Phx vs LAK Tonight, winner clinches playoff spot & 1 step closer to 4 vs 5 in 1rst round

Phx vs LAK Tonight, winner clinches playoff spot & 1 step closer to 4 vs 5 in 1rst round

Is tonight a must win for both Phoenix & LA? If they want to avoid the Canucks, Sharks or Red Wings in the first round, then yes it is a must win. The winner tonight clinches a playoff spot and then moves into sole possession of 4^th place, moving 1 point ahead of the Nashville Predators.

                Ilya Bryzgalov is a mortal lock to be in net for the Coyotes, but who starts for LA is a different story. Jonathan Quick was pulled Monday after allowing 4 goals on 16 shots in San Jose.  Kings backup Jonathan Bernier allowed 2 goals on 20 shots in the same game, but Quick is the #1 guy for the time being in LA. So who would you start? Four of Bernier’s 16 wins have come by shut out, with his last shutout coming against Phoenix March 3 in a 1-0 win. Quick always rebounds strong after a weak performance.

                Possible game breakers for tonight’s game would be Keith Yandle & Drew Doughty both are explosive reguards. Up front both teams have 3 lines who can contribute every night. If it gets physical look for Ryan Hollweg (PHO) & Dustin Brown (LAK) to lead the hit parade for their teams, and there is a good chance Paul Bisonnette and Kevin Westgarth could have round 2 tonight.

                Both teams have been hit hard by the injury bug; Martin Hanzal, Taylor Pyatt and Lauri Korpokski are out for Phoenix, while the Kings again will be missing Anze Kopitar and Justin Williams. But, Williams is practicing harder every day and could be back for round 1 of the playoffs. Because both teams cannot dress their best line-up, look for tonight to be tightly contested, more defensive than usual.  Both clubs are coming off embarrassing losses, Phoenix lost last Friday vs Colorado, San Jose beat LA 6-1 on Monday, so both teams should be hungry.

                If these two teams do not play each other in round 1 of the playoffs, the only other potential match-up would be the Nashville Predators. Nashville has 97 points with 2 games left, Phoenix & LA have 96 points and 3 games left... the next closest team is Anaheim & Chicago with 93 points and 3 games left. A matchup between LA-NSH, NSH-PHO or PHO-LA would be the best news for the winner of that first round series. Phoenix/Winnipeg have not advanced past the first round since 1986-87, LA has not gotten past round 1 since 2001-02, Nashville has never gotten past the first round.