The Los Angeles Kings are visiting the Utah Hockey Club on Thursday, April 3rd at the Delta Center. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Kings vs Hockey Club Prediction. We will examine:
The Utah Hockey Club’s recent form and player performance
The Los Angeles Kings’ recent form and player performance
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Utah Hockey Club
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Los Angeles Kings
Recent betting trends in games played between the Los Angeles Kings vs Utah Hockey Club
A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the Los Angeles Kings vs Utah Hockey Club game
Utah Hockey Club Preview
The Utah Hockey Club have a 34-29-12 record this season and are sitting in the 6th place of the Central. They have a 16-14-7 home record and are 35-40 against the spread and 30-39-6 in over/under. The Hockey Club are coming off a 3-1 home victory against the Calgary Flames and now have back-to-back wins following a three-game losing streak. They have been very good at home lately, with a 4-1 record in their last 5 home games, and are 5-3 to the over in their last 8 games.
Offensively, the Hockey Club are averaging 2.81 goals per game and are scoring 21.4% of their power play opportunities. Defensively, the Hockey Club are allowing 3.01 goals per game and are killing 81% of their opponent’s power plays. Clayton Keller leads Utah with 80 points and 50 assists, while Dylan Guenther leads Utah with 26 total goals. Karel Vejmelka is likely in the net for the Hockey Club, and he has a 23-27 record, with 2.56 GAA and 90.5% saving percentage.
Los Angeles Kings Preview
The Los Angeles Kings have a 42-23-9 record this season and are sitting in second place of the Pacific. They have a 14-19-5 road record and are 36-38 against the spread and 28-43-3 in over/under. The Kings are coming off a 4-1 home victory over the Winnipeg Jets and have now back-to-back wins, following a two-game losing streak. The Kings are 6-2 in their last 8 overall games and 9-1 in their last 10 home games. Under is 4-1 in their last 4 games.
Offensively, the Kings are averaging 2.95 goals per game and are scoring 16.5% of their power-play opportunities. Defensively, the Kings are allowing 2.49 goals per game and are killing 81.7% of their opponent’s power plays. Adrian Kempe and Anze Kopitar lead LA with 62 points each, while Kempe is the Kings’ leading scorer with 32 goals and Kopitar the top passer with 43 assists. Darcy Kuemper is likely in the net for the Kings, and he has a 26-17 record, with 2.05 GAA and 91.9% saving percentage.
Why the Utah Hockey Club will win
- The Kings have lost each of their last five games as road favorites following a win.
- Utah has won eight of its last nine home games against Western Conference opponents.
- The Kings have failed to cover the puck line in 11 of their last 12 games as road favorites following a home win.
- The home team has covered the puck line in six of the Kings’ last seven games.
- The Kings have lost the third period in each of their last eight road games when trailing after the second period.
Why the Los Angeles Kings will win
- The Kings have won each of their last 10 Thursday games as favorites.
- Utah has lost five of its last six night games following a win.
- Utah has failed to cover the puck line in each of its last four games as an underdog following a win.
- The favorites have covered the puck line in five of the Kings’ last six games.
- Utah has lost the third period in eight of its last nine games as an underdog when trailing after the second period.
Total Goals Facts
- Each of the Kings’ last seven games against Central Division opponents have gone UNDER the total goals line.
- Each of Utah’s last five night games against Pacific Division opponents at Delta Center have gone UNDER the total goals line.
- Seven of the last eight Thursday night games between teams from different divisions have gone OVER the total goals line.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2’ market has hit in each of Utah’s last eight games against Western Conference opponents.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 1′ market has hit in six of the Kings’ last seven games as road favorites.
Matchup/League Facts
- Utah Hockey Club rank T2nd in the league for Period 1 goals allowed per game this season (0.69).
- Utah Hockey Club are one of only three teams to lose 30+ games when tied or leading after Period 1 this season.
- The Los Angeles Kings rank 2nd in the league for goals against per game this season (2.49).
- The Los Angeles Kings rank 28th in the league in power-play percentage this season (16.57%).
Kings vs Hockey Club Prediction
In this Los Angeles Kings vs Utah Hockey Club Prediction, the Kings are coming as -130 home favorites. This line is perfectly priced in my opinion, as the Kings are the superior team in this matchup, but they have been struggling on the road. In fact, Utah has more home wins than LA has road wins, and both teams are coming off back-to-back wins. So, I see no value on either side, even though the Kings have won both meetings against the Hockey Club this season. Both meetings were in LA, and the Kings won by 5-3 and 3-2.
Both teams are top-10 to the under in the NHL, with a combined 82-58 to the under this season. The Kings have been an under machine this season, while Utah is playing excellent defense lately, so I expect a low-scoring grind in this one. Take the under 5.5 goals.