Some notes from last night’s game…
– By several measures, the Kings suffered their worst loss of the season when they fell to the St. Louis Blues 4-0 on Thursday night at Staples Center.
– The Kings were shut out for the sixth time this season, set a new season low for shots on goal (17) and suffered their worst losing margin of the season.
– The Kings had not lost a game by more than three goals this season. They lost 6-3 at San Jose on Nov. 15, 4-1 at Montreal on Nov. 24, 6-3 at Phoenix on Dec. 29, 7-4 vs. Philadelphia on Dec. 3, 3-0 at the New York Islanders on Feb. 19 and 7-4 vs. Detroit on Feb. 28. It was the Kings’ most lopsided regular-season loss since Jan. 19, 2010, a 5-1 loss vs. San Jose.
– The Kings were outshot by the Blues 39-17. It was the Kings’ lowest shot on goal total since they recorded 17 shots on goal in a 3-0 loss vs. Chicago on March 18, 2010. The Kings recorded 16 shots on goal in a 2-1 victory over Calgary on Dec. 7, 2009.
– The Kings were swept 4-0 by St. Louis in the season series, and were outscored by a combined margin of 15-6.
– The Kings went 0-for-1 on the power play and 3-for-3 on the penalty kill. The Kings are 25-for-25 on the penalty kill in their last eight games and have killed 26 consecutive opponents’ power plays overall. The Kings have had just two power plays in their last two games.
– The Kings fell to 20-12-2 at home, 9-16-3 when allowing the first goal, 4-10-1 when trailing after the first period and 4-18-1 when trailing after the second period.
– Jonathan Quick stopped 35 of 39 shots. Quick had allowed two or fewer goals in three consecutive starts. Quick went 0-4 against St. Louis this season.
– Kyle Clifford left the game late in the first period with an “upper-body injury” after being hit in the head during a fight with St. Louis’ Ryan Reaves.
– Anze Kopitar and Alexei Ponikarovsky each recorded a team-high three shots on goal. Dustin Brown was credited with a game-high eight hits and Alec Martinez and Rob Scuderi each were credited with a team-high three blocked shots.
– Drew Doughty played a game-high 23 minutes, 15 seconds. Dustin Brown led all forwards in ice time at 20:00.
– The Kings won 26 of 54 faceoffs (48 percent). Anze Kopitar won 8 of 14 draws (57 percent) while Michal Handzus won 5 of 14 draws (36 percent).
ZUES thats a shocker there he is almost always above 54 to 56% in faceoffs
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Re: booing
The customer is always right.
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Dan Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 10:44 am
@wavesinair, AEG may own the team, but us fans are the ones that pay the prices to see them play. We pay their salary, we tune into the games. The customer IS always right. Good point waves
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Stuart Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 10:49 am
@Dan, if you think there is a direct correlation between us ticket-buying drones and the players you’re way off. AEG keeps our money and gives a small portion of it to the players in salaries… AEG takes your ticket money and buys more land.
Maybe our beer purchases pay the players?
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Dan Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 10:54 am
@Stuart, Good point, but there isn’t a Los Angeles Kings if there aren’t fans to buy the tickets. Staples would be filled with the other teams fans every night (even though it seems lately they are already there).
jet Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:09 am
@wavesinair, but sometimes being right is wrong. It was one game. We have all been there, where you just cannot seem to get it going no matter how hard you try. Every team in the league has games throughout the year like this, especially since they went to 82 games. That being said it is difficult at best to attend one of those type games. Forget it, let’s do better next game.
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Stuart Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:13 am
@jet, nice level head!!!
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wavesinair Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:31 am
@jet,
“sometimes being right is wrong”
Cute but actually, that’s impossible on every logical level. If it’s justified, then no one can say it’s wrong to the letter. However, I know what you’re saying and essentially I agree. It might not be someone’s personal preference, as has been eloquently explained by a number of people on here. And it’s not even my preference, although I would have been tempted. All I remember thinking was, “I am so glad I didn’t go to the game.”
Here’s a compromise: If the team admits they didn’t show up, like they did, and the crowd refrains from booing them, then everyone gets a refund who wants one. I think that’s fair. If the crowd boos, then they don’t get one. I’d like that.
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jet Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:54 am
@wavesinair, But waves, this is why we watch the games. We do not know ahead of time what the result will be. We do not know if our team is physically spent, or emotionally spent. We do not know if the other team will have jet lag or be checking out the ice girls (like JB in New York). We certainly hope that both teams will be at their best and that the kings will have an opportunity to win. So we go, and cheer, so that if the Kings win, we feel a small part of the joy the players do (and so that we can make fun of the Duck fans at work the following day). Life has no guarantees. We might have bought property in California last week, you might have bought Borders stock last year, and you may have been a Kings fan for 40+ years. There are no guarantees, and there are no refunds. I am willing to put my money down at the next game, because I believe in the team. Respectfully, Jet
wavesinair Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:01 pm
@jet,
Wow jet, please stop re-framing the argument. I totally agree with you. There are no guarantees. And if you notice, I didn’t use that word at all (nor was it implied).
Let’s agree, we’re are not talking about winning and losing. We are talking about effort. We are not talking about playing well, we are talking about effort. We are not talking about rooting for the team we love, we are talking about disapproving of a lack of effort.
And, of course, I was kidding about the refunds. Like that would ever happen.
jet Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:03 pm
@wavesinair, okay, agreed
Hey Rich, any chance of seeing the time spent in opponent’s zone for both teams? There were a couple cycles by the blues that seemed to go on for minutes at a time.
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Rich – apologies for belaboring this, but I have a postgame note as well. I would hope that Terry Murray knows the outrage he has caused by his insensitive comments. As I type this, I noted that the game quotes from Smyth, Scuderi & Brown garnered 21, 17 & 13 comments respectively, and the “Murray Unhappy with players & fans” had 371 comments, followed by 272 on your “To Boo or Not To Boo” poll. This speaks volumes to me, and in reading the comments, it seems a large majority of the posters feel as insulted as I do by TM’s comments. I am going to try and let this go now, so I can get some work done. As always, thanks for your efforts. I could never boo you.
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Stuart Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 10:50 am
@kingswings, do or do not, there is no try.
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Token Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:06 am
@kingswings, I agree. TM needs to go before the camera and apologize to the fans.
His comments were unprofessional regardless of his level of frustration. This is not leadership.
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jet Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:15 am
@Token, That is precisely TM’s job, to deflect any distractions from the team. Look at what happened. The team laid an egg. TM wishes makes statements that supersede anything done on the ice. The team gets a pass for that game. The team is on the verge of back to back playoff years. TM needs to keep the negators away from the players.
Job well done TM.
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penguin76 Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:42 am
@jet,
i don’t think the team is getting a pass for the sorry ass effort last night. everyone is still pissed at that. its just Murray wagging his finger at paying fans does not sit well with many paying fans. so this is getting a ton of attention, but in no way is the team getting a pass if you ask me.
jet Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:55 am
@jet, please see kingswings’ post numbers form the first post in this series.
penguin76 Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:49 pm
@jet,
i would venture to say the player quotes are not getting the same amount of posts because the players actually took responsibility for not showing up and did not say the fans were mean. i didn’t see Smyth, Brown or any of the other players once say they felt the fans booing was not needed. Murray is the only one who complained and pissed off the fans. thats why we are getting so many posts on anything having to do with Murray.
BigMikeonD Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:21 am
@Token, He can apologize by getting the team to play at a high level and winning a cup. Terry Murray doesn’t owe me as a fan anything else.
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Choralone Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:23 am
@Token, Are you and kingswin being ironic? If you get to boo Terry Murray, he gets to boo you. You expect him to take it when hundreds – if not thousands – of us boo him and his team while he is working, but then struggle to “get some work done” when he responds in kind?
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puddle Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:25 am
@Choralone, Bull. He is NOT paying our salary, but we damn sure are paying his.
kingswings Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:03 pm
@Choralone, No, no irony intended. Technically, the team’s LACK OF EFFORT (which I suppose is an indirect and unfortunate result of TM’s “work”) prompted me to boo, then Terry Murray booed us (me), then I in turn booed him directly. His job is to coach the team, make sure they are ready to play, and yes, defend them if necessary. But not at the cost of alienating and insulting a large portion of the passionately loyal fanbase. I’ve been a Kings fan ten times longer than he’s been the coach, so I feel I have a little bit of say here too. And who said anything about “struggling” to get some work done? Which I have, by the way. I said I was going to try and let this go. I obviously failed. See, I admit it. Boo me.
NOW IMPRESSED Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:40 am
@Token, We gave him our thought, he gave us his; I think that’s fair. I don’t want an apology from him, I want the team to come to the games prepared to win.
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BigMikeonD Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:36 am
@kingswings, For all of you that take the stance of “I help pay their salaries, they owe it to me”. Do you say that to the Police when they are writing you a ticket? “I pay your salary, you can’t give me a ticket!” Give that stance a rest already. It was one game. Geez people.
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puddle Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:02 pm
@BigMikeonD, There’s a huge difference between CHOOSING to pay for something (the Kings) and having no choice at all (public services). All of us are merely asking that effort is given to respect the money that we CHOOSE to spend on their game and their team. We have limited available funds. Many have funds so limited they can only go to one or two games a year.
If my boss is unhappy with me because my effort level and productivity sucks, he has the right to voice his displeasure. He’s paying my salary and I’m ultimately responsible to him. Ultimately, the Kings answer to the fans.
All this being said, I agree it was one game and they don’t deserve our permanent scorn… and neither does TM. This is a great team that I’ve grown to really love, which makes it all the more disheartening when they lay a stink bomb in front of their own fans.
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Stuart Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:09 pm
@puddle,
1st – your boss doesn’t PAY your salary unless you’re working in some ma-n-pa establishment (which is you are, more power to you)
2nd – the Kings don’t answer to the fans, they answer to the board members of AEG.
3rd – fans can boo, and TM can say what he wants in response. Some have used the freedom of speech arguement on the site, well guess what he has the that same right. In the long scheme of things fans booing and TM commenting changes nothing. If some of our feelings have been hurt by TM than maybe we need to look in the mirror as people and grow some thicker skin…
kingswings Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:23 pm
@BigMikeonD, I didn’t say they owe it to me because I pay their salaries. Where did you get that from my comments? I said in another thread that I feel I do have THE RIGHT (entitlement) as a paying customer to boo this team if I decide to. And even though I believe I have that right, I don’t always feel it’s “right” to boo (and I very rarely do). There is a distinction here. Just because I can doesn’t mean I do. For me, however, it was right (“okay”) to boo them last night to show that I cared and was paying attention to, and terribly disappointed (pissed off) by, their lack of effort.
Now, I’m tired of writing “boo”. It’s starting to look funny to me.
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T-bone Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:53 pm
@kingswings, Doesn’t it always seem that the scolded child objects the loudest. Shame on the fans for booing! If you were a player how would you respond? Would you come out charging in the third for booing fans? As an athlete, I’d give it a shot, but it would be harder than if they fans were cheering, I can tell you that.
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I’m a little late to the booing discussion (ok, a lot late haha), but here’s my take.
I am loath to boo my own team, and will only boo when BOTH of the following conditions are met:
1) There is a CLEAR and OBVIOUS lack of desire, heart and effort on the part of the ENTIRE team
2) I already done my best to inject life into the team by cheering and getting my fellow Kings fans to cheer as well, to no avail
Then, and only then, will I boo. For me, it comes down to feeling helpless as a fan. We show that we care by cheering, paying money, coming to the stadium game after game, season after season. But we cannot influence what happens on the ice, except by cheering and, in very rare circumstances, booing. People talk about being behind your team 100% – and I get that – but when the team collectively fails to show up to their jobs, they are NOT 100% behind us, and to me, that is more disrespectful than the booing itself.
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M.T. Net Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 10:57 am
@puddle, agreed.
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The thought just occurred to me that this must be EXACTLY how the San Jose fans felt about the game we dominated them 4-0 in their crib back in January. The game that I call one of the top 3 games played by a Kings team EVER for 60 minutes.
St. Louis played that type of game against us last night, with a very beat up team.
The difference is that San Jose (If I’m not mistaken) was on a losing streak at that time. We just came of a 4 game road sweep, playing awesome and consistent hockey.
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wavesinair Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:12 am
@Cynic,
If memory serves, I thought the Sharks were actually trying in that game. The Kings were just on fire. I thought it was obvious, and later confirmed by the players themselves, that they didn’t even show up (excluding a few players).
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Despicable effort last night. It’s sad we can’t beat Chicago and St. Louis. But every year it’s one tema or another we just can’t solve. Headgames maybe??? Anyway, it looks as if we are not a comeback team (4-18-1 when trailing after the second period), so it’s safe to say, once we’re down we’re out….I don’t want to question the heart of the team, but don’t heart and character go hand in hand when making a deep run into the playoffs? I mean, just look at what Vancouver did to us last year.
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NOW IMPRESSED Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:18 am
@Josh M, Agreed. My fear now is that when the Kings make the playoffs this year, the opposing team just needs to look at the films on how Chicago and St. Louis beat us so easily and we’ll be out in 4.
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RobSD Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:57 am
@Josh M,
Dallas.
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BEAT ANAHEIM.
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Sebastian Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:06 am
@M.T. Net, BOOOOO…. i mean YEAHHHHH GO KINGS GO!
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The worst game i ever seen
Shame Kings Shame
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Quick kept them in the game for 38 minutes. Took away any chance after that (not that there was ever a legitimate chance, the way they were playing)
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M.T. Net Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:16 am
@Empty Netter, except for the goal from center ice
but yeah, dude stood on his head for 39 minutes and 53 seconds…then the bottom fell out. as it should when NOBODY ELSE SHOWED UP TO PLAY.
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KingsFanFTW Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:22 am
@Empty Netter, yea he was amazing that game just no help
It like him solo a dragon with a dagger by him self than having people with weapons that can take that dragon out
So poor Quick got eaten up
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oh what happen tot he Kings Fan they all just throwing in a towel
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KingsFanFTW Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:20 am
@KingsFanFTW, to the*
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I think the only positive that I can get from last nights game is that we’re all on the same page. Players, coaches and fans all not happy. TM showing some emotion maybe towards the team at how upset he was and at the fans. We say and do things we later regret when we’re ticked off.
Great everyone gets it off their chests including the fans. Now the team can hopefully move forward this Saturday and get the win. And coach Stop playing Westgarth! We need offense not the goon squad. A losing streak at this point would be pretty damn sad.
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Bad move by TM for taking a shot at the fans, no fans no nhl, TM seems to always have a look on his face like he has no idea what is going on, very confused, he’s just a old man, the team is set, DL has done his job, I wish we had a coach who would be harder on our players, not just feel bad for them because their feelings were hurt, he’s making them weaker… Our players don’t need this type of personality, go away TM…
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Stuart Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:27 am
@Simpleton, it’s called being stoic. You’d rather have a mad-man behind the net yelling and screaming and throwing sticks onto the ice? He’s making them weaker??? Have you been here all year? I don’t think TM is making them WEAKER. If anything he’s making them stronger, bringing them closer together.
go away simpleboy.
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Stuart Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:28 am
@Stuart, net=bench
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Simple Jack Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:37 am
@Stuart, did I hurt your feelings? Ha HA….
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Stuart Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:50 am
@Simple Jack, not at all, just showing your age, which by the comment I’m assuming you couldn’t buy your own beer yet… lol…
KingsFanFTW Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:44 am
@Simple Jack, i disagree with u how he making them weaker???
i see them getting stronger and stronger
We use to have a coach yelling at the players but that never work out they went softer later on because that kills them in a way that no fans will ever see
U dont see what TM or Any coach see…that why we are called Fans nothing more
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Simple Jack Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:07 pm
@KingsFanFTW, just a fan, stating what see, nothing more, example:Brad Richardson, is a hustler, he never takes a shift off, he should be playing every game, Ryan Smith: Is a loafer, skates like he’s playing roller hockey, he should not be playing every game. Richardson Kopi Simmer, was our best line, but he kept trying to change that… just simply stating my opinion as fan,
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Folks, it is one of 82 games. Who cares if we lose 12-0 or 5-4, the outcome is the same? have we had a couple of bad games this year? Yes, but please remember just a couple of years ago when the players did not seem to care in any of the games over the final two months. Some players looked like they just came from the links. We now have complete team efforts on most nights. It is crasy to expect the team to carry playoff intnsity for 30 games straight. The key is that we are able to bounce back after games like this. So far, I would say that we have. Focus on the next game because that is the one that will impact our playoff hopes.
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wavesinair Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 11:41 am
@jet,
“Who cares if we lose 12-0 or 5-4, the outcome is the same?”
Agreed. Although, must have missed where the goal differential is the main complaint. As far as I can tell, it is purely the lack of effort, which the players themselves admitted to.
“The key is that we are able to bounce back…so far…we have.”
Uh, no. The fact is that all season long, the Kings have been very up and down with coming back after a loss. In the early part of the season, as well as lately, they have limited the losses to a couple of games, but during the bulk of the season, they have gone on extended losing streaks after a loss. So the outlook for the next game is anything but clear.
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RobSD Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:00 pm
@wavesinair,
Anaheim has been playing solid hockey lately too. Our games against them are always very fast paced.
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jet Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:01 pm
@wavesinair, I was referring to coming back with a good effort after laying an egg. If you look at the games that have been playoff games for us (since the big road trip), we have done a pretty good job. I bet o 4 or 5 games a year. I will be putting down my biggest bet of the year on the Kings in their next game. TM always had the boys ready for the big games. I invite you to share in my enjoyment.
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wavesinair Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:51 pm
@jet, I hope you win a lot of money!
jet Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 1:38 pm
@waves, allow me to pony up for the first round at the next insiders game. Rich – is that going to be aginst the Ducks on the last game?
I wasn’t at the game last night, but I was shaking my head at the TV. What bothered me the most was the lack of effort. The Kings had a day rest, the blues were in a back-to-back game, they should have been the ones tired.
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Let’s define when people boo. This is how I’d break it down:
Take this with a grain of salt…
Some hockey fans boo when:
1. Common when a “good” team comes on the ice before a game
2. At the refs for a bad or non call against the home team
3. When the home team plays poorly with respect to expectations – below half of expected capability is about when boos happen
4. When the team is bad and gets worse – ie Lost last night 6-0, Then go down 3-0 in first period. 2-0 would be ok after one since they’re still on the same pace.
I don’t think it’s ever okay to boo except number 3. So I really don’t like it when someone violates my self imposed rule against my team. If you boo’d them last night were you mad at me for not booing?
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They now have lost 7 straight games to this St. Louis team which is not a playoff team. There is something wrong with that picture.
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Stuart Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:04 pm
@Bob Weinstein, it’s the ghost of the Courtnall bros… lol
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Simple Jack Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 12:22 pm
@Stuart, lol, lol, lol, lol, ha ah…
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mash-ola Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 2:21 pm
@Simple Jack, It must be the curse of the Gateway Arch… that and Ted Drewe’s Frozen Custard…. That’s the only possible thing I can think of.
Tm Is getting a customer complaint and he responds negatively to that. Any one of us would have been reprimanded by our employers. He does not. How is booing any different than a timeout a fight or a big hit. If I was a player and the loyal fans started booing I would want to respond with increased effort and energy.
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You know..I said to myself..I’m not even going to read the blog comments tomorrow because I know people are going to be going off about last nights game and be totally rude. I was at the game, and YES, they played AWFUL! Probably the worst I’ve seen…but come on…they’re not allowed to have a bad game?! Give me a break! As fans, we’re supposed to SUPPORT our team, not boo them off the ice! Let’s just put this game behind us and move on. Go Kings!
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Newf Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 1:03 pm
@Laura, exactly my thoughts Laura. i was ticked off last night when i saw the score and highlights, but i refrained from coming on until today to read anything to let myself cool off. I’m sure no one feels worse than the team does. I’m also sure that they’re going to rebound and come out and be solid for the rest of the year.
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Take out the 8 losses in regulation by the Kings against the Hawks and Blues this season, and the Kings have a 40-18-5 record against the rest of the league, with 183 goals for(2.91 per game), and 147 goals against(2.34 per game). Stats tell only so much, but the Kings are usually pretty good. If the Kings had won even 2 of those 8 games, which they could have, they would be in an even better spot.
Thankfully the Kings don’t have to deal with the Blues for the rest of the season. They may end up playing the Hawks in the playoffs though. Cross that bridge if and when the Kings get there.
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So will tomorrow night’s game against Anaheim be TM’s 3001st game behind the bench? I hope nobody boos tomorrow or else he might cry.
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So I guess what you’re saying is… there is room for improvement…
It was a pitiful game for the Kings, but considering they went 4-0 on their last roadtrip, and they went 3-1 against Detoilet (my personal measuring stick of success), I can give them a pass for this one game. As much as I wish, the Kings are not going to ever be an 84-0 team (nor anyone else for that matter). I guess the old adage ‘you can’t win’em all’ applies here. It seemed like a slam dunk playing a poor-standing St. Louis team. But this is the pros, and even the worst teams in the league are capable of beating anyone on any given night if the other team (in this case said Kings), don’t come to compete. I’ll take the high road and say this was a valuable lesson for them as the stretch drive comes to the wire. Come every night to compete and take every game and every opponent seriously and with respect. World Peace and rah rah rah….
Knute Rockne and Vince Lombardi have just left the building…
GO KINGS!
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kingeleven Reply:
March 19th, 2011 at 2:14 pm
@mash-ola, I also agree that no team will ever go 84-0 durring the regular season.
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