Lightning at Kings
The defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings look to continue their sudden surge toward playoff position when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday. The Kings started their four-game winning streak with a 4-2 triumph in Tampa Bay on Feb. 7 and have pulled within three points of the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Tampa Bay moved into a virtual tie for first place in the Atlantic Division with Sunday’s 5-2 victory at San Jose that began a five-game road trip.
Captain Steven Stamkos scored his 30th goal Sunday as the Lightning defeated the Sharks for the first time in seven games and are 1-4-1 in their last six against Los Angeles. The Kings have posted 16 goals during their streak and Tyler Toffoli boasts five of them while Jeff Carter has registered six points in the last three. Jonathan Quick has allowed nine goals in the last four games overall and is 4-1-0 with a .949 save percentage in his career against Tampa Bay.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, Sun Sports (Tampa Bay), FSN West (Los Angeles)
ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (35-17-6): Ondrej Palat snapped an 11-game goal drought and Alex Killorn scored for the first time in 10 games Sunday while Stamkos became the league’s fourth 30-goal scorer. Killorn moved to a line with Stamkos and Ryan Callahan, which produced five points while Valtteri Filppula played on a newly-constructed unit with Cedric Paquette and Brett Connolly that notched three. Ben Bishop made 33 saves Sunday and rookie Andrei Vasilevskiy (4-1-1) will likely be in net against the Kings.
ABOUT THE KINGS (25-18-12): Los Angeles’ offense has perked up of late without the help of the power play, which has converted just once in 12 opportunities over the last seven games. That hasn’t stopped Carter, who leads the team with 42 points after posting a goal and five assists in the last three outings, and Marian Gaborik (five points, five games). Anze Kopitar is second on the team with 41 points while All-Star defenseman Drew Doughty boasts 32 and logs a league-high 29:24 of ice time per game.
OVERTIME
1. Los Angeles tops the league in hits with 1,820, led by captain Dustin Brown (155).
2. Filppula has collected one goal and six assists during a four-game point streak.
3. The Lightning are 24-0-2 when they take a lead into the third period and the Kings are 17-1-3.