It hasn’t been the type of season the Oilers and Kings were hoping for when they dropped the puck on the NHL season in October. The good news for both of these teams, the season is only half over. The bad news, the season is half over. The time is now and the clock is ticking for these franchises.

Oilers vs Kings Betting Analysis

This will be the third of four meetings between these two teams. In the previous two games, both teams registered victories.

The Kings are 9-12-1 on home ice this season, and 7-7-1 within the Pacific Division. The Oilers are 9-9-2 on the road, and 5-6-1 in the Pacific Division.

Head-to-head the Oilers have not played well in Los Angeles. They are 2-15 in their last 17 games in La La Land. The home team in this series is 19-7 in the last 26 games as well. It should be noted that in the last six games played in this series, all games have gone over the totals.

Edmonton Oilers

This will be game two of a four-game west coast trip that sees the Oilers play all three California teams.

Connor McDavid’s three point effort against the Coyotes was the difference in the Oilers 3-1 win in Arizona Wednesday night. The victory snapped a six-game losing streak.

“If we have a good road trip, we’re going to come back right in the middle of the race again” Head Coach Ken Hitchcock told the media after the teams win against the Coyotes. But if the Oilers want to continue to win they will need an overall improvement in a couple different categories. During their six game losing streak the team allowed 29 goals against. Currently the club is 22nd in the NHL in goals against averaging 3.18 goals per game.

Also, they need more production out of a forward base that doesn’t include the names Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl. The two have been magic together over the last 12 games combining for 46 points, but after these two. But without them, the scoring is sparse at best.

Fingers continue to point at veteran forward Milan Lucic who finished the 2018 calendar year with two goals. That’s not a misprint. The former 30 goal man has been a major disappointment in Edmonton. In this 2018-19 season Lucic has one goal and seven assists in 40 games.

Newcomer Alex Petrovic has been a welcomed addition to the team since the trade with the Florida Panthers. Through his first two games, Petrovic is playing on the clubs first pairing (defence) and averaging more than three additional minutes of ice time than he did with his Panthers.

Los Angeles Kings

The Kings are coming off a 6-2 home loss to the Lightning on Thursday night.

The Kings have registered points in seven of their last 10 games including five victories in that stretch, but they still find themselves last place in the Pacific Division, and last in the NHL.

The team has a dismal minus 33 goal differential, which is tied for last in the Western Conference. Only the Ottawa Senators have a lower differential at minus 34. Defenceman Dion Phaneuf is a minus 18 rating which is tied for second last in the entire NHL.

IIya Kovalchuk has two goals in seven games since his return from injury. Kovalchuk has seven goals and ten assists in 32 games this season.

Rumours continue to swirl that veteran forward Jeff Carter might be on the move. With the trade deadline less than two months away, the former Stanley Cup champion could be key piece to a contending team looking to bolster their attack.

Oilers vs. Kings Prediction