The Islanders and Kings are set for a Thursday night showdown at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Neither team has been overly impressive this season, as New York enters with a record of 7-6-4 while Los Angeles is 5-9-2. The Kings are at home, but home-ice advantage has not been a thing for them this season. Los Angeles is a measly 2-6-0 at home so far in 2026-27. The Kings' penalty kill continues to be a major cause of concern, as they are killing penalties at a 65.4% clip -- which ranks 30th in the league. That is a big problem when going up against a strong New York power play quarterbacked by Matthew Schaefer. New York should be able to capitalize with its chances on the man advantage.
The Islanders are also a much more defensively sound team than the Kings. New York is surrendering just 2.94 goals per game, which ranks 10th in the NHL. Conversely, Los Angeles ranks 23rd by allowing 3.44 goals per contest. The Islanders also boast a team save percentage of .908, which is good for third in the league. Playing on the road, those numbers bode extremely well for the Islanders against a low-scoring Kings offensive attack. Let's fade the Kings and back the Islanders on the road.
Islanders vs Kings prediction: New York ML (-105) available at time of publishing. Playable to -110.
