Saturday’s NHL slate features all 32 NHL teams in action, and it starts with the Jets playing host to the Kings at 1:30 p.m. ET. On DraftKings Sportsbook, Winnipeg is a -130 home favorite on the Moneyline, and the game’s total is set at O/U 5.5 goals.
Below, I’ll share my top preview, prediction and pick for Saturday’s Western Conference tilt between the Jets and Kings.
Jets vs. Kings prediction, preview
The Kings are one of 10 teams that have played two games and have an extra day of rest compared to the Jets, although it’s too early in the season for fatigue to be a primary factor just yet. Los Angeles has gone 1-1-0 thus far, dropping its season opener to Colorado on Tuesday and topping Vegas in a shootout on Wednesday. The Kings have allowed a league-leading nine goals across two games, but both the Avalanche and Golden Knights field star-studded offenses, each ranking top-10 in 5v5 expected goal percentage and top-5 in 5v5 Corsi percentage in 2024.
The club experienced some roster turnover this past offseason, particularly with the departure of Vladislav Gavrikov in free agency. Aside from that, the team looks virtually the same on paper as it did last season, and they’ll look to replicate their offensive excellence, which had them ranked inside the top 5 in 5v5 expected goal percentage and 5v5 expected goal differential. It feels like the Kings will need some extra juice from their youngsters, however, as Darcy Kuemper figures to regress, with both Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty aging near the end of their careers. Kopitar has already announced that this will be his final season at 38 years old.
Not many teams have the luxury of starting three-time Vezina winner, Connor Hellebuyck, between the pipes 50+ times a season. Well, the Jets do, and they won the Presidents’ Trophy last season as a result. It’s hard to imagine this same Jets team finding the same success again this season, especially with the loss of Nikolaj Ehlers to free agency. Winnipeg dropped its first game of the season against Dallas, and Hellebuyck allowed five goals on 37 shot attempts. Still, the offense generated four goals thanks to a hat-trick by Kyle Connor, so the offense can clearly still hang with the top dogs.
The Jets allowed the fewest goals per game and scored the fourth-most goals per game in 2024. Regression feels like it’s on the horizon, however, as they ranked first in 5v5 true goal percentage but outside the top-10 in total expected goals. Puck luck can make or break teams, and the Jets were on its good side in 2024. The biggest question mark for Winnipeg is whether it can properly replace Ehlers’ production or not, as he ranked third on the team in points last season. The club will need depth pieces like Nino Niederreiter, Vladislav Namestnikov and Gustav Nyquist to step up and produce often in middle-six roles.
Jets vs. Kings pick, best bet
These two teams allowed the fewest and second-fewest goals per game in 2024. They also ranked first and second in 5v5 true goal percentage. That makes things difficult, but I think there will be a healthy amount of goals in this one, as both Kuemper and Hellebuyck played poorly against strong offenses in their season openers. Los Angeles topped Winnipeg in three of four games in 2024, and the total went over 5.5 goals in the first matchup, which the Jets won. Prior to that, the over hit in four of five meetings between these two teams. 70% of the money and 62% of the bets on DraftKings Sportsbook have been placed on the over, and I expect those numbers to rise the closer we get to puck drop.
