Happy Wednesday, Insiders!

The LA Kings held an optional practice today, in advance of tomorrow’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Would expect most of the group on the ice tomorrow morning, but guys were given the option today between skating and getting what they need off the ice, in the gym, to be prepared for tomorrow’s game. Most higher-usage players did not skate today.

Included in the group that was not on the ice today was forward Adrian Kempe, who missed Monday’s game against the New York Rangers with a lower-body injury. Kempe is on a day-to-day timeline, per Interim Head Coach D.J. Smith and there is hope that he could be available to play tomorrow evening versus the Flyers.

“It’ll continue to be day-to-day, we’ll monitor it and hopefully he can go tomorrow.”

I think that’s a true reflection of a day-to-day injury. Kempe took warmups at Madison Square Garden but was unable to play. He tried to give it a go but wasn’t able to. So, should it be a similar situation against the Flyers tomorrow evening. I wouldn’t be surprised if he did not take morning skate tomorrow but gave it a go for the game. We’ll see.

Should Kempe play tomorrow, I would expect him in his usual spot in the lineup, alongside Anze Kopitar and Artemi Panarin on the team’s top forward line. If not, I wouldn’t expect a massive reshuffling to accommodate. It was Mathieu Joseph in that spot against the Rangers and there was reasons behind that.

As Smith detailed today, he didn’t want to change four lines to accommodate one. Sometimes, that’s the first move, is you load up that top line either way and pick up the pieces later. Smith didn’t think that was the right approach and he was rewarded for that at Madison Square Garden, as Mathieu Joseph went into Kempe’s spot and took the bulk of the shifts with Kopitar and Panarin.

“When a guy gets hurt, sometimes the big rush is to take care of the top guys right away, and you certainly have to do that, but at what expense? I think Q’s line has been as good as any line we have, so to take Laf or Q away and then have to break up all of your lines, that kind of makes it hard,” Smith added today. “I’ve watched Mathieu Joseph play with Tim Stutzle or Brady Tkachuk for short periods and he was able to do it. Hopefully, we can have a little place hold there until Juice can get back. At the same time, I think the other lines are going really good, so I’m not willing to break them all up.”

One thing to consider here. If Kempe can’t play, don’t expect the Kings to make major adjustments. It’ll likely be Mathieu Joseph in that spot, short-term.

D.J. Smith doesn’t want to break up four lines just to load up one. He likes all four right now & wants to keep that going. https://t.co/hsRRst5JTN

— Zach Dooley (@DooleyLAK) March 18, 2026

There was a new face on the ice today, however, and that was forward Joel Armia!

From what I understand, this is not Armia’s first skate, as he returns from a back injury, it’s just his first skate with the group coming back off the road. Smith confirmed that Armia will take the morning skate tomorrow with a larger group but he will not play against the Flyers, barring an unexpected update from Head Athletic Trainer Chris Kingsley and the medical team.

“Kinger is going to let me know, but he’s not available tomorrow, that’s for sure, unless something happens overnight,” Smith said. “Certainly that’s a good sign. He’ll skate with us tomorrow as a group and as soon as he’s able to, we’ll get him in there.”

Armia has not played since February 26, when he exited the game versus Edmonton with the injury, which is something that was re-aggravated from the Olympics. He’s been on more of a week-to-week timeline overall, but his presence today is a good sign that his time out of the lineup is coming to a close. A huge part of the penalty kill and someone who should give the Kings a boost at 5-on-5 as well. Will certainly be good to see him back in the lineup when that time comes.

Will be an optional practice today for the @LAKings.

Joel Armia is out there in a non-contact jersey! He had been skating here while team was on the road, first time back with the group this morning.

— Zach Dooley (@DooleyLAK) March 18, 2026

For today’s skate, as noted, today was an optional practice for the Kings. Here’s the group we saw out there, from what I saw –

Forwards: Armia, Helenius, Joseph, Malott, Turcotte, Ward, Wright
Defensemen: Dumoulin, Moverare
Goaltenders: Forsberg, Kuemper

Coming off a full day off yesterday for the Kings after arriving from New York City around two in the morning, it is a bit unusual to not practice today. With that being said, though, 15 games left for the Kings and every one of them needs to count. So, in hearing from Smith today, his preference was to focus on energy over practice instruction, especially considering the long travel and a widely accepted narrative surrounding the first game back home after a long trip.

While he did acknowledge the energy aspect, he understands that the Kings have no time to waste when it comes to not being ready to go coming off the trip.

“I want the guys as fresh as possible,” he said today. “What I’ll say is this, that’s an excuse. ‘You come back from a roadtrip and we just didn’t have it’ that’s just an excuse at this point of the year. You’ve got to be ready. You’re an NHL player, a professional athlete. When we put you on the ice, you’ve got to be ready to go. I expect that everyone will be ready to go. We’re giving you every tool to be ready and if you’re not ready, then the next guy has got to go, but I expect that everyone will be ready and playing at their absolute fastest speed.”

So, that’s that for today.

Likely seeing a larger group for morning skate tomorrow before another important game for the Kings, back on home ice. A place where they have to find some success down the stretch in order to qualify for the postseason.

Lastly, another plug here for LAKI Suite Night on April 2! We are close to filling one suite, but I have plenty of extra tickets available still that can go beyond the original allotment! Let me know if you want to attend. Pre-game ceremony that night to honor Anze Kopitar’s legacy with the organization and his recent milestones of setting the all-time franchise record for points and playing 1,500 regular-season games in the NHL. Should be a special one, certainly.

Tickets are $100 each for suite access + game ticket. Email me at zdooley@lakings.com to secure a place!