Fresh off the first of six 2024-25 meetings, including exhibition games and the regular season, the Kings and Ducks will square off again on Monday at Honda Center.
The Kings carried much of the first 40 minutes in Ontario on Saturday, ultimately picking up a 3-2 victory in a match that peppered NHL regulars into two varied groups, some of which featured players who could be or already have been sent home before this next clash.
Two surefire NHL defenders who manned the right side for the Kings were Jordan Spence and Brandt Clarke, both of whom will see an expanded role with No. 1 rearguard Drew Doughty facing a lengthy recovery from surgery to repair a broken ankle. The Kings also have another right-handed shot on the blue line, Kyle Burroughs, and a versatile left-shooting defender in Caleb Jones, who performed admirably on Saturday. Burroughs could draw in on Monday and, soon after, the Kings will have to make a call as to whom they allocate Doughty’s roster spot.
“It’s very unfortunate that (Doughty) got hurt. He’s a big part of our team, on and off the ice, but, at the end of the day, we have to focus on what’s ahead,” Spence said. “For us, I think if there’s opportunities for myself to get more ice time and play (more on special teams). I need to step up and do the best I can and try to contribute and win games.”
One area where several Kings have contributed thus far has been in the physical game, a strong emphasis from May onward from General Manager Rob Blake and Coach Jim HIller alike. From skill players like Adrian Kempe to grinders like Andreas Englund, the Kings have sought to set a firm tone, and not just against their crosstown nemeses.
“In every one of our exhibition games, we’ve seen an extra element of physicality,” Hiller said. “I think we’re seeing more of that from our team so far this season.”
For the Ducks’ part, they were displeased with some labored offense in the early going, but felt they had a replicable model for success in the third period on Saturday.
“They had the puck the whole time, we couldn’t get the puck back. And then, when we did get it, it got blocked,” Ducks coach Greg Cronin said. “They did a great job blocking shots, we couldn’t get pucks through to retrieve them.”
Cronin said that while he had mobile defensemen in the lineup –– the Ducks dressed Olen Zellweger, Rodwin Dionicio and Noah Warren in their defense corps on Saturday –– they were unable to impact the game significantly at even strength because of the Ducks’ lack of possession and attack time.
“The D can’t get involved unless we have the puck. So, in the third period, we had the puck a lot,” Cronin said. “Then you notice Zellweger gets into the play, Dionicio gets into the play, because we have it, we’re going low-to-high, there’s space between their wingers and our D, we’re able to manipulate the wing. In the first two periods, we didn’t have any of that.”
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This will be Game 4 of the preseason for both clubs, and it will send the Kings onto Quebec for a pair of exhibition matches against Boston and Florida with what will be a very close approximation of their opening-night roster. The Ducks will stay in California, hosting Utah and then visiting San Jose as they seek to solidify their lineup for a back-to-back road set that will kick off their campaign.