Anze Kopitar’s ankle injury left a void on the first line (and the power play…and the penalty kill) and also, less formally, among the Kings’ leadership group. Kopitar and Matt Greene serve as assistant captains to captain Dustin Brown. When Greene was out of the lineup at the start of the season, Terry Murray initially did not name a replacement to wear the `A’ but ultimately gave it to Michal Handzus. It’s a safe bet that the letter will be stitched on Handzus’ jersey again, but as of this afternoon, Murray said he had not yet decided on Kopitar’s replacement…
MURRAY: “I haven’t yet. That’s something that I’m going to have to think about though, now that I know that Kopitar is going to be out of the lineup for the rest of the way here. I’ll look at a couple of the veteran players and talk to the coaching staff and decide by this evening.”
[UPDATE: Jarret Stoll is wearing the ``A'' in pregame warmups.]
Smitty gets my vote.
Does the “A” get to talk to the refs like the “C” does?
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Kevin Y Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:21 pm
@Stuart,
Yes, I believe. The only difference between the “C” and “A” is who does ceremonial face-offs and picks up the Cup.
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mrbrett7 Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:36 pm
@Kevin Y, Quite a bit more difference than that.
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andy Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:21 pm
@Stuart, yes.
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McSwarley Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:22 pm
@Stuart,
Yes. They do.
I like you, Stuart. You’re not like other people here, in the trailer park.
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Stuart Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:23 pm
@McSwarley, lol! I bet you say that to all the guys that have 3 teeth they can rub together…
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McSwarley Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:24 pm
@Stuart,
But do you have burrow owl?
Stuart Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:34 pm
@McSwarley, nah, had one but the queer aliens from Des Moines probed it to death…
Joey No-No Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:48 pm
@McSwarley, Jumping Jesus on a pogo-stick!
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andy Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:22 pm
@Stuart, it’ll be zues.
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Bill M. Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:22 pm
@Stuart, When the C isn’t on the ice, yes.
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toothless puckmouth Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:25 pm
@Stuart, yeah the Alternate Captains may address the ref and handle all of the Captains responsibilities when the Captain is out of the lineup..not on the ice…or is in the sin bin
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Slim Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:31 pm
@Stuart, Rich..
love the :A: eh?
A lot of Canadians do use that
How often do you hear it ? No doubt it still happens…
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There’s no A in Doughty… or Johnson…
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Jeremy Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:32 pm
@Marc Nathan, that’s a good thing. they aren’t leaders on this team yet
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Paul G Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:50 pm
@Jeremy, Drew is
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sid the kid Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 3:57 pm
@Paul G,
yeah, he’s only the leader in turnovers and playing out of position
Personally, I would’ve gone with Ryan Smyth because he’s such a great veteran leader, but no problem with Handzus. He’s done so much for us in his 4 years with the Kings.
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GkingsG99 Reply:
March 30th, 2011 at 11:05 am
@Kevin Y, Yep me too, and i think it would have lit more of a fire under Smyth too… but hey, who needs a C or A to be a leader.
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Anyone else find it weird that the uniform Quick is wearing in that ad to the right is a black on white road uni?
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Stuart Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:25 pm
@cjms, I think the pics in b&w with his skin color ted turnerized…
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Kevin Y Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:27 pm
@cjms,
I don’t think it’s so weird. If he were wearing black, the ad would be too dark. The white gives it better contrast, and makes it more appealing to the blog’s readers.
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Blue Coconuts Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:21 pm
@cjms, they just photoshopped it and messed around with the colors a bit. If you look close, you can see a little bit of color on the logo, and the stripes on the arm.
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LVKINGS88 Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:46 pm
@cjms, That’s funny I was thinking the same thing.I think this could be a great jersey,the black,white and silver,and maybe on the crown you could add the purple(sorry forum blue)and gold.You wouldn’t have to change the design of the jerseys,just the color’s.
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Scuds
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Mike Martinez Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:29 pm
@dcaps55, i agree with you id go with Scuderi that guy is a solid blueliner is never out of position isnt going to wow u with goals but he’s the player id trust to be on the ice with the game on the line
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CameronAC Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 3:31 pm
@Mike Martinez, yeah, i absolutely love scuds, but does his solid play affect his team leadership?
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It’s no brainer TM…Zus.
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It goes to the guy with the most “A”‘s in his name.
Kopi was one of the few with 2.
Anze Kopitar
Michal Handzus
Alec Martinez
I like Martinez but I don’t know if he’s “A” material just yet. It goes to Zues.
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Kevin Y Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:28 pm
@Bill M., I like your selection method…
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Chip Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 3:07 pm
@Bill M.,
CAptAin CAnAdA
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mcsorleyfan Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 3:57 pm
@Bill M., it seems you’ve been studying and are on the track of cracking the secret Terry Murray line combo system!
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mcsorleyfan Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 3:58 pm
@Bill M., if so, look out; WestgArth??
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I would go with Smith, Zeus, and i would say Stoll (seems like a vocal guy out there)
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What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:34 pm
@kennynakamoto, I think Stoll is worth at least a mention too.
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KellyHrudey Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 5:45 pm
@kennynakamoto, what about willie mitchell? he’s an articulate class act…
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I think Zeus would wear it well, but it might not be a bad idea to give it to Smyth. With him being “Captain Canada” and the way he stepped up on Saturday when Kopi went down, it might be a good reminder to have the leadership needed from him right now pinned to his chest.
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Also, it doesn’t matter too much, but I think it’d be pretty cool for Smyth to go back to Edmonton and wear the “A”. Like when Luc wore the “C” in his final game. It would just be sorta poetic.
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‘A’ is for alternate, not assistant.
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The part I like the most is the fact that we have a club deep enough that I would be comfortable giving it to any of our Vets right about now…..Zus, Smyth, Scuds or Mitchell
All these guys are here for the TEAM and not just for the $!
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dcaps55 Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:44 pm
@IIShort, Mitchell has also been incredible lately. In some ways he may be more deserving than Scuds right now.
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Give it to Stoll, Mitchell or Scuderi. I think they are a little more vocal in getting the point across. Especially Mitchell. He has been playing very good lately and I believe having a career year.So one of those 3 should be given that honor.
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DesertKing Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 1:54 pm
@Kings Fan Vancouver, WA,
I concur with Mitchell. I would be happy with either Zeus or Mitchell. Ever since Mitchell showed up, you can see that it is a team with a different mindset and attitude. When Mitchell was out with his injuries, things were different and then got better when he returned. I think he has more of an impact than most people know.
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KingsGuy Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 3:01 pm
@DesertKing, I think it needs to be another FWD – “A” is Greene and possibly Zues or Stoll.
However, I would like to see Mitchell with the “A”.
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KingsGuy Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 9:47 pm
@KingsGuy, Nice to see Stoll with the A. I was thrown off when I had first look at him! HAHA
zues is a good choice… so are smyth, stoll, scuderi, and mitchell… imo.
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so many options. but i’d have to go with Smyth b/c he makes more. make him earn it now. lol.
i kid i kid. smytty would be a great choice.
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My choice would be Zeus.
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Handzus and Smyth are the obvious choices, and good ones at that, but it would be nice to see Willie Mitchell get an “A’ for the remainder of Kopitar’s absence. He has had a great year considering all of his injury troubles in the recent past.
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Canadian King Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:16 pm
@Michael,
Agreed!
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smyth
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Rich, off topic, but do you know when the Kings will have info on Fan Appreciation night?
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Harry Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:31 pm
@friarking, April 9 – When we play the Sucks
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friarking Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 4:14 pm
@Harry, I know that. I was refering to the night overal. Will they have something going on in the concourse of LA Live since it’s a night game this year?
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Actually, the only “A” I care about tonight is
The “A” for effort that the team gives us..
What would please me most would be to get
4 points on this road trip..
That will really screw up the Hockey “Media” pundits
and all the bandwagon supporters that have called us
out for the count…Boy, that stuff bothers me to no end..
GKG
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Kings Fan Vancouver, WA Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:30 pm
@Slim, Yeah I truly believe the Kings are the most hated team in the NHL.
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launch Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:31 pm
@Slim, couldn’t agree more Slim….it’s only going to make it so much more sweet if we can do well in the playoffs….unfortunately they will be nowhere to be found (the media pundits) if we go deep.
GKG
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Zues or Mitchell. Mitchell had the A as a canuck and Zues has already had it also and smyth would be 3rd choice
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Smyth should get it. He always stays positive and he’s a leader.
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hockeyfanB4Gretzky Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:36 pm
@mcg, I Agree here he is a class act and a very respected member of the NHL.
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Kevin Westgarth gets my vote If he wont fight other teams players maybe he can argue with the refs.
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Smyth, Handzus, Scuder, Mitchell, Stoll…any of those five please.
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Drew
Drew
Drew
Drew
Drew
Drew
which from the above would u pick? The chirpy one? The leader? The fancy one? The gritty one? Lol
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DY Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 2:56 pm
@Paul G, Baby Dewey? Maybe a few years ahead but not now. It needs to be a veteran.
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i say mitchell is the best choice.. hes mature and experienced and a solid defenseman.. scuderi and handzus arent vocal enough
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How aboot,the “EH” switched around to Smyth,Zues,Stoll,Scuds and Mitchell for the remainder of regular season,and see who does the best at it,then that will determine who get’s it for the play-offs ?(come on guys,playoffs,lets do it)Heck all these guys deserve it.
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Zues, but wouldn’t be disappointed if Smitty got the “A”.
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I think they should really consider “stitching” the number 11 & 14 on their uniforms!
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Zeus is the one with the Hockey Brain and should have the “A”
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jonsey Reply:
March 29th, 2011 at 4:24 pm
@Reborr, A hockey brain and a grandmother’s back!
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It is alternate captrain not assistant captain.
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I would give the ‘A’ to Williams, but he happened to fall off the wagon before Kopitar.
Smyth is a fine choice.
Handzus is a player favorite and a typical Murray/Lombardi guy -quiet, humble, leader type.
If I wasn’t mad at Scuderi for playing kind of poorly lately, I’d pick him.
Stoll isn’t even a bad choice, except he takes a lot of penalties and the refs might respond well to his objections.
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