A couple of teams that’ve underwhelmed this season, the Los Angeles Kings and the New Jersey Devils take the ice at the Prudential Center. This cross-country matchup gets underway at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, February 5 and it is being shown live on Fox Sports West.
Los Angeles Kings at New Jersey Devils Odds
Moneyline odds have not yet been posted for this matchup.
Los Angeles is 21-31 straight up (SU) and has lost 11.2 units for moneyline bettors thus far. Through 52 regular season matches, 29 of its games have gone under the total, while 21 have gone over and just one has pushed. This 2018-19 Kings team is 9-17 SU on the road.
Los Angeles has converted on just 14.8 percent of its power play chances this year, a mark that places them in the bottom- overall among NHL teams. Its penalty kill is ranked 30th overall, and it’s successfully killed off only 74.3 percent of all penalties.
For the team as a whole, Los Angeles has been penalized just 3.3 times per game this season, 3.2 per game over its last five total, and 3.2 per game over its last five road outings. The team has had to kill penalties just 8.0 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Sporting a .903 save percentage and 26.9 saves per game, Jonathan Quick (10-16-3) has been the primary option in goal for Los Angeles this season. Quick played last night, however, so head coach Willie Desjardins might choose to rest him and instead roll with Jack Campbell (6-11 record, .931 save percentage, 2.19 goals against average).
Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown will both lead the way for the visiting Kings. Kopitar (37 points) is up to 16 goals and 21 assists, and has recorded two or more points in seven different games. Brown has 12 goals and 19 assists to his name, and has registered at least one point in 24 games.
On the other bench, New Jersey is 20-31 straight up (SU) and has lost 11.0 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 51 regular season matches, 27 of its games have gone over the total, while 22 have gone under and just two have pushed. It’s 13-11 SU as the home team this year.
New Jersey has converted on 19.4 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked third overall, and it’s successfully killed off 84.2 percent of all opponent power plays.
The Devils have been penalized 3.9 times per game this season, 3.6 per game over their past five games total, and 4.2 per game over their last five home outings. The team has had to kill penalties just 7.8 minutes per game over their last five outings.
Keith Kinkaid has denied 26.1 shots per game as the primary choice in the crease for New Jersey. Kinkaid has 14 wins, 22 losses, and six overtime losses and has maintained a subpar .898 save percentage and 3.12 goals against average this season.
Kyle Palmieri (23 goals, 17 assists) will lead the attack for the Devils.
Los Angeles Kings vs. New Jersey Devils Betting Predictions
NHL Tip: SU Winner – Devils, O/U – Under
Betting Notes
- The under has hit in three of New Jersey’s last five games.
- The Kings are 8-11 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 16-23 when they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 total minutes.
- New Jersey is 1-2 in games decided by a shootout this season while Los Angeles is 1-1 in shootouts.
- New Jersey is ranked 16th in the NHL this season with 7.6 takeaways per game. That figure has trended lower, however, as the team has created 5.1 takeaways over its last 10 games and 4.0 takeaways over its last five.
- Los Angeles is ranked 31st overall this season with 4.7 takeaways per game. That figure has trended higher recently, as it’s averaged 6.2 takeaways over its last 10 games and 5.2 takeaways over its last five.
- Los Angeles might hold the upper hand if it’s a tight one late. The team’s 10-8 in games decided by one goal, while New Jersey is only 6-14 in such games.
