They have it with three days before hosting Game 6 against the Edmonton Oilers at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday, and it might be what allows them to extend the best-of-7 series which they trail 3-2.
"I think this three-day break is huge to kind of reset, especially for us after the last game and needing this next one, it's great for us to reset mentally and kind of refocus," center Blake Lizotte said Thursday.
The gap in the schedule was created with Crypto.com Arena being home to the Kings, as well as the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers, who each qualified for the NBA Playoffs. The Clippers could have hosted a potential Game 6 on Thursday in a first-round series against the Pheonix Suns, but were eliminated in five games. The Lakers host Game 6 of their series against the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday.
"Yeah, it's super unique," Lizotte said. "I don't think this has happened in a while, especially for the Kings. But, yeah, I think it's great to have at this point in the series, and guys are getting a little tired and banged up for both teams."
RELATED: [Complete Oilers vs. Kings series coverage]
The schedule allowed coach Todd McLellan to give the Kings a day off Wednesday after a 6-3 loss in Edmonton in Game 5 on Tuesday. Los Angeles lost 5-4 in overtime in Game 4 at home Sunday after having a 3-0 lead in the first period.
The Kings returned to practice Thursday, and McLellan thought it was a noticeably more energetic workout.
"That's something that we were talking about after, that there's a spring in the step. There's no better way of putting it," he said. "Good crisp practice. Got here, they wanted to get out early. That doesn't happen very often."
Lizotte was a full participant, putting him on track to return after missing the past three games because of a lower-body injury.
Asked what he noticed watching the past two games, Lizotte pointed to special teams.
"It's a broken record," he said. "[The Oilers] power play is clicking. Our penalty kill needs to get better if we want to stay alive, so I think that's something we're going to need to focus on going forward."
The Oilers are 8-for-14 (57.1 percent) with the man-advantage in the series, going 2-for-3 in Games 4 and 5, and 2-for-4 in Game 3. They have scored at least one power-play goal in each game of the series.
"When we play 5-on-5, I think we like our chances," Lizotte said. "But once they get on the power play, they snap it around, and for Game 6 coming up here, if we do get on the penalty kill, we need to be sharp."
There isn't much Los Angeles and Edmonton don't know about each other, with the Oilers having eliminated the Kings in the first round in seven games last year.
The familiarity between the teams, and Los Angeles' understanding of what it takes to have success in the matchup, is evident. McLellan hopes the time off will allow the Kings to get back to what they need to do to force Game 7.
"It's taxing, it's mentally and physically taxing on large groups of players and stuff during the playoffs," he said. "Part of that is experience, knowing how to handle it and deal with it, so when you do get your time, you have to take advantage of it. … It's nice to have a day to breathe."
