In the third stop of a four-game road trip, John Tortorella's Philadelphia Flyers (6-7-1) are in LA to take on Todd McLellan's Los Angeles Kings (8-2-3). Game time at Crypto.com Arena is 10:30 p.m. ET.
The game will be televised on NBCSP with Jim Jackson and Brian Boucher on the call. The radio broadcast, with Tim Saunders and Todd Fedoruk on the call, is on 97.5 The Fanatic with an online simulcast on Flyers Radio 24/7.
This is the second and final meeting of the 2023-24 season between the teams, and the lone game in Los Angeles. On November 4 at the Wells Fargo Center, the Flyers were shut out by the Kings, 5-0.
Adrian Kempe, Anze Kopitar, Trevor Moor, Arthur Kaliyev, and Blake Lizotte scored goals for the Kings. Quinton Byfield contributed three assists. Cam Talbot stopped all 25 shots faced. Flyers goalie Cal Petersen stopped 25 of 30 shots in a losing cause. The Flyers went 0-for-4 on the power play. The Kings went 1-for-5.
Here are five things to watch in Saturday's game.
1. What's the same, what's different
As with last Saturday's game, the Flyers will enter this game with a fatigue factor disadvantage. The Flyers played on Friday night, defeating the Anaheim Ducks by a 6-3 score. The Kings, once again, had an idle night on the schedule.
The Flyers are coming off a game in Anaheim in which they played with a lead most of the night. One potential carryover: Philly took six penalties in the game, which can have a wear-down effect in the second game of a back-to-back.
This time around, however, the Flyers will have Sean Couturier in the lineup to go head-to-head with Kopitar. Additionally, depending on how Carter Hart (illness) is feeling, the Flyers may have their No. 1 goalie available. On Friday in Anaheim, Samuel Ersson had a very busy night, stopping 35 of 38 shots.
The Flyers have also rearranged their power play alignment since last Saturday's game. Whether the changes will work better remains to be seen.
2. Creating chances against LA
The Kings are a deep team talent-wise with a size advantage over the Flyers' group. Last week in Philadelphia, the Flyers were limited to seven high-danger scoring chances for the entire game (two on the power play, five at even strength).
To avoid a repeat of what happened in last Saturday's game, the Flyers will need to generate clean breakouts, establish a forecheck and create scrambles near the LA net. Philly has generally been able to play fast in the games they've won this season.
The Kings are a club against whom the Flyers had to settle for the perimeter, and the result was the Kings gradually dismantled the home side. The Flyers generated only 24 shots overall, of which 17 came from low-danger areas. That probably won't get it done if the rematch plays out similarly.
3. Flyers power play vs. Kings PK
The Flyers are mired in a deep drought on the power play: 0-for-24 with their last successful opportunity on the man advantage coming seven games ago at home against the Ducks.
In Anaheim on Friday, the Flyers went 0-for-3 on the power play. Phillly's first power play was actually a strong one, although it did not produce a goal. The Flyers generated four shots on goal and created a wave of momentum they rode to controlling the rest of the period.
Unfortunately, the second power play had the opposite effect. Cam Atkinson took a penalty of his own midway through the 5-on-4, and Anaheim eventually scored when they went to the power play. The third Philly power play more or less had a neutral effect, which was OK given that the Flyers were playing with a multi-goal lead.
For the season, the Flyers rank 30th in the NHL on the power play (4-for-48, 8.3 percent). They've allowed one shorthanded goal.
The Kings penalty kill enters the game ranked eighth in the NHL at 86.1 percent success. Opposing power play are 6-for-43. The Kings have scored two shorthanded goals (one apiece for Lizotte and Carl Grundström).
4. Flyers PK vs. Kings power play
The Flyers' PK numbers took a hit in the Anaheim game (the Ducks were 2-for-6) but this was primarily because Anaheim scored a late 6-on-4 power play goal that had no practical effect on the game's final outcome. When the outcome was still in doubt, especially when the Ducks had three straight power plays in the second period and the momentum was in their favor, the Flyers PK stepped up to deliver two vital kills to protect a 3-1 lead.
It should be noted, though, that the Flyers have allowed at least one opposing power play goal in three straight games. This proved to have major consequences in Tuesday's game in San Jose in particular. One game earlier, Arthur Kaliyev's power play goal helped the Kings put a stranglehold on the Flyers.
For the season, the Flyers have slipped to 77.8 percent (ranked 18th) on the penalty kill. Opposing power plays are 10-for-45. The Flyers have scored four shorthanded goals (two apiece for Travis Konecny and Sean Walker) but three came in a single game; October 21 in Dallas.
The Kings' power play is 11-for-56 (19.6 percent, ranked 17th) on the season. LA has yielded three opposing shorthanded goals.
5. Behind enemy lines: Los Angeles Kings
The Kings enter this game coming off a 4-3 home overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday. The Kings thus far remain unbeaten on the road (7-0-0) but are just 1-2-3 on home ice.
Entering Saturday's game, Kempe leads the Kings in scoring with 15 points (6g, 9a). He's followed by Kopitar (7g, 7a), Kevin Fiala (2g, 12a), Moore (7g, 5a), Byfield (2g, 10a), Pierre-Luc Dubois (4g, 4a), Phillip Danault (3g, 5a) and defenseman Mikey Anderson (1g, 7a, +6). Drew Doughty has logged an average 26:07 of ice time and posted six points (4g, 2a, +5).
In goal, Cam Talbot has made nine starts among his 10 appearances. He's posted a 7-2-1 record, 2.03 GAA, .930 save percentage and one shutout. Backup Pheonix Copley has made four starts, posting a 1-0-2 record, 4.52 GAA and .792 save percentage.
