Los Angeles Kings vs Edmonton Oilers Prediction & Picks - NHL

Prediction published on 3/27/24, 4:19 PM  by Matthew Newman | Modified on 3/27/24 at 4:24 PM in NHL Picks

An excellent Pacific Division matchup on Thursday as the 43-23-4 Edmonton Oilers welcome the 38-22-11 Los Angeles Kings. This is the fourth and final clash between these two teams this season, the Oilers winning two of the three so far, their only defeat coming in Jim Hiller's first game in charge of the Kings. The most recent meeting was in Edmonton in late February, with the Oilers twice coming from behind to win 4-2. This is their first game back at Rogers Place after three on the road that saw defeats in Toronto and Ottawa before winning in Winnipeg. Zach Hyman has 51 goals on the season to lead the team, one of only three players in the league to get past 50.

The Kings arrive after four straight wins, scoring 19 goals in the process. They had won four of five coming into Edmonton last time so the Oilers know how to deal with an in-form Kings team. This is the second game of four on the road for the Kings, beating the Vancouver Canucks in the first of them, doing the Oilers a favor in the process. They have turned things up since Jim Hiller took charge, Anze Kopitar leading from the front, the captain with 64 points to top the team. The future Hall of Famer is knocking on the door of the top 50 in all-time games played, needing a single point for the sole possession of 50th all-time in points scored. Consistency on the blue line when on the road is their issue. They have only conceded 31 in 11 road games under Hillier but four of those 11 have seen them conceding four goals and in one, the Buffalo Sabres put seven past them.