Ice Hockey | Friday, November 18, 2022 9:07 AM

Vancouver Canucks vs LA Kings Best Bet: One Lonely Puck Dropping

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US Sports Expert

Vancouver Canucks vs LA Kings Best Bet: Friday, November 18th

There is just one lonely puck dropping on Friday night in the NHL, and our resident pucks expert Ej Garr has his eyes on the road team! The Los Angeles Kings are playing like it’s June, as they’ve dedicated the effort to the defensive side of the ice and it is paying dividends.

In this article:

Vancouver Canucks vs LA Kings Preview

November 18th, 03:00 (UK time)

The Los Angeles Kings apparently think it’s June, and if you saw what I saw last night on TNT you know precisely what I mean. The Oilers and Kings played on Wednesday night, and the Kings came away with a clean 3 – 1 win. They did it with defense and Trevor Moore!

Usually, we all know that when the playoff push begins, the teams start to tighten up their defense, and blocking shots further is a big priority. The Kings are already there, and what an effort we all got to see as they completely shut down the Oilers.

The Kings set the tone early, and a big hit on Conor McDavid got emotions up high for both teams. Rick Tocchet was talking about the intimidating factor in the intermission report, and the problem with the Oilers is that they have no backbone! Now, Evander Kane is done for the next 3-4 months, which takes him out of the mix for an Edmonton team that hits nothing and has no size!

The Kings didn’t allow Leo Draisaitl to register an official shot on goal until there was 13:21 left in the entire game, and keeping him and McDavid off the scoresheet was the obvious goal. It worked, and the Kings’ Trevor Moore picked up the first hat trick of his young career along the way. All 3 goals were scored differently, as he ripped a slapper from the point that found twine, he took a sweet pass just inside the circle and tore off a wicked wrister for his second goal, and the empty-netter sealed the deal! Moore had a total of two goals all season before going bonkers for a trio of goals on Wednesday night alone.

They had Evander Kane on the second intermission report, and he is certainly disappointed that he will be out until at least March, and man that injury was ugly. He praised all involved who got him from ice to the hospital, and that will not make life any easier for the Oilers going forward.

Anyway, seeing the Kings block 28 shots, with sticks actively limiting chances as they are doing right now, I can’t expect the Nucks to be able to handle it. When I saw LA at a mere 1.95 to win this game, it was the only bet I had to make.