Predators at Kings
Tyler Toffoli hopes to continue his scoring surge when the red-hot Los Angeles Kings host the defending Western Conference champion Nashville Predators on Saturday. The 25-year-old forward has netted five goals, including the overtime winner at the buzzer against Boston a week ago, over his last seven games to help the Kings match the best start in franchise history with 21 points (10-2-1).
Toffoli scored twice in a 5-3 victory over Toronto on Thursday as Los Angeles avoided its first losing streak of the season and equaled the start it had in 1980-81, when it went 10-2-1 out of the gate before losing to Montreal. The Kings lead the league in goals-against average (2.08) and penalty-killing percentage (91.5) as they prepare to take on Nashville, which avoided a three-game slide with a 5-3 victory at Anaheim on Friday. Defenseman Roman Josi stepped up to record a goal and an assist while posting a plus-3 rating in the victory, giving him eight points in his last eight games. The five-goal outburst by Nashville marked the first time it has scored more than two in seven contests, but the club still is waiting for the first tally of the season from No. 1 center Ryan Johansen, who has delivered six assists.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, FSN Tennessee (Nashville), FSN West (Los Angeles)
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (6-5-2): Defenseman P.K. Subban sealed the victory Friday with an empty-net goal to become the second player on the team to reach double figures in points with 10 - three behind Filip Forsberg. The 23-year-old Forsberg has scored eight goals to pull within one of 100 in his career but came up empty on the first two games of the West Coast portion of the road trip. Veteran Scott Hartnell celebrated his 1,200th NHL game with a goal on Friday that snapped a nine-game drought while Viktor Arvidsson scored for the first time in six contests.
ABOUT THE KINGS (10-2-1): Adrian Kempe and defenseman Jake Muzzin each notched an assist on Thursday to tie Toffoli for third on the team in scoring (10 points) and give Los Angeles five players in double figures. Captain Anze Kopitar continued his strong start with an assist versus the Maple Leafs to extend his point streak to four games and give him a team-high 15 points - two better than linemate Dustin Brown. Jonathan Quick (8-2-1, .939 save percentage) has allowed three goals in each of his last two starts after limiting opponents to one or fewer in five of his first nine games.
OVERTIME
1. Nashville LW Cody McLeod played in his 700th NHL contest on Friday and is five penalty minutes away from 1,500 for his career.
2. Los Angeles C Michael Amadio, a third-round pick in 2014, scored his first NHL goal Thursday in his fourth career game.
3. The Kings are 5-1-0 in their last six meetings with Nashville, but four of those triumphs came in overtime.