While the special teams battle might be won in the trenches, there’s something of a cold war going on between the pipes for the Kings. We’re perhaps looking for something that’s pretty or perfect versus slugging it out.” It’s a little bit slow right now, a little bit more predictable. Our power play fell off a little bit about five or six games ago, when Kevin and Durz were still in the lineup,” McLellan said. When you lose people, you should be able to keep it going. He and defenseman Jordan Spence could draw back into the lineup against the Islanders, as McLellan has acknowledged that both have been solid power-play contributors.

Winger Arthur Kaliyev, who averages the most power-play goals per game on the Kings this season, has been a healthy scratch for the past three games. So should defenseman Sean Durzi, who quarterbacked the second unit before sustaining an apparent head injury against Washington last Monday. Leading scorer Kevin Fiala sustained a lower-body injury in Colorado Thursday and should be considered highly doubtful against the Islanders. But the Kings have been encumbered a bit by absences. The Kings’ success with the man advantage stemmed in part from having enough players to fill out two competent units that, at one point, were interchangeable as the first and second groups. They don’t have a goal across three matches and a dozen opportunities with the extra man, with Coach Todd McLellan remarking recently that the power play had let the team down for the first time in recent memory. Unlike most of the season, when a reinvigorated power play seemed to provide a goal each night, the Kings have done much of their damage five-on-five of late.

Their 11-2-2 stretch has allowed them to jockey atop the standings with Vegas, which has posted a 12-2-2 mark over its past 16 games. In their past 15 games, the Kings accumulated 11 wins and earned points in 13 contests. Continuing their quest to bank up points in pursuit of just the second division title in franchise history, the Kings will play their second of seven consecutive home games when they usher in the New York Islanders on Tuesday night.

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