The best goaltender in this game is not playing in it. Linus Ullmark is 7-1-0 with a .945 and is on injured reserve until around 7 November, which leaves Ottawa a crease that has gone 0-3-0 without him. Los Angeles are thirtieth with seven players out. What follows is the call, the injuries that matter and the Canadian prices.
How to watch
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Game | Ottawa Senators at Los Angeles Kings |
| Date | Thursday 29 October 2026 |
| Puck drop | 10:00pm ET / 7:00pm PT |
| Venue | Crypto.com Arena |
| Records | Ottawa 8-5-0, Los Angeles 3-6-2 |
What you can watch depends on where you are, because regional rights and blackouts both apply. The how to watch the NHL in Canada page has it by province.
Kings vs Senators odds
This game had not been priced in Canada at the time of writing. Boards for the night’s games go up on our NHL odds page as the books post them.
Ottawa are seventh but the crease has collapsed without Ullmark
The Senators are 8-5-0 on sixteen points, level with Montréal. They lost 1-4 at Vegas on Tuesday and 1-3 in Philadelphia before that, with a 7-4 win over the Rangers in between.
Linus Ullmark went to injured reserve on 22 October and is dated to 7 November. He is 7-1-0 with a .945, which is the best save percentage of any goaltender in this game by a hundred and ten points. Samuel Ersson has gone 0-3-0 at .835 in his place and Jonas Johansson has one start.
Thomas Chabot is out until the end of the month and Warren Foegele carries a return date of today. William Eklund is gone until January.
How they compare
| 2025-26 | Ottawa Senators | Los Angeles Kings |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 44-27-11 | 35-27-20 |
| Points | 99 | 90 |
| Goals for per game | 3.39 | 2.74 |
| Goals against per game | 3.00 | 3.01 |
| Power play | 24.0% | 17.0% |
| Penalty kill | 75.7% | 74.6% |
Ottawa finished nine points clear of Los Angeles last season and scored a two-thirds of a goal a game more. The Kings had the weaker power play by seven points, at 17.0 per cent, and neither penalty kill was good: 75.7 against 74.6.
Los Angeles are thirtieth with seven out, and own this series
The Kings are 3-6-2 on eight points and thirtieth. They lost 2-1 at Chicago on Tuesday after winning 6-3 at the Rangers on Monday, which is the shape of their season.
Seven players are listed, and the names matter. Drew Doughty, Corey Perry and Alex Turcotte all carry return dates of today. Kevin Fiala is out until the end of the month, Mats Zuccarello until around 4 November and Jan Jenik until the week after.
Darcy Kuemper is 3-3-1 at .889 across seven starts, with Anton Forsberg 0-2-1 behind him. Neither is a strong number, but both are comfortably ahead of what Ottawa can put in the other net.
Los Angeles have won four of the last five and lead the series heavily
| Date | Result | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| 24 Nov 2025 | Los Angeles 2-1 | Los Angeles |
| 15 Nov 2025 | Los Angeles 1-0 | Ottawa |
| 30 Nov 2024 | Los Angeles 5-2 | Los Angeles |
| 14 Oct 2024 | Ottawa 8-7 (OT) | Ottawa |
| 7 Mar 2024 | Los Angeles 4-3 (OT) | Los Angeles |
Los Angeles lead the all-time series 33 wins to 17 and have taken four of the last five, including a 1-0 at the Canadian Tire Centre.
Those five produced 3, 1, 7, 15 and 7 goals. The 15-goal night in October 2024 makes the 6.6 average meaningless. Take it out and the other four averaged 4.5, with two of them finishing at three goals or fewer.
Team news
| Club | Player | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Ottawa | Linus Ullmark | Out, lower body, on injured reserve to around 7 November |
| Ottawa | Thomas Chabot | Out, upper body, to 31 October |
| Ottawa | William Eklund | Out, ankle, on injured reserve to January |
| Ottawa | Warren Foegele | Day to day, knee, dated to return today |
| Los Angeles | Drew Doughty | Out, dated to return today |
| Los Angeles | Corey Perry | Out, dated to return today |
| Los Angeles | Kevin Fiala | Out, lower leg, on injured reserve to 31 October |
| Los Angeles | Mats Zuccarello | Out, upper body, on injured reserve to 4 November |
| Los Angeles | Alex Turcotte | Out, on injured reserve, dated to return today |
| Los Angeles | Jan Jenik | Out, on injured reserve to 7 November |
Who starts in goal is an open question. Ottawa Senators has split between Ersson (3 starts, .835) and Johansson (1, .862), and Los Angeles Kings has split between Kuemper (7 starts, .889) and Forsberg (3, .894). Season rates say little about who takes the warm-up, and the market reprices as soon as a club names someone.
Everyone else’s absentees are on the NHL injury report.
Players to watch
Darcy Kuemper, Los Angeles. A .889 that looks ordinary until you compare it with the other end of this rink.
Samuel Ersson, Ottawa. 0-3-0 at .835 standing in for Ullmark, and the number the whole game turns on.
Drew Doughty, Los Angeles. Dated to return today, which would put the Kings’ best defenceman back for this.
Score prediction
Ottawa Senators 4-3 Los Angeles Kings. Ottawa are the better side by eight points, and the crease is the reason it is not more comfortable.
Kings vs Senators prediction
Ottawa are the side we would take, with a caveat the size of the goaltending. They are eighth on the table against a club thirtieth, and Los Angeles have seven players out.
The case for Los Angeles is that they own the recent record and the crease gap runs their way for once. Kuemper at .889 is not good, and it is still a hundred points clear of what Ottawa have managed without Ullmark. Our lean: Ottawa, and the over if the total sits at 6 or lower. Neither goaltender here is above .890, and the two meetings that were not low-scoring produced seven and fifteen.
For how these two measure against the league, see the NHL power rankings. The NHL schedule covers the rest of Thursday’s games.
Puck drop is 10:00pm ET / 7:00pm PT on Thursday 29 October 2026 at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
No. The Ottawa goaltender is on injured reserve until around 7 November. He is 7-1-0 with a .945; Ottawa have gone 0-3-0 with Samuel Ersson in his place.
Seven players. Kevin Fiala is out to the end of the month and Mats Zuccarello to around 4 November, while Drew Doughty, Corey Perry and Alex Turcotte all carry return dates of today.
Los Angeles lead the all-time series 33 wins to 17, and have won four of the last five meetings.
Ottawa to win 4-3, and the over if the total sits at 6 or lower.
19+ (18+ in AB, MB and QC). Picks are opinion, not advice, and odds change constantly. Availability varies by province. Please play responsibly. ConnexOntario: 1-866-531-2600 for Ontario residents; see your province’s helpline for resources elsewhere.