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Kings host Capitals in a showdown packed with drama

March 12, 2025

In a game burgeoning with storylines and intrigue, the Kings will throw down with the Washington Capitals on Thursday at Crypto.com Arena

First, the Kings and Caps made a stunning summertime swap. The Kings sent beleaguered center Pierre-Luc Dubois and the bulk of his $68 million contract to Washington in exchange for goalie Darcy Kuemper, a former Stanley Cup winner with Colorado who’d slid down the depth chart in D.C.

Then, Matt Roy defected to the nation’s capital, after the Kings held onto him through last year’s trade deadline and, in turn, lost the defender in free agency for nothing.

Oh, yeah, and Washington winger Alex Ovechkin remained just nine goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s seemingly untouchable NHL record of 894 career tallies.

Presently, the Capitals have won five consecutive matches and are perched atop the NHL, tied with Winnipeg for the highest points total, while the Kings just won all three contests they endured in the span of just four nights, braving overtime, a division leader’s resilience and eight shorthanded situations.

In Tuesday’s game against the New York Islanders, the Kings had two power-play goals against taken off the board by video review, with their four-man units and, above all, Kuemper taking care of the rest. He has bounced back brilliantly in 2024-25, while the Capitals switched No. 1 netminders again, moving Charlie Lindgren behind Logan Thompson.

“Darcy is obviously a massive piece of our team. If he plays like [he did against the Islanders] every night, we have a chance to do something good,” said Phillip Danault, whose sixth goal of the season stood as the game-winner Tuesday.

For the Eastern Conference leaders, Roy has been as dependable as ever, but Dubois has shown he can not only skate backwards, but also make sharp 180-degree turns. After his least productive and most egregious full season in the NHL with the Kings last year, Dubois is now on track for his most successful campaign yet. His pace will blow him past his highest-scoring season overall, and he’s already set a career best in assists.

Few would be surprised that Roy led Washington defenders in plus-minus rating at +27, but Dubois’ +28 mark trails only breakout star Aliaksei Protas for the Caps. Protas was on Dubois’ wing Tuesday when the Capitals put up seven goals on the Ducks in a back-and-forth barn-burner. He netted a hat trick while Dubois picked up three points, including a goal assisted by Roy.

“I’m liking the guys I’m playing with … whoever it’s been this year,” Dubois said. “It’s been fun to be on this team. They’ve helped me a lot throughout the season and they keep helping me. It just makes my life easier, that I just have to do my job, and they’ll do theirs.”

Dubois and Roy are recent arrivals, but the 39-year-old Ovechkin has been in Washington since the Capitals made him the No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 draft. He’s established himself firmly in the pantheon of snipers, alongside the likes of Maurice Richard, Bobby Hull and Mike Bossy. Now, he set his sights on the mark of Gretzky, a man whose assists totals alone would make him the NHL’s most prolific point-producer, but who also potted nearly 900 goals.

Ovechkin, a Russian, and Gretzky, a Canadian, will soon be linked inextricably in the annals of hockey history, and fans around the league have been well aware of No. 8’s pursuit, which the NHL has dubbed “The GR8 Chase.”

“When he scores, even in an away building, 50% of the crowd gets up and celebrates, the other 50% has a smile on their face, even if they’re silent,” Dubois said. “It’s fun to be around it, it’s fun to be around him.”

Washington at Kings

When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday

Where: Crypto.com Arena

TV: FDSNW

Orange County Register

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Kings host Capitals in a showdown packed with drama

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