The Los Angeles Kings, down 0-2, defend their home ice Tuesday night against the Chicago Blackhawks. The defending Stanley Cup champions are just two games away from losing in the Western Conference finals.
Game 3 starts at 9 p.m. ET on Tuesday. You can stream it live HERE.
It's not an unfamiliar situation for the Kings. The first round of the NHL playoffs saw the Kings down two games to the St. Louis Blues, the Associated Press reports.
"We've been here, what, three weeks ago?" Kings forward Justin Williams asked reporters. "Obviously it's not do-or-die (in Game 3), but it is."
But the Blues aren't the Blackhawks. Chicago stands a chance to hand Los Angeles its first home defeat in 2 1/2 months.
"Home ice is something we've been able to rely on, and have in our back pocket," Williams said. "I'm (also) not sure why we went 10-1 on the road last year (in the playoffs). Certainly our confidence is high for us coming back home. There's been a lot of success there. We've won every which way there, and it's going to have to continue."
Chicago rides into Los Angeles with momentum. They've seemingly had the Kings' number this series, scoring four goals against Kings' Conn Smythe Trophy-winning goalie Jonathan Quick ̶ something no team had done in 34 straight playoff games.
Still, Chicago is experienced enough to not get comfortable with their lead.
"You look back at the St. Louis series, (and) they were up 2-0 coming to L.A.," Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook told reporters. "We've got to continue to focus on the game (Tuesday) night. They're a great team, L.A. Quick is a great goaltender. We understand he's going to come back with a better game than he did last night. We have to continue to get pucks to him and make it tough on him."
The Kings will need to ramp up their offensive pressure on the Blackhawks if they want to get back into the series. Los Angeles' offense has been in a rut lately, recording a postseason-low 29 goals in 15 playoff games.
"You can draw on the fact we've been in this situation before," Kings captain Dustin Brown said. "The series is long from over in our mindset."
