Utah Hockey Club @ Los Angeles Kings - February 22, 2025

As I gear up for the showdown between the Utah Hockey Club and the Los Angeles Kings this Saturday at Crypto.com Arena, I can’t help but feel that familiar mix of excitement and superstition. I’ve got my lucky socks on, and I’m ready to break down what we can expect from this matchup.

First off, let’s talk about the Kings. They’re sitting with a record of 24-12-5, which is nothing to scoff at. However, they’ve been struggling against the spread lately, going just 2-9 in their last 11 games. Their recent performance against the Ducks was a real heartbreaker; they lost 2-1 at home when they were favored. That kind of loss can shake a team’s confidence, but let’s not forget that they are strong at home overall with a solid 12-2 record in their last 14 games there.

Offensively, Los Angeles averages around 2.8 goals per game with a shooting percentage hovering just above 10%. Their power play has been lackluster at best, converting only about 14.6% of their chances into goals—yikes! Defensively, they hold up well with an impressive save percentage of 90.1%, so if Utah gets any chances tonight, it won’t be easy for them to find the back of the net.

Now onto Utah—they come into this game with an even record of 18-18-7 after pulling off a surprising win against the Capitals (5-4) in their last outing as underdogs. If you had your money on them at +165 for that game, you walked away smiling! However, despite that victory, they’ve been struggling against the spread too—1-8 in their last nine games—and they’ve only managed to cover once in their last six outings.

Utah scores slightly more than Los Angeles at around 2.8 goals per game and boasts a decent power play success rate of about 22.4%. But defensively? They’re not as strong as LA; their save percentage sits around 89.5%, meaning they give up more quality chances than they’d like.

So what does all this mean for our predictions? I see Los Angeles edging out Utah for the win tonight because they have home ice advantage and have shown flashes of brilliance throughout the season despite recent struggles. However, given both teams’ trends against the spread and recent performances, I believe Utah will cover it—especially since if you’re taking an underdog like them who’s riding some momentum after that big win.

When it comes to totals betting? With both teams having low scoring tendencies recently—LA’s last game went UNDER and Utah’s last few outings have fluctuated—I’d lean towards betting UNDER on this one too.

In summary: expect Los Angeles to take home the W while Utah manages to cover that spread—and keep those total points low tonight! As always when betting on hockey or any sport really: trust your gut but don’t forget your rituals!