Predators at Kings
THE STORY: One point separates both the Nashville Predators and Los Angeles Kings from very important slots in the Western Conference standings. The fifth-place Predators trail Detroit by that solitary point for home-ice advantage while the Kings sit one point removed from eighth-place Colorado. Nashville and Los Angeles will look to secure two very important points on Saturday at the Staples Center. The Kings have won two of three meetings this season.
TV: 10:30 p.m. FSTN, FSW
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (41-21-8): Nashville fell to 1-0-1 on its four-game road trip and 8-2-2 in its last 12 contests overall when it suffered a 2-1 shootout loss to San Jose on Thursday. Patric Hornqvist continued his torrid play by netting his fourth goal in five games. Hornqvist leads the Predators with 22 tallies. Speaking of hot play, the Kostitsyn brothers have certainly fared well versus the Kings. Andrei has collected eight points in seven career contests while Sergei has the same point total in one more tilt.
ABOUT THE KINGS (34-25-12): Los Angeles posted its sixth win in eight outings with a 4-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Friday. The Kings can thank Justin Williams and Anze Kopitar for contributing to their recent surge. Williams recorded his sixth goal in eight matches, while Kopitar netted his fifth in that stretch. Williams tallied twice and Kopitar had an assist in a 5-4 win over Nashville on March 6.
OVERTIME:
1. Predators G Pekka Rinne was pulled after yielding five goals in the teams' last meeting. That effort was far removed from the Finn's brilliant 30-save effort in a 2-1 win over the Kings on Feb. 27.
2. Kings captain Dustin Brown, who had an assist on Mike Richards' empty-net goal, is riding a career-best 10-game point streak.