LOS ANGELES — It has been a hot start to the second half of the season for the Kings, who entered their game on Thursday night with a 5-1 record since returning from the break. However, Nashville was able to cool them down in a game that they seemed to control for the most part. The first period saw both teams get on the board, with Yakov Trenin getting the Predators on the board and Kevin Fiala answering to tie the game a few minutes later. This would be the only score of the game for Los Angeles as they watched Nashville add on once in the second period and two more times in the third. They cruised to a 4-1 win and lowered the Kings record at home to 10-10-6.

Here are three takeaways from the loss:

Kings manage just 1 score on 28 shots

So far this season, the Kings have done a solid job at being aggressive and getting their shots up. Through their 55 games this season, they’ve managed 1,837 total shots. This mark is good enough for 5th-most in the NHL, but unfortunately, they weren’t able to capitalize on their chances against Nashville. The team managed just 1 score on their 28 shots as Predators’ goalie Juuse Saros kept them under wraps all night long. The team was even shut out through the final 2 periods as they desperately tried to get back into things. The Predators now officially claim the season series over the Kings 2-1 thanks to their victories on Thursday night and January 18th.

Kevin Fiala grabs his 400th career point

The Kings might not have had many positives to take away from the game on Thursday, but Kevin Fiala was able to reach an impressive career milestone. With his goal late in the first period, he brought his career point total to 400.

It was the 15th goal of the season for the 11-year veteran, making it his 5th consecutive season with 15+ scores. Since joining the Kings at the beginning of the 2022-2023 season, he’s grabbed 117 points and currently sits in third on the team this season (45 points). He’s been a big part of the success of the team so far, and if they manage to put together a successful stretch run he will surely be in the middle of it all.

Lizotte returns, Arvidsson injured again for Los Angeles

The Kings had some new injury updates over the past couple of days surrounding center Blake Lizotte and forward Viktor Arvidsson. In good news, it was Lizotte who found himself back in the lineup after previously being sidelined for 14 games with a lower-body injury. However, the news was more unfortunate for Arvidsson. He was placed on the injured list after suffering a lower-body injury in the team’s win over the Blue Jackets on Tuesday. Arvidsson had already missed the first 50 games of the season dealing with a back injury, and will now have to wait even longer to try and make a successful return to the ice. The longtime Predator joined the Kings during the 2021-2022 season and had been quite reliable for the team throughout the previous two seasons. Appearing in 66 and 77 games respectively, he managed campaigns of 49 and 59 points. Unfortunately, this season has been a big struggle health-wise and hopefully, he will be back on the ice to help Los Angeles soon.

The squad will have a day off now before heading to Anaheim for a game against the Ducks on Saturday night. Anaheim has struggled so far this season, leaving the Kings with an opportunity to get back in the win column and continue a hot start to the second half of the season.

The game is scheduled to begin at 7:30 pm. PT.