Kings preparing for massive Viktor Arvidsson boost ahead of Blackhawks clash

The Los Angeles Kings are getting a boost for their Tuesday night’s meeting with Connor Bedard and the Chicago Blackhawks at home, with Viktor Arvidsson expected to finally see action for the first time since February, according to NHL’s website.

“Arvidsson has missed the past 13 games after the forward was injured during his only shift against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Feb. 20. He returned to practice as a full participant Monday, working on the fourth line with Alex Turcotte and Trevor Lewis, and took part in the morning skate Tuesday.”

Arvidsson has been barely seen on the ice in the 2023-24 NHL regular season even before his most recent injury. He has played only four games thus far, as a back injury also forced him to miss the first 50 Kings games this campaign. Selected by the Nashville Predators in the fourth round of the 2014 NHL Draft, Arvidsson made his season debut in mid-February against the New Jersey Devils. Three games later, he suffered a lower-body injury that limited him to just 17 seconds of ice time.

Kings to have Viktor Arvidsson back in time for Blackhawks showdown

How Arvidsson will perform on the ice after not seeing action for a while remains to be seen, but it still is good news for the Kings that he is finally making a return to active duty. The Kings are in a tight race in the Pacific, as they are tied with the reigning Stanley Cup champions Vegas Golden Knights for the third spot in the division with each team carrying 79 points into Tuesday.

The Kings could use a hand on offense and Arvidsson can be expected to deliver that exactly for Los Angeles’ attack. On the season, the Kings are just 19th overall in the NHL with 3.01 goals per game and fifth-worst with just a 9.1 percent shooting success rate. Their mediocre offense has also weighed down their season PDO, which is only at 98.9 at the time of this writing.

Back in the 2023-24 NHL season, Arvidsson was among the chief contributors to the Kings’ offense. He finished that campaign fourth on the team with 59 points and third in goals with 33. He also was fifth with 33 assists.