NHL Odds, Preview, Prediction: Oilers vs Kings (Saturday, February 10)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – JANUARY 09: Connor McDavid #97 of the Edmonton Oilers looks on in the first period against the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center on January 09, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Bill Smith/NHLI via Getty Images)
Oilers vs. Kings Odds
| Oilers Odds | -114 |
| Kings Odds | -105 |
| Over / Under | 6.5 -108 / -122 |
Here's everything you need to know about the Edmonton Oilers vs. Los Angeles Kings on Saturday, February 10 – our expert NHL prediction and pick.
Edmonton saw its incredible 16-game winning streak end Tuesday in a 3-1 loss to Vegas, but the Oilers bounced right back Friday, earning a 5-3 victory over Anaheim.
Still, can the Oilers manage to beat LA on Saturday while playing on the road and with no rest? Let's preview the upcoming contest and offer an Oilers vs. Kings prediction.
Edmonton became the 10th team to reach the 30-win mark with Friday's victory, which is a feat that few would have projected after the Oilers' 2-9-1 start. However, the Oilers have done a complete 180 since then with that 16-game win streak being merely the highlight of a larger 21-7-0 turnaround.
During that run, the Oilers have had two back-to-back road sets and claimed both halves of those stretches, which speaks well to their potential going into Saturday's action. It certainly helps that they used Calvin Pickard against Anaheim, saving starting goaltender Stuart Skinner for the Kings.
Skinner is 23-10-1 with a 2.43 GAA and has a .910 save percentage through 35 games this season.
He's been remarkable since Nov. 11, posting a 22-5-0 record, 2.02 GAA and .926 save percentage across 27 appearances. The Kings struggled to solve Skinner on Dec. 30, scoring just two goals on 28 shots en route to a 3-2 shootout loss, and LA is likely to have a similarly difficult time Saturday.
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It helps that Skinner also typically gets strong goal support. The Oilers rank fourth offensively this year with 3.49 goals per game. Edmonton is unsurprisingly led by its main four forwards of Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Zach Hyman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins along with Evan Bouchard, who has emerged as one of the league's top offensive defensemen.
However, special attention should also be given to Evander Kane, who was the star Friday with a hat trick. Corey Perry also got his first point – an assist – with Edmonton on Friday. The 38-year-old isn't the elite forward he once was, but he's still a solid middle-six forward and will provide the Oilers with yet more offensive depth after inking a one-year, $775,000 contract on Jan. 22.
Going into the season, there were some questions about Edmonton, and early on it seemed the worst fears were realized, but at this point, the Oilers are a juggernaut that shouldn't be overlooked, even on a night where they're the visitors playing tired.
If part of the reason the Oilers should be favored is due to their own merits, the other side of the equation is LA's struggles. The Kings are 3-8-6 over their last 17 games, squandering their amazing 20-7-4 start and putting their chances of even making the playoffs into jeopardy.
If you want to know what's gone wrong for the Kings, the short answer is everything. Through Dec. 27 when they were 20-7-4, the Kings ranked third offensively (3.58 goals per game) and first defensively (2.32 goals allowed per contest). Since then, they have been 30th offensively (2.35) and tied for 20th defensively (3.24).
During the Kings' first 31 games, their scoring was led by the triple threat of Anze Kopitar (13 goals, 31 points), Adrian Kempe (11 goals, 30 points) and Kevin Fiala (seven goals, 30 points) while Trevor Moore (16 goals, 25 points), Quinton Byfield (10 goals, 25 points) and Phillip Danault (seven goals, 20 points) led a potent supporting cast.
Since then, Kopitar has fallen hard, recording just 10 points over his past 17 contests while Kempe and Fiala have endured more modest declines, each supplying 13 points over the same span.
That'd be OK if the supporting cast hadn't declined at the same time. Moore in particular has dipped to just 10 points over the last 17 outings. Taking a step back, LA had five players averaging at least 0.80 points per game through the first 31 outings, and across the last 17 outings they have none except Alex Turcotte, whose average is skewed because he's appeared in just two contests.
In net, Cam Talbot has collapsed after a fantastic start, but at least here there's a silver lining. David Rittich has been a strong backup with a 5-1-3 record, 2.09 GAA and .925 save percentage in 11 outings in 2023-24. Talbot's continued struggles have led to Rittich appearing in eight of LA's last 10 contests and he might get the start tonight.
Oilers vs. Kings
Betting Pick & Prediction
Despite Edmonton being one of the most dominant teams in recent months while LA has trended in the opposite direction, the moneyline odds are roughly even on FanDuel.
That's likely because Edmonton is on the road and playing in the second half of a back-to-back, but as noted above, the Oilers have overcome those issues since their resurgence.
Plus, the Kings have struggled in LA with an 8-9-6 record, so the home-ice advantage might be oversold in this case.
I recommend riding the hot hand by selecting the Oilers on the moneyline.
Pick: Edmonton Oilers ML (-110 via FanDuel, play down to -120)
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