{"id":548524,"date":"2026-04-09T05:40:46","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T05:40:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/548524\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T05:40:46","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T05:40:46","slug":"canucks-head-to-la-for-thursday-matchup-with-kings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/548524\/","title":{"rendered":"Canucks Head to LA for Thursday Matchup with Kings"},"content":{"rendered":"

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a<\/a><\/p>\n

\"AThe Canucks and Kings face off in a crucial late-season matchup, with both teams looking to gain ground in the Western Conference playoff race.Los Angeles Today<\/p>\n

The Vancouver Canucks hit the road for a three-game trip through California, beginning with a Thursday night game against the Los Angeles Kings. Four of the final five games of the Canucks’ season will be on the road, and Thursday’s game begins three games in four nights for them.<\/p>\n

Why it matters<\/p>\n

The Canucks are looking to finish the season strong, while the Kings are battling for a playoff spot in the Western Conference. This game kicks off an important road trip for Vancouver as they look to end the year on a high note.<\/p>\n

The details<\/p>\n

Linus Karlsson has three points in his last two games and has already set career-highs this season with 15 goals, 19 assists, and 34 points. Karlsson has averaged 12:21 of ice time per game this season and leads the team with a 53% control of expected goals at five-on-five. Thursday’s game is the third of the season between the Canucks and Kings, with the teams meeting again next Tuesday for the Canucks’ final home game of the season.<\/p>\n

The game is on Thursday, April 9, 2026 at 7:30 p.m. PT.Four of the Canucks’ final five games of the season will be on the road.<\/p>\n

The players<\/p>\n

Linus Karlsson<\/p>\n

A Canucks forward who has set career-highs this season with 15 goals, 19 assists, and 34 points.<\/p>\n

Adrian Kempe<\/p>\n

The Kings’ leading scorer this season with 32 goals and 69 points.<\/p>\n

Drew Doughty<\/p>\n

The Kings’ defenseman who leads the team in average ice time per game at 23:08.<\/p>\n

Anze Kopitar<\/p>\n

The veteran Kings center in his 20th season with the team, winning 57.4% of his faceoffs.<\/p>\n

Darcy Kuemper<\/p>\n

The Kings’ starting goaltender who has started 49 games this season with a .892 save percentage and 2.76 goals-against average.<\/p>\n

Got photos? Submit your photos here. \u203a<\/a>
\n What they\u2019re saying<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought he was solid. You can tell he was more square to pucks and in control of his body. He has a good game for us; he gave us a chance.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Adam Foote, Head Coach<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery game is an opportunity. Nothing’s changed. I try to do my best every day, every game, and show that I can play here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Nikita Tolopilo, Canucks Goaltender<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next<\/p>\n

The Canucks and Kings will meet again next Tuesday for the Canucks’ final home game of the season.<\/p>\n

The takeaway<\/p>\n

This game kicks off an important road trip for the Canucks as they look to finish the season strong, while the Kings are fighting for a playoff spot in the Western Conference. The matchup between these two teams will be an intriguing one as both squads aim to end the year on a high note.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a The Canucks and Kings face off in a crucial late-season…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":548525,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5128],"tags":[894,5,4,893,27,5313],"class_list":{"0":"post-548524","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-vancouver-canucks","8":"tag-canucks","9":"tag-hockey","10":"tag-nhl","11":"tag-vancouver","12":"tag-vancouver-canucks","13":"tag-vancouvercanucks"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116373158423159419","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/548524","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=548524"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/548524\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/548525"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=548524"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=548524"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=548524"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}