Kevin Westgarth did not return to the game after his fight with Anaheim’s Brian McGrattan, 1:43 into the second period. Westgarth, in the hallway of the Kings’ locker room after the game, informally said he was fine, but Terry Murray said Westgarth would be evaluated again tomorrow.
MURRAY: “He took a punch to the head, right under his left eye. He was evaluated and they decided to keep him out, obviously, and we’ll get another look at him tomorrow and see where he’s at.”
I’ve been one oF Westy’s harshest critics, and hope that he doesn’t play at all, but I don’t want him not to play because he’s injured. Get well soon Westy.
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He looked a bit wobbly leaving the ice..
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ugh i believe he Should sit Westy and play Ethan Moreau or Hunter give them a shot
How can u say Hunter earn a spot in a roster if he doesnt play or Ethan Moreau
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Too bad. Westy looked a little more agressive on the puck during the few minutes he did play. Hope it’s just precautionary, and nothing to worry about.
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I saw him at the Honda Center last season just days after his fiest fight with John Scott of Chicago, and he looked like hell… Between him and Clifford, our fighters are like punching bags… They need to learn some defense!
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mcdangles Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 9:45 pm
@Kings win, Ducks lose, they need to learn to FIGHT!
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thelexsters Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 10:24 pm
@mcdangles, they should get some Kmart or Boxing lessons
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thelexsters Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 10:25 pm
@thelexsters, mma stupid phone
40YearKingsFan Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 8:24 am
@Kings win, Ducks lose, Can’t remember Westgarth ever really winning a fight, but I can remember him losing several badly. I don’t believe losing a fight, or struggling to a draw with an expendable player on the other team “enforces” anything at all. It just surrenders what could be productive ice time.
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Stuart Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 8:36 am
@40YearKingsFan, very good call!
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I like Westyn but he really isnt a very good enforcer..Doenst hit anyone and doenst scare anyone… I actually like Clune better or someone who is a little edgier..
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CB14 Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 9:39 pm
@neil, second!
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mcdangles Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 9:41 pm
@neil, edgier would be in a player as in the name of Andreoff
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Mike in Oregon Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 10:17 pm
@neil, Agreed. we need a Beast
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Hope the big guy is ok. Those looked like some nast hits.
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Duckbasher Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 9:50 pm
@TheCrazyWhls, – I hope he’s not hurt. But at the same time I hope he goes home and I never see him in a Kings jersey again. He’s got no business playing in the NHL (or fighting).
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Hope the big guy is ok. Those looked like some nast hits.
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This game was like played in Bizzaro world..
Like an opposite dimension…
Hope westy is ok..He was on it until that incident…
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Not Since Matt Johnson have we really had an enforcer that people feared
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Shakes Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 4:36 am
@Otto Ped,
don’t forget Drago (Ivanans), who scared me.
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HockeyOnly Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 11:14 am
@Otto Ped, Not since McSorley, no one has even come close.
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Otto Ped Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 1:59 pm
@HockeyOnly, MJ did not quite fill MMc’s skates nor did I mean to insinuate that but he was a beast when he came into the league. I remember watching him, still a teenager, skate around the rink looking like a great white shark in a gold fish bowl just waiting to take a bite out of something. He was far more deterrent than anyone we have currently
for example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nl_Ob8SqxN8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtkcxZ7HyIs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnGEu4syUe0&feature=fvsr
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taylorskings Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 8:31 pm
@Otto Ped, don’t wish that on us. At least Westgarth doesn’t take the stupid penalties Matt Johnson did. He was the worst. he was a total momentum killer, took non fighting penalties that served no purpose to put us short handed.
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maybe the Kings TOUGH GUYS should start watching old footage of Domi, Probert, Kamensky, Clark, those are the guys that knew how to throw a punch and be defensive in one too.
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CB14 Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 9:49 pm
@mcdangles, Yeah but Westy claps his hands after he fights, that’s better than being able to defend yourself, right? LOL
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mcdangles Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 10:56 pm
@CB14, Westgarth is a joke, plain and simple. I would take Andreoff over him at a drop of a dime
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CB14 Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 10:59 pm
@mcdangles, I would take Andreoff over him at a drop of a penny, thus saving myself 9 cents. LOL, What can I say, I’m cheap. I also thought Jordan Nolan looked good the other night too.
Action Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 10:40 pm
@mcdangles,
Kamensky? As in, Valery Kamensky? You must have the name confused with another.
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mcdangles Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 10:55 pm
@Action, That would be Kevin, and correction on the spelling, with an I
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I am a fan of Westy and have been pulling for him to make an impact in the enforcer ranks, but this is a huge step backwards. 10-15 fights into the season it’s ok to get dinged or dropped, but NOT your 1st pre-season bout. sorry gang, time for DL to spend some $$$ on a legit NHL tough guy, because Cliffy/Clune register more into the middleweight div, and you dont want them trying to hang w/Scott/Carkner/Parros/Bissonette/Engelland, etc..those dudes are too big/strong. please prove me wrong Westy, I’d love to see it more than anyone. lates, Von S.
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dropthepuck Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 10:32 pm
@von_swine,
Hope Westy’s ok..McGratton is one tough dude..agree about Cifford\Clune, theyre more middleweights..Manchester has Johnson, a legit Heavyweight in the system that can be called up if needed..No need to rely on Clifford\Clune for that role. I dont think Hunter or Moreau fit the enforcer role either.
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Belexes Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 11:03 pm
@dropthepuck,
Agree with you. McGratton is a very dangerous man and isn’t going to stop throwin em until he’s forced to. Westy let up a little, and bam.
Westy will be right back in there though. Hope all is well for one of my favorite Kings.
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Kenny44 Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 11:27 pm
@von_swine, But DL just spent $$ on Westy, and he’s got other contract concerns on his mind right now.
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von_swine Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 11:42 pm
@Kenny44, ^Ken, correct on both points,..just think that someone like Godard (shout out to Comb for that dope comment/observation) would be an easy pickup for under 1/2 a mil to shore up any issues we might have if other teams try to get rough & tough. still, I want Westy back and ready to throw em, he’s just got to get a LOT meaner when the gloves are off and bail this Princeton/Queensbury approach to bareknuckle fistfighting in the NHL. Rob Ray was a guy who got HANDLED his first 2-3 seasons in Buffalo before he got a mean streak and kinda overacheived for his size for the next 6-7,(and did a good share of wailing on guys). still, I dont see the kind of venom in Westy so far to compare him to guys like Twist/Kocur/Churla/Crowder/Baumgartner, etc.. he needs that from here on out, and I hope he finds it. lates, Von S.
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Unfortunately, Westy’s best feature is that he’s game. If you watch his “greatest hits” you come away knowing he is not an elite enforcer, but a guy who responds well to getting his ass kicked.
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p/u Godard off waivers for insurance
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Belexes Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 10:33 pm
@comb over,
Did dallas waive him? He’s a beast for sure.
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comb over Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 10:40 pm
@Belexes, yes… yesterday
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Kenny44 Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 11:28 pm
@Belexes, DAL probably needed the $$ for chapter 11 attorney fees.
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@Kings win, Ducks lose,
Westy doesn’t fill out Clifford’s dance card. He’s a big boy and can make those desicions on his own. Besides, most of the guys Clifford fights would want nothing to do with Westy.
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@LicoriceBiscuit, been in this game since I was 3years old. Played it, coached it, scouted it, and I am NOT a Kings fan, I am a HOCKEY fan. I just happen to live here in Los Angeles and the Kings are the closest team to watch when other teams that I like to see play come here. Just be thankful that the Kings are not under a microscope like the Leafs and Canadiens are being that said, if anything even if ya breath the wrong way as a Montreal Canadien player, it makes the front page. And not possessing the slightest idea of the inner workings or skill required to play this game at the highest level, NHL, I have good friends in both players and management in the league for many years and it takes more than what the Kings think they have right now, give them a couple more years and not stir the pot so much as in chemistry and see what happens with what they have now
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LicoriceBiscuit Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 11:03 pm
@mcdangles, Too true mcdangles. Perhaps, I shot from the hip, because I know what these guys put themselves through mentally and physically, and so do you.
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LicoriceBiscuit Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 11:05 pm
@LicoriceBiscuit, whoops, I hope that didn’t sound derogative…I meant it like you know what I’m saying.
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mcdangles Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 11:24 pm
@LicoriceBiscuit, I feel ya. All is good in the Hockey World
@LicoriceBiscuit,
What makes me laugh is the declarations that this is gonna be a long season based on the preseason. As soon as ANY stock is put in the preseason in a comment (aside from a prospect looking good), I immediately write off their opinion. Westgarth had a good series against SJ, but people have the attention span of a goldfish.
I generally agree with your post though
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Kenny44 Reply:
September 25th, 2011 at 11:30 pm
@Action, mmm, goldfish!
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McGrattan notes: ended Ivanans’ season due to concussion last year..
and we drafted this guy in the 4th round in 1999. We had him… Now Anaheim has him AND Parros. Yeah. We don’t need a heavyweight.
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penguin76 Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 7:27 am
@mcsorleyfan,
you’re confusing him with Steve MacIntyre! he’s the one who knocked the smarts out of Ivanans and ended his season in game 1 of the 2010-2011 season!
Westgarth has no reason to be ashamed. Brian has been at this much longer than he has and has tons more experience than he does. he’s the single season PIM’s record holder in the AHL for Christ’s sake! thats one of the things that bothers me about college hockey, they don’t allow players to fight. meanwhile you have guys who go to juniors where they hone all their skills, including fighting, so when they play guys from college, they have a bit of an advantage in fighting and win out more times than not. i understand they’re trying to teach sportsmanship, but this is hockey where fighting is “tolerated”. i feel they’re doing these kids a great dis-service by not allowing them to play the game the way it will be played at whatever other level they take it to. thats why it took Parros so long to get to where he is now, and thats why it will take Westy just as long to get there.
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mcsorleyfan Reply:
September 27th, 2011 at 4:48 am
@penguin76, Agreed, and thanks for the catch. McIntyre, McGrattan, McSorley,McCarty, pick your Mc…lol We are easy to confuse! But you’re correct; it was Steve. My name/face recognition is still undergoing reconstruction.
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mcsorleyfan Reply:
September 27th, 2011 at 4:51 am
@mcsorleyfan, sry MacIntyre! Mc, Mac, scratch one and he bleeds the other..
MacIntyre ended Ivanans season, and possibly career opening night last year, not McGrattan.
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I told you that Westgarth blows, and DL wasted 1.45m signing this guy for 2 years of losing fights and concussions…..> but no one listens to the next future GM of the Kings = Me. Between Clifford,Moreau,Hunter, those 3 right there fight among a few others. We never needed Westgarth, he has no hockey talent, can’t fight, he sucks. They should have never waived George Parros a few years back. That was DL’s very 1st stupid move on evaluating players. Lets hope who ever makes the team in the last roster cuts are the right ones Dumbardi.
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Enforcer, do we really need one? Sorry, I am totally not a fan of fighting. I have to turn to other channel while they are fighting because my son is watching hockey with me. He asked me couple times why they fought in the game? I can’t tell him it’s because they don’t like each others, then fight. Anyway, please sit him like sitting Harold last year. Let someone drop the gloves from the other team but we don’t, then we get 2 minutes PP.
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HockeyOnly Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 11:26 am
@zdfun, Hate to tell you this but, some of these guys fight each other because they truly do not like each other. It’s ok to tell your son that it is very possible that they don’t like each other. I know for a fact that Detroit’s Ted Lindsay and Toronto’s Bill Ezinicki absolutely hated each other, but…… they never staged their fights with each other, “as in” “You wanna go” there was always a good reason for them dropping the gloves. Also, they didn’t fight everytime they played each other but they were ready. In the old days the boys pretty much stayed in their own weight class and there wasn’t what we call an “enforcer” like today. “Old days” I’m talking in the 50′s.
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drop the puck Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 12:51 pm
@zdfun,
Never happen, players have to much pride, not gonna let a cheap/dirty shot go. That goes for all teams so yea, we need a enforcer on the roster. Dont have to play him every night but you still need one..Like I said earlier, Manchester has the guys that could fill the role without having to pick up someone else and at a cheaper cost..Justin Johnson, Rich Clune, Dwight King, Jordan Nolan and few others. check out one of the fight sites like dropyourgloves.com , etc to see the depth of toughguys the Kings have in the system…
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HockeyOnly Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 4:08 pm
@drop the puck, Where’s Detroits enforcer?
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StankBloat Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 2:32 pm
@zdfun, WTF !?!?! Maybe watch Cake Boss or Dancing With The Stars if the fighting is too much for you & your son…….
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Kings Fan In Temecula Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 2:47 pm
@StankBloat, haha not too make fun but that was an amusing post
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zdfun Reply:
September 26th, 2011 at 3:04 pm
@StankBloat, good luck to your son if you have one.
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