Los Angeles Kings (18-12-5) vs. Arizona Coyotes (10-16-5)
The 2022-23 NHL season continues Friday, December 23, with the Los Angeles Kings facing off against the Arizona Coyotes in the Western Conference showdown at Mullett Arena in Tempe, Arizona, with the puck drop at 9:30 PM ET.
Los Angeles and Arizona continue their three-game regular-season set. The Kings beat the Coyotes 5-3 as heavy -250 home favorites on the first day of December to extend their winning streak over Arizona to three games.
Thursday’s games haven’t been included in the analysis, and the 18-12-5 Los Angeles Kings hosted the Calgary Flames, searching for their fourth consecutive win. Over their previous three showings, the Kings have recorded a couple of shootout victories against Boston 3-2 on the road and San Jose 3-2 at home to go with a 4-1 home win versus Anaheim.
Last Tuesday, the Kings defeated the Ducks as -278 home favorites. They outshot Anaheim 41-25, and four guys found the back of the net including Kevin Fiala, who increased his season tally to 35 points (G10, A25).
“Stringing a few together, that’s what good teams do. And to finally get a little consistency there is nice,” Kings defenseman Sean Durzi said .
JUST TRY TO STOP KEVIN FIALA. YOU CAN'T. pic.twitter.com/APSYnPoshI
— LA Kings (@LAKings) December 21, 2022
Pheonix Copley got his fourth straight starting call last Tuesday and improved to 5-1-0 with a 2.43 GAA and .912 save percentage in 2022-23. Jonathan Quick (8-8-3; 3.55 GAA; .882 SV%) was expected to guard the cage Thursday against Calgary, so Copley should return to the crease Friday night in Tempe. The Kings allow 3.51 goals per game (25th in the NHL) and tally 3.23 in a return (15th).