(SportsNetwork.com) - The Los Angeles Kings have not fared well on the road this season, but the defending Stanley Cup champions have an excellent opportunity to pick up a rare away win on Tuesday when they visit the lowly Edmonton Oilers at Rexall Place.
The Kings lost a 2-1 regulation decision Monday night in Calgary. The setback came at the start of a three-game swing and dropped Darryl Sutter's club to 4-8-5 as the guest this season.
It also was the fourth consecutive road loss for the Kings, who haven't won away from the Staples Center since beating Ottawa on Dec. 11.
The fact the L.A. is holding onto the last wild card spot in the Western Conference is due in large part to the team's 14-4-2 mark at home. However, the Flames were able to tie the Kings for the final postseason berth with Monday's close win at the Saddledome.
Markus Granlund scored the game-winning goal in the first period as the Flames used an early offensive flurry to defeat the Kings. Calgary scored twice during a 62-second span in the first, with Granlund's goal coming just over a minute after Curtis Glencross made it a 1-0 game.
Tyler Toffoli supplied the Kings' lone marker in the final minute of regulation and Jonathan Quick made 13 saves in defeat.
"Usually we get a lot of shots from our defensemen, going into the third we had one," Sutter said. "They scored two goals in a minute."
Martin Jones is likely to give Quick a rest tonight. L.A.'s young backup is 2-0 with a pair of shutouts in his career against the Oilers.
The NHL's recent Christmas break did little to help the Oilers get back on track. Edmonton lost its eighth straight game with a 5-1 setback to visiting Arizona last Tuesday before the hiatus then emerged from the break on Saturday only to lose 4-1 in Calgary.
The current nine-game skid (0-7-2) isn't even the longest of the season for Edmonton, which was on the losing end in 11 straight contests from Nov. 11- Dec. 3. The basement dwellers in the overall NHL standings have lost 20 of their last 21 games with only a 2-1 home win over San Jose on Dec. 7 separating the two epic skids.
It seems unlikely Edmonton will put an end to its current slide tonight, as the Kings have won seven straight and nine of the last 10 meetings in this series. The only encounter so far this season between the clubs was in L.A. on Oct. 14, when the Kings routed the Oilers by a 6-1 score.
Edmonton also has lost three straight home games against the Kings, who are 10-0-2 in their last 12 trips to Rexall Place.
The Oilers fell behind 3-0 to the Flames on Saturday before the game reached the midway point of the first period. Calgary notched the trio of goals in a span of just 1 minute, 40 seconds.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored Edmonton's only goal 4:23 into the third period.
"We took a couple penalties. That killed everything we were building upon," Oilers interim head coach Todd Nelson said.
Edmonton will get a chance for revenge on the Flames tomorrow night when the clubs meet again in Calgary.
The Oilers are 5-12-2 as the home team this season.
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