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About This Page: This is a discussion on LA Kings Talk within the LetsGoKings.com forums, at Los Angeles Kings Hockey Fan Forum. @
Los Angeles Kings (22-30-3) 47 pts
@
Detroit Red Wings (41-10-4) 86 pts
Game Time: 4:30 PM PST | 7:30 PM EST
Location: Joe Louis Arena |
Even when the Detroit Red Wings aren't at their best, they are still better than most teams in the NHL.
The Red Wings look to match a season high with a ninth straight victory, while trying to continue their home dominance over the surging Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night.
Detroit (41-10-4) is four points shy of 90 after a stunning 3-2 overtime win at Minnesota on Tuesday night.
Trailing 2-1, Detroit's Dan Cleary snapped a five-game scoreless streak when he tied the game with 1:20 left in regulation. He later assisted on Brett Lebda's winner 1:37 into overtime.
Few teams have been better this season than the Red Wings, who have outscored their opponents 25-11 during their current winning run.
Dominik Hasek made 24 saves Tuesday and is 5-0-0 with a 1.57 goals-against average during the Detroit's streak.
The Red Wings look to sweep the season series from the Kings (22-30-3), whose 47 points are the fewest in the NHL, for the third time in four seasons.
Detroit, which has outscored Los Angeles 13-3 in three victories, has won four straight overall over the Kings. The Red Wings are also 11-0-0 with a tie at home against Los Angeles since a 3-2 loss on Feb. 18, 2000.
The Kings, who have lost 16 of their 17 overall against Detroit, won 4-2 over the New York Rangers on Tuesday to improve to 2-1-1 on their season-high eight-game road trip.
Anze Kopitar and Alexander Frolov each had a goal and an assist for the Kings, who have won seven of their last 11 contests.
Jason LaBarbera made 39 saves Tuesday for the Kings and is 7-3-1 with a 2.77 GAA since losing three in a row. LaBarbera, however, is 0-3-1 with a 4.51 GAA versus Detroit.
The Kings have a road record of 10-14-2, and their last 10 games is a record of 6-3-1.
The Red Wings have a home record of 21-4-2, and their last 10 games is a record of 8-2-0.
The Kings will continue their road trip on Saturday afternoon at Mellon Arena against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
"These guys are very good," Crawford said. "Their puck-protection skills are at a level of elite players. They protect the puck as well as Jaromir (Jagr) does. They may not have the offensive creativity yet as Jaromir, but they are still young, still developing. They've got tons of talent."
"Even when we were on an eight-game losing streak (Dec. 12-26), we were playing really good but we lost a bunch of one-goal games," Kopitar said. "Our record is not great but the team is showing character and playing really hard now."
Los Angeles Kings
Rob Blake (Left ankle fracture on 2/2/08) IR
Ladislav Nagy (Sore neck on 1/19/08) IR
***Dustin Brown (Gone home to be with pregnant wife on 2/5/08) day-to-day***
Detroit Red Wings
Niklas Kronwall (Left shoulder injury on 1/31/08) day-to-day
1/22/08 - Red Wings @ Kings 3-0 (Red Wings win)
12/19/07 - Kings @ Red Wings 6-2 (Red Wings win)
10/14/07 - Red Wings @ Kings 4-1 (Red Wings win)
Leading Scorers:
Forwards:
Kopitar, LA - 50 points (21 G, 29 A, -15) | Zetterberg, DET - 66 points (31G, 35 A, +28)
Defensemen:
Visnovsky, LA - 30 points (6 G, 24 A, -18) | Lidstrom, DET - 51 points (6 G, 45 A, +46)
Probable Starters: (subject to change)
LaBarbera, LA - 39 GP Record: 15-19-2 GAA 2.91 SV% .912 | Osgood, DET - 28 GP Record: 22-3-2 GAA 1.84 SV% .927
Players you might want to keep an eye on:
Michael Cammalleri, LA - 29 points (15 G, 14 A, -11) | Pavel Datsyuk, DET - 65 points (18 G, 47 A, +37)
GAA:
LA – 3.25 (29th in NHL) DET – 2.02 (1st in NHL)
Avg. Goals:
LA – 2.76 (15th in NHL) DET – 3.27 (2nd in NHL)
Power Play %:
LA – 18.8 (9th in NHL) DET – 21.0 (3rd in NHL)
Penalty Kill %:
LA – 78.9 (27th in NHL) DET – 84.5 (7th in NHL)
(As of 2/6/08)
Pacific Division Standings:
1. Dallas Stars (32-20-5) 69 pts
2. San Jose Sharks (29-17-7) 65 pts
3. Anaheim Ducks (28-22-7) 63 pts
4. Phoenix Coyotes (28-22-4) 60 pts
5. Los Angeles Kings (22-30-3) 47 pts
***GDT - Los Angeles Kings @ Detroit Red Wings - 2/7/08*** 
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