Tonight at 10:30 p.m. ET, the Toronto Maple Leafs (22-17-3, 47 points) and Los Angeles Kings (19-13-10, 48 points) face-off for the second and final time this season live from the Staples Center in L.A. The game can be live streamed here. Toronto fans can hear all of the action on TSN 1050 while Los Angeles fans can do the same on Fox Sports 570.
Toronto embarks on a four-game road trip and snapped a three-match losing streak last time out while Los Angeles has dropped three straight games and plays the fourth contest of a seven-match homestand.
The Maple Leafs topped the Kings 4-3 in a shootout the first time these teams met this season on Dec. 14.
Toronto has slipped to sixth in the Atlantic Division and is three points out of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference while Los Angeles is currently clinging to the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
The Maple Leafs are coming off of a 5-2 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday in what was the team's first win since firing coach Randy Carlyle on Jan. 3.
"I definitely feel like that's how we have to approach the game," interim coach Peter Horachek told the Maple Leafs website after the win. "It's a lot harder to play that way, but that's the way we need to play as a team that's trying to get back to where it needs to play.
Phil Kessel is All-Star Game bound and he leads Toronto with 43 points off of 19 goals and 24 assists. James van Riemsdyk is second on the Maple Leafs with 40 points off of 19 tallies and 21 helpers while Tyler Bozak has found the back of the net 14 times and added 18 assists for 32 points.
The Kings are struggling to start their homestand and are coming off of a 5-4 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday in a shootout.
Los Angeles enters play without Tyler Toffoli (mononucleousus), who is second on the team with 27 points off of 12 goas and 15 assists.
"I think if you look at our team historically over the last however many years, what's made us a good team is when guys go down we have guys that, one, come in and play well, and two, our current players elevate their game. So we have to draw on that," captain Dustin Brown said via LAKingsInsider.com.
Jeff Carter (11 goals, 19 assists) and Anze Kopitar (eight markers, 22 helpers) are tied atop the Kings scoresheet with 30 points apiece.
In net, Los Angeles turns to Jonathan Quick and he is 16-10-8 with a 2.44 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage on the campaign.
Toronto responds with former-L.A. backstop Jonathan Bernier and he is 16-10-3 on the campaign with a 2.73 GAA and a .916 save percentage.
The Maple Leafs and Kings meet for the last time this season when the puck drops tonight live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
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