Los Angeles Kings vs Columbus Blue Jackets 4/16/22 NHL Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Columbus Blue Jackets and Los Angeles Kings meet Saturday in NHL action at the crypto.com Arena. The Columbus Blue Jackets look for a win after splitting their last six games. The Los Angeles Kings need a win after losing four of their last five games.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are averaging 3.2 goals per game and are scoring on 17.2 percent of their power play opportunities. Patrik Laine leads Columbus with 26 goals, Jakub Voracek has 49 assists and Zach Werenski has 214 shots on goal. Defensively, the Columbus Blue Jackets are allowing 3.7 goals per game and are killing 78.7 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Elvis Merzlikins has allowed 162 goals on 1,692 shots faced, and Joonas Korpisalo has allowed 78 goals on 634 shots.

The Los Angeles Kings are averaging 2.8 goals per game and are scoring on 16.8 percent of their power play opportunities. Adrian Kempe leads Los Angeles with 33 goals, Anze Kopitar has 44 assists and Viktor Arvidsson has 220 shots on goal. Defensively, the Los Angeles Kings are allowing 2.8 goals per game and are killing 76.5 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Jonathan Quick has given up 108 goals on 1,155 shots faced, and Cal Petersen has given up 102 goals on 973 shots.

The Blue Jackets are 2-5 in their last 7 road games and 3-8 in their last 11 overall. The Kings are 1-4 in their last 5 home games and 1-4 in their last 5 overall. The over is 42-20-5 in Blue Jackets last 67 overall. The over is 4-0-1 in Kings last 5 games as a favorite. The Blue Jackets are 2-8 in the last 10 meetings in Los Angeles and 9-20 in the last 29 meetings.

I don’t want to back the Columbus Blue Jackets as much as the next guy, and they do have issues on the road. The Los Angeles Kings have been the better team this season, and they’re going to have the edge at home. However, this line is showing too much respect toward the Kings in a battle where neither team is overwhelmingly the better side. These NHL lines have been out of control lately, and this one is a bit steep. I’ll take a shot with the Blue Jackets if forced to pick.