Kings vs. Hurricanes Odds
| Kings Odds | +122 |
| Hurricanes Odds | -146 |
| Over / Under | 6.5 -102o / -120u |
As part of a 10-game NHL slate Monday, the Los Angeles Kings will visit the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena.
After starting the season with a record-setting 11-game road winning streak, the Kings have been struggling to pick up points of late. Los Angeles is 0-4-4 in its last eight games, and most recently dropped a 5-3 decision to the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday.
The Hurricanes are starting the second half of a six-game home stand in which they've amassed a 2-0-1 record so far.
Monday will be the second meeting of the year between these cross-conference foes. The Hurricanes downed the Kings 6-5 in a shootout at Crypto.com Arena on Oct. 14. Let's dive into this matchup and offer a Kings vs. Hurricanes preview and prediction.
Los Angeles Kings
The Kings started the season as analytics darlings as they jumped out to a 13-3-3 record. Now, they've hit a brick wall. Since Nov. 25, they're 7-8-5 and are currently mired in an eight-game losing streak, their worst stretch since 2019.
What has gone wrong? For one thing, the offense has dipped during this recent losing streak to just over two goals a game. And as he carries a heavy workload with the seventh-most minutes played this season, Cam Talbot may be starting to wilt. The 36-year-old goaltender has allowed 15 goals in his last four games. He was pulled after two periods in Detroit on Saturday after giving up five goals on 27 shots.
The Kings remain a strong puck possession team — second best in the league with a 55.97% share of expected goals at 5-on-5. For the most part, they have been beasts on the road — 13-2-1 before going 0-2-2 so far on this most recent trip. They're tied for second in shots per game (34.1), rank second on the penalty kill (86.8%) and they allow the third-fewest shots per game (27.5).
With just 17 points in 39 games, it could be argued that Pierre-Luc Dubois has underperformed since being acquired and signed to a monster contract last summer, although he did snap a seven-game goalless drought with a power-play tally Saturday. But overall, the stats suggest the Kings deserve a better fate than what the hockey gods have been dishing out to them lately.
Hurricanes fans: North Carolina sports betting is coming online this year, and hockey fans will be able to bet at legal sportsbooks. Learn more.
Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina is back on track after enduring its own rough patch in early December. The Hurricanes are 7-0-1 in their last eight games, and have climbed back into second place in the Metropolitan Division standings.
Also strong on puck possession, Carolina is right behind Los Angeles with an expected goals share of 55.84%. The power play has climbed into the top ranks of the league, with goals in eight straight games before being blanked in three opportunities against the Penguins on Saturday. Penalty killing is also strong at 83.2% and Carolina allows the fewest shots in the league at 25.7 per game.
At this point, Carolina's biggest challenge is goaltending. Antti Raanta is 3-0-1 since returning from his week-long assignment to the Chicago Wolves in mid-December, but like Talbot, he doesn't have proper support right now. Pyotr Kochetkov was injured in Carolina's 6-3 win over Anaheim on Thursday and is now in concussion protocol. That leaves undrafted 23-year-old Yaniv Perets suddenly in the backup spot in his first pro season.
Right now, the schedule is on the Hurricanes' side. After Monday's game, they won't play again until Friday, so they should be able to turn back to Raanta against the Kings.
Kings vs. Hurricanes
Betting Pick & Prediction
The Kings are finishing off their road trip with back-to-back games, also playing in Dallas on Tuesday. After Talbot got the hook in Detroit on Saturday, Todd McLellan could turn to David Rittich in Carolina. He has played sparingly since Pheonix Copley was injured but has been solid, with a 2-0-1 record and 3.8 goals saved above expected — although two of his three starts came against the moribund San Jose Sharks.
The Hurricanes are a different beast, and are rested and rolling. So while the numbers suggest that at some point the Kings' fortunes are bound to turn, it probably won't be on Monday for a squad that's likely feeling road-weary and deflated.
The best value for this matchup is for a multi-goal win by the home side.
Pick: Hurricanes -1.5 (+170 at Caesars; Play to +150)
