Matt Greene on Kings v Red Wings, plus tonight's ticket contest

For the Kings, their last visit to Joe Louis Arena wasn't pretty. An 8-2 loss in mid-December stands as perhaps their worst game of the year. However, to be fair, it came just a few days after the firing of Terry Murray - at a time when the team was in limbo wondering what would happen next, while John Stevens stood in as interim coach.

Prior to that game, LA had experienced rather unusual success in a building that's normally tough for most opponents. They were winners of three straight there, including a 5-0 shutout last year that was one of Jonathan Quick's best games in the NHL. He stopped 51 shots that night, something he's not likely to have to repeat tonight.

The Kings will be facing a banged up Detroit team - playing without Nicklas Lidstrom, Jimmy Howard, Pavel Datsyuk, Todd Bertuzzi, Jonathan Ericsson and a few others.

Still, it's the Red Wings. Just ask Matt Greene, who shared the following comments with MayorsManor about tonight's game...

"Detroit in Detroit? It is what it is - everybody knows that. Those aren't easy points," said Greene, who leads all Kings defenseman with 201 hits.

On Wednesday night's MayorsManor LIVE show, Greene talked about what it's like to play in front of friends and family back in Michigan. Dustin Brown also shared his thoughts on the challenges younger players have when going to Detroit for the first time. If you missed the show, you can hear their interviews here.

The Kings are expected to make one line-up change tonight, with Brad Richardson joining the fourth line in place of rookie Jordan Nolan. Last weekend, Richardson took himself for 'first goal' vs. the Ducks - saying he had 'a pretty good feeling about himself.' However, he was a healthy scratch that night, so we'll have to see if his confidence is still in place vs. the Red Wings.

If you'd like to participate in the MayorsManor First Goal contest, we'll be giving away a free pair of tickets to an upcoming Kings home game. It's easy to play, simply leave a comment below with the LA player you think will score first vs. the Red Wings...or reply to the facebook / twitter updates that will be posted around 4:00pm. All correct answers will be pooled together and one random winner will be awarded the tickets. Good luck!

The Mayor
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