Niemi was the first goalie off the ice at morning skate and is projected to start Saturday versus the Kings, David Pollak of the San Jose Mercury News reports. Niemi ended up taking an overtime loss to the Ducks in his last start Monday, but he'll be forgiven for the loss after opening December with a 6-0 record. The netminder hasn't been consistently sharp in those outings, but has ridden the coattails of a red-hot offense to the victory column nonetheless. That trend could continue against the Kings, who have received shoddy play from Saturday's starter, Jonathan Quick, in goal recently.