Hurricanes' Ward expected to oppose Kings' Quick
by Curtis ZupkeHURRICANES (2-4-0) at KINGS (3-3-0)
TV: FS-CR, FS-W
Two veteran goalies on hot streaks will be featured Friday when the Los Angeles Kings host the Carolina Hurricanes at Staples Center.
Kings goalie Jonathan Quick is expected to start after backup Jhonas Enroth made 39 saves in his Los Angeles debut, a 4-1 win Thursday against the San Jose Sharks.
Quick has allowed two or fewer goals in each of his past three games after he allowed nine goals in his first two games. He is 3-1-0 with a 1.72 goals-against average in four starts against Carolina.
Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward is expected to start in the first of back-to-back games for Carolina. He had a 26-save shutout against the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday.
Right wing Tyler Toffoli has carried the Kings' offense with four of their 10 goals this season.
Here are the projected lineups:
HURRICANES
Eric Staal - Victor Rask - Elias Lindholm
Nathan Gerbe - Jordan Staal - Brock McGinn
Jeff Skinner - Andrej Nestrasil - Kris Versteeg
Brad Malone - Jay McClement - Chris Terry
John-Michael Liles - Michal Jordan
Injured: James Wisniewski (knee), Riley Nash (shoulder), Joakim Nordstrom (undisclosed)
Scratched: Brett Pesce
KINGS
Marian Gaborik - Anze Kopitar - Dustin Brown
Milan Lucic - Jeff Carter - Tyler Toffoli
Tanner Pearson - Nick Shore - Trevor Lewis
Kyle Clifford - Jordan Weal - Jordan Nolan
Jamie McBain - Christian Ehrhoff
Injured: Matt Greene (upper body), Dwight King (foot)
Scratched: Andy Andreoff, Derek Forbort
Status report: The top three lines were mixed with Eric Staal going back to left wing and Nestrasil to third line center, according to the Hurricanes website. … The Kings held an optional skate. Weal could draw in for Andreoff.
Who's hot: Skinner has two points in his past three games. … Toffoli has goals in three straight games. Carter's four-point game Thursday was the sixth of his career and third since he joined the Kings in 2011-12.