Tonight's game story (Jan. 23)

Posted by Rich Hammond on 23 January 2010, 9:05 pm

Here’s my game story from tonight, complete with video and stats. Thanks for reading!

Kings beat Red Wings 3-2

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53 Comments

roadtripper says:

January 23, 2010 at 9:07 pm

as always, thanks Rich!

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Mark says:

January 23, 2010 at 9:10 pm

Thanks rich,
Great comeback

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wasco says:

January 23, 2010 at 9:29 pm

great win! scoring after the two goal hole, quick faces down a breakaway, and priceless bob miller, “…too many men on the ice”

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Dominick says:

January 23, 2010 at 9:34 pm

Simmers didn’t even get a star.I thought he had more of an impact on the game than Lidstrom.Maybe I’m just being bias.

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LUCKYLUC13 says:

January 23, 2010 at 9:35 pm

Maybe Kopi’s best game of the year(career).Carried the team tonight

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Frozen Puck On A Stick says:

January 23, 2010 at 9:37 pm

One blog is saying a trade for Kovalchuk could be imminent. Will believe it when I see it.

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Luke Schenn's Brother says:

January 23, 2010 at 10:01 pm

If these kids play like this (2 and 3 periods) they can be terrors in the play offs!

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Buzzsaw says:

January 23, 2010 at 10:06 pm

What did Lidstrom do to deserve a star? Our forecheckers were outplaying their defense almost the entire game.

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rontheking says:

January 23, 2010 at 10:19 pm

OMG! Epiphany! Why isn’t the Kings’ mascot a foolish, knavish Jester? That way there’s no confusion or comparison with the ducks’ Mufasa the lion king AND they could sell jester hats in the Staples store…it makes a lot more dollars and sense!

Whoo-hooo! HUGE win! Down with Detroit!

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jet says:

January 23, 2010 at 10:22 pm

Since we have already gone of topic to Kovi, let me meander to a different prospective on the DL interview.

This is from a Sharks fan and a fan of DL. He believes the interview had nothing at all to do with JJ and that every word he said had a purpose. He believes that DL was upset with how the Czarnik situation was handled. WE spoke about this for 20 minutes so I am cutting out some of the detail. Michigan had a terrible start to the season at least for them. The coach, trying to deflect responsiblity, started to blame the players to a point where the locker room enviroment was poor. My neighbor believes the poor start was a combination of over confident players, suspect coaching, and inconsistent goalie play. So as the mood soured, the Kings sought a better enviroment for CZ. The coach was pissed he left and started to blame CZ for the team’s downfall. Many coachs and players began to say stuff like, “We can focus on winning now that CZ is gone”, like he was the cancer. DL asked the Michigan coach to correct the information that was being put out and the coach refused.
My neighbor says that DL treats his picks like their his own flesh and blood once he drafts them. He is hyper protective of his picks and treats their development like it is his personal responsiblity to the kid. He told me that 2 years after DL left the Sharks, that he was still checking with a junior team to see how one pick was progressing.

Sorry for going off, but I thought it interesting.

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Chris Bond says:

January 23, 2010 at 10:43 pm

Wow I guess rumors are running like crazy now, read the standard rumor sites and you will see for yourselfs.

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Johnjuan says:

January 23, 2010 at 10:46 pm

Maybe that explains Purcell.

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DougS says:

January 23, 2010 at 10:54 pm

Jet. thanks for shedding some light. I can’t comment on the U of M situation, but what your friend says about how things look through DL’s eyes makes a lot of sense. If you read the parts of Gann’s interview that a lot of people are misreading or ignoring (perhaps willfully), DL sounds very much like a proud father, or uncle, or older male relative of some sort.

I read a comment from a numbnuts on some other board (one with national reach, rather than local) who asked just WTH Lombardi had ever won? Well…. He did build the Sharks into a playoff contender, and during his year in exile he was the most talked-about GM-in-waiting for the NHL. He certainly has the respect of his peers, even if Brian Burke may not like him too much.

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Kris says:

January 23, 2010 at 11:01 pm

Cool! Jim Fox will be on NHL On The Fly tomorrow!

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Dominick says:

January 23, 2010 at 11:20 pm

CVIC,
http://lakingsinsider.com/?p=3495#comment-42946

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kyngsfan says:

January 23, 2010 at 11:42 pm

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/324785-dean-lombardi-the-time-to-make-a-big-splash-may-be-now

Check out this interview by DL….Great!

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Bickleton Wigglesworth III says:

January 24, 2010 at 12:22 am

I’m a big Moller fan but I have to say I think it’s time to send him back to Manchester. His confidence and timing seemed off tonight -a recent trend. Previously he was producing a little offense with minimal minutes be even that’s dried up lately and lets face it he really isn’t suited for playing center in the NHL.

Send him down to the AHL, let him play big minutes on the top two lines, get his confidence and scoring touch back and then maybe call him back as the stretch drive really kicks in, if there’s a need. In the meantime call up Elkins or maybe Cliche, a slightly bigger body to play limited minutes centering the fourth line and get some NHL experience.

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Surly Jacob (JDM) says:

January 24, 2010 at 12:45 am

Because there can never be enough to read about an awesome victory: http://lakingsnews.com/2010/01/23/kings-kick-feathered-tires-to-curb-3-2/

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What's the frequency, Kenneth? says:

January 24, 2010 at 12:57 am

I’ll betcha Hammer will list RoyaltyOnIce amongst the blogs if you stop spamming this blog.

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badGoltending says:

January 24, 2010 at 2:17 am

thanks rich

GREAT game and that was a way to gut it out man our guys deserved it.

its a good start to what can be a great roadtrip.

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badGoltending says:

January 24, 2010 at 2:25 am

my thoughts on moeller–

he should be here where he belongs moeller is stellar.

he’s played real well, moeller is so strong on the puck, he’s got vision and a real skill at getting shots off.

moeller deserves to stay and he is only going to get better at this level.

now anybody that has to go is teddy purcell.
Even Though He’s been less costly to us lately but the same routine of oh i over-skated the puck, what side am i on and his turnovers kill momentum and confidence.

GO KINGS GO.

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KC23 says:

January 24, 2010 at 3:33 am

Ty kyngsfan, great article. I like what DL is all about. Can’t wait to see what the next piece of the puzzle might be.

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Hubie says:

January 24, 2010 at 4:15 am

Parse +2 on the night with a key assist on the game winning goal, any reason why he only saw 8min of playing time?

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src says:

January 24, 2010 at 4:25 am

Dont get the Moller comment. Purcell is the weak link along with Ivanans. Sice Richy is playing so well Moller is the only other center left for the 4th line role. Moller lookded much better in past games on the PP than Purcell ever will.

Parse just keeps making big plays, what a pass to Rcihy at the end.

P.s. where are all the Quick haters. He won the shootout for us and held the fort admirably last night.

Get ready for a physical won in Toronto!

Go Kings.

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Flux says:

January 24, 2010 at 5:31 am

I really love Rem and SVID’s interaction… Purcell played fairly well, a testament of Handzus and Fro bringing the best out of line mates. I will just reiterate that bitchy kings fans will miss fro if he ever is traded.

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KC23 says:

January 24, 2010 at 7:55 am

Here’s one for you JJ lovers.

At a -18 plus/minus, there are only 3 players in the entire NHL that have a worse plus/minus.

And for you Fro lovers. Fro’s -11 is way down there as well. Numbers don’t lie this deep into the season.

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Brian says:

January 24, 2010 at 8:01 am

I thought Bob Miller’s repeated, flippant remarks about the fan in the rafters were irresponsible. The guy was obviously in distress, maybe thinking of jumping, and Bob’s comments were on the order of “Well if he jumps, the Red Wings will have too many men on the ice.” If the Clippers announcers can get suspended for making remarks about the Iranian basketball player, then Bob should get suspended too for his grossly insensitive comments.

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54FIGHTING says:

January 24, 2010 at 8:20 am

Kyngsfan
that is an old (over a week) article and was/is the first part of the DL interview Gann did, all this JJ stuff is part 4 I think.

About DL/JJ I almost get the feeling that DL expected Gann to know what not to write, just like when he gave Rich the original BOXES interview and Rich knew not to include names in those boxes.

About the game, I liked seeing our guys take the puck from the half boards to the net and TP did it the most. Still impressed with Harrold. Jones might not get back in anytime soon.

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Timbo from Canada says:

January 24, 2010 at 8:29 am

Like I said a week ago, go order your playoff tickets now, we will be there, and we will be a force. Great win, we gotta keep in going over the hapless Leafs on Tuesday

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roadtripper says:

January 24, 2010 at 9:00 am

now this I can see…

jet says,
“DL treats his picks like their his own flesh and blood once he drafts them. He is hyper protective of his picks and treats their development like it is his personal responsibility to the kid.”

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Hat Trick says:

January 24, 2010 at 9:04 am

Kopitar had a good game, but he also wasn’t hit very hard or as often because detroit is not a very phyisical team. It seems that when he is hit several times a game, he seems to get discouraged and doesn’t have as much confidence. Hopefully, this game may give him the boost he needs to play at this level consistently. Not many posters addressed the horrible play he made at the end of the game by trying that long pass that resulted in an icing while on the power play.

GO KINGS!!!

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josh e. says:

January 24, 2010 at 9:04 am

brian…if the penguins announcers didn’t get suspended for their remarks about a month ago…bob will not get suspended…i thought what he said was hilarious…lighten up man…when you’re in distress you take a nap, you don’t jump on the rafters of joe luis arena…

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Hat Trick says:

January 24, 2010 at 9:10 am

I also was totally amused by the deader2818 comment posted on the “wings 1, KINGS 0″ thread stating “Good Bye Season” Maybe next year”. I will give him the benefit of the doubt that he posted it shortly after det scored to make it 2-0. Last I looked this was game 51 on January 23, 2010………………WOW!!

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bob says:

January 24, 2010 at 9:11 am

Brian, I think your panties are on a bit tight. I thought Bob handled if perfectly, in fact what he said was hilarious. Screw that guy in the rafters trying to interrupt the Kings momentum!

(I was actually thinking, here the Kings are going to get control of this game, and this douchebag is going to fall out of the rafters causing the NHL to postpone the remainder of the game!) That would be the Kings luck against the Wings, huh?)

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nykingfan says:

January 24, 2010 at 9:16 am

KC23
Why waste everyone’s time after a great win, helped by the 2 you mention, with a meaningless stat as +/-
I guess you don’t factor in the ice time they spend against the best scorers in the league…

Hat Trick
Are you kidding? He was playing physical all night in the dirty areas along the boards..both offensive and defensive zones. He had a body on him constantly in the corners and fought and won the battles. You don’t have to paste a guys head through the boards in order to play physical.
Unbelievable that after playing his best game of the year and probably his best game of his career, being what the circumstances and ramifications of this game were, you can come out and knock the guy, even in the slightest way.
Go back to being a Red Wing fan, please!

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nykingfan says:

January 24, 2010 at 9:21 am

Enough of the negative BS
That was a huge win for this team. I can’t think of another Kings team that would have come in to Detroit and controlled the play for most of the 60 minutes. They may no longer be the same Red Wings, but this also isn’t the same Kings.
To battle back down 2 in their building is a major step in the maturation process of this team. This really is a TEAM in every sense of the word.
Kopi was amazing..Everyone contributed and Quick was huge in the end to preserve the victory.
Great way to start the road trip. There are some valuable points waiting for us on the rest of the trip.

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nykingfan says:

January 24, 2010 at 9:23 am

I thought it was hilarious the moron hanging from the rafters. I guess he was auditioning for the Octopus role!
My only “serious” thought on it was ..if he falls, does this cost us momentum?

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Hat Trick says:

January 24, 2010 at 9:40 am

nykingfan–you got me all wrong. Did you read the whole post? I was referring to the games in the past where he gets hit hard and often. Regarding the icing, I was trying to say there was no need to try the pass when he had the puck in our end without any pressure on the puck. Do you agree that det got an advantage from the play? I’ve been a KINGS fan since ’67, so I’m sorry if giving my opinion of a decision a player made during the game in your eyes makes me a fan of the other team. I must have acted “irresponsible and unprofessional”

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nykingfan says:

January 24, 2010 at 9:52 am

Hat Trick
The icing came at a bad time, but they were in protection mode at the time. A faceoff..even deep in their own zone is better than a turnover, if that’s all he saw. I can’t get into his head on what he saw, but if he chose the icing instead of making a risky play that can lead to a turnover, it was a smart play.
It seemed like you prefaced your post with Yeah, he had a good game BUT
Last night there were no BUTS to his game at all. That was a physical battle going out out there. Kopi spent more than enough quality time along the boards and in the corners and he had a man on him constantly battling him for those loose pucks and Kopi won the majority of those battles.
I do apologize for questioning your Kings loyalty..That wasn’t fair.

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Hat Trick says:

January 24, 2010 at 10:06 am

nykingfan–I always appreciate your posts. I wish I would post more often, but usually it would be a reaction to something someone posted. I guess I enjoy reading what other fans think as opposed to expressing my opinions regularly. I’m just thankful we have this “blog” to access every day, thanks to Rich.

GO KOPI!!

GO KINGS!!

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nykingfan says:

January 24, 2010 at 10:11 am

Thanks Hat Trick
Don’t worry about idiots like me who jump all over your posts. Post away!
Its doubtful there’s potential for growth and maturity on my part, but hey even the Kings can grow up..anything’s possible!
Again, I apologize…

I’m with you..GO KINGS!!!!

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Dominick says:

January 24, 2010 at 10:29 am

This will probably piss someone off,but I didn’t see Bobs comments as insensative because Bob he was disconnected from the situation and didn’t assume the guy was up there trying to off himself.It isn’t his fault the guy decided to do something stupid where he thought the whole world would see.All I saw was a crazed fan looking for attention.If he wanted to off himself,do it with a gun at home.Where no one can stop you.

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wavesinair says:

January 24, 2010 at 11:05 am

JET WROTE: “He (jet’s friend) believes the interview had nothing at all to do with JJ and that every word he (Dean Lombardi) said had a purpose.”

jet, maybe your friend missed the part where DL said he expected Gann Matsuda to know his comments about JJ and Michigan were for his education only and not for publication. DL: “The whole article was completely out of context.” “I made a huge mistake thinking the guy (Gann Matsuda) would understand that.”

Way to send a message with purpose DL! This is where the phrase, “cockamamie theory” gets inserted.

BRIAN SAID: “The guy was obviously in distress.” re: guy in rafters.

No, actually he wasn’t. He was smiling and laughing. So if anything was obvious it was that it was a prank. Why else would arena security and the officials allow the game to continue? Ever think of that? You think officials would let the game go on if the guy was really in danger of jumping? Bob made the joke knowing full well play was allowed to continue, meaning the situation was diffused. Now THAT is obvious.

And for the record Bob didn’t say “jump.” The exact quote was: “If he falls it’s too many men on the ice for Detroit.” Hahahahahaha

NYKINGFAN SAID: Unbelievable that…you can come out and knock the guy (kopitar) even in the slightest way.

There’s always room for improvement. If there’s legitimate criticism about the game, by all means mention it. Doesn’t necessarily mean you’re a hater by any stretch at all Hat Trick. It all depends on how you say it and how true it is. I wouldn’t say it was Kopi’s best game of the year. TM said as much, but TM has also backtracked on statements like that AFTER he watches the tape. And if you DO watch the tape, Kopi turned the puck over multiple times in the closing minutes. Terrible decisions there. Again, not a knock on a great game at all, but it is legitimate criticism that young players have to make the right decisions in such crucial situations. You can bet the coaching staff is pointing out the very same thing in the classroom.

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Cynic says:

January 24, 2010 at 11:16 am

What a game! After a bad start that had me beating up the couch, the team showed real cahones and came back strong with some serious dominate play for the 2nd & 3rd. A ‘Captain Obvious’ statement, but worth repeating for me. I just like hearing that regarding the KINGS. Never gets old.

Anyone who thinks Purcell has more finishing skill or skill PERIOD than Scott Parse has lost his marbles. I think if TM still thouhgt that, he would not have put Scooter in so much in the late minutes of the 3rd period like he did. That was a coach seeing the light IMHO. It helped win us the game. Purcell was a non-factor again. At this point, I think it’s better to cut ties. If guys like Petr Sykora can get waived with all his experience, Purcell should not be that tough to let go. I thik he’s afraid of getting hit. His play is very selective. Just my opinion.

BRIAN- If you watched the game, the dude in the rafters (You can see this on the ‘FINAL TAKE’ segment at the end of the game) was smiling and giving a thumbs up laying on that conduit. Doesn’t look like a guy in distress to me. Bob was MUCH nicer than I would have been (And probably a lot funnier too!)

KOPI’S BACK! Welcome back Uncle Fester’s Nephew! (If Uncle Fester and Cousin It had a kid….) We missed ya! MAN did he look like a superstar last night. Damn. Simmer & Richie with their forechecking really open his game up. What a difference. If it works, don’t fix it. Smyth looks a little lost on the line with Brown. He made a few passes to nobody last night which had me screaming. I’m sure he’ll be fine. Just adjusting.

I’m real proud of this team playing like that in Detroit. An important game & 2 points that really moved us forward to a new level as a team. I predict that Tuesday night, our record will be 1-0 with 2 points. One game at a time.

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KingMe20 says:

January 24, 2010 at 11:30 am

That “stupe in the rafters” (as Bob Miller called him) wasn’t in distress, he was drunk off his ass. Two of his friends were also up there, but were caught before they got out in the open. That is according to the Detroit News, by the way.

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jet says:

January 24, 2010 at 12:11 pm

Waves — I asked the same question of the sharks fan. He asked me why would DL give a 5 part interview to a relativly unknown Kings blogger. Why would the interview not take place here, for example? Maybe it was because DL knew Gann would print word for word without question? Gann used DL to drive traffic to his website. DL used Gann to send his message in a way that he could say I made a mistake. Note, that DL did not apoligize to the Michigan coach only to JJ. Also, note that in DLs interview he only used JJ as an example of how bad the coaching was. Look closely, none of the comments were directed at JJ.

Second, I went to a couple of Michaigan hockey blogs and I did find negative quotes about CZ the week after his departure.

Third, my friend and neighbor knows as much about Sharks hockey as anyone. He knows that DL use to track his picks and would call GMs and coachs of junior teams to get updates on progress. If something was not right he would go and visit the prospect right away to try and correct the problem before it affected his relationship with his teammates or his playing time. He acted like the picks were the most improtant part of his life.

I admit it sounded like a reach when I first heard this senario. But, the more I looked into it the more realistic it became. First, one would have to believe that DL thought the Michigan program was so destructive that he did not want to see anyone else go through what CZ did. Second, you would have to believe that DL would use a blogger to get his message out.

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wavesinair says:

January 24, 2010 at 12:56 pm

“Second, you would have to believe that DL would use a blogger to get his message out.”

Huh? Listen to yourself. “DL used Gann to send his message in a way that he could say I made a mistake.” Why on earth would he do that? Why would DL backtrack? What’s the point? Just to throw Gann under the bus? It makes no sense. Seriously. DL looks like an idiot doing that. All he had to do is defend his comments. If the program was so destructive, he would have done just that. Defend, not backtrack. If he truly didn’t want others to go through what CZ went through, then why derail his own efforts? And why screw with Gann’s reputation? Ridiculous.

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Bingram says:

January 24, 2010 at 3:36 pm

DL has said, he meant the comments as a compliment to JJ. For all his criticism of the UM program. JJ has gone from being undisciplined to an Olympian in three years.

I would hope we are over this misscue.

Great game against Detroit, but that was last night. No letup against the Leafs, every game is important. Keep up the pressure.

Go Kings!!

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jet says:

January 24, 2010 at 7:21 pm

waves — I am sorry that you feel you have to resort to insults. You usually take a common sense approach.

Yes, DL may have used Gann to get his desired message out. Yes, Gann used a controversial topic to drive hits to his website. Please do not go to Gann being a state employee who spends his day blogging without any knowledge place. He has been around the team and reporting for a dozen years. HE KNEW WHAT HE WAS DOING. No one threw anyone under the bus, but they both used each other for their own gain.

DL never BACKTRACKED. He stands by what he said. He is just saying he did not think the truth he told would come out in print. When I hear DL say JJ was fully developed coming out of Michigan or that the program develops players, then I will consider the statement a backtrack. The more I look into the situation the more I find this plausible.

The only thing that DL would backtrack on is how he worded the comments on JJ. Still, if you read carefully, can you find an insult. But, I can see how you might.

Let’s look at the end result:

1. The message is out that future UM players will have trouble making NHL teams. How many high school kids do you think saw that comment during the past week?

2. How many other GMs called DL to thank him for exposing the situation that they were hesitant to address? How much collateral did DL build with the US development team?

3. How many jrs. are going to want to be drafted by the Kings this summer? How many parents of prospects will want their sons to fall under the Kings protective umbrella.

DL may be crazy, crazy like a fox.

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wavesinair says:

January 24, 2010 at 7:46 pm

jet, haven’t read all of what you wrote yet (i will), but I saw the first sentence. I’d apologize, but honestly, I don’t see how I “resorted to insults” even once, let alone multiple times (your plural usage). ???

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jet says:

January 24, 2010 at 7:52 pm

Waves — you are right, I was probably too sensitive as I did not even own this theory. But, each time I run next store to get more info, the more I believe it to have some truth.

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wavesinair says:

January 25, 2010 at 9:51 am

1. Cool re: above.
2. It’s time for your friend to write his side.
3. If we can’t even agree DL backtracked, then there’s no helping you. Have you even read anything Gann has said about this on his website? It’s quite revealing. Here’s a piece puckdaddy did as well. He’s a Devil’s fan and thus objective.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/Kings-GM-Lombardi-blames-blogger-for-Michigan-ho?urn=nhl,215338

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What's the frequency, Kenneth? says:

January 25, 2010 at 12:41 pm

“I thought Bob Miller’s repeated, flippant remarks about the fan in the rafters were irresponsible.” …and other….

Oh, come on! The guy could have dealt with it in any other way than to cry out for attention at a Red Wings game.

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