The first group of players will be on the ice shortly for training camp, but first here’s a couple items… First, Elliotte Friedman of CBC Sports takes a great look at “the anatomy of a holdout,” with perspective from a general manager, agent and player about the mindset and strategies involved when a player doesn’t [...]

There will be 60-plus Kings players on the ice tomorrow for the first day of training-camp practices, starting at 8:30 a.m. at the Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo. All sessions are free to the public. The players will be split into three groups for the first four days of camp, with each group getting [...]

Below, I’ll embed a video interview Dean Lombardi did today with Daryl Evans, talking about Drew Doughty’s absence and the start of training camp. The video can also be viewed by clicking here. Additionally, I wrote a story for LAKings.com, summarizing the Doughty situation, and that can be found by clicking here. TSN’s Bob McKenzie [...]

Here’s the transcript of my phone interview today with Dean Lombardi, in which Lombardi talks about the absence of Drew Doughty from training camp. [ESPN's Pierre LeBrun astutely points out that Doughty is technically an unsigned RFA, so please accept the term ``holdout'' in a colloquial sense...] In the interview, Lombardi talks about taking Doughty’s [...]

Once again, the Kings have managed to put themselves in the middle of one of hockey’s messiest offseason stories. Last year, they dipped their toe into the Ilya Kovalchuk situation and ended up getting stuck in free-agent quicksand for a month. Now it’s Drew Doughty’s contract, a situation they hoped to have resolved more than [...]

The Kings will hold their pre-training camp physicals tomorrow morning, but it’s likely that they will be one player short. As the world knows, Drew Doughty remains without a contract. Unless a deal is reached tonight, Doughty is not expected to be in Los Angeles tomorrow. Dean Lombardi declined, for a third consecutive day, to [...]

Here’s how things went in today’s rookie game between the Kings and Phoenix Coyotes, in which the Kings got a late power-play goal and won 4-3. FIRST PERIOD In goal: It’s the Kings’ Martin Jones against Phoenix’s Louis Domingue. Kings 1, Phoenix 0: The Kings scored the first play on a possession play going into [...]

There have been quite a few questions/comments/emails about the “kids’ press conference” from Hockey Fest on Sunday with Jonathan Quick, Kevin Westgarth, Kyle Clifford and Matt Greene, so here are the links to some of the highlights. They might temporary distract you from Drew Doughty Anxiety Syndrome (DDAS) before this afternoon’s rookie game. Probably not, [...]

There was no shortage of action in El Segundo tonight, as the Phoenix Coyotes rookies beat the Kings 8-7 at Toyota Sports Center. The Kings took a 6-3 lead into the third period but allowed five consecutive goals. Among the standouts were Brandon Kozun and Andy Andreoff, who each had two goals. Kozus also had [...]

Here’s how the scoring went for tonight’s rookie game between the Kings and Phoenix Coyotes… FIRST PERIOD Phoenix 1, Kings 0: Evan Bloodoff beat Martin Jones from the right circle at the 1:11 mark. Assist to Colin Long. Kings 1, Phoenix 1: Brandon Kozun scored a power-play goal on the Kings’ first attempt with the [...]

The Kings have released their training-camp schedule and roster, with on-ice sessions to begin Saturday morning at the Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo. A couple notes… Since I know a lot of people attend the sessions, I will post which players are in which groups as soon as possible (hopefully tomorrow). Second, there have [...]

A reminder that the rookie game between the Kings and Phoenix Coyotes will be played today at 6 p.m. at the Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo. Tickets are available for $10, or you can watch a video stream live by clicking here. The Kings’ players were on the ice this morning, and here’s a [...]

Here are three Kings-related items that have absolutely nothing in common… First, reporters following two of his former teams first reported that veteran forward Trent Hunter will sign a pro-tryout agreement with the Kings and attend training camp. Just to be clear, that doesn’t signify any real commitment, other than that Hunter will be given [...]

It’s almost time for Kings hockey, and that’s the case whether you happen to live in the greater Los Angeles area, Phoenix, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Anaheim, Germany or Sweden. From late September — the start of preseason play — to mid-October, the team will definitely be the Kings of the road. The preseason starts [...]

A couple days ago, I posted a link to some great photos from reader Chasen, who is always gracious with his work. Well, here are some less-inspiring photos, taken by a very amateur photographer (me). But it’s practice, because it’s something I’ll be doing more of during the season, so I figured I’d share. They’re [...]

The Kings will wear their vintage purple-and-gold jerseys for three home games this season, as they once again honor former players. Bernie Nicholls will be honored on Dec. 10, when the Kings host Dallas. Daryl Evans will be honored Jan. 2, when the Kings host Colorado. Charlie Simmer will be honored Feb. 18, when the [...]

Given the serious nature of his leg injury, Anze Kopitar’s summer recovery has obviously been a major topic of discussion, but Kopitar wasn’t the only recovering King. Justin Williams underwent offseason surgery to repair a dislocated shoulder. Williams returned late in the season, wearing a highly restrictive shoulder harness, but had the surgery done once [...]

Dustin Penner walked into the Staples Center press room wearing his new Kings road jersey, with the number 25 on the back and sleeves, but that was not the most-discussed number associated with Penner. Penner, whose fitness level came into public criticism late last season, declined to reveal his exact weight but said he had [...]

For those who didn’t attend Hockey Fest this morning and missed the live stream on LAKings.com, I’ll do my best to recap some highlights of the “state of the franchise” question-and-answer session that kicked off the event. (For those who want to see the full video, it should be available via Kings Vision fairly shortly.) [...]

For Kings fans, the happiest sight of Hockey Fest might well have been that of Anze Kopitar walking onto the carpeted-over ice surface this morning. No crutches, no walking boot. Kopitar, whose season ended in late March after a serious injury — he broke his leg and tore a ligament — has been skating for [...]