Wild Game Day number 4
Opponent: Los Angeles Kings
Site: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Time: 9:30PM CT
TV: Fox Sports North (FSN)
Last Season Results: 10/19 Wild 1 @ Kings 2 11/21 Kings 4 @ Wild 0 3/28 Kings 1 @ Wild 4
Tonight the Wild will get their first test of playing on back to back nights, coming off of last night's 4 - 3 win in Arizona. Last night the Wild were the rested team, the roles will be reversed tonight. They must avoid a slow start and get the legs moving fast and establish the forecheck early and keep the game plan simple. The Kings, on the other hand, will be looking to employ the fast start strategy the Wild used last night to get an early lead before the Yotes got their legs going.
The Kings are one of the surprises this year with their 0 and 3 start. All 3 losses have come in the Staples Center and in those losses the Kings have been outscored by a 12 to 2 margin. Many of the so-called hockey experts have picked this Kings team to return to their previous Stanley Cup form, calling last season merely an aberration.
The Kings still have Jonathan Quick, Anze Kopitar, and Drew Doughty leading the way, but the supporting cast is clearly not what it used to be. They are still a good team with something to prove and tonight will be a real test for the Wild.
Darcy Kuemper will get the nod in goal for the Wild. Kuemper has had some success in LA having played their twice going 1 and 1 with a goals against average of just under 1.00 in the two games. He did however surrender 4 first period goals at home versus these same Kings last November in St. Paul before being pulled in favor of Nick Backstrom.
Christian Folin will return to the lineup after being a healthyscratch scratch last night in favor of Nate Prosser. Other than that the Wild lineup and line combinations will be the same as last night. Mike Yeo expects the Kings to bring a spirited effort and knows his team must be up to the task. The Kings absolutely are a desperate club winless in 3 home games, can ill afford to fall even further behind in the very competitive Western Conference.
Duluth native, Derek Forbort will be making his NHL debut tonight for the Kings. Look for him to be paired with veteran Christian Ehrhoff on the third Kings D pair.
Look for the Kings to come out flying from the drop of the opening faceoff. The Wild will need to be prepared to withstand some opening period pressure, and will have to play a controlled smart game for 60 minutes if they plan on coming out with the 2 points tonight. This is a big early season test even though the respective team records say otherwise.
LET'S PLAY HOCKEY