Up next: Los Angeles Kings

DETROIT - It has been a lost season for the Los Angeles Kings.
Only four years removed from their last Stanley Cup, Detroit's next opponent this Monday night at Little Caesars Arena (7:30 p.m. face-off) sits at the bottom of the NHL standings.

Several factors have contributed to L.A.'s demise this season, but perhaps the most damaging has been superstar goalie Jonathan Quick's two stints on injured reserve (IR) with a lower-body injury (Oct. 7-15) and a torn meniscus (Oct. 28-Nov. 26), which required surgery.
Los Angeles has been without Quick for 18 of the 30 games they've played this season.
Quick's backup, Port Huron native Jack Campbell, performed admirably in Quick's absence, posting a 5-7-1 record, with a 2.33 goals-against average, a .923 save percentage, recorded an assist, and had one shutout before he also went down with a torn meniscus on Oct. 12.
Like Quick, Campbell also had surgery and is out four to six weeks.
Currently, the Kings have five players on IR: Campbell, left wing Ilya Kovalchuk (lower-body), center Trevor Lewis (lower-body), left wing Carl Hagelin (lower-body), and right wing Jonny Brodzinski (upper-body).
On Nov. 4, the Kings fired second-year head coach John Stevens and replaced him with former Vancouver coach Willie Desjardins on an interim basis.
With a plethora of injuries, especially in goal, and turmoil behind the bench, it's easy to see why the Kings have experienced a free fall in the standings.
If Los Angeles is going to make a run for the playoffs, it'll need Quick to transform into the Jennings Trophy winner of last season and for several players to pick up their game offensively.
The Skinny:
Los Angeles is 11-18-1 on the season for 23 points, which is eighth in the Pacific Division, 15th in the Western Conference and 31st overall in the NHL. The Kings' special teams have been a disaster. Their power play is 30th in the league, converting at 14 percent (12-of-86) and ranks dead last on the road (1-of-30) for a 3.3 percent success rate. L.A.'s penalty killing is slightly better. They've been shorthanded 86 times and have relinquished 23 power-play goals for a kill rate of 73.3 percent, which is 28th in the NHL. On the road their penalty kill is 26th in the league with a kill rate of 73.5 percent. They have given up nine power play goals in the 34 times they've been shorthanded. Los Angeles is 31st in scoring, averaging 2.10 goals-per game, and 18th overall in the NHL in goals-against, giving up 3.10 goals per game. In their last 10 games, the Kings are 5-5-0 and in one-goal games Los Angeles is 3-4-1.
The Last Time:
On March 15, 2018, the Kings defeated the Red Wings 4-1 in Los Angeles. Paul Ladue, Anze Kopitar, Tyler Toffoli and Dustin Brown (empty net) scored for the Kings. Gustav Nyquist scored Detroit's only goal, a power-play tally with Niklas Kronwall and Frans Nielsen drawing the assists.
The Forward Corps:
Captain Anze Kopitar (7-11-18) leads Los Angeles up front, but like most of the Kings he's off to a slow start after setting a career high in points last season with 92 (35-57). Former Kings captain Dustin Brown (8-7-15), Jeff Carter (6-9-15) and Tyler Toffoli (5-8-13) are capable goal scorers who must pick up the pace. In the offseason the Kings signed goal-scoring machine Ilya Kovalchuk to a three-year, $18.75 million contact, hoping the former Thrashers/Devils star could solve their goal-scoring woes after spending the past five seasons with St. Petersburg SKA in the KHL. Kovalchuk (5-9-14) is on IR with a lower-body injury. Before he injured his ankle, the Russian sniper had been mired in an 11-game goalless streak.
The Blueline:
Or should we say the Drewline? Without question Drew Doughty (2-15-17) is the spiritual leader of the Kings. He is one of the best defensemen in the NHL and this season he's averaging an astounding 26:56 of ice time per game. This offseason the Kings locked up Doughty with an eight-year, $88 million deal. Farmington Hills native Alec Martinez (3-8-11), Jake Muzzin (1-8-9) and grizzled veteran Dion Phaneuf (0-1-1) are a stingy and solid supporting cast on the back end.
The Net:
With injuries to Quick and Campbell, four different players have played between the pipes for the Kings. Veteran Peter Budaj and rookie Cal Petersen have also been pressed into action. On Nov. 27, Quick was activated from injured reserve and has resumed his role as L.A.'s No. 1 netminder. He's 2-6-0-1 with a 3.23 goals-against average, an .893 save percentage with one shutout. Petersen is Quick's backup; this season he's 4-4-0-0, with a 2.41 goals-against average, a .929 save percentage and one shutout.
The Burning Question?
Are the Kings capable of mounting an incredible run to get back into the playoff picture? L.A. would need several players to drastically improve for such a streak to occur.
The Series:
Monday will be the 201st meeting between Detroit and Los Angeles. The Red Wings are 87-84-27-2 overall versus the Kings. In games played in the Motor City, the Wings are 51-36-13-0, while they're 36-48-14-2 in contests played in Tinseltown.