Round two with Phoenix Coyotes (4-3-2)…
In: Drew Doughty, Scott Parse, and Trent Hunter for the Kings; Patrick O’Sullivan, Andy Miele for the Yotes
Out: Simon Gagne, Slava Voynov; Petteri Nokelainen, Cal O’Reilly (groin)
Coyotes Lineup: Langkow went from the top to the third line.
Boedker-Miele-Doan
Whitney-Hanzal-Vrbata
Pyatt-Langkow-O’Sullivan
Torres-Gordon-Korpikoski
Yandle-Morris
Ekman-Larsson-Aucoin
Schlemko-Klesla
*The big news for tonight is that Simon Gagne’s ‘maintenence day’ has given way to a (wait for it) lower body injury. “Lower body injury” could mean anything from a compound fracture to a bruised scrotum on the Kings scale of medical vagueness, but if they initially thought he’d be back tonight, I’d guess it’s not major.
*I’m not gonna lie: I’m rooting for Parse and Penner, and yet a little fretful. If one of them makes a mistake, Terry Murray might rip a head off and devour it like a praying mantis.
*What? Terry does look like a badass insect when he’s mad.
*When the Penner-Kopitar-Williams line was intact last year, for its all-too-brief reign, they dominated. Kopitar and Williams are good at generating chances and keeping the puck in the zone; Penner can barrel in and cause damage after them. Even if they don’t click right away, I suggest we all relax. Penner’s shooting percentage is bound to bounce back. He’s much more suited for this than the shutdown line. If it were up to me, I’d keep them together and give it time.
*Speaking of dominance, Quick’s .962 SV% is what has saved our bacon and vaulted the Kings up the standings. This team has a winning record despite being out-shot on a regular basis. Be kind to your goaltender. And yes, we need Doughty back.
*Phoenix is averaging an impressive 2.86 goals/game. Hanzal was given the task of throttling Kopitar as usual last time out, and they’ll get the matchups they want again here. The Kings will need to be sharp.