Key matchups, stats for Lightning-Wild, Kings-Predators

As the month of January continues, we are keeping an eye on the NHL standings; after all, following the All-Star Weekend, the March 8 trade deadline will be here before you know it, and then the playoff races will really heat up.

Thursday night’s streaming doubleheader features three teams currently in playoff position, and one that has fared much better since a midseason coaching change. To help get you ready for Minnesota Wild-Tampa Bay Lightning (7 p.m. ET, ESPN+/Hulu) and Nashville Predators-Los Angeles Kings (10 p.m. ET, ESPN+/Hulu), we’ve assembled this handy fan’s guide.

Here are the key players to watch in each matchup, along with other intel courtesy of ESPN Stats & Information:

Minnesota Wild vs.

Tampa Bay Lightning

Thursday, 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+/Hulu
Amalie Arena (Tampa, FL)

Wild

Power Rankings position: 26
Leading scorer: Kirill Kaprizov: 13 G | 22 A
Record: 18-20-5 (41 points)

Editor’s Picks

2 Related

Minnesota is 13-10-1 under John Hynes since he took over for the fired Dean Evason on Nov. 28. Evason was fired after the team started 5-10-4, their worst 19-game start since their inaugural season in 2000-01 (4-11-3). In the 24 games Hynes has coached, Minnesota has led after the first period in 10 of those games, tied for the second most in the NHL over that span. Minnesota is 9-1-0 in those games, tied for the second most wins among all NHL teams.

The Wild are 7-2-1 in their last 10 games against the Lightning, despite losing its last two games by multiple goals. Minnesota’s seven wins are the tied for the most over a 10-game span against Tampa Bay since the 2016-17 season with five other teams (the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, Vegas Golden Knights, and Winnipeg Jets), and occurred during a stretch where the Lightning won two Stanley Cup titles.

Kirill Kaprizov is playing in his third game of the 2024 calendar year after being out from Dec. 30 to Jan. 13 with a lower-body injury. Despite missing seven of the team’s 43 games, Kaprizov leads…


Source link : https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/39329697/how-watch-nhl-lightning-wild-kings-predators-stats-matchups

Author : ESPN staff

Publish date : 2024-01-18 13:04:13

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