Jonathan Quick is expected to start in goal tonight against St. Louis, one night after he gave up three goals on 16 shots and got pulled late in the first period in favor of Erik Ersberg. Quick certainly didn’t get a lot of help, as he had to help kill penalties and had a teammate put one puck into his net, but as he did immediately after the game, Terry Murray said the goalie replacement was due to two factors: he desire to create a spark, and a bit of dissatisfaction with Quick.
MURRAY: “It’s a real hard, critical point of the game. It’s that time of the year, when everybody has to really give a lot of desperation. We’re killing penalties, and we’re frustrated by what’s going on out there. We’re breaking sticks. Two goals are scored, when Stolly breaks his on the faceoff and Doughty breaks his stick. We get messed up because of that.
“The one goal that I didn’t like, personally, was the second goal, the one-timer off the far side. That’s a play that we have to have, that’s all. It’s real desperation. It’s doing the right thing on the penalty killing. We just have to get a stop on that play. So I looked at that, and the way things were continuing to go in the first period, giving up 17, 18 shots, and we just needed a change also. We needed a bit of a timeout, I guess, to delay things and settle things down and get re-organized.”
Murray added that his first thought was to put Quick back in the game…
MURRAY: “My intent was to put him back in at the start of the next period. That was the thought process, and then when I got in between periods, I just decided to stay with the change.”
Murray also reiterated his praise for Ersberg, who hadn’t appeared in a game since Feb. 11 but came in and stopped all 14 of the shots he faced in regulation.
MURRAY: “Erik did a good job. Billy Ranford, and Jamie and Mark, they do a great job after the morning skates, in particular, with extra work. They really push him and demand a lot from him on the work side of it. They set up drills that are game-like scenarios. So I knew he was ready to get going and that he would do a good job for us. I was not concerned about the game-like conditioning, because of the intensity of the practices.”
I am beginning to wonder why no one is calling out Jack Johnson for his really poor play. Anyone who watched play in the Olympics has to realize that he has not brought that type of effort to a Kings game all season. In the olympics he showed the type of play that he will need to be a star performer in this league. He never loafed a play…always completed his checks. None of that has been shown in a game for the Kings. In my opinion he is the weakest part of our team, and truthfully, I believe he plays with his own agenda and really doesn’t act like a player who is a team type of guy.
I would make it a point to use his elevated supposed value in a trade as soon as the opportunity in the off season arises.
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VanKingsFan Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:44 pm
@Larry,
i respectfully disagree larry. And IMO you do not see enough Kings games if you truly feel he is the worst player on the team.
I would not be surprised at anyone who plays harder in the olympics than they ever have before in their entire lives…. its the Olympics!
Jack has changed a lot as a player, if he has his own agenda he would be jumping up into the offense A LOT more and trying to put up more points.
Why do you feel like he is not a team guy?
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Larry Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:03 pm
@VanKingsFan,
FYI, I have been a season seat holder since 1969 with the exception of the last 2 seasons at the Forum.
He was traded for because in college he was a very chippy player who fit DL’s idea of a defenseman. If you can bring that type of game to the Olympics, you have to show it regularly in the NHL. If you are going to carry a -17 this year, on top of a -18 last year on top of a -19 the year before that, you better bring something else to the ice. Maybe scoring…oh no, he hasn’t done any of that either, even though he regularly ends up behind the opponent’s net leaving his point wide open, with a forward having to scramble to cover for him.
Sorry, I do not think he is teachable. To high an opinion of himself.
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khanon Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:06 pm
@Larry,
Well said
VanKingsFan Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:15 pm
@Larry,
Can you blame him for his high opinion.. When DL criticized him a little bit, everyone was up in arms and saying “You can’t say that about one of your players”
He is second on the team in scoring, so the points arent totally absent, and his scoring has gone up every year he has been in the league.
Defence takes along time to perfect, there are tons of examples are incredbile prospects who take 3, 4 and 5 years in the NHL to reach their potential.
Ryan Suter comes to mind, Jay Bouwmeester, Braydon Coburn just a few examples
khanon Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:45 pm
@Larry,
Yeah, he’s definitely the softest D-man on the team. Even Randy Jones throws an occasional hit.
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VanKingsFan Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:47 pm
@khanon,
Was that sarcasm??? Jack is a beast and tosses guys around regularly.
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khanon Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:57 pm
@VanKingsFan,
Jack is not a beast. The guy rarely gets involved in scrums, nor do I see him throw hard hits. Earlier in the season, there was a 10-12 span of games where Jack was playing very physical and effective. But for most of the season, he’s been as soft as they come…
David Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:50 pm
@khanon, Its tough to make checks when u get called with stupid penalties all the time.
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khanon Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:58 pm
@David,
Doughty throws them, as does O’Donnel, Greene, Scuderi, and even Jones occasionally… Why can’t he? He is a NHL D-man, right?
David Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:06 pm
@Khanon
I was referring to last night’s check…
khanon Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:11 pm
@David,
What about the other 70 games or so?
David Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:15 pm
@Khanon
“nor do I see him throw hard hits”
sounds like he NEVER has a hard check or you dont watch every game.
VanKingsFan Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:17 pm
@khanon,
I think you and Larry are both exaggerating about his softness… and I would believe you if you played against him in a game. I would like to hear from an opponent how hard he is to play against physically each game. Which is more important than the occasional bone crushing, highlight reel hit
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khanon Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:21 pm
@VanKingsFan,
There’s a big difference when you play against a player like Greene or Gleason versus a player like JJ. Greene and Gleason are beasts, not JJ. I don’t know what team you’re watching, maybe you’re getting JJ mixed up with the Johnson in St. Louis?
Jester's Dead Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:05 pm
@Larry,
Do you actually watch the Kings play????
Just curious
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Barry's Mullet Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:21 pm
@Larry,
JJ is still young and learning. I don’t give a crap about +/- thats never accurate. Other than Greene, JJ is the only Kings dman that actually throws guys around on a regular basis. His play in front of the net needs some work but in the corner he rarely gets beat and usually the other teams player is laying on the ice.
I can’t wait until this guy has a little more size and seasoning. He has a lot of confidence in the shootouts and I hope this will eventually translate over to the defensive side of his game which he is still learning.
The kid skates so well, I just wish TM would give him the green light more often. I think just as much as his defensive game is coming along and it has improved the second half of this season, we have only seen a small sampling of what he’s capable of doing offensively.
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Larry Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:33 pm
@Barry’s Mullet, Funny how when a plus minus is a high plus it matters, but you do not give a crap when for three seasons in a row it is a high minus. VanKingsFan, as a matter of fact, Jack is finishing his thrid season already with truthfully very little improvement shown. I don’t care about highlight film checks…what I do care about is blind backhand passes behind his own net, easily predictable and interceptible. As for coming out of the corner with the puck….you have to go into the corners first to be able to come out with the puck. I am tired of watching him wave at oppponents in front of his own net as he screens our own goalie.
Second on the team in scorig…you mean of the defensemen of course. Tough to beat out Greene, OD, Scuderi, who amongst them have about 15 goals in their entire careers.
BTW, DL did not accidently say what he did. I feel it was a desperate attempt to get JJ mad enough to step up. Obviously it did not work.
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VanKingsFan Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:39 pm
@Larry,
Its pretty clear we are not going to agree here. But you have to know he isn’t going anywhere this year and we will be relying on him.
Hopefully time proves you and Khanon wrong and he keeps getting better and better until he is the percect #2 man behind Doughty.
Barry's Mullet Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:45 pm
@Larry,
The only conlusion I can come up with is you think you’re watching JJ but in fact you’re watching Jones…its an easy mistake both their last names start with the letter “J”
You might want to splurge for that bigger TV so you can read the players names and numbers.
Boo! Start Ersberg, he deserves it. If this was the Olympics, Quick wouldn’t be put back in like this.
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FinKing Tmu Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:45 pm
@Masked Man, I With You, Give Ersberg a start.
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VanKingsFan Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:47 pm
@Masked Man,
If this was the Olympics, neither goalie would be on the ice lol
I agree with you though, back to back games, Ersberg is coming off a good performance that earned us a point. Its another slap in the face to the Iceberg. Bring up Bernier instead of starting him, and now this.
Is there a chance that Quick will start to have an attitude of entitlement with the way this season has gone. Like the starting job is his and there is really no danger of him losing it anytime soon. Could cause complacency.
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Masked Man Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:51 pm
@VanKingsFan, Definitely a slap in the face. Too bad since Ersberg is a talented goalie. I’d hate to see him playing on another team (especially against us).
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NOW IMPRESSED Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:47 pm
@VanKingsFan, I wonder what Ersberg needs to do to impress Murray enough to get a start?
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Skebo Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:50 pm
@NOW IMPRESSED,
Getting beat 5 hole on back to back shots during the shootout isn’t very impressive.
I say bring in Roman Cechmanek, I heard through the grapevine that he is still a Free Agent.
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VanKingsFan Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:48 pm
@runningman,
At the time… it seemed like a pretty good move … He dominated for two years in Philly… probably just the amazing team he had in front of him …
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Masked Man Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 2:59 pm
@runningman, How about Cristobal Huet? Just what we need another average goalie when we have 3 great ones. lol
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Rich (or anyone else who has it), could you post links for those magic number sites again? I can’t find them for the life of me! Thanks!
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Skebo Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:00 pm
@Matt R, not ‘magic number’, but I like this one http://www.sportsclubstats.com/NHL/Western/Pacific/Kings.html
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Andrew Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:14 pm
@Skebo, That site is FANTASTIC!!!
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tuan jim Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:29 pm
@Skebo, Yes!
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Matt George Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 4:08 pm
so if I’m readin this thing right
all we need to do is win 3 more games and we’re in?
nice.
Erik did a good job, but let’s face it he just isn’t our #1 goaltender, so Quick should go back in considering that he didn’t play badly and only gave goals off flukey deflections versus virtual 5-3.
Ersberg played most of the game last night and wasn’t put in to many difficult situations during the game, mostly due to the quality defense in front of him. When things got a little scrambly around the net, he got a little lucky too when the ref blew the whistle early. For whatever reason, EE has trouble covering loose pucks in those situations and therefore he needlessly gives up second and third chances.
EE was pretty weak in the shootout too. IMO, Quick would have won the shootout for us.
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Masked Man Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:05 pm
@Skebo, Fair. But facts are facts. Quick 3 goals against on few shots (someone please get me the numbers lol). Ersberg 0 goals against in 3 periods and overtime. Shootout is not part of the regular game so shouldnt even be a factor in deciding whether a goalie starts.
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Skebo Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:17 pm
@Masked Man,
Do you realize that Quick actually faced more shots during his 18+ minutes, than Ersberg faced during his 46+ minutes? And 10 of the 16 shots faced by Quick were while the Kings were shorthanded, sometime short 2 players or short one player and one minus a stick?
Also, talking about facts. The shootout is definitely part of the game. It decides who gets the extra point, therefore it’s part of the game.
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Masked Man Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:20 pm
@Skebo, Shootout is part of the game but you don’t consider it when you are choosing a goalie to start the game. Your goal is to win the game, not get it to shootout.
Skebo Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:37 pm
@Masked Man,
Well, EE didn’t ‘win’ the game. He got a loss last night. How would the Kings have fared if TM stayed with JQ through the whole game? We will never know. IMO, JQ could have made every save that EE made and then also won the SO. You can freely debate that, but I don’t see how EE did anything to earn a start over JQ tonight. EE had it easy compared to JQ last night.
tantrum4 Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:50 pm
@Masked Man,
Exactly, that’s why you start your #1 goaltender and not the backup.
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Masked Man Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 4:05 pm
@tantrum4, I’m not asking for Quick to give up his #1 status, just let Ersberg get a start to prove himself. This would be a perfect time for that considering his performance last night (shootout notwithstanding).
USHA#17 Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:14 pm
@Skebo,
Agree with you on several levels. Generally speaking he was fine. EE appeared a little slower when compared to Quick but that may be a matter of styles.
Puck possession on the part of the Kings increased as the game evolved so that helped.
0, 1 or 2 points, after LaBarbara, EE looked like Espo, Rogie and Dryden rolled into one.
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Masked Man Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:21 pm
@USHA#17, You mean he isn’t?
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USHA#17 Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 3:26 pm
@Masked Man,
I suppose if he was, or if he ate like LaBarbara he’d have it covered post to post.
Masked Man Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 4:36 pm
@Skebo, To blame the scramble on Ersberg only is a mistake. I saw one scramble for the puck where Stoll passed it back to him and the ref blew the whistle early. Stoll acknowledged that was his fault.
Who do you blame when Quick plays the puck to the other team when the net is wide open?
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I know for a fact Juraj Mikus recently touched Doughty’s stick and Ersberg’s glove. That is why they are kicking so much ass right now.
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Matt George Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 4:11 pm
Jurai’s touch is greater than Jacobs.
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VanKingsFan Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 4:14 pm
@Matt George,
haha YES, first appearance of a Lost reference on this site?
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Just listening to TM on home ice xm radio. Anyone who doesn’t think that guy is sharp, ……. think again!!
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HawKings Reply:
March 25th, 2010 at 4:30 pm
@number 6, Oh no, if you believe some on this board, TM should be fired immediately.
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Quick looking not too sharp already. I predict he gets pulled for Ersberg.
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Its not surprising for Quick to look shaky. Look how many games he has played. Goalies do fatigue, whether they know it or not.
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ersberg??? why not Bernier? ersberg won’t carry the team to the playoffs, Bernier can carry the team to the CUP. Bernier fundamentals is up there among elite goalies in the NHL. Even if we make the post season I can’t season Quick carrying us to the next round, he play great some periods but always allowed soft goals. How many times we got beat because of late goals by oppossing team, no need to wait next year to call Bernier because we’re so close now of making the post season.
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