Montreal Canadiens vs. Los Angeles Kings Prediction, NHL Odds
The Montreal Canadiens conclude their three-game California Swing by playing the second of a back-to-back Saturday night at the disappointing Los Angeles Kings – who have owned this series of late. L.A. is -120 on the NHL odds with a total of 5.5.
Canadiens vs. Kings NHL Betting Odds
Toronto and two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida are likely the two most disappointing clubs in the NHL’s Eastern Conference this season. The Los Angeles Kings are one of the biggest such in the West as they are way too talented to miss the playoffs but would as things stand sitting three points out of the conference’s last wild-card spot – although priced -130 to get in. L.A. hasn’t failed to play extra hockey since 2021 but went out of the first round in each of the past four post-seasons.
Ownership certainly has done what it could fairly recently to try and spur this team as it made a big trade for New York Rangers superstar Artemi Panarin ahead of the Olympic break and fired head coach Jim Hiller last Sunday. He was replaced by associate D.J. Smith, who was in his second full season as associate coach. Smith previously coached the Senators for five seasons from 2019-23, where he went 131-154-32 in 317 regular-season games before being fired on Dec. 18, 2023.
There are many reasons why the Kings are struggling, but they are near the bottom of the league on the power play, on the penalty kill and in scoring offence while holding a losing record on home ice. But Los Angeles eyes the season sweep of the Habs as it won 5-1 at Bell Centre on Nov. 11. Josh Anderson scored late in the first for a 1-0 Montreal lead, but then it was all Kings. Darcy Kuemper stopped 21 shots in Los Angeles’ ninth straight win in the series, the franchise’s longest active run against one opponent. The Canadiens’ last victory was in Los Angeles on Nov. 9, 2019.
Montreal Canadiens
The Habs at least didn’t have to travel after Friday’s 6-5 shootout loss at Anaheim. Montreal gave up the tying goal at 19:18 of the third, and Alex Killorn scored in the sixth round of the shootout to win it. Anaheim had led by two early in the third. Cole Caufield had two goals and an assist and Lane Hutson had a goal and two assists. It was Caufield’s 10th multi-goal game of the season, the first Montreal player with that many since Max Pacioretty had 10 in 2013-14. Caufield got there in 61 games, marking the fewest contests to reach a double-digit multi-goal game count in the NHL since Toronto’s Auston Matthews needed only 31 games in 2023-24. With Sam Montembeault in net on Friday, it should be Jakub Dobes tonight. He was pounded for six goals in Tuesday’s loss in San Jose, Dobes’ first regulation defeat since Dec. 9. The over is 5-1 in Montreal’s past six. It appears the team got out of Anaheim healthy.
Los Angeles Kings
Sometimes it takes just one impressive win to turn a disappointing team’s season around, and perhaps the Kings got that Thursday in a 5-3 win over the Islanders and Vezina Trophy candidate Ilya Sorokin. Artemi Panarin scored his first goal in a Kings uniform and had an assist in the club’s first victory under interim coach D.J. Smith. Captain Anze Kopitar had an assist playing in his 1,500th career NHL game, only the ninth to do so with a single franchise and just the fifth born outside North America (Slovenia). It was Kopitar’s 1,303rd career point to move within five of breaking Hall of Famer Marcel Dionne’s franchise record. All-Star defenceman Drew Doughty returned after missing two games injured and had a helper. Centre Quinton Byfield (33 points) missed a second in a row. Goalie Darcy Kuemper stopped 31 of 34 shots to improve to 6-8-6 at home with a 2.67 GAA and .901 SV. He should be back in there Saturday.3
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