Date: November 4, 2024
Time: 8:00 PM ET
Location: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, TN
The Nashville Predators are set to host the Los Angeles Kings tonight in a western conference clash. Both teams will be looking to improve their position on the league standings.
Team Overview
Nashville Predators
The Predators come into this game with a record of 4-6-1, showing a mix of offensive firepower and solid defensive play. Quarterbacked by star defenceman Roman Josi, who has been instrumental on both ends of the ice. Nashville has been effective on home ice with 3 of their 4 wins this season happening in their own barn. The strong forecheck and physical play will be key for the Predators as they look to take advantage of the Kings blue line who’s been set back with injuries this season.
Los Angeles Kings
The Kings host a record of 6-5-1, and have been impressive to start the season sitting 2nd in the pacific division. With a potent offense featuring players like Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe, they can strike quickly and often sitting 9th in the NHL with 28 goals in 12 games. Their recent games have shown some ups and downs , but with the team displaying a balanced attack and depth scoring from their third and fourth lines i don’t see the scoring slowing down anytime soon.
Key Matchups
- Goaltending: Juuse Saros should be the goalie tonight. (unconfirmed as of the time of the article) he has been the backbone for the Predators for quite some time now, making key saves and keeping games close for his teammates. This season he is sporting a 2.92GAA and .900 SV% with a 3-5-1 record. For the Kings its expected for Darcy Kuemper to start in net. Since being traded from the Capitals last season he has stepped up in net providing solid performances. He comes into this contest with a 3-0-1 record and has yet to lose in regulation this season.
- Special Teams: Power play and penalty kill could play a decisive role in this one. The Predators power play has been okay this season with a 23.7% conversion rate, while the Kings have had a less effective power play only capitalizing on 16.7% this season. On the flip side the penalty kill for these two teams is drastically different from one another, the Predators are among the league leaders with a penalty kill of 91.2% while the Kings have a penalty kill of only 77.1%. Special teams will be an important task for the team looking to pick up these two points tonight.
Player Spotlight
- Brant Clake has captivated Kings fans igniting a dull franchise into something worth watching in 2024/25. Clarke’s style of play is something i myself am familiar with watching him tear up the OHL for years. In his first full season in the NHL he has came to the forefront of their defensive system with the absence of Drew Doughty potting himself 1 goal – 10 assist in 11 games played as a result of his offensive talent and hockey IQ. Since 2000, only four NHL defensemen under 22 years of age have produced at least 11 points through their teams first 11 games, Quinn Hughes (2020-21), Thomas Chabot (2018-19), Zach Werenski (2016-17), and Erik Karlsson (2011-12).
- Fillip Forsberg aka Nashvilles golden boy. If you’re familiar with the NHL you’re familiar with Forsberg and his beautiful moustache, the only thing more beautiful than his ‘stache is the way he can put the puck in the back of the net. Forsberg is as pure of a goalscorer as they come in the game of hockey. Last season he set a career high 48 goals and already has 6 goals in 11 games this year for the Predators. The LA Kings will look to lock him up on the power play but i still expect him to contribute on the score sheet in some fashion tonight.
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