The 4-nations tournament starts today and features some of the raw talent in the NHL. representing the Los Angeles Kings will be forward Adrian Kempe (Sweden) and defenseman Drew Doughty (Canada). While the tournament is short, it gives us top-notch athletes going head to head. The Kings will take this time to rest as the second half schedule is brutal in terms of the competition. Elite teams will face the Kings in the second half but how will Los Angeles respond?
The Kings have 29 games left on the schedule in the 2024-25 season and a playoff spot is at stake. Los Angeles remains in third place in the Pacific Division but are one of the best teams at home with a 17-3-2 record. With Doughty returning this alone should give the team a boost. Standing in front of the Kings in the Pacific Division are the Vegas Golden Knights and playoff rival, the Edmonton Oilers.
Below is the remaining teams on the schedule, along with the number of games against that team , and how the Kings have fared so far against that team.
St. Louis Blues 3 (N/A)
Edmonton Oilers 2 (1-1)
Vegas Golden Knights 2 (1-1)
Seattle Kraken 2 (1-1)
Chicago Blackhawks 2 (0-0-0-1)
Washington Capitals 1 (0-1-0-0)
Dallas Stars 1 (2-0)
Carolina Hurricanes 1 (1-0)
Winnipeg Jets 1 (2-0)
Nashville Predators 1 (1-0-0-1)
San Jose Sharks 1 (1-2)
Anaheim Ducks 1 (2-0-0-1)
Utah Hockey Club 2 (1-0-0-0)
New York Islanders 1 (1-0)
Vancouver Canucks 1 (1-1)
Calgary Flames 1 (0-2)
Minnesota Wild 1 (2-0)
Colorado Avalanche 2 (0-1)
New York Rangers 1 (1-0)
Toronto Maple Leafs 1 (0-1-0-0)
Boston Bruins 1 (0-0-0-1)
The Kings have some tough competition ahead of them and a playoff spot is not guaranteed. The Kings may need to get 80% of the remaining points to get a favorable place in the playoffs, preferably not against the Oilers for the fourth straight postseason. Most of their remaining opponents are playoff bound, which is a good test to see where Los Angeles ranks against some of the league’s best.
One determination of how they place in the playoffs may be the trade deadline. General Manager Rob Blake may want to tweak the lineup and make some additions to give them a playoff-type roster. This team is good as is, but if Blake can bring in a scorer or another defenseman it could put Los Angeles over the top. If the Kings are to meet Edmonton again in the playoffs, the Kings know what they have to do and this may not be the roster to get it done. They have offense, defense, and good goaltending, but they need some nastiness and grit for the playoffs run. If Blake were to acquire 2-3 players that got that style of play the Kings would be looking good come playoff time. However, they have to take care of the remaining games on the regular season schedule and it will not be easy.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (photo: lakingsinsider.com; Scott Burnside) (photo: lakingsinsider.com; Zach Dooley)
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