Kings Vs Devils: A back-to-back road finale meets a homestand reset
kings vs devils takes over Saturday night at Prudential Center, where New Jersey enters at 32-31-2 and Los Angeles arrives at 27-23-15 for a 7 p. m. ET start.
What’s at stake in Kings Vs Devils on a busy night in New Jersey
New Jersey hosts Los Angeles as the Devils play the sixth game of a seven-game homestand. The homestand began with three straight wins before the Devils dropped their past two, leaving the immediate storyline straightforward: a team trying to get back in the win column on home ice.
For the Kings, the game lands in the middle of a five-game road trip and also closes a back-to-back set in New Jersey. After a game versus the Islanders on Friday, the Kings did not hold a morning skate ahead of Saturday’s matchup. The compressed schedule and travel context frame how both teams manage pace, legs, and lineup decisions as puck drop approaches.
Who’s in, who’s out: the expected lineups and injuries shaping kings vs devils
Line combinations and availability sit at the center of the pregame picture. For New Jersey, the projected forward groups list Timo Meier, Nico Hischier, and Dawson Mercer on one unit; Jesper Bratt, Jack Hughes, and Connor Brown on another; followed by Arseny Gritsyuk, Cody Glass, and Lenni Hameenaho; then Paul Cotter, Nick Bjugstad, and Maxim Tsyplakov. New Jersey scratches are listed as Colton White, Dennis Cholowski, and Evgenii Dadonov. Injuries are listed as Stefan Noesen (knee), Zack MacEwen (ACL), and Brett Pesce (lower body).
Los Angeles is listed with Artemi Panarin, Anze Kopitar, and Adrian Kempe together; Trevor Moore, Quinton Byfield, and Alex Laferriere; Alex Turcotte, Scott Laughton, and Jared Wright; then Jeff Malott, Samuel Helenius, and Taylor Ward. Scratches are listed as Mathieu Joseph and Jacob Moverare. Injuries are listed as Joel Armia (back), Andrei Kuzmenko (meniscus), Kevin Fiala (fractured leg).
On defense for Los Angeles, a referenced alignment includes Anderson with Doughty, Edmundson with Clarke, and Dumoulin with Ceci, with no changes expected for the matchup. The Kings also list Joseph and Moverare as options if alterations are needed.
In net, one key pregame detail stands out: Darcy Kuemper collected the victory Friday against the Islanders, and the expectation stated for Saturday is that Anton Forsberg gets the start versus New Jersey. Forsberg is in line to make his 11th career appearance against the Devils, tying his most against any opponent. His lifetime record versus New Jersey is listed as 3-3-1 with a. 903 save percentage and a 3. 17 goals-against average.
The storylines: Jack Hughes’ surge, Dawson Mercer’s history, and Kopitar’s record
Several individual narratives intersect in one game. For New Jersey, the featured player to watch is Jack Hughes, who has four goals and 11 points in eight games. He is coming off a standout performance against the New York Rangers in which he scored a hat trick and recorded four points. His recent run is described as a hot streak since the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympic Games.
Another Devils angle comes from the last time these teams met in Los Angeles in November: Dawson Mercer scored twice, and Jacob Markstrom set a season-high with 43 saves in a 4-1 Devils win. Mercer is also credited with a team-best four goals in his last six games played against the Kings, giving New Jersey an additional focal point beyond Hughes.
For Los Angeles, the spotlight falls on Anze Kopitar. In Friday’s game against the Islanders, Kopitar scored in the first period to set the Kings’ all-time franchise record for most road points, surpassing Marcel Dionne. Kopitar now has 608 road points (221-387-608), one clear of Dionne. That milestone travels with the Kings into New Jersey, turning Saturday into the next chapter after a record-setting night.
There is also a head-to-head note tied to Artemi Panarin: he has nine points (4-5-9) over his last eight games played versus New Jersey, spanning the last three seasons as a member of the New York Rangers. On the Kings’ blue line, Brian Dumoulin returns to New Jersey after joining the Devils at last season’s trade deadline, and he led the team in time on ice during the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
At 7 p. m. ET, the spotlight returns to kings vs devils, with New Jersey trying to halt a brief homestand dip and Los Angeles finishing a back-to-back while carrying a fresh franchise milestone into Prudential Center.
