The Los Angeles Kings have made the playoffs in three consecutive seasons. They have lost in the first round to the Edmonton Oilers in each of those seasons. As the NHL trade deadline approaches, their current playoff opponent would be the Oilers.

It’s doubtful that St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong was basing important decisions about the future of the franchise on the bounce of a puck Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena. A game against the Los Angeles Kings was the Blues’ last before the NHL trade deadline at 2 p.