Kings vs Predators Picks, Predictions & Odds Tonight

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31 January 2024

Kings vs Predators Picks, Predictions & Odds Tonight

The Kings have been slumping lately, but lots of their underlying stats suggest they're due to snap out of it. See why our NHL picks think the Predators are the team it happens against.

The Los Angeles Kings visit the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, and our free NHL picks will set you up for the action.

Los Angeles is mired in a miserable slump with just two regulation wins across its past 16 games, while Nashville hasn’t fared much better. The Predators have dropped five of their past seven, and just when it looked like No. 1 goalie Juuse Saros was finding a groove, he allowed four unanswered goals in losing fashion to the Ottawa Senators on Monday.

The Kings are a short road favorite in the NHL odds for Wednesday’s tilt, and here's our breakdown of the Kings vs. Predators showdown in Smashville on January 31.

Kings vs Predators odds

Kings vs Predators predictions

An active 2-8-6 stretch has the Los Angeles Kings looking more like the court jester, but their underlying numbers remain among the NHL’s royalty. Poor shooting efficiency has been the main culprit for the L.A. decline, and a league-low 94.1 PDO at five-on-five has positive regression ahead.

The Kings have remained a solid possession team at 5-on-5, and they’ve continued to win the expected goals battle. Goaltending has certainly been a shortcoming during the highlighted stretch, but dropping to a 4.9 team shooting percentage has been the biggest blow. For comparison, only the lowly Chicago Blackhawks have a lower mark (4.2%).

Additionally, while Los Angeles was a ripe candidate for statistical correction, the pendulum has swung too far in the opposite direction. The Kings have generated the fifth-most expected goals (2.8) per 60 minutes at 5-on-5 over the highlighted 16 games, but they’ve scored the third-fewest (1.61).

Interestingly, L.A. has actually seen its power-play percentage climb from 19.4% to 25.5% over the highlighted time spans while the penalty-kill percentage has held strong at league-best 87.0% throughout.

Additionally, even with the horrible run, Los Angeles still ranks among the league’s best at 5-on-5 with a third-ranked 55.8 CF% and second-ranked 56.1 xGF% for the season. The Kings sitting in 28th place with a 98.3 PDO also reinforces there is statistical correction ahead, and especially to their 28th-ranked 7.5 team shooting percentage.

With the Nashville Predators generally a run-of-the-mill team and inferior to the Kings in all of the discussed metrics except team shooting and team save percentages, I’m backing Los Angeles on Wednesday.

My best bet: Kings moneyline (-114 at Pinnacle)

Kings vs Predators same-game parlay

I’m not anticipating the Los Angeles offense suddenly exploding and filling the net Wednesday. Nashville ranks ninth in goals against (2.37) and 11th in expected goals against (2.47) per 60 at 5-on-5, and as mentioned, No. 1 goalie Juuse Saros has been better of late with a .922 save percentage across his past seven starts.

Even with the noted poor goaltending the Kings have received during the skid, they still allow the 11th-fewest goals (2.43) and fifth-fewest xGA (2.33) per 60 at 5-on-5.

Plus, there are a pair of notable Under trends. The total has gone Under the number in seven of Nashville’s past eight games, and Los Angeles has played to the Under in 10 of its past 14 on the highway.

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Kings vs Predators moneyline and Over/Under analysis

There have been minor moves to the moneyline since opening. opened Los Angeles -116 and the chalk climbed to -122 this morning before there was buyback on Nashville to land at the current LA -114 line. It was similar at bet365, with the Kings opening at -110 and moving to -120 before settling at -115 as of Wednesday afternoon.

With Saros projected as the probable starter for the Preds, I’m not anticipating any notable movement ahead of puck drop, either.

This total doesn’t have a consensus number, so it’s a little more interesting than the moneyline. As noted, there are multiple trends pointing to the Under, so it isn’t surprising to see sportsbooks hanging a 5.5 number with the higher vig on the Over. However, a 6.0 total with a higher vig on the Under is what the majority of shops are offering as of Wednesday afternoon.