabe Vilardi (upper body), one of the team’s five 20-goal scorers this season, missed part of the win over Calgary and one practice but should be considered probable for the weekend’s action.
In the absence of Fiala and Durzi, the Kings’ top line has continued to shoulder a considerable load. Anze Kopitar has six goals and six assists in his past 10 games. Top goal-scorer Adrian Kempe notched nine points in his past eight contests.
Yet the active ingredient in their formula might be 20-year-old Quinton Byfield, whose move to the wing has broadened his horizons. Byfield has stacked up nine points in his past 10 outings after compiling 12 in 32 previous appearances.
“We’ve been doing well on the forecheck,” Kempe said. “Our line especially, we felt like that was something that we had to get better at and since Q’s been on our line, we’ve been getting a lot better in that area.”
Byfield has blossomed in a puck recovery role, an area where Mclellan said
he excelled because of his mix of quick feet, imposing size, long reach, tenacity and ability to read plays. Byfield has not yet added much finish to his mix; his only goal in this recent stretch was an empty-netter, his first goal since the two he scored in January.
“I think the goals will come, hopefully, but I’m happy just being out there, just trying to be a difference-maker out there each time, whether it’s just with my body or just passing,” Byfield said.
There’ll be no shortage of big bodies up front for the Jets with Mark Scheifele, Pierre-luc Dubois, Blake Wheeler and Adam Lowry. Those four, along with winger Kyle Connor and defenseman Josh Morrissey, are the Jets’ top six scorers, with Morrissey placing second league-wide among blue-liners. Winnipeg currently owns the final wild-card berth in the West.
St. Louis won the Stanley Cup in 2019, its first of four consecutive playoff appearances. That string appears to be coming to an end in a season that saw them ship out mainstays like Ryan O’reilly, Vladimir Tarasenko and Ivan Barbashev. They’ve been paced in scoring by wingers Jordan Kyrou and Pavel Buchnevich this season.