Tip: Los Angeles Kings secure a playoff spot as Calgary Flames come to visit!

Likely, we'll see Los Angeles Kings and Vegas Golden Knights secure the final playoff spots shortly. The Kings have the chance to succeed tonight in what they failed to accomplish against Anaheim Ducks last time when they lost 3-1.

Not the Same Calgary as Before

I had higher hopes for Calgary Flames ahead of the season, which, after all, fielded a decent team. After a strong period in February, however, the team completely fell through in March, and all hopes for the playoffs were dashed. The team on the ice now is not as good as it initially seemed at the beginning of the season. Notably, Noah Hanifin, the team's best defenseman this season, moved to Vegas Golden Knights. They also sent away Christopher Tanev, and Elias Lindholm was traded to Vancouver Canucks. By the end of November, Nikita Zadorov, another defenseman in the line of defensemen to depart from Calgary this season, left.

The weakened defensive side has left its mark, and what I thought was one of Calgary's great strengths before the season almost completely disappeared after Hanifin also left. For me, Flames is a team that has long been built on solid defensive work combined with good goaltending and a couple of sharpshooters who get the job done upfront. After all the season's trades, I find it hard to see what identity Calgary has left. The team often looks disoriented, and the previously clear game plan is no longer recognizable. They manage to win games occasionally thanks to Markstrom's fine goaltending and the fact that there are still goal scorers in the team, but Calgary has a lot to ponder until October 2024.

Time for Revenge, Los Angeles!

Los Angeles Kings came to the loss against Anaheim Ducks from a strong 6-3 home victory against Vancouver Canucks. Before that, they defeated San Jose Sharks and Seattle Kraken. At the end of March, Kings faced tonight's opponent, Calgary Flames. That time, it ended in a loss (away) and Kings did not perform well.

Los Angeles has had a solid season and perhaps deserves a few more points according to underlying figures. Defensively, it's as structured as usual, and offensively, there's good capacity where Swedish Adrian Kempe, along with Kevin Fiala and Anze Kopitar, have led the way. One of Kings' great strengths is the number of goal scorers the team has. Like teams such as Dallas, Carolina, etc., Kings have good offensive depth and can often always have a threat on the ice regardless of which line is playing. This, while players like Mickey Anderson and Philip Danault do a great job outside the score sheet with sacrificial play. While Flames have lost their identity, I think instead Kings have cautiously recruited wisely and built a strong team that has become a given playoff candidate, albeit somewhat overvalued before the season by the bookmakers. I believe they show their superiority when they play at home this time against Calgary Flames!

Betting Tips and Conclusion

Ahead of the season, I thought this should be a much closer match, but after Calgary replaced half of its defensive setup and delivered a series of weak performances over the last 5-6 weeks, there's not much speaking for the visiting team. Los Angeles Kings are relatively free from injuries and, in my opinion, have a good chance to secure a playoff spot tonight. They have been hard to beat at home, and against a Calgary that struggled to decide against San Jose Sharks, I don't think they can withstand an attacking Los Angeles Kings!

Los Angeles Kings FT @ -111 on bet365