For the Kings, relief came in several forms.
They were relieved to be finished with their longest trip of the season and reunited with their families. They were pleased that they have only nine road games remaining, two in California.
Another positive came Monday with the on-ice presence at practice of star center and leading scorer Anze Kopitar, his first time on the ice since the first period of Thursday's overtime loss at St. Louis.
Forward Jordan Nolan, who sat out Saturday's game at Nashville because of an undisclosed injury, also practiced and indicated he is improving.