There’s a new focus now. The Kings handled the preliminaries to the tune of 48 wins and 105 points, which tied the franchise high for points for the regular season. But the season that really matters has arrived and their focus is completely on the Edmonton Oilers. A collision course waiting to happen is here.

Kuemper finished those playoffs with a .902 save percentage and a 2.54 goals-against average. The numbers were good enough to get the job done with the Avalanche, but the Kings might need a bit better goaltending to win this series. Kuemper has the potential to do that, but it won't be easy against the Oilers' offense.

The Oilers won the best-of-7 series against the Kings in five games last season on their way to the Stanley Cup Final. Edmonton won in six games in 2023 and battled back from 3-2 down to win in seven games in 2022.