11/24 Preview – Kuzmenko Talks Return, Scoring Importance + Helenius Back In, Armia Bumped Up, Spence Returns

TODAY’S MATCHUP: The Kings continue on a stretch of eight consecutive games in California, as they host the Ottawa Senators to conclude the 2025-26 season series between the teams.

HEAD-TO-HEAD: Forward Alex Laferriere scored the only goal in a 1-0 Kings victory over Ottawa earlier this month, his first game-winning goal of the 2025-26 season. Laferriere has four goals in five career games played against the Senators, tied for the team lead in that span, while his +6 rating over the last three seasons leads all Kings players. Goaltender Anton Forsberg posted a shutout in the 1-0 win in Ottawa, but is not expected to start tonight’s game.

KINGS VITALS: The Kings held a highly-optional morning skate today, with the 6 PM puck drop, coming off a full-team practice yesterday at Toyota Sports Performance Center in El Segundo.

Look for goaltender Darcy Kuemper to get the start tonight, after the Kings had two days off, his third consecutive nod between the pipes. Kuemper has a lifetime record of 7-3-2 against the Senators, with a .892 save percentage and a 3.45 goals-against average, though much of that damage came from the 8-7 overtime loss in Ottawa early last season.

Here’s how the Kings lined up during today’s practice in El Segundo –

Fiala – Byfield – Kempe
Moore – Kopitar – Kuzmenko
Armia – Danault – Laferriere
Foegele – Helenius – Perry

Anderson – Edmundson
Dumoulin – Clarke
Moverare – Ceci

Kuemper
Forsberg

Couple of changes tonight, with Joel Armia bumped into the Top-9, which is not unexpected, as forward Warren Foegele moves to the fourth line. On that line, look for forward Samuel Helenius to check in, with Alex Turcotte sitting out for the first time this season.

SENATORS VITALS: Ottawa is currently in the midst of a stretch with seven consecutive road games, which began with a pair of 3-2 victories over San Jose and Anaheim last week.

Per Ottawa’s team account, here’s how tonight’s opponent lined up last time out against San Jose –

Chabby’s back in the projected lines for tonight #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/uD3yt0GobA

— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) November 22, 2025

Ottawa captain and top-line forward Brady Tkachuk will miss tonight’s game due to injury. Defenseman Thomas Chabot returned to the lineup on Saturday but left early with an injury and will also be out tonight. Ottawa is expected to dress two former Kings – forward Michael Amadio and defenseman Jordan Spence – while former Ontario Reign forward Hayden Hodgson is also expected to be in tonight’s Senators lineup.

Storyline Of The Day – Kuzmenko Talks Return, Goals, Hard Work
I appreciated Andrei Kuzmenko’s candor yesterday in speaking about his time out of the lineup.

He didn’t shy away from the questions, didn’t push back, didn’t blame others. He owned it.

And that’s because, I think, he understands how important he can be for his team right now. In one of his answers, he noted how important the power play is for the Kings, because they’re a team that only scores a couple goals per game, while defending well. So, one on the power play can be a difference maker. He seemed to see himself in the same way. As he should.

On a team that is defensively sound, Kuzmenko is one guy with the skill to change games offensively. He’s been more playmaker than goalscorer in his time in Los Angeles, but he’s got a 39-goal season to his name from his time in Vancouver and he’s shown the ability to be an offensive difference maker. He took ownership of what he called a “slow start” to the season, understanding what he wants to do to get back to the levels he was at last season.

“It was a slow start for me and I understand that the team needs my goals, my plays for the goals, I understand that,” Kuzmenko said. “It’s a little bit of a bad start for me, but I’ve got to stay positive, it’s simple. I’ve been there a lot times, last season, same moment, and I understand how I can be better. If you work hard, you’re successful. If you believe and keep working, doing hard work, it’s so simple.”

The Kings can’t afford to give up on Kuzmenko. He’s too skilled and the effort has always been there. The commitment defensively has been there. He’s not cheating the game. He’s fully bought in. It just hasn’t come as effortlessly as it seemed to last year, offensively, when his impact was immense. That’s why he’s important, because he’s capable of making plays that most aren’t.

He wants to be a difference maker and knows he can be. He understands the pressure coming back into the lineup but seems to embrace it. He looks at his place on the Kings, the lack of goals all around, and knows he can be a part of the solution. Seems quite motivated to do so.

“When it’s pressing hard on me, I love it, I love this moment,” he said. “I understand it and I love it. It’s pressing in every game I go on the ice, I understand I need a goal, let’s go, keep going. Sometimes, games we have are good, sometimes not good, but we need more goals from everyone in this building. This is my work, the goals.”

While Kuzmenko was out, Jim Hiller alluded to several conversations between the two, as a matter of defining expectations.

Hiller said that he’s always there to hear what Kuzmenko things, hear his side of things. While both sides declined to share the specifics of those conversations, Kuzmenko believes that they are both on the same page now.

“I understand what he wants, he understands what I want, I understand what he wants from me, it was a good connection with him,” Kuzmenko added. “I don’t want to say what it was about, but we understand together what we need, because the team needs me at my best and I understand that.”

I thought Kuzmenko looked more like himself in the first two games back. Before he came out, it looked like he was gripping the stick maybe a little bit too tightly, but he seemed to operate more freely over the last couple games. On the power play, he loves to draw defenders in towards him with his stickhandling before trying to find an open man. Noticed him do that with a lot more success against San Jose and Boston. He was the most dangerous facilitator on the 5-on-3 on Friday, even though the Kings didn’t score. Hiller felt Kuzmenko had a “solid” game in San Jose and that part of the process of bringing him back into the the lineup was getting him more involved with more power-play touches.

“One thing we talked about last year was that Kuzy had the puck seemingly all the time on the power play, this year he hadn’t touched it as much. [In San Jose] we got back to getting him the puck a little bit more. Overall, good. He works, Kuzy is trying. It’s never a lack of effort for him, by any means. I was happy with his game.”

As the Kings look to turn things around offensively, Kuzmenko has a part to play in that. Seems clear that he understands that and is taking it with the approach of seizing it.

3 To Watch For –
– First game in awhile for forward Samuel Helenius. Jim Hiller said it’s been a point of discussion of late to try and get him in and tonight felt like the right opportunity.

Helenius took line rushes yesterday between Warren Foegele and Corey Perry, as the Kings shuffled the deck a little bit on the bottom six. Helenius has only played twice this season and both games came in mid-October. He’s comfortable in his role as a 4C, where he played in home games against Pittsburgh and Carolina earlier this season, but he hasn’t played since then.

Still, he’s a pretty simple player, which should help him. He’ll play with Foegele and Perry, which creates a line that Jim Hiller believes should have a clear identity to play to by establishing the forecheck.

“Sammy and Perrs both are – probably Sammy a little more on the forecheck – but Perrs is always into the extracurriculars, if that’s what you want to call it, whether it’s between the whistles or after and I think Sammy likes that type of game too. then, we’ve got Foegs there with a little bit of speed for them, so it should be a forechecking line. It should be a little bit of smash mouth kind of hockey there.”

– The other change up front is Joel Armia moving into the Top-9, which is unsurprising, considering Hiller’s comments after the Boston game.

“He deserves to play more minutes than he’s currently getting these last couple games, he hasn’t played as much, but he’s played really well,” Hiller said of Armia. So, I’ve had to talk to him about that. We’ve got some other players that have been here, have done a good job for us, so I’m loyal to those guys, but he’s slowly scratching and clawing. He’s going to take somebody’s job. That’s just the way it goes. In the end, you have to perform and he’s performing and [he’s somebody who is] going to play more.”

Armia has done his damage shorthanded over the last two games, scoring while a man down in both matchups, but he’s exceeded expectations 5-on-5 as well. Not hard to see why he’s a guy who is deserving of more. He’ll get that opportunity tonight on a line with Phillip Danault and Alex Laferriere. Danault and Armia didn’t play together regularly in Montreal a few years back, but they had a bit of success in limited time together, controlling just shy of 54 percent of scoring chances, while being on the ice for six goals for, compared to four against.

Armia has earned his minutes here and he’ll get rewarded with more of them here tonight.

– Lastly, would expect a nice recognition for Jordan Spence tonight in Los Angeles.

First game back for Spence since he was traded to Ottawa over the summer. He was a Kings draft pick, developed in Los Angeles and was well-liked during his time here. Imagine there will be a recognition for Spence during the first period at a media timeout and he deserves a good ovation.

Kings and Senators, heading into three days off before the Thanksgiving break. Big one to go in with a victory. 6 PM puck drop to accommodate the Amazon Prime broadcast in Canada……get down early if you’re going!