It’s fair to say that those who had never watched Dustin Penner before could learn everything they need to do by watching Game 3. Penner had a brilliant pass to Michal Handzus for the Kings’ first goal, a play that most players wouldn’t even be able to attempt, never mind complete. Then, in the next period, Penner took a completely pointless roughing penalty that led to San Jose’s second goal, and in overtime he was essentially a spectator as Devin Setoguchi scored. Fortunately for Terry Murray, his hair is already gray, but Penner’s inconsistency — on full display since the Feb. 28 trade from Edmonton — led to some pointed questions today. Would Murray consider flipping Penner with fourth-line winger Alexei Ponikarovsky, as he has done periodically during games? Would Murray consider benching Penner in favor of Oscar Moller? The answer was the same to both questions…
MURRAY: “No, I’m not thinking that way [flipping Ponikarovsky for Penner] at the start of a game. Dustin Penner is a very talented guy. He can become a very good player in this game. Size, strength, speed, skill, he can make a difference in the game for us, and that’s what we need right now, for him to give us that kind of a performance. But clearly, if things are not going well for him personally, then I have the option of moving Ponikarovsky up there, which I did last night a couple times. That’s the option that I have, as I move through the game.”
Question: And, as the series gets deeper and the way the games are played might change, is there any thought to getting Oscar Moller in the lineup, maybe even for Penner?
MURRAY: “No. I don’t have that thought. Again, I like our lineup the way it is. I’m very aware of what Oscar Moller gave to us in Game 2, because of the circumstance with Stoll being suspended. He played very well. I think you need the grit. I think you need Westgarth, as an example, in the lineup. I’m going to stay with that. Dustin Penner can make a difference for us. He can really get it cranked up pretty good when he applies himself the right way. And all I want from him right now, coming to our team late in the season like this, is to bring the effort, bring the tempo, bring the hard work. Good things will happen with talented players when they do that. We saw the one play, with Zeus’ goal. He makes a good play on it. I’ve got to trust him to get his game in order and to bring a difference to the game at any given time that he’s on the ice.”
Also, to answer another question asked semi-regularly, Scott Parse is not yet ready to play, so he’s not an option.
It’s not hurting the Kings to bench him for a game……. he’s not contributing much anyway. And, personally, I’d rather have a “hungry” rookie in there who WANTS to show what he’s got……
[Reply]
pitty Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:24 pm
@Dom, Great message to the rest of the guys Terry, Play lazy don’t give a crap about the team and we will just keep playing you. Sorry Terry but you have lost all credibility with me. After 20 years as a season ticket holder I have never been this disappointed in the team, in fact I just gave my Thursday tickets away.
[Reply]
cpmc29 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:15 pm
@pitty, if they win tomorrow can I have game 6 tickets?
[Reply]
Iceman91321 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:35 pm
@pitty, Can you imagine how Coach Barry Melrose would’vd reacted to last night’s game? I can assure you of two things: A time out would’ve been called in the 2nd period and today Penner’s butt would be benched.
[Reply]
hockeykingsguy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:28 pm
@Dom, I agree. So which Hungry rookie do you think we should call up? You can’t be talking about Moller, he has had lots of chances and I have yet to see him be hungry.
[Reply]
Michael J. Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:35 pm
@hockeykingsguy,
He’s a little guy, he doesn’t eat much…
[Reply]
RLane420 Reply:
April 21st, 2011 at 9:33 am
@hockeykingsguy, Didnt we win the last game the little guy played in 4 – 0.
[Reply]
snbrdsummit Reply:
April 21st, 2011 at 10:04 am
@hockeykingsguy,
How does 26 points in 87 games with less than 12 minutes on ice per game suit you?
[Reply]
garry Reply:
April 21st, 2011 at 10:15 am
@hockeykingsguy, Moller is not skilled enough and way too fragile for this game. Small player’s must have mucho skill to survive and he is tiny.
[Reply]
What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:30 pm
@Dom, I’d always rather have someone with limited game who applies himself. Look at Cliffy, for example. Until he develops it, he’s got limited game, but he’s pushing the envelope, and he’s possibly already more useful than Penner.
[Reply]
Eberlin Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:37 pm
@What’s the frequency, Kenneth?, Dude, the Gretzky statue outside Staples is more useful than Penner right now. At least the statue takes up space somewhere near a scoring area and just about everyone is aware of where the statue is at all times.
And as for Clifford…what he lacks in skill, he more than makes up for in enthusiasm and hard work. Gotta admire that.
[Reply]
Harty Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 7:37 pm
@What’s the frequency, Kenneth?, he’s second in team scoring in the playoffs, but your right he has limited game, your dead wrong my friend…..the reason is he’s the complete package
[Reply]
CMaldo Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:54 pm
@Dom,
Last nigafter I watched the game and as I was shouting at Penner to hustle and cover Seteguchi, I also had the same reaction. Bench his lazy ass. A few hours later though I have to agree with TM. Penner may not want to be here in LA. He may have preferred to be golfing along with the rest of the oilers by now, but he SURE AS HELL is notngoing to want to be here if all TM does is discipline him. Would you play your best if your coach demoted you or benches you each and every time you made a mistake? By giving Pens a second chance, TM is hoping Penner will feel more secure and that he has the support of his coach to get a better performance out of him.
It won’t last forever and I wouldn’t be totally surprised if Penner gets dealt next year. But in the mean time he had his chances and shouldn’t be surprised when it happens either.
Now… let’s go get ‘em Kings!
[Reply]
Dom Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 6:21 pm
@CMaldo, get dealt next year???? For what? A sack of potatoes??
He’s got one more year at what….. 4.5M? Nobody wants that UNLESS he’s got a stellar season early on – it’s a contract year after all for him.
Maybe that’ll wake him up.
But, DL, whatever you do, do NOT resign him or he’ll be lazy again, haha………
[Reply]
CMaldo Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 7:52 pm
@Dom,
I didn’t say he would be dealt, just that it wouldnt surprise me. I agree that the value of his stock is likely plummeting faster than fuel prices in California are rising but, we traded for him and he does have huge potential. The components are there. If nothing else, we need to put him through some serious conditioning training to build his stamina during the off season. I don’t think he has no heart. I think he has no endurance.
Only time will tell what will happen. In the meantime, I can only try to be supportive, and hope the taste of victory in this series will mend the wounds of the painful defeat last night.
USHA#17 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 10:10 pm
@Dom, If he plays lime this next year. He won’t be getting $4.5 again nor will he play someplace fun.
Mike McGriff Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 8:02 pm
@Dom, I’m tired of seeing Dustin Penner go on shift after shift, skate around a bit and then look anxious to get off the ice. He has the tools to really help the team and earn his pay check but refuses. Woopie he got an assist. Murray, open your eyes. If he has personal problems (like the rest of us) and can’t do his job you gotta take him off in favor of an energetic Oscar Moller. When a fight broke out around the net, he glanced over and skated to the bench. I think he must bring the team down also.
[Reply]
Come on Penner needs to get out of LA am sorry but the Trade was horrible
i want it back that other guy we dont know of would of been better than him this guy gets push off the puck by a little guy a big guy like him get kick off his feet but a small guy come on
[Reply]
KingsFanFTW Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:09 pm
@KingsFanFTW, by** not but
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RLane420 Reply:
April 21st, 2011 at 9:37 am
@KingsFanFTW, Same thing was said about Williams trade.
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Stuart Reply:
April 21st, 2011 at 9:55 am
@RLane420, why you gotta bring up old sh!t…
jokes.
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This is going to be a very interesting off season, to say the least.
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viciar to the king Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:30 pm
@Bogus Dude,
Very interesting
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EternalOptimist Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:35 pm
@Bogus Dude,
Yeah, with the Stanley Cup parade in LA… staying positive
[Reply]
Good ole TM.
Frolov wasn’t making enough effort, but Penner is? LMAO.
If anyone still thinks TM is sane, please please explain ;o)
[Reply]
KingsFanFTW Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:16 pm
@Erik4Kings, LOL yea
Moller would be better than Penner but he doesnt like moller
[Reply]
Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:18 pm
@KingsFanFTW,
^Seriously…so sad. Moller may get killed one game, lol, but he’ll give you his all until he does.
[Reply]
KingsFanFTW Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:28 pm
@Erik4Kings, lol yea but at leats he give it his all then penner
Dom Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:20 pm
@Erik4Kings, TM is a great coach. Trying to get the best out of him (Penner).
As I said above, I’d probably have a different approach as my coach back then had a different, rougher (Keenan-ish) approach to things and that’s why I don’t see an issue of benching him for a game to wake him up (worked for Frolov).
I guess it all depends how one likes to coach and even though I might have a different view in Penner’s case, it doesn’t make Murray a bad coach. He’s sane and more emotionally stable than most posters here on this blog…..
Looking back, he’s right about one thing: yelling at the Team makes only yourself feel better.
Then again, look at Torts in NY – he’s not exactly shy and raises his voice “occasionally” (trying to be nice here) and the Rangers are in the play-offs as well………
[Reply]
Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:30 pm
@Dom,
Dom…TM is not a great coach…great coaches win championships.
TM couldn’t win in PHI with the Legion of Doom, by far the most talented and feared team in the NHL during those 4-5 years…yeah…great coach…
And then TM WANTED to go after Stevens…
Do you know Stevens was fired from PHI last season when they were in 10th and diving further away from the playoffs? How did Laviolette do with those same guys? Oh…yeah…he took them to the Stanley Cup Finals…
Great coaches make adjustments, in game or out of game and hold everyone equally accountable…TM has sent the message loud and clear that isn’t the case. TM is not great. He is mediocre at best.
[Reply]
snbrdsummit Reply:
April 21st, 2011 at 10:20 am
@Erik4Kings,
Agreed. More to the point, great coaches are able to analyze tactical disadvantages and make adjustments to exploit other teams weaknesses. Can anyone tell me why we still “dump and clump”? It seems to work so well for us being that we’re in the lower half of teams in scoring and PP.
The assumption on behalf of Murray to assume that most of us were calling for Quick to be replaced because he was playing badly is also short-sighted coaching.
Sometimes you pull a goalie for the benefit of the team’s morale. They don’t have to be playing badly. It’s a wake up call to a team who is getting beat to rally behind someone different.
Mediocre at best is right. Kompon (who should also be tossed) could coach this team to the playoffs. Actually, if you watch the bench during a game, he practically is. Murray hardly says a word during the game. Watch the next timeout that gets called.
Jenn Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:26 pm
@Erik4Kings, YES!! Please explain. It seems that TM is more patient with some players then others. Why? This is the playoffs! It’s all or nothing.
[Reply]
FanoKings Reply:
April 21st, 2011 at 9:17 am
@Jenn, It’s simple, size matters to TM. If you’re big then you can get away with being a slug.
[Reply]
tacomakingsfan Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:58 pm
@Erik4Kings,
He’s SENILE! Ughh.. Even a crazy person would think he’s crazy!
[Reply]
As I suspected, TM has an undying faith, however blind, in Whenne’rs potential… He’s falling for the same oki-doke that Lowe (I think he was gm) fell for when he snagged him from the Schmucks.
[Reply]
All we’re saying is… give Parse a chance.
[Reply]
Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:20 pm
@MR King,
I like the suggestion. And as lame as Penner has been, how much worse could Parse be? But let me tell you…remember Justin Williams last playoffs?
No? Yeah, thats because he came off his ankle injury right before playoffs. He had no legs, no lungs, and just not enough time to adjust to the speed and intensity of the playoffs.
I love Parse and his hunger, but he missed a whole season of mental development, and sadly physical recovery.
Not a good idea.
[Reply]
BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:20 pm
@MR King,
In that vein…
–Parse in our time!
[Reply]
rontheking Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:28 pm
@BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy,
Parsing your words…?
[Reply]
GoKings09 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:12 pm
@MR King,
I’ll quote Rich from above. “Also, to answer another question asked semi-regularly, Scott Parse is not yet ready to play, so he’s not an option.” That means NO Parse even if TM wanted to. And I doubt Parse plays this year even if he gets healthier.
[Reply]
Mike McGriff Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 8:19 pm
@MR King, Yeah, this is like the twilight zone where Penner is stuck in this slooowww mmmooodddeee, and can’t get out.
[Reply]
Darryl Evans was just interviewed on NHL Home Ice.
Points:
–He thinks the Kings will come back/attitude is good in the room;
–He thinks Niemi will start for SJ again/ Rash Meat!
–He is disappointed in Penner, as well;
–He thinks Richardson was the best King last night;
–He thought Niemi was bad last night, so the Kings should not have been close…
–SJ had nothing to lose, pressure on the Kings, penalty to DP was a killer for momentum;
–Thought the Kings had to leave the 2nd with the lead, and couldn’t;
–TOO MANY EXTENDED SHIFTS!
–Game 3 is just another momentum shift;
–Another EMOTIONAL GAME on Thursday is coming–Kings must re-earn respect from San Jose;
–JW’s play has dropped, an expected occurrence;
–He suggests DP should be dropped to the 4th line (Cynic and others APPLAUD MADLY);
–DP must elevate his game, puck possession the most important function.
The Kings Will Return!
[Reply]
Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:17 pm
@BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy,
God Bless Darryl! lol. Straight shooter. He loves this franchise on bad days more than most people on their best day.
[Reply]
Mike Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:19 pm
@BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy, I agree with DE’s assessment.
Btw, to support the notion of too many extended shifts, did you notice that all 6 San Jose goals were scored in the 2nd period of the Overtime period – where the Kings had the “long change” from their bench?
[Reply]
Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:22 pm
@Mike,
And that is an enigma all on its own…how can we be so far into season/playoffs and have extended shift issues? Especially 2-2.5 minutes?!?!?!? Even in Gretzky’s era, that is a hell of a long shift…
I mean, seriously, I am puzzled how it can even get to that???
TM allowing too much leash or players ignoring advice trying to do too much?!?!?!?!
[Reply]
GoKings09 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:15 pm
@Erik4Kings,
The long shifts came from not being able to get the puck out of the zone, not because players just decided to be undisciplined and stay out for a long time. When the puck is stuck in your end, you can’t go for a change without leaving people wide open and then when you get tired it is even harder to get the puck out so you can change.
In the Net Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:40 pm
@Erik4Kings, Although, it seemed Penner had no trouble changing when the other team was on the attack. He was gassed after one rush and waved Smitty on early several times as the Fish came back the other way, leaving his teammates short-handed. You could see it caught Smyth by surprise at least twice. I think Smyth played the last half of a number of DP’s shifts during the game. Very, very poor performance by DP.
Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:42 pm
@GoKings09,
I know that, sorry it was more rhetorical as in, how could we let it get to that? My bad
Mike Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:59 pm
@Erik4Kings, Exactly! When did “long changes” become an issue? I’ve been a Kings fan for 44 seasons now and I don’t EVER remember the “long change” to be as big a problem as it is now.
Of course, the “no change after an icing” rule doesn’t help the situation (I actually think it makes the players out there hesitate, but it seems to me that when the other team is buzzing around your net, ice it anyway – it’ll take a good 30 seconds or so before they drop the puck – longer if the linesmen keep kicking people out of the faceoff – rest up enough to get the puck out and deep and get a change. If nothing else, maybe the clock will malfunction and they’d get a more fuller breather).
number 6 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:45 pm
@BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy,
Yeah, I heard it too. It’s funny, I fell asleep as I was watching a certain hockey game very late here on the east coast last night. Woke up to that familiar voice. He reiterated how big that penalty was in the 2nd period.
I know I’m neither A) a player – though I did play some quite high level pick up hockey nor B) a ref. So certainly naive on my part. But I’d LIKE to think that you’re up 4-0, now it’s 4-1, you’re in your offensive end 200ft from the opposing net. I mean I’d LIKE to think that I would be aware that you don’t wanna tempt fate by overworking a guy no matter how lousy the refs are. Certainly why do that for a guy who plays soft anyways? I know things happen fast out there…… but that was at such a critical juncture in the game. You’re up 4-1 with 10 mins left in the game? Well, maybe? But you KNOW (maybe he didn’t realize it, but if not he sure as heck should have) SJ hadn’t scored yet on the PP. Let’s get real. Sooner or later they were gonna score on the powerplay.
If anyone out there, fan or Kings player thought that the Sharks would go thru a whole playoff series w/o scoring a powerplay goal, then really that person needs to take a good look at some sort of reality.
[Reply]
Stuart Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:50 pm
@number 6, so you didn’t get to see the penalty? It was so lame I almost fell off my couch in disbelief!!! All DP did was paw the guys helmet, didn’t even make fall off his head or even land askew, barely rubbed it the way you might rub your belly after an awesome meal… I could not believe that was called a rough. After everything that was/is let go they made that call… absolute disgust with NHL ref’s.
[Reply]
BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:07 pm
@Stuart,
‘Awesome meal…’
Give that man an In-N-Out burger!
i cant believe it murray wants to stay with penner. what a waste
[Reply]
Oh…and we need Westgarth in the lineup for grit? For all his 5:30 a game…whew, what an impact.
TM put together a 4th line you actually don’t mind using for more than 6 minutes please. I don’t get it, Westgarth gets his first assist. 4th line started out very strong, then wa la…disappeared…
Could this possibly explain maybe why we looked so gassed in the second (aka long change period)? Because we were basically rotating 3 lines from middle of first…you betcha!!!
[Reply]
Marc Nathan Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:30 pm
@Erik4Kings, 5:30??? In game 3 try 5 shifts… 2:28, and only one shift in period TWO, one shift in period THREE and obviously none in OT.
[Reply]
Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:32 pm
@Marc Nathan,
Marc, thanks for the stat correction. My apologies, but I think you see and understand my point
)
You hit the nail on the head…that makes TM look even worse…lol.
[Reply]
this is the first time Ive heard “….But clearly, if things are not going well for him personally….”. maybe the rumors are true, or am I reading too much into this?
[Reply]
16,005 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:21 pm
@tornado12,
What rumors?
[Reply]
tornado12 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:52 pm
@16,005, i dont mean to ignore you, but i dont like to spread rumors (irony?).
[Reply]
Stuart Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:22 pm
@tornado12, LOL I thought that too, but I don’t think TM means his personal life, I think he meant him personally on the ice persay, like not his entire line or the entire team, just him personally… But all that off-ice drama HAS GOT TO a(e)ffect a person!
[Reply]
tornado12 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:28 pm
@Stuart, if its even true in the first place…we are all human afterall (some people tend to forget that)
[Reply]
Stuart Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:47 pm
@tornado12, I don’t forget that not for a minute. I’ve had many issues with multiple women in my life at the same time (ahh to be young and single – no thanks!) and they affected every aspect of my life, so if this is where DP is at I can understand, but at the same time he needs to ask for a FEMLA vacation or something. Don’t keep hurting your team, your employer the way he has…
tornado12 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:01 pm
@tornado12, FMLA…classic!
At the end of the day he’s just another million dollar athlete with a small heart. These guys will still go home, look at their fat wallets, and not give a damn on what the consequences are for their respective teams. Too bad we didn’t go hard after Iginla but let us move on to Game 4. If we win, this turns into a best of 3 series and we have already shown we can win in their barn. LETS GO KINGS!
[Reply]
kluka68 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:28 pm
@David, I think in playoffs players don’t play for money, they play to win SC. It’s more personal than just money
[Reply]
Mike Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:34 pm
@David, I agree! When the Kings first got him and they interviewed him, it was all about “me, me, me.” Not once did I hear about how he was going to fit in with the team (Greene and Stoll notwithstanding) or help the team or become part of the team.
Contrast when Mitchell came here, it was about, as I recall, “what can I do to help this team achieve”, “Our” goal (notice the “our” instead of “my”) is to continue to improve and compete for the Stanley Cup.” To me, HUGE difference in the attitude.
But you’re right – what Quick said – its only one game. We’re only one game down. Move on to Game 4!
[Reply]
“I’ve got to trust him to get his game in order and to bring a difference to the game at any given time that he’s on the ice.” – Terry Murray
Actually, I think TM has other options – I would hate for the Kings’ playoffs to rest on an obligatory “trust” of a player who, in my humble opinion, hasn’t shown yet that he can be trusted.
[Reply]
The Kings aren’t going away from Penner….just his opponents are.
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dmitriy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:29 pm
@Mark M, good one!!!!!
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Marc Nathan Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:31 pm
@Mark M, if opponents = Kings fans, yes, you are correct.
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There’s two parts to a game, Offense and DEFENSE. He is DEFENSIVELY LAZY
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The Kings organization just lost 10 fans (friends) that paid $200 per ticket to game 3 tickets and were willing to pay $200 or more for all other upcoming playoff game tickets….but not anymore after last nights silly, horrible, haunting, and weak effort. Not going to another kings game untill they make it past the first round..no matter in how many years….just terrible!!
[Reply]
BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:22 pm
@George,
Betcha the tickets to game 4 would sell well on StubHub…
–Go for it!
[Reply]
George Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:26 pm
@BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy, Lol..sarcasm perhaps??
[Reply]
BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:08 pm
@George,
This you?
http://kings.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=68286&cmpid=fb-playoffs-tickets
–Jest Asking!
Michael J. Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:43 pm
@George,
Fans???? I think not.
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Keithz Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:53 pm
@George, Lost 10 “Customers” maybe, but not fans. We true Fans will be there thursday cheering on our team like always, becuase as painful as it might have been to watch, it’s part of being a Fan. The suffering only makes it sweeter when we finally bring the Cup home.
[Reply]
Stuart Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:06 pm
@Keithz, I’ll be there. And the suffereing does indeed make the payoff that much sweeter… Our day will come. It will be the Hockey Gods version of the rapture!
[Reply]
George Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:06 pm
@Keithz, YES,die hard fans to be more exact. I have been a huge fan for the over 2 decades already and im 29 years old, so pretty much a fan since i can remember. Im pretty sure you would say the same if you were in my shoes. After going to every single home game for the past 3 seasons including all playoff games last season and a few away games actually…i have the right to be upset. Its easy for a lot of people to think otherwise, maybe, because they have not invested as much time and money as i have into our team, which i still am willing to do, and will do for as long as the team is in LA. Just to make it clear for all of you saying “customers” maybe,but not fans. I never said im not behind the team anymore or i am giving up on them, im just saying im not going to another playoff game untill they make it past the first round. I think there are mountains of a difference between the two. So yeah…I am a FAN and always will be!!
[Reply]
Michael J. Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:30 pm
@George,
So, are you saying that when the storms have passed and the weather is fair you will be back?
Timbo from Canada Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 7:43 pm
@George, Ok cya lol. There will be 10 other people to take your place
[Reply]
Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity.
I’ll say it again, I don’t bash TM, but I really wish he’d rethink this.
[Reply]
Mike Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:27 pm
@FKA PakiFro, I’m not bashing TM either, but whenever anyone says “I HAVE to trust…”, I’m sorry, no, you don’t HAVE to – there are other options out there. I think TM chooses to go this route – that would have been a better thing for him to say.
[Reply]
You people are so funny…Edmonton fans have been saying the same thing about Penner for years and now everyone is acting surprised by all this.
[Reply]
Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:24 pm
@Nick,
LOL, yeah, I think LA fans were hoping this would be a career resurgence…I was hoping, but sadly knew better. I wish I was wrong, so wrong…
[Reply]
BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:27 pm
@Nick,
Waiting for this team to obtain the Killer True Top-6, Scoring Monster Forward has been kinda like ‘Waiting For Godot’…
[Reply]
dmitriy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:27 pm
@Nick, i am not surprised at all. i am surprised kings gm went after him after all …
[Reply]
Mike Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:38 pm
@dmitriy, Heck, we’ve could of used Colten Teubert in the Overtime last night instead of Penner. I’m not sure he would have done anything to prevent the game winning goal, but if he’s cut from the Matt Greene cloth, as they said he was, he would have at least tried to do something. Just saying.
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BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:58 pm
@Mike,
Teubs is a D-man…
Now, if Teubert became a top-6 forward, learned how to skate very fast and solved the riddle of his rock-hard hands, THEN that might apply.
“And all I want from him right now, coming to our team late in the season like this, is to bring the effort, bring the tempo, bring the hard work”
These are three things you will never see with Penner except when he feels like it or in a contract year.
He should change his name to Pennerov.
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Marc Nathan Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:31 pm
@concussionman02, he should change his name to Anson Carterov
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Nick Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:32 pm
@concussionman02, They called him Dustin Penne in Edmonton when showed up out of shape.
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I’m as upset with Penner as everyone, but booing him will accomplish nothing. Save the booing for San Jose. Don’t make them feel comfortable tomorrow night.
Look, the series is only 2-1. Clearly the Kings have proved they can play with and beat this team. If the Kings stick to their system and play hard they can still pull this off. I didn’t sleep last night but was thrilled to read that Rich said the mood at practice was positive. I was hoping to get to game five tied and the Kings can still accomplish that. Be VERY loud Staples Center!!!
Thank you Rich for keeping us so informed!!
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dmitriy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:34 pm
@Hockeysureshot, how do u feel if one guy on your team care less about everybodys else effort?
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Hockeysureshot Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:41 pm
@dmitriy, I don’t like Penner either. I yelled at him in warmups during Game 2 and told him to wake the &$)&@ up! But booing him during the game does nothing. Use your energy to boo Niemi.
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KingsFanFTW Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:34 pm
@Hockeysureshot, agreed
i just hope this team comes out very big on Game 4
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Hockeysureshot Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:43 pm
@KingsFanFTW, I hope they realize that if they play their game they can beat them!!! Don’t forget Game 2!
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KingsFanFTW Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:48 pm
@Hockeysureshot, yea lets do this
Capt Jam Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:48 pm
@Hockeysureshot,
The talk is all good and well, but losses are seldom brushed off the shoulder and put aside. The Kings’ biggest problem remains that they keep beating themselves. This series should be 3-0 for the Kings and we should getting ready to tap several kegs on Thursday night. The Sharks still haven’t played a complete game yet in this series, so my outlook is dim for the rest of the series is very dim at best.
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Capt Jam Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:51 pm
@Capt Jam,
I should clarify. Losses like last night’s collapse are seldom brushed off…
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Hockeysureshot Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:57 pm
@Capt Jam, San Jose was brutal in Game 2 and they obviously rebounded. You should of heard how many people were down and out in the Bay Area after that game. Can’t carry this loss over to the next game. Kings have proved they could beat the Sharks. I hope to hear a revved up Staples Center tomorrow!!!
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Taken from Facebook & Twitter:
Like Jose and Ozzie Canseco, I’m waiting for the Kings to discover/disclose that Dustin Penner has a twin, far less talented brother who has been masquerading as the far more talented one, with spectacularly poor results.
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“bring the effort, bring the tempo, bring the hard work.” REALLY??? Have NOT seen this at all.
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Mike Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:39 pm
@Mikie, I guess TM has to remind him every day because he keeps forgetting what he’s suppose to be doing out there.
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Ok there is this statistic called Fenwick. It is an attempt to track puck possession and has shown to have a very high correlation to win percentage. All it is +/- but instead of goals it counts shots on goal plus shots that missed the net. Last night Dustin Penner’s Fenwick was -1. Ugh -1 that sucks right? NO. You know what Stoll’s was? -14. Ryan Smyth’s (the next LW down on the depth chart)? -9. You know who Dustin Penner was playing against all night last night? The Sharks top line. Recognized as one of the most potent lines in the league. You know who Smyth/Stoll/Williams were matched up against last night? the Shark’s 3rd line? Who’s on the Sharks 3rd line? Exactly. Please stop directing all your hate on Dustin Penner as he was the least of our problems last night. And if you want to talk about puck possession he was one of our sole assets.
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Mike Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:41 pm
@Rick Knickle, Just curious – why would our top line be matched up against San Jose’s top line in a game at Staples?
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Rick Knickle Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:43 pm
@Mike, http://timeonice.com/H2H1011.html?GameNumber=30163&submit=Go
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Scot Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:42 pm
@Rick Knickle,
The Sharks’ 3rd line is better than many teams’ 2nd lines. I believe it’s Wellwood-Pavelski-Mitchell. All 3 of those guys are natural centers and have HIGH skill level, and HIGH hockey IQ. It doesn’t matter how small you are if you have those 2 qualities. Penner did have an OK game, but he had a terrible non-backcheck on the OT goal. Good point on his puck possession.
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Rick Knickle Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:45 pm
@Scot, Ok yeah that was little unfair the sharks third line is not chump change but I was just trying to make the point, in an exagerrated manner, that Penner was regularly facing stiffer competetion than other guys on our team and was faring better.
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Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:43 pm
@Rick Knickle,
Its easy to have middle of the road stats when you aren’t really involved in the game…lol.
Did you know Kevin Westgarth was a +1 last night? Woopity freaking doo!!!
Fenwick can take those stats and keep them to himself/themselves. Horrible formula for equating a players contributions to a game.
If we want a real formula, it should combine G, A, P, hits, blocks, shots, all kinds of things to make a BCS like # to rate their game, that would be legit…
+/- and Fenwick…eh…guesstimates at best…
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Rick Knickle Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:06 pm
@Erik4Kings, Westgarth only played about 2 minutes last night. Penner played about 17 minutes at even strength.
here is an article showing that Fenwick correlates to winning:
http://objectivenhl.blogspot.com/2011/02/shots-fenwick-and-corsi.html
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Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:17 pm
@Rick Knickle,
Rick, lol, I know the #s. That is my point, stats lie. If you look at +/- Westgarth outplayed Penner…but did he really? No, because 2:30 isn’t enough time to make much of an impact.
Point is, Penner took no shots on net…that seriously skews his “Fenwick” #s. I’ll take horrible Fenwick #s if that means the player is shooting the puck…
And…Fenwick doesn’t factor in players not skating even close to hard when on the ice during the game winning OT goal and its your man…Fenwick that one for me ;o)
Last night was the straw, I don’t blame Penner solely for that lose, its just he is a top 3 forward brought here to produce…7 points in 22 games is not producing. And 36 shots in 19 regular season games is hardly what you expect from a scoring forward…sorry dude. Defend Penner all you want, but he is very overrated. And not a proper fit for LA.
Rick Knickle Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:12 pm
@Erik4Kings, “Point is, Penner took no shots on net…that seriously skews his “Fenwick” #s.” No offense but I don’t think you understand the statisitic itself. If Penner had more shots then it would only help these numbers….I mean obviously this argument is futile because I’m not going to shake you from your conviction that Penner doesn’t have any heart, isn’t trying and doesn’t care about winning. But I am only expressing my opinion that I disagree and that he isn’t doing as bad of a job as many here claim. I’ll go back to not commenting/reading the comments here and get out of the torch mob’s way.
Rick Knickle Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:11 pm
@Erik4Kings, also his numbers aren’t middle of the road. His -1 was tops amongst all of our forwrads who received significant ice time.
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Whodawat Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:49 pm
@Rick Knickle, surely you jest…
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Rick Knickle Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:56 pm
@Whodawat, No. I wish. It would be a lot easier to just jump on the Penner hate train and forget about it but unfortunately I disagree with the Penner bashing based on pretty concrete evidence.
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Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:59 pm
@Rick Knickle,
http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/players/3587
People aren’t just jumping on Penner for last night, lol. That is the straw that broke the camel’s back as they say…he has been very average at best since coming here to be a top line scoring winger…sorry brother.
Whodawat Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:08 pm
@Rick Knickle, I will agree that Penner wasn’t the only reason for that epic collapse, but what Fenwick doesn’t account for is simple effort.
Penner’s Fenwick was a -1, but he had ZERO shots on goal…
Penner had more ice time than Stoll/Smyth/Williams
Penner had the THRID most PP ice time of all LA forwards
Stoll and Smyth may have been -14 and -9, but least they were attempting to get the puck on net.
And stats aside, you can’t honestly tell me that the effort wasn’t there from Smyth/Stoll/Williams in comparison to Penner. Honestly, you can’t.
rick Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:05 pm
@Rick Knickle,
My dislike for Penner has nothing to do with statistics. It has to do with effort and motivation – both of which he seems to be lacking. You cannot measure heart – you can just tell when it ain’t there. Sorry, the statistics you refer to are interesting, but miss the point completely.
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Rick Knickle Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:21 pm
@rick, I disagree. But I guess we’ll have top leave it at that.
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rick Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:34 pm
@Rick Knickle, I’ve gotta ask – statistics aside, do you think this guy puts out an honest effort every shift, every night?
Rick Knickle Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:21 pm
@rick, Yes.
SLG1013 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:24 pm
@rick, Agree… Penner lays off checks and floats around the ice waiting for the game to come to him… In some systems, he may be effective, but it doesn’t work with the Kings system.
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Goalby Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:26 pm
@Rick Knickle, I have a system i used called myown2eyes and using that system Penner stunk out loud last night. And if Penner did well on any system it must reward hiding from the puck, not hitting players, not covering open opposing players, not having any heart at all.
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Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:44 pm
@Rick Knickle,
PS, of Penner’s 7 points in 19 regular season games, 5 of those game in first 5 games….leaving him with 2 points in 17 games…and basically since Kopi is out, proof he doesn’t make anything happen…
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In the Net Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:54 pm
@Rick Knickle, You can quote any stats you want but if you’re saying DP played well last night then you couldn’t have been there. It was SO obvious. Even the “great pass” to Zeus…Zeus nailed it, but everyone still thought DP should have shot it. Had Zeus missed it, it would have just been another nail in DP’s coffin. No one would like to see DP improve more than I would, but I just can’t see it happening. He doesn’t have the heart. Ask Edmonton.
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Rick Knickle Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:01 pm
@In the Net, here is what someone from Edmonoton had to say after the trade:
http://www.coppernblue.com/2011/3/1/2019801/dustin-penner-goodbye-edmonton
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BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 6:02 pm
@Rick Knickle,
In that vein–
Anyone notice just how HARD SJ fans are on Big Bad Joe Thornton?
He’s on the Sharks first line…
Betcha that influences the Fenwick score…
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if his game does not change the Kings are paying a fan to watch from ice level. give me some skates and i bet i would get an assist sooner or later. 5’10 185 and i surf much more than i skate so Penner play the full 20 minutes your on the ice and watch when your on the bench… by the way I want you to succeed
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The Tin Man returns. The people in Edmonton knew something about Penner and were not at all disappointed in seeing him leave.
“can become a very good player in this game”, “can make a difference for us”, “can really get it cranked up pretty good when he applies himself the right way”, blah, blah, blah.
If there ever was a time that he needed to become a very good player, make a difference, or crank it up, it was in the 2nd period last night. Instead, we got Tin Man.
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I know it’s been said here before but my 2 cents is, when I saw Penner interviewed numerous times after the trade I just saw absolutely no enthusiasm about coming to L.A. It seemed like he was more concerened about leaving his “good teamates” in Edmonton. I was perplexed when I saw that and I kept saying to myself something just don’t seem right here. I was hoping I was wrong and that it was just his demeanor but lets face it, it’s almost like he’s deliberately sabotaging any effort on his part to make a difference for the Kings. Some teammate. The Canadien media was saying the Oilers got way better of the deal and at the time I didn’t believe it. But now, my eyes have seen the truth of the matter, they DID get the better of the deal and they are probably still laughing at us. Penner, if you read any of these blog quotes, then get your ass in gear. I mean really, how hard is it to play with intesity. You do get paid to do a job right?
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Whodawat Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:52 pm
@Goring 19, see something is wrong right away. What sane person would rather stay in EDM in -20 blizzards on a cellar dwelling team. Just goes to show, the devil walks amoung us…
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number 6 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:54 pm
@Goring 19,
I had big misgivings too after watching the interviews… most specifically the one w Heidi Androl. I made a comment on the blog, and of course someone made a derogatory comment about my comment. I don’t remember what was said, but it doesn’t matter. I had a pretty strong feeling that my instincts were accurate. So far so good…… for my instincts I mean.
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They already have an NHL channel history will be made commercial of the sharks comeback. History ain’t over till it’s over. God shoot me
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Capt Jam Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:53 pm
@Kings x,
The worst part is that its initial airing was live because the Kings folded like match sticks so quickly. LOL.
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Mike Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:54 pm
@Kings x, These types of games happen every now and then. It still doesn’t compare to the Miracle on Manchester, where a bunch of kids, really, came back from a 5 goal deficit in the 3rd period with the Gretzky-led Edmonton Oilers and won it in Overtime (Daryl Evans, YOU will ALWAYS be a hero to Kings’ fans everywhere).
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BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 6:05 pm
@Kings x,
It’s their habit.
Did it frequently last year.
I say, make them make a new Kings version!
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I don’t care what they do to Penner this team is more than Penner and has the same will to win they’ve had all year. This is one of the best teams the Kings have put together in a long time. Have faith in the players I’m sure there are a few talking to Penner and delivering the message. I have faith in this team and they’ll make the rest of the playoffs a battle. It takes time to build a Stanley Cup team and they are real close. Keep the faith and these guys will come through. This team has a lot of Character and they’ll come through tomorrow.
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gmo Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 9:45 pm
@twnclick,
great post very level headed and realistic…..unlike all the bashing penner posts. yes he hasnt produce like we thought he would, now is just tm’s job to light a fire under his arse….there are other players too on this team that have not produce the way we thought they would or could. DL im sure knew what he was getting when we got him..so why is he being let off the hook?. just saying. but like TWNCLICK says THIS TEAM IS MORE THAN JUST PENNER, that sums it up..im curious to know if penner wasnt here in LA who would the the escape goat be to blame when the KINGS lose….PONI? ZUES? BROWN? LEWIS? SMYTHE?……
GO KINGS GO
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After game 2 I said the Kings won through discipline.
Well, last night they lost their discipline.
Stopped playing smart. Have yet to make Clowe answer for his aggression (Westgarth), and they believed the game was over after going up 4-0.
It was a gutting experience seeing such a collapse.
I agree that this young team will learn from this experience.
It’s painful, but we still should be proud of the fight in this team.
Nobody would have called them to win this series so if we learn important playoff lessons so much the better.
I’m not bashing TM here, but he has to figure out how to control more aspects of his team. His leaders and Vets should have steadied the ship after SJ’s 2nd goal.
Finally, the officials didn’t cost us the game, but they continue to suck hard. Why is there such inconsistency in what constitutes an infraction? I particularly didn’t like Thornton’s shove into Zus’s back as he faced the boards in the second period.
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Mike Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 3:59 pm
@Cristobal, Right on on your final point! Wasn’t that what Stoll did in game 1 that got him a 1 game suspension? I mean, really, refs, what ARE you looking at???
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Stuart Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:26 pm
@Cristobal, yes, that was the player combo… maybe it wasn’t blindside enough?
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BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:12 pm
@Cristobal,
Good to hear from you!
–Series is very far from over. If SJ thinks we’re toast, and puts Niemi back in for game 4, I say “Yum, Yum!”
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aj51 Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 8:00 pm
@Cristobal,
Excellent post. I did not see the Thornton hit on Zeus (I was at the game – section 103 SUCKS for seeing things, considering how expensive the seats are) but I did see Zeus come back to the bench at some point around the time you’re talking about and he was P*SSED…yelling at the ref so much I thought they were going to give him an unsportsmanlike penalty. I guess that makes sense now. Forget about the refs calling anything in the Kings’ direction, that’s for sure.
Defensive lapses cost the Kings the game last night, plain and simple. The Kings looked like a rec team playing against a team 3 divisions higher during the worst points of the second period – running around, chasing, and forgetting the defensive system that got them here in the first place. Good news: that’s all fixable. Let’s hope they can do it. GKG!
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I wonder how many chances Penner gets. If it smells like kaka, it looks like kaka, i’m pretty sure its kaka. Playoffs is no time to coddle a player, its time to put out.
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Can’t we take a moment from hockey here and acknowledge how great it is that MLB took over control of the Dodgers?
Adios, Frank McFraud
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twnclick Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:04 pm
@Katy Perry, It’s kind of hard to watch another sport when there’s so much action in hockey.The only thing worse than watching a baseball game is watching sail boat racing.
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vplaza Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:06 pm
@Katy Perry,
Amen!
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Penner seems to be cruising on the ice sometimes … or alot of times. But what if he’s making assesment on the play? There are some players who are almost invisible throughout the game but suddenly appear and score some goals. Wasn’t Gretzky that kind of player?
Since our D-system heavily rely on 5-men unit, it is rather difficult for Penner to play his game. But he has been showing good read on defensive side, too. It’s just he hasn’t had enough time to adjust his game to the system.
Remember Kopi was struggling to adjust his game to this defense first system three seasons ago? He was -17 and was not producing as good as previous two seasons. So it’s not fair to ask Penner to do better job in shorter time. We need to be more patient.
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twnclick Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:06 pm
@goldielocks, We don’t have time and he has stanley cup experience he should be better.
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Kings x Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:14 pm
@goldielocks, Back check or back pressure is an unheard if concept for this guy. He acts like gaborik waiting at center line for the breakaway except he sucks and can’t finish
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Michael J. Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:34 pm
@Kings x,
Mini-mites know to skate hard back on defense…
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Him and Zues on one line make me fringe. My only hope is that for next season he’s in a contract year and he get’s himself in great shape otherwise were sending him packing and who is really gonna want to pay him, he plays well with better players but is obviously not the BIG impact player we needed. I mean he was a 2nd or 3rd line guy on the ducks and played with talent all around him and the only reason he scored goals in Edmonton is because nobody else could and no teams took them seriously. Even though it hurts me to say this, I still rather have him than not, due to the fact that he was playing well with Kopitar, but it just still shows how we need another superstar and he’s not it. ALSO, our lack of team speed is attrocious. I love Zues, but his time has come and gone, I’m really pulling for Schenn/Loki to make some noise next year and make us a faster team. Wouldn’t life be great, if Schenn becomes the Cotoure of next year? Only if we could make a huge trade and land Parise lol
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Whodawat Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:11 pm
@Randell, I think a car with no wheels moves faster.
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Kings x Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:16 pm
@Randell, Dreaming on the Penner part. Guy doesn’t fit in or he needs to be secondary scoring with no pressure on him to produce
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I was at the game and tracked him just to see if I was missing something. Nope – I was right. I’ve played since I was a kid so I’ll usually give the player the benefit of the doubt. It’s one thing to not make plays, but he: (1) is lazy, (2) misses defensive assignments, (3) doesn’t finish any checks, (4) shoots wide if he shoots at all, (5) takes a roughing penalty way behind the play while the rest of his hard working line-mates are on a solid breakout and rush up the ice, (6) looks like he’d rather be sitting on a frozen lake ice fishing instead of playing the Stanley Cup playoffs. Scratch him and play 5 on 4. We’d be better off not having him on the ice. The line must work as a unit and you can’t do that if you don’t trust the guy.
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Everyone remember last playoffs? Kings were 2-0 without Randy Jones in the lineup…due to Harrold’s injury, supposedly Jones was our best bet (Drewiske?)
Remember how that series turned out 0-4 with Jones in the lineup…TM has shown he will sink a ship if it means sticking to his gut…hope you all brought your life jackets…
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@LAKingsInsider —-Ahhhh! Trollers! The way I see it…Coach Murray knows the team better than anyone outside of the LA Kings in general….He probably spends a good part of the day with them when they are not away on games and spends time with them when away from games…so in my opinion…we only see a few hours on the ice and were cheering and yelling and jumping up and down when a goal is made by our team…but were mad when they’ve had a bad day? Come on fans…I mean real LA Kings fans…me I support the team as one of their most recent members of their fan base in Los Angeles. No trolling from me…just opinions…with tactfulness…not tasteless comments about the team, when in fact, we go out of our way to go see live at The Staples Center or find a TV where we can watch the game….is it really that trivial? I don’t think so…we make an effort to see these boyz play; at least I do! It’s the NHL Playoffs for crying outloud. So I support the team! Go L.A. Kings and Coach Murray! Have a great day everyone! Looking forward to tomorrow’s night’s game it’s gonna be great.
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anonandonanon Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:53 pm
@Pearl Estrada, Bravo
gkg. gjg.
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“I think you need the grit. I think you need Westgarth, as an example, in the lineup”
for two minutes and change it’s important. Westgarth must have naked pictures hidden somewhere.
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Kings x Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:23 pm
@Dan H., Ha ha. I like that one
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westgarth has been solid… play like westgarth and youll be better penner
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@jdhockey526, Lazy, lacksidazical, passive, contact shy and no compete in the guy. I agree. Most of them are obvious. But I remember watching him with a perfect opportunity to finish a check on a guy against the boards. Clean hit smaller guy. It would have been easier to hit the guy than changing skating direction and moving around the net. I was like what? 99% of guys would have made the hit. It looked unnatural that he didn’t. There was no reason that he didn’t. No line change, he was one step away, clean hit etc. I just don’t get how you can make it to this level sign the big contract and be like this. He is the anti-hockey player
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Penner floats and often looks like he could care less. This looks to be a bad trade for Dean. As stupid as Edmonton was when they paid Anaheim out the nose for him, we showed we weren’t paying attention.
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penner needs to go watch some dustin byfuglien highlights from last year..
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BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:18 pm
@7holesniper,
Penner would be well-served to start a season as a defender…
On the job training…
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I think in the offseason, we better get some kind of assurance the Kings know why they want to keep Penner–or they should dump him. Something’s really wrong here, and if they won’t tell us what it is, they better at least confront it and tell us they did.
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Sit him. Penner is a load. The sooner we get rid of that piece of garbage, the better.
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Can’t wait for tomorrow night’s game. Isn’t about time we had one of those games where it’s a scoreless tie into the middle part of the third period?
I expect the rest of this series to be as difficult as the first 3 games – but the Sharks are not going out to the Kings in Round One. They have only begun to show you what they are capable of.
Here is that link to the new NHL “History will be Made” clip for those who haven’t enjoyed it yet… http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=1083&id=110035
[Reply]
BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:22 pm
@SanDiegoSharksFan,
–Beware of whence you gloat/For I may yet gloat over thee!
BakoCAKingsCondorsGuy,
04/20/2011, 5:22 pm
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Think about it guys, he comes into the NHL, wins a cup with 2 really good line mates, gets an outrageous contract and goes to a team where he gets a crap load of minutes so he’s going to get enough ice time to put pucks in the net! What motivation does he have? I have it from an inside source well before the trade, he is a specimen in the gym and on the ice and could be a top 10 forward in the whole NHL, but he doesn’t care to work hard to be in top NHL shape. Never did in Edmonton, never will. Not all of us have that drive to be better.
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vplaza Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:56 pm
@Devilmachine,
JaMarcus Russell on ice?
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Devilmachine Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:00 pm
@vplaza, good comparison except Penner actually makes a good play here or there. ha and I don’t think he’s into the Syserp!
[Reply]
OK.
#1 – I appreciate you approaching TM and asking these questions Rich. If you didn’t ask them, then thanks for posting them. I don’t like the answers, but they are answers. TM didn’t have to address them, so kudos to him, even though I do not agree.
#2 – RE: Parse. I mention Parse because about 10 days ago, a certain journalist (Hammond) who shall remain nameless (Hammond) mentioned that Parse (Hammond) had the green light from Doctors (Hammond) along with Williams (Hammond). A few days later, it was mentioned in a post (Hammond) by the same nameless journalist (Hammond) that said Paerse was on the ACTIVE ROSTER (Hammond). In fact, he was mentioned in a thread where a line up was listed as an extra player (Hammond) alongside Moller. This led me to believe that (Hammond) Parse was available because said nameless journalist (Hammond) is usually nails when it comes to this stuff. (Hammond).
I wish I could give his name, but I better not after watching how Purdy (Mouth) got hammered yesterday, although I would not put this nameless journalist in the same league as Purdy.
That all being said, Was Parse on the active roster and then taken off later? Or is he just on the active roster so he can be eligible down the road if he becomes ready?
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Rich Hammond Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 4:57 pm
I just re-read every mention of Parse I have made on the blog since April 1, and there’s no reference to him being on the active roster. He’s not. If you’d like to point out the specific post that you’re referring to, I’d be happy to address it, but I can’t find one. Any insinuation, on my part, that he was on the active roster would be incorrect, but I don’t believe I ever even insinuated it. The mention of him skating as an extra player was an acknowledgement of his presence on the ice in practice, not an indication of his status. Parse has been given the green light by doctors. He’s not ready to play.
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Cynic Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:29 pm
@Rich Hammond, Man….I know what I did. My apologies Rich. You’re right.
http://lakingsinsider.com/2011/04/18/monday-practice-lines-back-to-normal/
This is the thread where you mention Moller and Parse together as extra players in a lineup format, but it wasn’t for a game, it was for a practice. I could have swore it was for a game.
I hope you know I wasn’t chiding you maliciously, just tongue in cheek and having some fun. You’re about one of the nicest people I’ve met, so I wouldn’t have any reason to disrespect you.
So this certain blogger (Cynic) who shall remain nameless (Cynic) owes a certain nameless Journalist (Purd….errrrr Hammond) an apology.
Sorry Man. I guess it was just wishful thinking.
It’s so hard to remember all of the information we read here. Maybe the answer is Diet Coke. I saw this guy on undisputed drinking it once, so it must be good.
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Rich Hammond Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:30 pm
Stay away from the Diet Coke, friend. It’s evil.
Cynic Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:34 pm
@Rich Hammond
Well, Coke Zero made me do the previous. I was thinking it was a step up.
BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 6:06 pm
@Cynic,
Don’t you EVER hook me up with your Coke Zero…
wavesinair Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:16 pm
@Cynic,
WHO IS THE JOURNALIST?!?!
Come on man. Name names. The suspense is killing me.
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Cynic Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:32 pm
@wavesinair, I can’t do it man. I like the guy. After seeing Purdy get ripped to shreds yesterday, I wouldn’t want to subject him to that….even if he was right…..
….because we ALL know that doesn’t matter in journalism.
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BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:27 pm
@Cynic, @Waves,
–U FUNNY!
Not that I needed to laugh, or anything…
Oh, Cynic…
Parse?:
Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt-Hurt…
See?
I got my Control-V combo back…
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Cynic Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:30 pm
@BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy, As for YOU Bako……
Parse is NOT Hurt….
He’s ‘Healing’.
LOL! (OK, you got me too)
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I said in another post but I’ll say it again but shorter this time. Penner screwed up in OT and yes that dumb penalty. The goal on that penalty was kind of fluke not that it excuses him.
But the other goals were 2 where Johnson left a guy wide open to recieve as Murray says “dot to dot” passes where Quick had no chance to make a save. And the goal that tied it was Doughty getting beat. So if you pile on Penner then you got to pile on those guys. They have been on the team longer, no the expectations and in the end are responsible for defensive coverage. The only reason they got into a situation where Penner’s screw up decided the game was because of a defensive collapse by the whole team.
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Erik4Kings Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 5:06 pm
@JB,
yes, but there is a difference between making a good defensive effort and getting beat and not making one…Penner doesn’t make a defensive effort. Drew did get beat, but he was on the guy’s back, more than I could say for Penner in OT on HIS MAN…also, I give DD and JJ some slack because they are so much more of a pivotal part for us. Remember game 2? Which players put the team on their shoulders? Was it Penner and ?????
NO. It was Doughty and Johnson…
But yes, last night was a team loss, I think its just time the fans patience with Penner has boiled over, 7 pts in 19 games regular season, 5 of which game in first 5 games with Kopi and Williams on the ice…so 2 pts since they’ve been removed from his line…coincidence?
NOPE.
Penner is known as a perpetual underachiever…Doughty has a gold, Johnson has a silver, and were intricate parts for those medals, not a third line role player on a very good team that happened to win a Cup. That is happenstance, those two on the Olympics isn’t…
;o)
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JB Reply:
April 21st, 2011 at 2:44 pm
@Erik4Kings, They are more of a pivotal part so even more reason that they shouldn’t make such mental blunders. And if they can turn it on in Game 2 then it should be on all games.
And it’s because they have that experience and medals I expect them to know better and take some control. They might be young in age but old in experience. So they shouldn’t have to wait for the veterans to speak up. They probably know better than guys like Green! So step up and take over.
And if you feel Penner only won by happenstance then why would you expect him to come to a team late in the season and somehow take the team on his shoulders?
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Rich,
thanks for asking the hard question here about DP and good write-up. Its been on everyone’s mind. Much appreciated.
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Speed? Penner? I think coach is getting his Dustins mixed up…
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Here is the TM I do not understand. he benches Frolov consistently for lazy play, dumb penalties, etc. He benches Poni all the time. he turns 20-30 goal scores into 5 goal scorers. He sits Williams in last years playoffs for inconsistent play.
Yet with Penner, He can turn it around, he does not need to be benched or disciplined. Fine put him on the 4th line, Hell Westy is playing better, use him. Put in Moeller (although he is not the answer, at least he skates hard, when he is standing). Penner got lazy and took a penalty. GOAL. Penner got lazy and SJ fumbled the puck, he picks it up GOAL. Penner backchecks lazy, GOAL. They get 2, we get 1 for his LAZY play.
Poni skates, Westy Skates, Moeller skates.
As for the lose, it is not entirely Penner’s fault. 5 goals were scored in the period. TM has a young team, he should have called a TO at 4-2, or even 4-3. He needed to settle down his yound inexperienced team and get them back on track. The third period and OT was a result of that settling down. Good solid back to basics D, limiting chances, etc. SJ just capitalized on one in OT. The game could have gone either way at that point,
BUT IT NEVER SHOULD HAVE GOTTEN THAT FAR!
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Here is the reason why he’s not playing good!
Before the trade:
Penner to his wife: Yay! We’ll have long summer vacation again, let’s plan to go somewhere.
Few days later: His wife: Hey, I’ve bought air tickets and paid for hotels to travel around the world.
After the trade: Penner to his wife: Sorry, I’ve been traded to a playoff team, so we’ll lose $$$ to the air tickets and hotels.
His wife: I don’t care what you do, I want to go!
Penner: okok, let me try my BEST!
After the Kings was clinched: Penner to his wife: Don’t worry, I am still working on it, give me 1 more week.
After last night’s game: Penner to his wife: see! I did a good job!
… to be continue
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BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 6:16 pm
@zdfun,
Let’s see…
–Penner’s wife files for divorce; she’s met Raul in Rio, and Dustin’s nowhere to be seen…
–DP scores an Ovechtrick in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, Kings win 12-3 over the Washington Capitals, decides to do the same headless skate commercials Ovie did this season…
–TM smiles as he complements DP’s back checking, frowns as he contemplates his line combinations next season…
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Murray says, “He can become a very good player in this game”. He’s been around for, what, five years now, and TM’s still talking about potential? My thought is that when you’ve been in the league for five years you should know what you’re going to be getting out of a guy. Hope they can unload him for a mid-round pick over the summer or, barring that, buy him out. I was never in favor of this trade to begin with and my worst nightmares are coming true.
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This is when we miss Kopi. Kopi would of hustle to catch up to Setoguchi to prevent that play from happening. Penner just sticks out his stick and never strides to lock up Setoguchi. Dam you SKATE!!!! Plus it’s not cool for the NHL to air that HISTORY HAPPENS commercial. Air it after the series ends. Not during it. Goes to show who the NHL is rooting for.
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BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 6:17 pm
@TH3DARKN1GHT,
I feel a bit of KARMA in the air…
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I’ve watched enough of Penner to realize that the match doesn’t fit the Kings. He isn’t involved, he doesn’t contribute, But what is Lombardi going to do, bench the guy and basically tell the world that his trade for Penner was a very bad move? No, Egos are getting in the way so they are going to try and put a good face on it, make TM the messenger (we all know what happens to the messenger) and then quietly allow him to walk (we hope) during the off-season.
I would like to suggest that from now on, whenever Penner comes on the ice, let Lombardi know how you feel by giving him the Blake (Avalanche Blake) cheer. Maybe we can embarrass them into removing him the play.
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what do the Kings lose without Penner in the lineup?
Well they won’t miss any goals
a team worst -3
lazy backchecking
lazy forechecking
poor knowledge of when to get the hell off the ice (this guy gets caught on long shifts constantly)
emotion (Penner has none)
bad penalties at bad times
anything else?
I keep hoping (praying) that Brown has some guy lined up and hits Penner instead.
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TA Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 11:10 pm
@mike morbid, I agree 100%!
I just don’t understand TM. Why play a guy who gives no EFFEORT! Plays no defensive and is so SOFT! Play someone that will give some effort.
Last year TM benched Frolov for lack of effort. But at least Frolov played solid defense.
TM keeps saying that Penner is learning a new system and won’t bench him, but he benched Poni earlier this year for lack of effort when he was new and learning the system?
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Is Oscar Moller Terry Murray’s premature born son? Why are we treating him like he is disabled? He was drafted to play on the Los Angeles Kings, not in Manchester. He has always been on the smaller side, but has never played like it. Unless he is actually afraid to play, let the guy play.
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I told everyone not to trade for Penner, sorry. I hate this but I told you so, get rid of him quick in the off season. Bad decison for Penner
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TA Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 10:35 pm
@Harty, Along with me. I thought Booth from Fla. would have been a good fit!
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I’ve got an answer to our problems! A way we can get Moller in the game and Penner’s feet moving! We put Moller in a backpack and strap it to Penner. Our own version of Master Blaster!!! Hey, it could work!
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My legs were aching from being so far off the edge of my seat. Last night I was panting from the jumping and screaming after the Kings’ goals (as well as the Sharks’ goals). I can honestly say that I got more of a workout during last night’s game than Dustin Penner did. I believe that there were mostly fans like me present who put an effort into being a Kings fan, and they reciprocated the effort (mostly). But Penner’s presence on the ice was disheartening.
If Penner’s lack of effort is due to something outside the game of hockey, that’s a damn shame. My condolences, sir. But he needs to be honest with himself and the Los Angeles staff. I appreciate Murray’s optimism, and I truly believe Penner can be an effective presence . . . when he wants. Now is the time for realism, not the day of game six or seven. Penner’s spot needs to be filled by a King, not someone who plays like a Prince in training.
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A few people already mentioned it, but Penner is out of shape he is winded after every shift whenever then pan to him on the bench he is breathing really heavily, like Kopitar was last season before he got in the shape he is now. Penner just needs to lose some weight and work on his endurance so he can play for at least 45 seconds. He is currently asking for quick 20second shifts and is being rotated out right away. Murray can’t do much with Penner’s conditioning level other than cater to his need of short shifts which can cause odd man rushes and loss of neutral zone control.
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Bkrs-Bud Reply:
April 20th, 2011 at 10:58 pm
@TheAcaciaStrain, Especially when the team fails to get the puck in deep before a change,all of our slow players get exposed when that happens.
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http://imikimi.com/main/view_kimi/1tyG6-102
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Why don’t the Kings pay Penner 1/2 his salary since he only really works 1/2 the time if that?
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