NHL Picks: Blackhawks will top Kings in battle of Cup contenders – CBSSports.com
Welcome to the NHL Daily Picks where hockey writers Adam Gretz and Chris Peters make their selections for all of the day’s games.
Los Angeles Kings vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 8 p.m. ET
Having combined to win five of the past six Stanley Cups, the Chicago Blackhawks and Los Angeles Kings have been the two best teams in hockey for several years now. Things have not really changed much this season.
Entering their matchup on Monday evening the Kings are trying to hold on to the top spot in the Pacific Division, while the Blackhawks are in a three-team race for the top of the Central. No matter where they end up finishing in their divisions this much is clear: They are still two of the best teams in the league and will be contenders to win yet another Stanley Cup.
Even though their success on the ice has been similar, their approach to winning has been a little different. While the Kings rely on strength, force and a suffocating defensive approach to winning close, low-scoring games, the Blackhawks have been more about skating, skill and using all of their talent to score a lot of goals. And again, not much has changed this season.
The Kings enter play on Monday having allowed the fewest goals in the league, allowed the fourth fewest shots on goal, lead the NHL in hits by a pretty wide margin, and are only a middle-of-the-pack team when it comes to scoring. The Blackhawks, meanwhile, are near the top of the league in goals scored, are giving up more shots on goal than every playoff team except for one (Boston), and are 30th in the league in hits.
Two very different styles. Two very similar results.
So which one prevails on Monday after the teams split the two previous meetings this season? The Blackhawks have hit a little bit of a slump recently and are just 5-6-1 over their past 12 games are coming off of back-to-back losses to Dallas and St. Louis, the two teams they are competing with for the Central Division crown.
It’s been part of a brutal part of the schedule as every game during that stretch has come against a team that is currently in a playoff position. It’s also probably just been the type of minor speedbump teams hit during the course of an 82-game season. Eventually they are going to break out of that slump and Monday’s game on home ice against the Kings would be a good time to start doing it. The combination of the Blackhawks getting the opportunity to get some favorable matchups on home ice (like perhaps exposing the Kings’ baffling 20-minute per game usage of Rob Scuderi since acquiring him) creates the potential for some offense. The other big factor here: Even though their league-wide reputations might not agree, the Blackhawks simply have the better goaltender. Pick: Blackhawks 3, Kings 1
The rest of Monday’s picks
Predators 5, Flames 2
The Chicago Blackhawks and Los Angeles Kings meet on Monday.(USATSI)
