Projected Lineups: Kings vs. Golden Knights, First Look at New LA Lineup
Are you ready for NHL hockey? Los Angeles returns from a three-week pause and will hit the Crypto.com Arena ice tonight with a refreshed lineup. This evening marks the start of a rare back-to-back home stretch, with the Kings hosting the Golden Knights tonight and then welcoming the Oilers tomorrow.
From a big-picture vantage point, Los Angeles has 26 regular-season games left. They sit three points outside the playoff picture, trailing Edmonton by four points for the second seed and Vegas by eight for the top spot. The Kings also hold games in hand on both clubs, which should balance out in the coming weeks as the schedule progresses.
That six-game run ahead is crucial. It’s heavy with divisional clashes and funnels directly into the NHL Trade Deadline late next week. Will GM Ken Holland use the window to reshape the roster?
UPDATED: What’s Next for LA Kings with Fiala Now Out for the Season? (https://mayorsmanor.com/2026/02/whats-next-for-la-kings-with-fiala-now-out-for-the-season/)
Salary-cap space gives management broad freedom to add talent. The Kings enjoy ample room after acquiring Artemi Panarin, and they may also benefit from LTIR flexibility following the sobering news that Kevin Fiala will miss the remainder of the regular season due to a lower-body injury sustained at the Olympics. Fiala’s absence is a heavy blow to a club that has already struggled to put pucks in the net.
Panarin’s arrival could be a franchise-altering move—perhaps the strongest offensive addition since Ziggy Palffy, decades ago. The Russian superstar is set to debut with Los Angeles tonight after being traded from the Rangers earlier this month. Adding a point-per-game player should provide a meaningful spark. But with Fiala out, the two steps forward may be followed by a step back in the short term.
Still, the mood around Los Angeles is electric: there’s a new game-changing talent in town. In a mini-camp at the Toyota Sports Performance Center over the past week, Panarin is expected to line up with Alex Laferrière at center and Adrian Kempe on the wing. Coach Jim Hiller even suggested Panarin could see time on both power-play units.
The rest of the lineup is slowly taking shape. From today’s morning skate, Joel Armia is expected to be the fourth-line left winger, with Warren Foegele at the third line.
Vegas has already announced that Jack Eichel and Noah Hanifin will miss tonight’s game after earning Olympic gold with Team USA. Additionally, Mitch Marner, Mark Stone, and Shea Theodore are listed as questionable. In short, Los Angeles should look to exploit a depleted Vegas squad.
Statistical snapshot
- Kempe has tallied five goals and 10 points in his last nine games (since Jan. 17 in Anaheim).
- Tonight closes LA’s ninth regular-season series with Vegas. Since the Kings’ 2017-18 inception, the teams are 19-16-3 all-time, and LA won last season’s Pacific Division tilt 3-1-0.
- In the Kings’ Feb. 5 matchup with Vegas, Anze Kopitar notched his 1,300th career NHL point, becoming the eighth player born outside North America to reach that milestone. He stands as the 39th player in league history to surpass 1,300 points, and the 16th to do so with a single franchise.
- Drew Doughty (1,255 games) is one game shy of tying Duncan Keith (1,256) for the 29th-most games played by a defenseman in NHL history. Among active blueliners, only Brent Burns has logged more games (1,552).
- On Jan. 14, defenseman Brandt Clarke tallied the game-tying goal with about 90 seconds left in regulation in the Kings’ home game against Vegas. According to NHL PR, Clarke’s equalizer at Crypto.com Arena marked the latest game-tying goal by a Kings defenseman since Drew Doughty did so on Oct. 28, 2023 (58:57), also versus the Golden Knights.
Kings projected lineup vs. Golden Knights
If there are any changes during pregame warmups, this article will be updated.
Panarin – Laferrière – Kempe
Byfield – Kopitar – Moore
Foegele – Turcotte – Kuzmenko
Armia – Helenius – Perry
Dumoulin – Doughty
Edmundson – Clarke
Anderson – Ceci
Forsberg (starter)
Kuemper
Likely scratches: F Malott, Ward; D Moverare
How to watch the game
Puck drop is at 7:00 pm Pacific Time and will be broadcast nationally on TNT. A Kings radio feed is also available on the ESPN LA app.
For updates on broadcast and streaming options, plus the latest trade deadline chatter and fan insights, stay tuned to MayorsManor for ongoing coverage.
Across the Ice
Tonight marks Vegas’s return to action after the Olympic break. With Eichel and Hanifin out and several Team Canada players listed as questionable, the Knights’ lineup may resemble the following:
Barbashev – Hertl – Kolesar
Smith – Laczynski – Dorofeyev
Saad – Sissons – Holtz
Reinhardt – Uchacz – Bowman
Lauzon – Andersson
McNabb – Coghlan
Hutton – Korczak
Hill
This Day in Kings History
On February 25, 2012, LA Kings captain Dustin Brown silenced trade rumors by delivering a hat trick against the Chicago Blackhawks. Brown totaled four points, while Jarret Stoll added three assists in a 4-0 Kings victory. #GoKingsGo
More LA Kings news:
- Hiller’s new line combos come into focus at Kings mini-camp
- Follow @mayorNHL for updates
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