T.M. Selection: New York Islanders.

I like the New York Islanders to win this game against the LA Kings on Thursday. The Islanders are 5-1 in their previous 6 games and they have looked really good lately. Their year started off really rough with the 13 game road trip and then when their new arena opened up their team was infested with covid cases but now they are back and healthy and have looked great since, starting to surge in their latest games. They have looked great on home ice and they are 7-3 in their L10 at home. The Islanders just got over the .500 mark in what seemed like a lost season just a few weeks ago but now that they are back in the mix and playing well, I expect them to go on a big run and take advantage of their home games to try and make up some ground in the standings after what's been a wonky year for them. The Kings are in middle of a road trip playing their 3rd game but they are 1-4 in their L5 games and they haven't looked good in most of those. They just lost their most recent game in a shootout and that game was on Monday so I expect them to a bit sluggish here from the longer layoff. I think they are going to come out slow in this game and the Islanders, who have been playing much better lately and have been great at home now, will take advantage of them early in this game and make it where they won't be able to catch up. I expect the Islanders to come out strong taking an early lead and never look back in this game as they start surging up the standing with more wins. I think the Islanders are on the up trend while the Kings are trending downward with their play lately. I like the Islanders to win this game.

T.M. Prediction: 5-2 Islanders.