Edmonton Oilers vs Los Angeles Kings Picks and Predictions for Tuesday October 13 2026
Four straight wins have Edmonton heading into Los Angeles with plenty of confidence, and the Oilers have a chance to make it five Tuesday night against a Kings club that hasn't won a game. These Pacific Division rivals meet at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, with the puck dropping at 10:30 PM ET. Regional television coverage will be available. Edmonton has bounced back nicely from its opening-night overtime loss, while the Kings are coming off a 2-1 overtime defeat to Vegas. Los Angeles has played better hockey lately, but it hasn't translated into victories. Sportsbook odds weren't consistently available when this preview was prepared. For more NHL predictions, check out our free NHL picks.
Edmonton Oilers Have Found More Than One Way to Win
Edmonton's season started with two games against Vancouver that looked more like basketball scores. The Oilers dropped the opener 6-5 in overtime before coming back two nights later and beating the Canucks 9-7. That's 27 goals in two games, and while Edmonton certainly wasn't complaining about getting its first win, nobody was going to mistake that for championship-caliber defensive hockey. Things have looked quite a bit different since. The Oilers handled Seattle 3-1, scored five unanswered goals to beat Anaheim 5-2, and then went into San Jose on Saturday and came away with another 3-1 victory. Edmonton is 4-0-1, with all four wins coming consecutively, and the last few games have given the coaching staff something besides offense to feel good about.
Through five games, Edmonton has put 25 pucks in the net. That's five goals per game, although the nine-goal outburst against Vancouver certainly helps the average. The bigger development has come at the other end of the ice. Edmonton allowed 12 goals in its first two games but has surrendered just four over its last three. San Jose managed only 20 shots Saturday, and the Oilers didn't spend much of the night scrambling around their own zone. That's a pretty substantial change from the opening weekend. The offense is still capable of putting a game out of reach in a hurry, as Anaheim found out when a 2-0 lead turned into a 5-2 loss. But Edmonton hasn't needed that kind of comeback every night, and that's probably the most encouraging part of its winning streak.
There are still some questions surrounding Edmonton's lineup. Zach Hyman, Mattias Janmark, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins have dealt with early-season availability issues, and their statuses will be worth watching before Tuesday's game. Losing established forwards can eventually catch up with a team, particularly when the schedule starts getting crowded. So far, though, the Oilers haven't given opponents much reason to believe those absences are slowing them down. Los Angeles presents a different challenge than San Jose did Saturday, especially if the Kings defend the way they did against Vegas. Edmonton may have to work a little harder for its scoring chances, but that's hardly an unfamiliar situation for a club that's already won three games without needing another wild shootout.
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Los Angeles Kings Are Running Out of Patience With Close Losses
At some point, Los Angeles needs to turn a decent performance into two points. The Kings nearly pulled that off Saturday in Vegas, only to lose 2-1 when the Golden Knights converted an overtime power play. It was the kind of game Los Angeles probably would have taken after getting embarrassed defensively earlier in the week. The Kings kept Vegas from running away with the contest and gave themselves every opportunity to steal a road victory. Instead, they headed home with another loss and an 0-2-2 record. Four games without a win marks the worst opening stretch in franchise history, and there's only so much consolation to be found in collecting overtime points. The Kings need a victory, not another encouraging performance that ends with the other team celebrating.
The defensive numbers tell two very different stories depending on which games you're looking at. Colorado scored eight against Los Angeles in the opener, and San Jose followed with five more in a 5-4 overtime decision. Thirteen goals allowed in two games is a rough way to begin a season, especially for a team that expects to compete in the Pacific Division. The Kings have cleaned things up considerably since then, allowing just two goals against Florida and another two against Vegas. Unfortunately, the scoring has almost disappeared at the same time. Los Angeles managed one goal in each of those games. The Kings have scored 10 goals and allowed 17 through four contests, and the difference between their early offensive production and their recent defensive improvement is pretty striking. They haven't been able to put both parts of their game together on the same night.
The challenge Tuesday is figuring out how to create more offense without giving Edmonton the kind of open ice it loves. That's easier said than done. Los Angeles can't sit back for 60 minutes and expect one goal to be enough, but getting overly aggressive against the Oilers could turn this into another ugly night defensively. The Kings also need to stay out of the penalty box after Saturday's overtime penalty proved costly against Vegas. There should be some urgency in front of the home crowd, and a win over a division rival would go a long way toward settling things down. Still, Los Angeles has some work to do before it can be trusted against an opponent that's averaging five goals per game. The Kings have shown they can keep a game close. Now they have to prove they can actually win one.
Edmonton Oilers vs Los Angeles Kings Picks and Predictions
Pick: Edmonton Oilers Moneyline
I'll take Edmonton to win this one, although I don't think the Kings are going to make it easy. Los Angeles has been much tougher to score against over its last two games, and there's a good chance the Oilers won't find the same room they enjoyed against Vancouver. The trouble for the Kings is that their offense has gone quiet right when the defense started improving. One goal against Florida and another against Vegas isn't going to get it done very often, particularly against an Edmonton club that can turn a couple of defensive mistakes into goals in a matter of minutes. The Oilers have also been more responsible in their own end lately, giving up just four goals over three games. That's what separates these teams for me. Edmonton has enough offense to survive a bad period or an early deficit. Los Angeles hasn't shown that same ability yet. I'm riding the Oilers' four-game winning streak, but the moneyline price will matter once the odds become available.
Pick: Under 6.5 Goals
Those first two Edmonton games are enough to scare just about anybody away from an Under, but I'm not putting too much weight on what happened against Vancouver. The Oilers have played three games since then, and two finished with only four total goals. Los Angeles has also changed its approach after allowing 13 goals in its first two contests. The Kings have given up four in their last two combined, and I suspect they'll be more interested in keeping this game under control than trying to match Edmonton goal for goal. The concern is obvious. The Oilers scored five unanswered against Anaheim, and one bad period from Los Angeles could ruin this bet in a hurry. Still, the Kings aren't generating much offense themselves, and Edmonton has been doing a better job limiting shots and protecting its own end. I see Los Angeles keeping things competitive without necessarily finding enough scoring to win. Give me the Under 6.5, with Edmonton taking it 3-2 or 4-2.
Final Picks: Edmonton Oilers Moneyline and Under 6.5 Goals
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