{"id":602783,"date":"2026-04-24T02:31:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T02:31:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/602783\/"},"modified":"2026-04-24T02:31:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T02:31:09","slug":"r1-g3-preview-confidence-at-home-matchups-in-la-moores-play-kempes-offensive-checklist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/602783\/","title":{"rendered":"R1, G3 Preview – Confidence At Home + Matchups in LA, Moore’s Play, Kempe’s Offensive Checklist"},"content":{"rendered":"

WHO: Los Angeles Kings (0-2) vs. Colorado Avalanche (2-0)
WHAT: 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs \u2013 Round 1, Game 3
WHEN: Thursday, April 23 @ 7:00 PM Pacific
WHERE: Crypto.com Arena \u2013 Los Angeles, CA
HOW TO FOLLOW: VIDEO: FanDuel Sports Network So-Cal, HBO, HBO Max \u2013 AUDIO \u2013 ESPN LA 710, ESPN LA App & LA Kings App \u2013 TWITTER: @dooleylak<\/a> & @lakings<\/a><\/p>\n

TODAY\u2019S MATCHUP: After a pair of 2-1 games in Colorado, the series now shifts to Los Angeles, with the Kings in search of their first victory of the series tonight in Game 3. <\/p>\n

HEAD-TO-HEAD: Forward Artemi Panarin has accounted for 100 percent of the scoring in the series thus far for the Kings, scoring a power-play goal in both Game 1 and Game 2. Forwards Trevor Moore and Quinton Byfield collected their first points of the series in Game 2, with the assists on Panarin\u2019s goal. <\/p>\n

KINGS VITALS: The Kings held a full morning skate today at Crypto.com Arena, in advance of Game 3 this evening. <\/p>\n

Look for Anton Forsberg to continue between the pipes this evening, after he was the first goaltender off the ice during today\u2019s morning skate. Forsberg has been exceptional in this series, with a .941 save percentage and a 1.90 goals-against average, as well as 3.04 goals saved above expected, per SportLOGIQ. <\/p>\n

Here is last game\u2019s lineup for reference, in Game 2 in Colorado \u2013 <\/p>\n

Tonight\u2019s @LAKings<\/a> Line Rushes \u2013<\/p>\n

Panarin \u2013 Kopitar \u2013 Kempe
Moore \u2013 Byfield \u2013 Laferriere
Armia \u2013 Laughton \u2013 Wright
Malott \u2013 Helenius \u2013 Joseph<\/p>\n

Anderson \u2013 Doughty
Edmundson \u2013 Clarke
Dumoulin \u2013 Ceci<\/p>\n

Forsberg
Kuemper<\/p>\n

No changes from Game 1.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Zach Dooley (@DooleyLAK) April 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Interim Head Coach D.J. Smith indicated that all lineup decisions will be confirmed after warmups today. Should the Kings make any changes, forwards Andrei Kuzmenko, Alex Turcotte and Taylor Ward, as well as defenseman Jacob Moverare, options to play tonight. Kuzmenko is the most likely to go, if the Kings look at making any changes. <\/p>\n

AVALANCHE VITALS: Colorado won both regular-season games played in Los Angeles this season, including a 4-2 victory on March 2, D.J. Smith\u2019s first game behind the bench as the Kings\u2019 Interim Head Coach. <\/p>\n

Per the Colorado team account, here\u2019s how the hosts lined up on Sunday in Game 2, with no changes from the Game 1 look \u2013 <\/p>\n

Round 1\ufe0f\u20e3 Game 2\ufe0f\u20e3 pic.twitter.com\/uQxsmgAB2i<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

No Avalanche player has multiple points in this series thus far. Colorado captain Gabriel Landeskog scored his first goal of the playoffs to tie Game 2 late in the third period, with forward Nicolas Roy opening his account in overtime to win the game. Since joining the Avalanche, forward Martin Necas has been very productive in Los Angeles during the regular season, with three goals and six points from three games played to date. <\/p>\n

Storyline Of The Day \u2013 Heading Home
This headline would\u2019ve felt like a threat a month ago.<\/p>\n

The Kings entered their final homestand of the season, a season-long, seven-game homestand, with the second-worst home record in the NHL. They lost the first game of that homestand 6-2 against Utah, one of their worst losses of the season. Things did not look all that optimistic as it pertained to playoff qualification after that game. <\/p>\n

Then it started to come together. The Kings collected at least one point in their final six home games of the regular season, including five victories and a four-game winning streak in Los Angeles to close out the regular-season slate. The final win was probably the most encouraging, a 1-0 win over Edmonton, a game with a similar flow to how Games 1 and 2 of the playoffs have gone. <\/p>\n

The Kings are as confident at home as they\u2019ve been all season long and now they\u2019ve got to bring it at home, in the playoffs.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously earlier in the year, the results didn\u2019t go our way, even when we played well but couldn\u2019t get the wins, but obviously the final stretch of the regular season was really good,\u201d forward Adrian Kempe said this morning. \u201cI think that brought the confidence back, especially at home. On the road, we\u2019ve been a confident team all year, but coming into the playoffs, being confident at home, it\u2019s going to be a big key.\u201d<\/p>\n

In April home games, the Kings scored nearly a full goal more per game than they did prior, with 3.33 goals scored on average, compared to 2.46 coming in. They also allowed nearly a full goal less per game, from 3.14 down to 2.33. That\u2019s nearly 1.7 goals per-game difference, which is massive. <\/p>\n

Ultimately, I think that Games 1 and 2 provide a better barometer for measuring how the Kings feel coming into this game. Those games bolstered the team\u2019s confidence in the gameplan and the way they\u2019ve been playing. But I think the April record at home helps too. There were the looming questions of team play at home coming in. And those questions were justified. But with recent success, it just feels more confident coming into this building than it did before. Provides that glimmer of additional hope, that should keep this a confident group heading into Game 3.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor sure and I think we\u2019re a confident group in general,\u201d Interim Head Coach D.J. Smith said. \u201cI think we\u2019re playing a brand of hockey that gives us a chance to win. I think we look the same every night and I think that\u2019s a testament to the guys and how they\u2019re digging in. Now, maybe you just have a little bit more confidence at home with the puck, but you can\u2019t forget what style of play that we\u2019re playing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alongside the confidence of playing at home is the strategic advantage in doing so.<\/p>\n

Often times, you look at that for shutdown potential and there is certainly that. D.J. Smith will likely try and get Quinton Byfield\u2019s line against Nathan MacKinnon\u2019s line as often as possible, using the 1-0 win over Edmonton as a template. They were able to frustrate and contain Connor McDavid in that game and will try and replicate that in Game 3. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s not the only way that matchups factor in, though. <\/p>\n

If the Kings can get Artemi Panarin, Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe away from Cale Makar and Devon Toews a bit more, it could free up more even-strength scoring opportunities for the Kings\u2019 top guys as well. It\u2019s all a part of the chess match and Smith wasn\u2019t shy about saying he will do his best to achieve that. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think you saw that when we played Edmonton at home, especially on faceoffs, icings or o-zone draws, I can decide who Kopi is going to go against, what line he is going against, what set of D are going to play against Bread, that\u2019s a big difference,\u201d Smith said. \u201cColorado\u2019s got the number-one pair for Team Canada at the Olympics. They\u2019ve got them out there against those guys all the time and I\u2019m going to find shifts where they\u2019re not going to see those guys. We should be able to create more offense.\u201d<\/p>\n

A big one tonight. <\/p>\n

The Kings can pull back to within a game in this series with a victory, while a defeat sends them to the brink of elimination. It\u2019s a long road back, but the first step comes tonight, as the series shifts back to Los Angeles. Home-ice with matchups should help and the Kings need every advantage they can muster up to pull back into this series. <\/p>\n

3 To Watch For \u2013
\u2013 I thought Trevor Moore delivered one of his best games of the season in Game 2 and his workload will likely go up here in Game 2, assuming the Kings look to match his line up in certain situations. <\/p>\n

Overall, I felt he was the most dangerous player the Kings had on the ice. Moore was tied for the team lead with six shot attempts and four scoring chances. Overall, through two games, Moore leads the Kings with eight scoring chances, one shy of Nathan MacKinnon for the most in the series by any player at 5-on-5. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think Mooresie has been really good,\u201d Interim Head Coach D.J. Smith said between Games 2 and 3. \u201cI think that line has been really good and I think they\u2019re going to be really good at home, because I\u2019m going to get my matchups and they\u2019re going to make it harder on their top line.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019ll be the test tonight, I think, for Moore and his linemates, Quinton Byfield and Alex Laferriere. In Denver, the Avalanche dictated the matchups and while they saw some of the MacKinnon line, it wasn\u2019t exclusive. It\u2019ll be a substantially heavier dose in Games 3 and 4 and the Kings will not only need those players to try and keep those top guys quiet, as they did at Ball Arena, but they also need offense from those three players. <\/p>\n

They have certainly had their chances and I thought they were by far the best Kings line in Game 2. If they can answer the challenge, matchup wise, and find a bit of their own, they\u2019ll give the Kings a shot tonight. <\/p>\n

\u2013 Here\u2019s forward Adrian Kempe\u2019s checklist on what he would like to see his line do, 5-on-5, to help bolster the team\u2019s offensive production.<\/p>\n

\u2013 Hold onto pucks longer in the offensive zone
\u2013 Forecheck, win 1-on-1 battles
\u2013 Look to get inside more, get to the net. <\/p>\n

I think it starts with his line. Obviously Artemi Panarin has scored two power-play goals in this series, leading the charge, but the Kings have been blanked at 5-on-5 through two games. Kempe has been one of the best playoff performers in the NHL over the last four seasons, but he hasn\u2019t gotten on the scoresheet through two games played. That\u2019s got to change and he knows that. Kempe has always elevated his game at this time of the year. He\u2019s got an edge to the way he plays and that has allowed him to not just maintain his regular-season production but exceed it. <\/p>\n

\u201cFor our line, hold onto pucks a little bit more, forecheck, try to be a little bit quicker to pucks and then hold onto them a little bit more,\u201d Kempe said. \u201cThen, maybe look inside a little bit more, instead of keeping it on the perimeter. I think we\u2019ve got to attack a little bit more, a little bit different mindset going into Game 3. For me, I\u2019ll try to get to the net as quick as I can and hold onto pucks a little bit more.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kempe gets it. As he also acknowledged, Colorado\u2019s top players haven\u2019t produced much either to this point. So it\u2019s been tight across the board. While the Kings want to keep it tight, that can\u2019t mean nothing at even strength. A big focus for tonight\u2019s Game 3. <\/p>\n

\u2013 Lastly, is tonight\u2019s the night for forward Andrei Kuzmenko?<\/p>\n

Lots of speculation, but it remains to be seen. <\/p>\n

Regarding all lineup decisions, Interim Head Coach D.J. Smith said \u201cwe\u2019ll see after warmups\u201d but added that there are some \u201cballs in the air\u201d for the lineup this evening. Unclear if that would mean Kuzmenko or perhaps another player, with Alex Turcotte and Taylor Ward both skating today as well. <\/p>\n

The Kings have two goals in two games and both came from forward Artemi Panarin, so looking for more offense makes sense. Kuzmenko has not played a game in nearly two months, so if he does play, let\u2019s pump the expectations a bit. Playing on home ice, the Kings can dictate matchups more to their liking, which makes lineup maneuvering easier. <\/p>\n

The upside would be obvious. The Kings have not scored goals and Kuzmenko is an offensive player. Especially on the power play, that could help. The risk is that it\u2019s been two months and the intensity in this series has been extremely high, so you have to ask if he\u2019s ready to handle that kind of a series right off the bat. It\u2019s one to watch for during warmups tonight. <\/p>\n

\u201cKuzy is a guy who has been really good at home, I think if you look at his splits, home versus road, and his power-play skills, he can make a play,\u201d Smith said this morning of Kuzmenko. \u201cWe\u2019ll look at all possibilities, but he\u2019s a guy that can flat-out make plays.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kings and Avalanche, back at home for Game 3. See if the Kings can find a way to get on the board in this series. <\/p>\n