Blues at Kings preview

BLUES (21-21-5) at KINGS (19-26-4)
4 p.m. ET; NBCSN, NHL.TV

The Blues won 3-2 against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday to improve to 4-1-1 in their past six games. St. Louis has lost two straight (0-1-1) on the road following a four-game winning streak away from Enterprise Center.
The Kings lost 7-1 at the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday when they allowed six goals in the second period. Los Angeles is 2-4-0 this season following a loss by four or more goals.
It is the Kings' last game prior to their mandatory five-day break before 2019 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend.

Players to watch

Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko has four goals in his past five games.
Kings center Jeff Carter has five points (two goals, three assists) in his past four games.

They said it

"He's shooting it quicker and he looks a lot more confident right now." -- Blues coach Craig Berube on forward Vladimir Tarasenko
"You definitely want to have a good feeling going into a long break. You don't want to have a sour taste in your mouth after a loss, so you're only as good as your last game." -- Kings center Nate Thompson

Blues projected lineup

Pat Maroon -- Ryan O'Reilly -- Vladimir Tarasenko
Jaden Schwartz -- Brayden Schenn -- Alexander Steen
Sammy Blais -- Oskar Sundqvist -- Jordan Kyrou
Mackenzie MacEachern -- Ivan Barbashev -- Jordan Nolan
Carl Gunnarsson -- Alex Pietrangelo
Jay Bouwmeester -- Colton Parayko
Vince Dunn -- Robert Bortuzzo
Jordan Binnington
Jake Allen
Scratched: Joel Edmundson, Robby Fabbri
Injured: David Perron (upper body), Tyler Bozak (concussion), Robert Thomas (shoulder), Zach Sanford (concussion)

Kings projected lineup

Alex Iafallo -- Anze Kopitar -- Dustin Brown
Tyler Toffoli -- Jeff Carter -- Brendan Leipsic
Carl Hagelin -- Adrian Kempe -- Ilya Kovalchuk
Kyle Clifford -- Nate Thompson -- Matt Luff
Derek Forbort -- Drew Doughty
Jake Muzzin -- Alec Martinez
Dion Phaneuf -- Sean Walker
Jonathan Quick
Jack Campbell
Scratched: Paul LaDue, Austin Wagner
Injured: Oscar Fantenberg (lower body) Trevor Lewis (foot), Jonny Brodzinski (shoulder)

Status report

Fantenberg will miss his third straight game but will return after the All-Star Game, coach Willie Desjardins said. … Lewis is close to resuming on-ice workouts, Desjardins said. … The Blues did not practice Saturday.

Stat pack

The Blues have allowed two goals or fewer in five of the past six games. … O'Reilly has six points (one goal, five assists) during a four-game point streak. He needs two assists for 300 in his NHL career. … The Kings have not scored more than two goals in seven of their past nine games (3-5-1).