February 19th, 2017

The Kings are running out of time to get their act together, and let another opportunity slip by them Saturday night at Staples Center. The Florida Panthers started fast, then held on for a 3-2 win against the Kings.

Aleksander Barkov scored the game-winning goal 15 seconds into the third period, and Roberto Luongo made 33 saves, as the Panthers won their 4^th straight game. It was also Florida’s 2^nd win in a row in SoCal after beating the Ducks one night earlier.

The Panthers jumped out to a 1-0 lead when Jonathan Huberdeau beat Peter Budaj with a wrist shot, while the Panthers had a 6 on 5 advantage, as a delayed penalty was going to be called against the Kings’ Marian Gaborik for tripping. Jussi Jokinen made it 2-0 in the second period, taking advantage of a Kings defense breakdown, and beating Budaj from the top of the slot.

The Kings responded with two goals over the next six minutes, starting with Dwight King knocking the puck into the net during a scramble in front of Florida goaltender Roberto Luongo. The Panthers challenge the goal, claiming that Kings forward Nick Shore interfered with Luongo, but officials let the goal stand after a review.

Tanner Pearson tied the game with 8 minutes left in the second period, scoring his fourth goal in the last three games. However, Barkov put the Panthers ahead for good in the third period, as he redirected the puck into the net while stumbling near the goal line.

“We chased the lead again,” Kings Coach Darryl Sutter said. “You don’t want to be doing that all the time. It doesn’t work very well in this league. It’s nice to come back and tie the game. But then it’s not a great goal to start the third period.”

The Kings have now lost two in a row, four of their last five games. LA has just 25 games left, and remains two points behind the Calgary Flames for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

They’ll have a big game against the Ducks on Sunday night in Anaheim, where they hope to try and turn things around.

February 16th, 2017

The Kings resumed play on Thursday, after their bye week, but you never would have been able to tell that they showed up in their 5-3 loss vs Arizona.

LA fell behind early, and just when you thought they were going to get it going, their goaltending let them down repeatedly.  When it wasn’t that, it was the officiating letting them down as well.  When it was over, the Kings were 1 point out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

The Kings fell behind 2-0 in the first five minutes on goals by Brendan Perlini and Tobias Reider.  Tanner Pearson tried to rally the Kings with two third period goals, along with one from Dustin Brown, but Perlini added another, while Jordan Martinook scored a pair of his own to give the Coyotes the win.

After Brown pulled the Kings to within a goal at 3-2, Martinook scored from just outside the right circle on a wrist shot that beat Peter Budaj on the short side.  It was definitely a goal that Budaj wishes he would have had back, as were several other ones on the night.

Adrian Kempe made his NHL debut for LA after being called up from the minor leagues, but it looked as though it was the rest of the team that was sent back to the AHL with the way they played.

The officiating didn’t help LA either.  It appeared as though Tyler Toffoli had brought the Kings back to within a goal at 4-3, but officials ruled that they had lost sight of the puck and blown the whistle just before Toffoli poked the puck past Coyotes Goaltender, Mike Smith.

The Kings outshot the Coyotes 44-22, but Smith was spectacular, making 41 saves.  Two of those saves included robbing Anze Kopitar right in front of the net.  It was a struggle for Budaj on the other hand, who made 17 saves, but couldn’t seem to make the important stops.

Kings Coach Darryl Sutter wasn’t all that thrilled with the goaltending either.  “When we lose you’re going to ask how our goalie played.  Peter would like to have 3 of the 4 goals back.”

One of the few bright spots for LA was Jeff Carter.  His assist on Tanner Pearsons’s goal early in the third period was the 300th of his NHL career.  Carter is receiving Hart Trophy consideration for his play this season.

The Kings will continue their brief home stand on Saturday against the Florida Panthers, before heading up to Anaheim on Sunday to take on the Ducks.

February 15th, 2017

The Kings are in the midst of a bye week, but have been busy on the transaction front.  They traded defenseman Tom Gilbert to Washington in exchange for a conditional 5th round draft choice in the 2017 NHL Draft.

Gilbert is 34 years old, and was signed during the offseason to add defensive depth and experience for the Kings.  However, the emergence of young players like Derek Forbort, Brayden McNabb, and Kevin Gravel made him expendable.  Gilbert has played just 13 minutes since December 22nd.

The Kings also recalled forward Adrian Kempe from their Ontario AHL affiliate.  Kempe, 20, is considered one of the more skilled prospects in the Kings system.  He has scored 11 goals and 19 points in 43 games this season with the Reign.

Kempe will take the roster spot of forward Devin Setoguchi, who was reassigned to Ontario.  Setoguchi has scored 4 goals and 12 points in 45 games for LA this season.

The Kings are currently holding the final playoff spot in the Western Conference heading into tomorrow night’s matchup against the Arizona Coyotes.  However, LA is just 24th in the league in goals scored.

July 18th, 2013

The Kings have secured another cornerstone of their franchise for nearly the next decade.  On Thursday, LA extended captain Dustin Brown’s contract for 8 years, worth a total of $47 million.  Although most of you were told there would be no math here at Jock Talk LA, that equals a very reasonable cap hit of $5.875 million per season.

Brown was so eager to remain with the franchise that drafted him 10 years ago, that he even negotiated his own deal.  On a conference call, he explained that “going into this, I did my homework and did comparisons and received help from the (NHL) Players’ Association on some numbers and stats.”  He’s also well aware that he may have taken less money in order to be a part of a winning team.

“I realized in a cap era that there’s only so much money to go around, and with the cap going down this year and not having that certainty what it will be next year, there’s an opportunity to keep this team together.  That was part of my decision in wanting to stay because I believe we have a chance to win.”

The 28 year old Brown has scored 181 goals and 388 points over his 641 career games.  Over those 9 seasons, he’s also appeared in 50 playoff games, and totaled 31 post season points.  In 2012, he led the Kings to the franchise’s first ever Stanley Cup championship, and he piled up 20 points over that 20 game post season run.

This past season, Brown scored 18 goals and 29 points in 46 games.  He also helped the Kings reach the Western Conference Finals before losing to the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks.

Brown is the 9th Kings player locked up to a long term deal by General Manager Dean Lombardi.  The others include Drew Doughty, Jonathan Quick, Anze Kopitar, and more recently Slava Voynov.

Despite losing a few minor role players such as Dustin Penner and Rob Scuderi this off-season, the Kings still have a team that should be able to contend for Stanley Cups the next several years.

The Kings also made several other moves, naming former Norris Trophy Winning defenseman Rob Blake assistant general manager after Ron Hextall joined the Flyers.  The also acquired forward Daniel Carcillo from the Blackhawks in exchange for a conditional draft pick in 2015.

June 23rd, 2013

The Kings have finally granted Jonathan Bernier his wish: a chance to be a number 1 goaltender in the NHL.  LA traded Bernier to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday, in exchange for forward Matt Frattin, goaltender Ben Scrivens, a 2nd round pick, and $500,000 cash.

Most Kings fans are sad to see Bernier go, but knew this day was coming.  The Kings have arguably the best goaltender in the NHL in Jonathan Quick, so having a quality backup like Bernier was a great luxury.  Last summer, Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi promised Bernier that he would be traded by either the 2013 trade deadline or the upcoming NHL draft.  Lombardi obliged.  Now, Toronto may be luckier than a lottery winner with the acquisition of a potentially elite goaltender.

In return, the Kings got a speedy 3rd line right winger in Frattin, who scored 7 goals and 13 points in 25 games for the Leafs this season.  He’s been in the league 2 full seasons, and carried a cap hit of just $925,000.   Scrivens was the backup for the Leafs this past season, and was 7-9 with a 2.69 GAA, to go along with a .915 save percentage.  His cap hit is only $625,000, and with the Leafs throwing in $500,000, that covers nearly a 1/3rd of the Kings cap hit.  In other words, Dean Lombardi should be arrested for shop lifting.  As for the draft picks, the Leafs will get to chose between either giving the Kings a 2nd round pick in 2014, or in 2015.

Lombardi and the Kings will now turn their attention to re-signing free agent defenseman Rob Scuderi.  In a conference call, Lombardi explained that dialogue has been ongoing for the last several weeks with Scuderi’s camp.   However, he acknowledged that with the salary cap coming down, he will have to fit in at a reasonable price.

June 19th, 2013

The Kings took care of one of their biggest off-season priorities on Tuesday.  They re-signed defenseman Slava Voynov to a 6 year $25 million contract.  I know most of you were told there would be no math here at Jock Talk LA, however, that results in a very reasonable $4.1 million cap hit over the next 6 years.

Voynov is a 23 year old native of Russia, and is emerging as one of the best young defenseman in the league.  He had 6 goals, 19 assists, and was a +5  in the shortened 48 games season this year.  He also  led the Kings with 6 goals and 13 points during this year’s playoff run.  Voynov set Kings playoff records this year for most goals scored by a defenseman in one year, and most game winning goals in one year.

Interestingly enough, in 6 years from now, both Drew Doughty and Slava Voynov’s contract will expire at the same time.  Most Kings fans should be experiencing a heart attack at that point.  Still, the Kings salary cap issues this off-season pale in comparison to many other teams.  The club currently has $56.7 million committed to 15 players for next season, which still leaves some room under the $64 million salary cap.  Dean Lombardi’s next challenge will be trying to re-sign veteran defenseman Rob Scuderi, who has been a key cog for LA’s defense.  The Kings also have 6 restricted free agents who will be due raises, along with unrestricted free agents Dustin Penner and Brad Richardson as well.

Lombardi is also shopping backup goaltender Jonathan Bernier, who has expressed a desire to be a number one goaltender for another team.  There are currently about 10 teams who are interested according to ESPN’s Pierre Lebrun.  One of those teams is the Flyers, who have been a frequent trade partner with the Kings.

The Kings don’t need to waste their time adding any players that are old, underachieving, or that just aren’t worth a crap anymore like Jerome Iginla, Brad Richards, or Daniel Briere.  They simply need to try their best to retain as much of their current team as possible. If they can bring back Scuderi on a reasonable deal, they will maintain the strength of their team, which is defense and goaltending.  That is what wins championships.

June 7th, 2013

Where the hell was Anze Kopitar?  Where the hell was captain Dustin Brown?  This would be an excellent time for you guys to show up and start contributing offensively!  For all intents and purposes, the Kings season is over.  The Kings lost to Chicago 3-2 in game 4 of the Western Conference Finals at Staples Center, and are now down 3-1 in the best of 7 series.

Most Kings fans seem to be blaming Tia Toscano for not singing the national anthem.  Tia gets some of the blame, but I think most starts with Kopitar and Brown.  When this is all over, we better find out that these guys were hurt because they’ve played like garbage.  Jonathan Quick has to be flawless to make up for the crap these guys are pulling.  Quick made some stellar saves in game 4, but allowed one soft goal to Bryan Bickell early in the game, which got the Blackhawks going.

Did anyone listen to what I had to say after game 3? I said a critical factor in the rest of the series was which duo could pull their game out of the crapper first: Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, or Kopitar and Brown.  Obviously it was Kane and Toews who pulled it together in game 4, which is why the Kings are almost ready to start booking tee times.  Kopitar has been exiled to the third line, and you wouldn’t even be able to tell he’s even in the lineup.  Dustin Brown has remained on the 1st line, but you also wouldn’t know he’s there.  The Kings are already without an injured Mike Richards, and they might as well be playing without Brown and Kopitar at this point.

Despite Kopitar and Brown’s invisibility, the Kings had plenty of chances to win game 4.  They had a one goal lead twice, but Just Williams failed to put the game away on his breakaway, and the Kings couldn’t score on the powerplay in the 3rd when their season depended on it.  Who the hell has been calling the Kings line changes the last two games anyway?  Vinny Del Negro?  The Kings made a terrible line change early in the 3rd and the Hawks scored the game winner as a result.  They made the same mistake in game 3, and could have been burned again if it hadn’t been for an offside call.

What the hell was Daryl Evans wearing on the Kings post game show last night?  It was some kind of a velvet suit with a strange floral pattern on it.  Evans must be shopping with Dwayne Wade these days.

Also, screw you Tim Leiweke! In an interview with a local Toronto TV station, he was asked about how he felt about Leafs fans.  He said:

“We didn’t have that in L.A. and we won the Stanley Cup. We finally saw it at the end. It took us getting to the finals in order to awaken that town. It’s not a hockey town.”

“You had more built up passion for this hockey team (Toronto) and that organization on an AWAY playoff game than we EVER did, INCLUDING winning the Stanley Cup, Game 6, Home Ice at Staples Center.”

June 5th, 2013

Another close call, but the Kings came up with another win at home.  The Kings jumped out to a 2-0 lead agains the Blackhawks in game 3 of the Western Conference Finals, and held on for dear life in the final minutes before adding an empty net goal, securing the 3-1 victory.  Justin Williams came up big again, scoring the first goal of the game, which was his 4th goal in the last 4 games.  Williams said “I don’t think we were too uptight at all.  We knew what we had to do, plain and simple.  We’ve been here before, and we used that to help us tonight.”  Really?  because I was practically peeing in my pants, just knowing you had to win this game!

Jonathan Quick should be arrested for robbing Bryan Bickell of a goal late in the 3rd period.  Quick somehow came up with a save from point blank range with the inside of his blocker.  As I predicted, Quick rebounded from his subpar performance in game 2, by playing a spectacular game 3.  Meanwhile, Slava Voynov’s agent could hear the cash registers ringing after scoring the game winning goal in the 2nd period.  Voynov now has 5 goals in the playoffs, which is a record for Kings defenseman in the playoffs.  He’s a restricted free agent this off-season, and the Kings will have to find a way to lock him up long term.

I expect Hawks defenseman Duncan Keith to be suspended for the next two games after high-sticking Jeff Carter.  If he isn’t, Kings fan should be lining up with pitch forks and tiki torches outside of Brendan Shanahan’s office.  Keith is a repeat offender, and we’ve already seen incidents like this where Shanahan suspended first time offenders for two games.  Keith appeared to be sorry for the incident, but he should still be punished regardless of the intent.

Speaking of being sorry, Anze Kopitar needs to send Daryl Sutter an apology of some kind to get out of his coaches dog house.  Kopitar was demoted to the third line after continuing his scoring struggles.   His play last night wasn’t bad, but he needs to score goals if the Kings hope to win this series.

The Kings did a great job of imposing their style of play on the Blackhawks.  LA made sure Chicago couldn’t build up speed through the neutral zone as they did in the first two games, and their defense was tighter than a Beyonce jumpsuit.  They also knocked the Hawks around, outhitting them 36-26.  The Kings aren’t back in the series yet, but if they bring the same effort to the table Thursday, I like their chances of tying this series up.

May 31st, 2013

Most of the previews I’ve seen for the Kings and Blackhawks take a look at the regular season numbers, and how the teams did in the three match ups against each other.  At the risk of stating the obvious, this isn’t the regular season!  It’s not always who you play, but when you play them.   During the regular season the Hawks won 2 of the 3 games, but that’s about as relevant today as an eight-track player.  Vegas lists the Hawks as slight favorites, but let’s take a closer look.

Forwards:    The Blackhawks forwards are loaded with talent.  The combination of Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp, and Brandon Saad is among the best in the NHL.  Their speed and skill will be a challenge for the Kings to defend.  Those 5 forwards have combined to score 15 goals in the post season thus far, but appeared to have some trouble with the Red Wings feisty defense in the last round.  The Kings combination of Anze Kopitar, Justin Williams, Dustin Brown, Jeff Carter, and Mike Richards has scored a total of just 9 goals throughout the playoffs.  They don’t quite have the explosive speed of the Hawks, but they have provided timely scoring throughout the playoffs.

Advantage: Blackhawks

Defense:  Both teams have a very versatile group of defenseman.  The Hawks Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook are skilled puck movers that can create offense on the rush.  Johnny Oduya and Niklas Hjalmarsson have also helped stabilize a Chicago defense that has allowed the 2nd fewest goals in this years playoffs.    However, the Kings have allowed the fewest goals of any team in this years playoffs.  Drew Doughty is one of the top 5 defenseman in the world, capable of playing in any situation.  Slava Voynov is starting to emerge as one of the league’s top defenseman, Matt Greene and Robyn Regehr have been punishing opposing forwards, and Rob Scuderi is always solid.  Although the Chicago defense has been reliable, the Kings depth and physicality at this position give them a slight edge.

Advantage: Kings

Goaltending:  Corey Crawford has been solid through the first two rounds of the playoffs with a 1.70 goals against average and a .938 save percentage.  Crawford let’s in an occasional soft goal, but benefits quite a bit from Chicago’s excellent puck possession game.  He is opposed by the reigning Conn Smythe Trophy Winner, and arguably the best goaltender in the world, Jonathan Quick.  Quick leads all playoff goaltenders in goal against average, save percentage, shutouts,  and appears to be playing even better than last year.  The Kings can only hope that Quick can post a shutout or two in Chicago, so they won’t have to hear that dumb ass song they play in the United Center every time the Hawks score a goal.

Advantage: Kings

Special Teams: The Blackhawks powerplay was ranked 19th in the NHL this season, and 10th in the postseason.  Their powerplay has been the most ineffective of all the teams remaining in the postseason.  This can likely be blamed on special teams coach Jamie Kompon, who was with LA last year, and nearly crapped all over their success.  The Blackhawks have been the best penalty killing team in the playoffs, while the Kings have been the 5th best penalty killing group.  LA’s powerplay has been effective, and ranks 6th in the playoffs.

Advantage: Blackhawks

Prediction: The Blackhawks have incredible offensive firepower, and a solid defensive core that will present a challenge for LA.  However, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane have had some trouble scoring in the playoffs, and it won’t get any easier against the Kings stingy defense and elite goaltending.  There is something to be said for playing a gritty and tough style in the playoffs, as opposed to simply being a finesse team.  The Hawks peaked in the regular season, the Kings are starting to peak now, and goaltending is the great equalizer in the NHL.  Kings in 6.