As noted this morning, Terry Murray staged another lineup mini-shakeup this morning. Anze Kopitar is back with the linemates — Simon Gagne and Justin Williams — he started the season with, and perhaps he can get them going. Williams has gone 17 games without a goal and Gagne has gone seven. Dustin Brown is also back on left wing, alongside Jarret Stoll and Trent Hunter. The other lines have Andrei Loktionov centering Dustin Penner and Ethan Moreau, and Colin Fraser centering Kyle Clifford and Kevin Westgarth.
MURRAY: “We’ve moving some players around. Maybe moving them back to the original start would be the correct terminology by me. Putting Williams back with Kopitar and Gags. I’m going to put Brownie back on the left side. He’s so effective coming off that left side on the attack. I just want to take advantage of it right now. I go back to the end of the game against Montreal, and our shot count is not where it needs to be. The chances should be more. The net presence needs to be better, and Brownie is the one player there, with his power-forward mentality off the left side, who is very effective. So I want to take advantage of that.’’
Murray was asked for his impressions of Penner, who returned from a nine-game absence on Saturday and scored a power-play goal.
MURRAY: “I thought, with his first game in three weeks, I thought he moved well. I thought he was trying to make some plays, which he did, and ends up getting to the net on a couple occasions where he’s a big body. That’s the attitude that we need to reestablish as a team again. We’re getting away from that in the last several games. So, overall, his game was good. I just want to make sure there’s no back-off on the gas pedal here. He’s got to keep going, he’s got to keep getting better.’’
If he’s so effective on the left side, maybe he should stay there.
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Alex Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 10:43 am
@Helvetica, Clifford should be with Loktionov and Penner. Moreau can sit and watch. Lewis should be in.
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How about moving TM around!?
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tornado12 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 4:46 pm
@John, i lol’d
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Shane Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:06 pm
Exactly. I’m stunned that DL is going to put his butt on the line for this outdated clown. I hope DL is renting becuase it’s a bad time to put a house on the market.
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Dan Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:38 pm
@Shane, If Brown is so effective on the left side why has he ever played the right. The amount of crap that comes from TM’s mouth is overwhelming. Stop with the double talk and score a damn goal. Tell the guys to play in the middle of the ice and score some GDamn goals.
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Duckbasher Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 10:34 pm
@Dan, Well stated.
Raunq12 Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 8:32 am
@Dan,
Couldn’t have said it better myself
Whiskey_King Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:38 pm
@John, Yeah like out of the state.
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CaliSwag Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 7:19 pm
I’m sick and tired of Terry Murray. He needs to go ASAP!
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jonsey Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:40 pm
@John, Ka’boom!
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adanac Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 7:12 pm
@John, No, to Russia!
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i actually like the idea of the lines if you sub out Moreau for Richardson and Westgarth for Lewis.
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LB Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 4:41 pm
@Dave,
Works for me.
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Resedakingsfan Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:24 pm
@Dave, Totally agree with you.
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SVIK Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:33 pm
@Resedakingsfan, I agree too, after tomorrow night. Westgarth may be nice to have in there against the angry Ducks
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Duckbasher Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 10:37 pm
@SVIK,
Well… if Westy would be more of an agitator it might help some. Problem is he can’t fight. Maybe we can turn him into a hockey player? Seems kind of odd to do this at the pro level though.
40YearKingsFan Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 8:47 am
@SVIK, I’m wondering if Westgarth losing a staged fight or struggling to a boring draw really “enforces” anything or helps motivate the team? I can’t remember EVER seeing him win a scrap. To me it doesn’t seem to do much of anything for either the team or the fans and the net result is simply Westy and the other team’s unskilled tough guy leaving the ice for 5. Am I missing something? I mean, he claps and all but,,,,,
For instance, if Parros is back in the lineup tonight for Anaheim and he and Westy “agree” to a fight, IMO the flow or momentum of the game will be no different after the fight then it was before.
I like Westy, but I’d like to see him either roughing up/agitating the other team’s skill players and/or protecting ours and making it uncomfortable to play chippy hockey with us. I don’t really see him doing either.
KC23 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:44 pm
@Dave, Richardson 0 goals, 1 assist, -5 … lots of motion, zero results.
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Dave Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 8:16 pm
@KC23,
Richardson – 31 shots in 19 games
Moreau – 28 shots in 26 games
TM is all about shot mentality so he plays the guy that averages one shot a game vs. the guy that averages almost 2 shots a game.
can you explain that to me since you agree with TM? and please don’t say the 1 more flukey goal that Moreau has.
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Duckbasher Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 10:40 pm
@Dave, Yea… that was a total fluke goal. And Westgarth’s goal might be the last one we ever see. Westgarth playing over Richardson? Moreau playing over Lewis? Murray has lost his mind.
40YearKingsFan Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 8:25 am
@KC23, Exactly! And he is constantly turning the puck over and getting caught out of position defensively. He’s busy and he’s high octane, but his -5 tells the true story.
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Dave Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 10:44 am
@40YearKingsFan, and getting shots on net which is what TM says he wants. and Moreau is -2 with 20 PIM’s taken mostly in the offensive zone.
Silk Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 7:15 am
@Dave, you are right on! Why can’t TM see this? Get the guys out there who work their butts off, then offensive opportunities to score come more frequently.
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Trent Hunter again? I don’t know what Murray sees in him.
Someone posted the other day about Penner previously playing R.W. while with Anaslime, why not try that again since Brownie has looked so much better on the left wing? With our trouble scoring goals I don’t understand trying to spread out the top 6 forwards in order to have 3 scoring lines. Lets get 2 lines scoring before hoping for a third.
I’ve been wanting to see Richardson-Lokti-Lewis together for awhile, and I hope to see it soon. None of the other bottom 6 forwards are scoring so why the heck not try and catch lightning in a bottle with those 3 speedy players. Lewis was a 1st round pick, he’s got some offensive talent, he just hasn’t been able to show it because he’s been stuck on the 4th line his whole time here. He had some good plays last year after Kopi went down. Wavesinair said they were paired together a little in practice today so you never know.
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CB14 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 4:48 pm
@CB14, I should clarify I know Brown is on the left side again, which is great, just that by putting Penner on the right that would enable all the top 6 to be on 2 lines.
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Duckbasher Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 10:44 pm
@CB14, Geez CB, that’s way too obvious. Penner excels at right wing? Brown excels at left wing? Why in the world would you want to let them play where they are better?
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CB14 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 11:52 pm
@Duckbasher, I know, I’m crazy. LOL
xeropoint Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 4:51 pm
@CB14, I think those guys (Lewis and Richardson) are getting a raw deal. Murray’s system relies on big “heavy” wingers to recover pucks along the boards, so maybe that’s why. It’s certainly not scoring ability seeing as no one seems to have that, much less any bottom 6 guys.
What disturbs me most is the only trick this man has up his sleeve is changing players around the lineup. The offensive scheme is so predictable by now, they have no chance to change things under the current staff. There’s no way numbers over a 3+ year period are going to take a dramatic upswing “all of a sudden.” Especially not by only moving pieces around when things go wrong.
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CB14 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:17 pm
@xeropoint, I think that’s exactly it. Murray likes bigger, heavier players. Personally I’d rather be playing the younger guys who are going to be here for longer, and still have room for improvement over 2 guys towards the tail end of their careers who are on 1 year contracts. Plus Lewis and Richie both play on the PK, and Hunter doesn’t.
That’s all Murray has. He’s unable, or unwilling, to change things that go against his “defense first” mentality.
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40YearKingsFan Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 9:19 am
@xeropoint, That’s a really good observation you’ve brought to light and it’s spot on. Lots of line changes, but not even a noticeable tweak to his “system”. He seems unbelievably stubborn to me and the message to the players is that the system is perfect and you are the problem. Murray won’t even share the blame for our inability to score goals.
Our D-men are solid and our goaltending is some of the best in the NHL. Why wouldn’t Murray trust them and open the game up offensively just for a change of pace to snap the team out of this offensive funk?
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DEH Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 7:12 pm
@CB14, Right wing is actually Penner’s natural position. He was a right winger who occasionally played left wing. After the trade he was listed as a right winger but because we were short on the left side, we shifted him to the left. It seems that TM forgot that Penner is a right winger.
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wavesinair Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 11:31 pm
@CB14,
Here’s the Richardson/Lokti/Lewis line in action from today… http://youtu.be/z3OUp3WU8nw
Richie goes top shelf and beats Quick.
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CB14 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 11:38 pm
@wavesinair, Nice! Thanks for the video waves. The best part was the ooohh’s from the players after Richie’s goal. I hope we get to see that line in action during a real game.
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Bkrs-Bud Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 11:44 pm
@wavesinair, The problem with richie isn’t practice, it’s during games 0 goals.
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40YearKingsFan Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 10:23 am
@Bkrs-Bud, That’s the calmest I’ve seen Ritchie this year. If that were a game situation this year he would have hurried and shot wide, then scrambled into the corner to grind the puck out, then turned it over to set up an odd man rush going the other way, and then taken a hooking penalty trying to stop the play from behind. Hasn’t been Richardson’s year, but I hope he turns it around.
Blast From the Past??!!??!!
What, What? What’s happening? They give Murray the night off…and brought in Melrose fresh off the studio set?? I gotta get tickets!!! Of course Westgarth is playing.
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Quickie is 3rd star of the week.
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Osaka Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:21 pm
@goldielocks, Puck Daddy ranks Quick as the 3rd best goalie in the league
http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/Who-are-the-top-5-goalies-in-the-NHL-?urn=nhl-wp18914
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goldielocks Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:49 pm
@Osaka,
Nice to see some recognitions for Quickie. He deserves it. One thing for sure is they, especially TM, owe him a big one.
Florida is now destroying Caps. If it wasn’t Quick we had no chance to win against em.
Oh btw, how do you follow NHL in Osaka? Satellite or cable showing some games?
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Osaka Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:00 pm
@goldielocks, Internet NHL Center Ice, I can watch on the big TV with Apple TV
goldielocks Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:06 pm
@Osaka,
Oh so NHL center ice doesn’t have an area restriction? That’s good to know.
Osaka Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:21 pm
@goldielocks, I’m sorry, I mean NHL Gamecenter Live. It is the internet subscription that gives you access to all NHL games.
goldielocks Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:32 pm
@Osaka,
Yea, I know. I had that subscription before. Are you expeliencing any lags while watching the game? Japan is pretty far from the server (I don’t know where their server is but just guessing it’s in Toronto).
Hunter is the worst, get him out of the line-up.
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Our #2 RW is a guy who got a training camp invite and made the team. Great story, but also kind of sad at the same time.
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Helvetica Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:18 pm
@Cup B4 I Die, He played 1st line as well, if that makes the story any more sad.
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“I just want to make sure there’s no back-off on the gas pedal here.”
Dude, the cars stuck in NUETRAL.
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Since the Kings passing is pretty mediocre below the #1 line and since that means they have trouble either skating the puck into the zone… and since their dump-and-pray system isnt working cause the Kings are too slow to the puck, I think they (and other teams trying to break the 1-3-1 or 1-4) need to start having the D hit the red line and high-lobbing passes into the O zone corners (a la Kopi) with the forwards racing full speed, not having to worry about keeping possession or slowing for the linemate who is carrying the puck.
I would think the opposition D would have their hands full tracking lobbed pucks and controlling the bouncing puck if they get to it first, letting the forecheckers get on them with menace.
Something, anything to break the logger-jam at center ice since our short passing skills are lacking.
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Just getting off another hard days work. It’s been cold here in Salt Lake. 15 degrees. Most of the afternoon I spent taping windows getting them ready for paint. So I had some time to just be by myself and do some thinking…
And this is what I’ve come up with… No more crying and bellyaching over TM and his job. I don’t have any power to change the head coach of the Kings, plus I would like to see TM finish what he started. I also realized that all the blame is not on him. The players need to be accountable also. Bottom Line is that some of our guys have not lived up to what they do when all is normal.
Stoll for instance is one of my favorite Kings. We’ve missed him scoring, but I do believe he is giving it his all. The puck just isn’t going in.
Williams, again this guy is out there doing his best. He is not the type of player who takes nights off. Dude gives 100%. Yet the puck has not gone in.
Brown, I don’t care what anyone says about Brown. It is not in his DNA to quit, or stop playing. He more than anyone else on this team wants the Kings to win. Yet the puck has had a hard time finding the net.
Penner, yes Penner is a veteran. He wants to win, he wants to earn his money and respect from his peers. The puck found the net for his first of the year. More to come?
These 4 veterans need to play like they have in the past. When this happens the Kings will be scoring more and they will be living up to our expectations. We all have to be accountable in life. Most of us have normal paying jobs. When we fail at whatever we do, we must get back at it and do better next time.
Hockey is a tough game. It wasn’t to long ago that Boston loss 4 games to philly in the playoffs. Now look at them 12-0-1 in Nov. Stanley Cup in their back pocket. One of the best teams in the NHL. Next to soccer, scoring a goal in hockey is the hardest point to score. Last year we played in the same TM system, we ended up OK. This year I do believe TM has tweaked his system some what, Still no goals. Were getting goals just not enough.
So that it from me. No more bashing TM, DL, or anyone else. I’m just a fan who wants to see the Kings win every game. I could bitch until the end of days and it will stay the same. Change happens when one becomes willing to do whatever it takes. I do believe in this club and yes I may be let down, but HEY I signed up for it the day I became a fan of this club.
My hockey IQ just isn’t high enough. It’s time for me to learn from the many of you who just like I, love this team. I just want to see them win tomorrow. If they don;t then really what can I/we do. Start saving for playoff tickets now. We are going to make them and when we get there our goal scoring will be on fire. Watch out because when this team finds what it is missing they are going to be dangerous. Boston just scored 2 vs the Pens. And folks thought they sucked too.
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xeropoint Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:36 pm
@kinginsaltlake, I’ll have whatever you’re drinkin
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rogiesbackup Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 8:48 pm
@kinginsaltlake, I’m with ya on this one. Everybody is forgetting how many post we’ve hit and or scoring chances. Obviously doesn’t count as a goal, but it’s a good indication that TM’s system IS offensive enough!!!
Keep at it! Soon enough luck will change, hopefully.
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40YearKingsFan Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 9:44 am
@rogiesbackup, 26 games into the season and we’re 28th (out of 30) in scoring after adding 2 proven goal scorers to an already potent line up. I have always backed Murray through the rebuild for his steady hand, but our offensive problems aren’t the posts. Everybody hits the pipes.
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Duckbasher Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 10:52 pm
@kinginsaltlake, OK… I’ll bash enough for both of us. Murray and his “system” is the problem. Fix that and you’ve fixed the King’s inability to score.
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g smith86 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 11:17 pm
@kinginsaltlake, Just read the chat with Jim Fox and he seems to think TM has tweaked the system a little to encourage more offense. I don’t know about that…remember this, Foxy is a paid analyst and he’s going to be careful about what he says when it comes to his employers. I do think the Kings will find their way out of this scoring slump, but I also believe that they have become way too predictable with the puck and we don’t see them with the puck enough throughout the game because teams seem to know exactly where they need to be to disrupt the offense. They have a very hard time 5 on 5 just getting out of their zone after a turn over. We have all seen this. Teams jump all over them and usually end up with the puck again. Yep, their 5 on 5 play is terrible this year. The cycle down low isn’t working…guys aren’t holding on to the puck like in years past…They try the cycle and the puck gets turned over right away.
Yes, you are right. They have not had a lot of puck luck this year…
But, they also haven’t had a lot of puck possession this year like in years past
Puck possession leads to more scoring chances…
and it’s scoring chances that the Kings are finding hard to come by…not just shots, but legitimate chances to score.
The guys aren’t going to suddenly start burying their shots when they only have one chance to score…they need to have numerous chances and then maybe get the goal…
I know I, as a Kings fan for over 25 years, would like to see them generate more legitimate scoring opportunities…That’s how they get out of the slump
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I saw the headline and had visions of Gretzky and Robitaille coming down the ice on a 2 on 1 and causing the opposing goalie to wish he was wearing Depends. I was even going to buy some Skechers if the Great One had returned. Then I read the story and realized that the “blast from our past” was more of a McFly type “blast from the past” with no flux capacitor to power our DeLorean. Oh well, still nothing better than being a Kings fan. GKG!!!
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xeropoint Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:39 pm
@DesertKing,
“I saw the headline and had visions of Gretzky and Robitaille coming down the ice on a 2 on 1 and causing the opposing goalie to wish he was wearing Depends.”
LOL! Now that the goalies are seeing Brown and Kopitar coming down on a 2-on-1 do the goalies wish they had lawnchairs so they could relax while Brown tripped over the redline?
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g smith86 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 11:19 pm
@xeropoint, Ouch! Go easy on Brown!
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IMO, The LA Kings are a “Jonathan Quick” away from being the worst team in the league thanks to TM.
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xeropoint Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:40 pm
@zulov, I couldn’t agree more with this.
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didn’t we have these same discussions last year? switching line mates every other game? You can switch lines and swtch the personnel only so much and at some point have to realize its not making any differance. I don’t know, maybe it’s just me.
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Kings offense under Terry Murrays tenure:
11-12 2.27 (tied for 29th)
10-11 2.55 (tied for 25th) Cup Champs – Boston 2.98 (5th)
09-10 2.82 (tied for 9th) Cup Champs – Blackhawks 3.20 (3rd)
08-09 2.46 (tied for 27th) Cup Champs – Penguins 3.15 (6th)
Other than the 2009-2010 season, Kings Goals per game ranked bottom 5 in entire NHL. Incidentally Kopitar, Doughty and Simmonds all had career years in 09-10.
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SVIK Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:40 pm
@xeropoint, Good stats and great argument. But those teams did not have Mike Richards. I think this team is built for the postseason.
You make a great argument but to all the fans I don’t understand the panic when we are 1 point out of first place and still winning games in this collective slump.
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tornado12 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:53 pm
@SVIK, if phx wins tonight we are out of the playoff picture (SJ is not going to lose all the games in hand they have on us)…
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CB14 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:53 pm
@SVIK, The problem is that you’re looking at the points we have, and not taking into consideration that other teams in our division have played fewer games then us. San Jose has played 3 fewer games and are only 1 point behind us. A better way to compare teams standings is the teams “Point Percentage”. That’s really the only way to compare teams because they’ve all played a different amount of games. The Kings are 4th in the Pacific division, and 9th in the West in point percentage. Definately puts things in a different perspective.
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SVIK Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:12 pm
@CB14, 100% I know that haha but it doesn’t help the point I’m making. I think we all need to keep playing ping pong, play a little better, get Richie back and JB going and this is a much better team than a lot of people are complaining about lately.
CB14 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 7:04 pm
@SVIK, Ohh I agree the talent is there. I just don’t think the talent’s in the right hands. Richards has only missed 1 and a half games, JB can play better, but JQ could also come back down a little too. That’s why I don’t see this team becoming much better without a change in the system.
So, I’ve watched all the games so far and I feel like the big difference on the negative side is attack zone time. I feel like we are getting heavily ground down in our zone. For a team with size built around defense this doesn’t make any sense. Does anyone else agree with my observation?
Also, we have to be one of the very worst teams in terms of giveaways vs takeaways – particularly in our own zone.
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According to Jim Fox… who knows a lot more than all of us about the game and what goes on inside the Kings room… says its not the system, its the guys. we have the right guys but they are just slumping. its bizarre but there are good players here, DL has done a fantastic job.
Its December and we have a winning team with this awful offense as it is.
Wait until DD gets his game back and the rest of the guys begin to catch on.
Talk to me in May about this roster everyone and please stop blaming our “system” its becoming very cliche.
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Dan Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:40 pm
@SVIK, Who has DL brought in? Richards is a good trade but Philly had decided to trade away he and Carter so what really did DL do. Doughty, wow its really tough to draft with the 2nd pick. Penner? Alyn McCauley, Cloutier? Ryan Smyth? Hunter? Moureau? Christ DL may be the worst GM in the league.
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SVIK Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:56 pm
@Dan, Traded for Jack Johnson and Justin Williams. Willie Mithcell Rob Scuderi. Simon Gagne. Drafted Andrei Loktionov and Slava Voynov.
And your gonna give him no credit for acquiring Mike Richards? He drafted Simmonds and Schenn who made that deal happen. we were not the only team interested in Mike Richards, no way!
Guy played Center on the Canadian Olympic team at 23, give me a break.
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DanielC Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:41 pm
@SVIK, +1
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xeropoint Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:48 pm
@SVIK, It’s over simplifying things to say “the system” is soley to blame just as it is oversimplifying to say “it’s the guys”.
Why wait until May, when we all have the answers, to discuss the roster?
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SVIK Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:59 pm
@xeropoint, Ok what do you propose right now? Trade for who, from what team? 25 are in the race right now and the others wont just give you Iginla and Bobby Ryan and Eric Staal.
Unless you want another Penner or Jeff Halpern…
What can we do but wait and watch this team kick ass.
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xeropoint Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:10 pm
@SVIK, Easy. Coaching change.
SVIK Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:13 pm
@SVIK, I’m not against a coaching change, maybe that’s the way to go if it continues to get worse, but I don’t think it will
DesertKing Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:48 pm
@SVIK,
Love Jim Fox, but when is the last time you saw a sports broadcast analyst recommend the firing of the head coach of the team.
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SVIK Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:51 pm
@DesertKing, Good point.
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CB14 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:54 pm
@DesertKing, Never
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Duckbasher Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 10:57 pm
@DesertKing, Not if he likes “his” job. Good point.
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goldielocks Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:01 pm
@SVIK,
OK so they all slumping for 2 years? Every single player sucked offensively past 2 years under TM’s system. And when they are no longer under his system, they start scoring. So they just come out of a slump? Interesting.
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CB14 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:02 pm
@SVIK, Our 5 on 5 offense has been well below average for 4 years straight, that’s not a slump.
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SVIK Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:10 pm
@CB14, yes that is true but thats not our team. We play good defense and ride an awesome Goalie. 3 goals is all we need to score not 6. we are not TB or WSH.
you are very right and it needs to get better but I don’t think the sky is really falling. Once again, there is a difference between a Saturday matinee and the postseason.
1. Kopitar
2. Richards
3. Stoll (who really needs to pick it up over the next 4 months)
Jonathan Quick
not many teams match up well with that
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neil Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:53 pm
@SVIK, Right now …its hard to give DL or TM any love…we are getting worse not better..Out of the playoffs if the season ended today….Other Richards/Kopi..all of DL’s players are not performing very well.BTW its only whinning if you dont have a solution..Most fans do have a solution….Maybe we will all be surprised and the team starts scoring like crazy the second half of the year…
CB14 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 7:45 pm
@SVIK, You’re right all we need to score is 3 goals, not 6. Unfortunately they’ve only managed to do so in 8 of 26 games.
I responded to you higher and said that I agree with you that the talent is there, but it’s not proucing. We can argue about who’s at fault for that, I think we both know where each other stand on that, but we can both agree that it’s a problem that needs to be fixed, and soon.
To be honest, IMO I personally don’t see this offenssive struggle a coaching problem, I just see this YOUNG,(keyword here) young team with some experience just have some trouble finding the net. That is all, sure we have alot of guys on here who can pot 20-30 goals a year on this team. & I do understand it’s been a main cause of concern for the past few years..and we have guys like Kopitar, Doughty, Johnson, who have yet to produce consistently year after year & game after game and I just believe IMO that maybe they’re gripping the stick too tight sometimes. They’re getting they’re chances and believe me when some of these guys start scoring more consistently we’ll be up there in the Goals for category..everyone can’t just blame this on TM I believe. When you watch the FSW telecast, you know that stat that Bob always brings up? 66-0-4 I believe in the last 70 games when leading after two periods if I’m not mistaken..I don’t know about you guys but alot..and I mean ALOT of teams would kill for that stat. We’ll be fine, we have a great team here and everyone around the league realizes that.
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bbb7 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:59 pm
@DanielC, Agree with a lot you say here, but the Kings arent really a young team anymore; they are middle of the pack as far as average age goes.
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neil Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:55 pm
@DanielC, Alot of teams wouldnt trade that stat for 9th place…..also please …we are not a young team.We have a few young players but most of our players have been in the league at least 5 or 6 yrars…
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rogiesbackup Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 8:53 pm
@DanielC, Scoring chances AND goal post hit! We’ve had many of them, TM system is FINE for offense. Luck not on our side YET!!
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Silk Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 7:44 am
@DanielC, The problem is TM-simple and obvious. He doesn’t have a clue on the offensive side. It’s not “shots on goals” that matter, it’s quality shots that do! When a coach prioritizes having their players along the boards and behind the net cycling instead of filling the slots, we aren’t going to have many good opportunities to score. Hell, more often then not, we only have one forechecker in the offensive zone chasing down the puck without any support. I think any pinhead would figure out that we won’t score many goals using that strategy.
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This guy has been saying the same stuff for years with the same results. I don’t get what he and Lombardi are thinking. There is no excuse for this poor offense. I don’t think it’s the players, look at how Smyth, Poni, Purcell and Moulson have done with other teams. Lombardi needs to grow some balls like Murray and make that tough decision to fire the coach. Hire Carlyle. If you count overtime losses this is a .500 team. This team is the biggest underachieving team in the NHL.
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I’d rather see Richardson and Lewis than Hunter and Moreau. At least they can add speed.
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Shot count doesn’t necessarily translte to an increase in chances. What happen to those mid-slot tips and shot passes I saw at the beginning od the season???? Did we give up on those high-percentage chances which I beleive we ere beginning to generate real points??
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bbb7 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 5:58 pm
@crashin’da net, Exactly. It always seems to me when TM stresses ‘shot mentality’ to the team they go out and take a lot of long, easy shots just to prove they were listening. The Kings just never seem to have a lot of grade A scoring chances, even if they have tons of shots, cause the selection is poor and they dont find guys moving thru prime scoring areas and hit them for a quick shot. The offense is ploddingly predictable.
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xeropoint Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 6:05 pm
@bbb7, And the lack of chances from prime scoring areas is COMPLETELY by design. Cycle down low and kick it out to the point is an option, not a strategy.
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Kenny44 Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 9:27 pm
@xeropoint and @bbb7, precisely. Someone posted above that the Kings are way to the negative on turnover ratio. The biggest reason for that is predictability. In TM’s system, the safest option is usually the only one. Everyone else in the NHL sees it – they know what’s coming. Before last year’s playoffs, the Sharks’ coach said he was looking forward to making us play alot of defense, which he knew he could do.
4 conference plan is almost approved.
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The Kings really should roll 4 lines of scoring. Forget the “checking line” they all need to do that. But balance out the scoring by putting one star on each line and hopefully they’ll all produce:
Brown Stoll Hunter
Clifford Kopitar Williams
Gagne Loktionov Richardson
Penner Lewis Fraser
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Watch out TM!! I heard this guy is available for coaching
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHo0rJC5t-o
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Osaka Reply:
December 5th, 2011 at 7:36 pm
@DEH, Love it!
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DEH Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 4:09 pm
@Osaka, well at least bring this guy in to be Penner’s personal trainer.
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ROFLMAFAO!!!!!
Much better than the Pea In The Whistle.
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The only change we need now is ??? for TM. That is Step one which will expose DL for the mediocre team he has developed. Step two will be change ??? for DL and the rest of the coaching staff. Step three will be get serious about contending for a Cup.
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TheZamboniMechanic2 Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 2:58 am
@jlium, well said….and to the point
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I don’t understand why Terry doesn’t keep Richardson in the lineup. In the game against Montreal he drew at least 2 penalties and since the Kings can pretty much score only on the power play it would seem a natural choice to keep him out there instead of headbutting the wall with Hunter and Moreau…
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