Road Trip Crucial (or Not)

CHICAGO â€”  This is a monumental road trip for the Kings ... or it is not, depending on who’s doing the talking.

The Kings open a four-game trip in Chicago tonight. That is followed by a Canadian tour, where they will face Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto -- three of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

“This is a big swing for us ...,� forward Jeremy Roenick said. “If we can come back over .500 on this road trip, I think it sets us up for a tremendous season, in my opinion.�

Coach Andy Murray, though, says he shies away from breaking down the schedule into blocks of games.

“You have to be careful with putting expectations on segments of the season,� Murray said.

“What if you don’t [accomplish the goal]? To us -- and maybe we’re not as smart as other people -- but if you win every five-game segment at the end of the year, you’ll be sitting pretty good.�

*

TONIGHT

at Chicago, 5:30 PST, FSNW

Site -- United Center.

Radio -- 710.

Records -- Kings 16-8-1-0, Blackhawks 9-14-0-0.

Record vs. Blackhawks -- 2-0-0-0.

Update -- The Kings are expected to put forward George Parros on injured reserve. He has sat out the last five games because of a high ankle sprain. The Kings will fill that void by recalling a forward from Manchester, which will probably be Jeff Tambellini. Mathieu Garon will start in goal for the Kings. He has won six of his last seven starts and is 2-0 with a 2.00 goals-against average in two games against Chicago this season.