The LA Kings and Vancouver Canucks are playing live on the NHL schedule on New Years Day and the western conference matchup starts at 10 pm ET as the teams play at the Rogers Arena in Canada and this matchup has Vancouver playing very well coming in, while Los Angeles has been slow to start after winning the Stanley Cup last season.
The Kings come into the game after a loss against the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday and they will next play against the Nashville Predators after the game against the Kings. The Canucks comes into the game after a win against the Sharks on the road and they will next play against the Red Wings after the matchup with the Kings. The team has 45 points this season and they are second in the Pacific division and they have played very well overall.
The new staff has the team ranked in the top 10 in scoring and penalty kill percentage and they are also in the top half of the league in power play percentage. The team is ranked third in PK percentage and after the disappointment of last season things have been off to a much better start this year. The team is looking to make a deep playoff run in 2015 and they come in after getting goals from Jannik Hansen and Radim Vrbata in the win against the Sharks.
The Canucks won with seven goals against the Coyotes before last week and they have shown that they are one of the best offensive teams in the league. The Kings have not played well overall this season and they have 44 points and are still right in the mix in the standings along with the Canucks. The team is in the top 10 in goals against and power play percentage and they have Jeff Carter leading the way with 28 points.
Daniel Sedin is leading the Canucks in points and his bro is tops in assists, while Vrbata is leading in scoring. Anze Kopitar is tops in assists for the Kings, while Carter has 28 points to lead Los Angeles overall. The Kings have lost five straight games on the road and one reason for the struggles has been Jonathan Quick and his play away from home. Quick has played well in his last five games against the Canucks, winning four of those and putting up a very strong save percentage in those games.
Check here for the LA Kings and Vancouver Canucks live coverage.