Do the Kings stay hot against the Isles?
Are the Kings already the kings of the NHL again? We wouldn’t quite put it that way, but after seven lean years of missing the postseason five times and two early first-round losses, they’re at least back on track to do better this year.
In fact, they are only three points behind the league-leading Flames in the Pacific Division, so a division win is still within reach. So after a mixed start to the season, the Kings are hitting their stride at just the right time
We can’t say the same for the Islanders. Last year’s Conference Finals participants are having a horror season and are already 18 points behind a possible playoff spot. The postseason is therefore unlikely to happen this year.
This means that the men from the Big Apple are already only concerned with preparing their squad as best as possible for the coming season, and winning is no longer their top priority. For Kings vs. Islanders, our prediction is therefore also a clear win for the home team.
Los Angeles Kings – Statistics & current form
The Kings had to bite the bullet of the rebuild for a few years, but are now in a position to attack again. Surprisingly, it is not their rookies or youngsters who are responsible for this, but the old guard.
There is only one player under the age of 28 among their top 6 scorers, and that is centre Adrian Kempe. The others all have a few years of NHL experience under their belts, especially Anze Kopitar, who leads the scoring with his 34 years of age.
Old guard experiences second spring
Maybe that’s exactly the reason for their current success, though. Oldies Kopitar (34), Doughty (32), Brown (37) and Quick (36) know that this could be their last season together and that they can go all out once more.
They will be supported by some younger players who will lead the scoring in the back row (Kaliyev, Lizotte, Lemieux). In addition, head coach Todd McLellan seems to be doing a better job in Los Angeles than in the years before with the Edmonton Oilers.
Kings without big weakness
If we look at the Kings’ stats, we notice that they are nowhere in the top 10 in the league, though nowhere at the bottom either. The 18th best offence, the 15th best defence and two top 25 goalies. It is this consistency that is the secret of their success.
Thus, it is also enormously difficult to defeat them. They won five of their last six games, including against such strong teams as the Penguins and the Golden Knights. This makes the odds on LA for Kings vs. Islanders our clear betting recommendation – especially since they still have a lot more at stake than New York.
Key Players:
G: Jonathan Quick
D: Mikey Anderson
D: Drew Doughty
LW: Alex Iafallo
C: Anze Kopitar
RW: Adrian Kempe
New York Islanders – Statistics & current form
The New York Islanders are the perfect example of what makes the NHL so fascinating, but also unpredictable. Last year, they narrowly failed to beat the eventual champions from Tampa Bay in a Game 7 of the Conference Finals.
This year, on the other hand, they are crawling around in the lower midfield of the league, without much chance of making the playoffs. And that with a team that, at its core, hasn’t changed much at all. But what are the reasons for this precipitous fall in the space of a year?
Islanders with many setbacks
There are several reasons. It was already obvious last year that they won their games mostly by an outstanding defence and with mediocre offence. So let’s compare the numbers from the two seasons.
With only 2.51 goals scored per game, they rank fourth-last among all teams offensively (minus 0.2 goals per game compared to last year). The situation is even more drastic in defence.
They concede 2.70 goals per game, which is 0.47 more than in the 20/21 season and a total of 0.67 goals less than in the previous year. It goes without saying that no success is possible with that.
Away extremely weak
In addition, the Islanders have only won nine games away from home. Four of the last five away games were lost. Only the weakest team in the Pacific Division, the Seattle Kraken, managed a 5:2 victory.
That is why we now see them as the underdogs against the Kings, who are in good form. Since the oddsmakers are assuming a fairly even duel here, a bet on the Kings is clearly preferable for LA vs. New York in terms of value.
Key Players:
G: Ilya Sorokin
D: Adam Pelech
D: Scott Mayfield
LW: Zach Parise
C: Mathew Barzal
RW: Kyle Palmieri
Los Angeles Kings – New York Islanders Direct Comparison / H2H-Balance
Due to the different divisions and conferences, this duel has only taken place twice in the last two years. Once the Isles won and once, in January this year, the Kings. This last duel is probably the most significant.
Because almost exactly four weeks ago, the Kings triumphed away in New York and also had the upper hand in shots with 30:25. If we now add the Isles’ away weakness, we see little to gain for them on Saturday.
Therefore, a tip on the Kings is our No. 1 betting option for Los Angeles vs. New York, followed by subpar points, as neither team is ranked in the top 15 teams with the most goals. We don’t see the 6-goal mark dropping here.
Los Angeles Kings – New York Islanders Tip
The Kings have scored 17 points more than the Isles so far and that is exactly what makes them the clear favourites for the bookmakers. Since the bookmakers don’t follow suit here and are probably still measuring the Islanders against last season’s strength, this plays into our cards.
So we can clearly take advantage of the odds on the home team in Kings vs Islanders, even without a handicap. In addition, we can take bets on LA in the third period, as they have done this particularly well recently and won frequently.
Bets on Adrian Kempe to score are also worth considering. He recently scored double-doubles against both Vegas and Arizona and was also on target in the first meeting of the season with the Islanders in January.
