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The Los Angeles Kings and the Phoenix Coyotes are set to engage in NHL betting action here in the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday night for Game 5 of this series.

The Kings clearly are the team with the upper hand, but all of a sudden, there has been at least a shadow of doubt put into their season. They had won 11 of their first 12 games here in the playoffs before losing Game 4 on Sunday, and that clash at home was their worst game of these playoffs. They allowed back to back goals for the first time since Game 4 of the first round against the Vancouver Canucks, and they were shut out for the first time in the postseason as well. Needless to say, Jonathan Quick needs a lot more out of his offense for this team to get back on track, and if that doesn’t turn out to be the case, the Vezina Trophy finalist is going to have to be stellar in the pipes once again.

Phoenix looked to be dead in the water to the point where it was a +200 underdog on the road in Game 4 of this series. That being said, the Coyotes have refused to quit, and in the end, they are still alive with a chance to send this series back to Tinseltown for Game 6 later this week. The men of the hour in that game were Shane Doan and Mike Smith. Doan had a rough series leading up to Game 4, as he was taking a ton of penalties that just weren’t characteristic of him and the way that his team had played here in the postseason. Smith was barraged with 36 shots on goal, but he was able to answer the bell every single time the Kings came into his zone, and for the most part, he really looked like he was a great pillar in the pipes. Smith has had a good history here in these playoffs, leading his team to third period leads in virtually every game in the first two rounds of the playoffs, but here, he has been outplayed by Quick. That has to change if the Yotes are going to prove to be victorious on Tuesday night.

Even when the Kings were beaten by the Canucks in Game 4 of the first round, they still felt like the better team, and it was no surprise when they were able to come back on the road and get a win to close that series out in Game 5. This time though, we think that the seed of doubt has definitely been planted. Don’t be all that surprised if Phoenix is able to win this one at home on Tuesday to push this series to Game 6, which might all of a sudden feel like a do or die for the Kings.

Los Angeles Kings @ Phoenix Coyotes Game 5 Pick: Phoenix Coyotes +110