The Kings didn’t move into the top eight of the Western Conference last night — that wasn’t possible — but they did move into a virtual tie for ninth place with Phoenix, one point behind Nashville. It’s still a little early in the season to call a loss “devastating,” but a loss to the Coyotes, at home, coming off the holiday break — and against a team that had to travel the morning of the game and had injury woes — would have put the Kings four points behind Phoenix. That might have felt, well, sort of devastating. So, the Kings will take small victories where they can find them. There was no Arizona-based coverage of last night’s game, so here are some postgame quotes from the Coyotes’ locker room…
COACH DAVE TIPPETT
(on the game…) “I thought we hung in there. We wanted to make sure we competed hard and give ourselves the best chance of winning. We were hanging around the whole game right to the end. There were a couple of goals that LaBarbera would like to have back, but those are tough to overcome.”
(on McElhinney’s relief effort…) “I thought he played very well. He made a couple good saves and then he got lucky on a couple posts, so we just took a chance to see if we could change the momentum there. We competed hard tonight and you always want results, without a doubt. They had some guys really play well tonight. We have to keep that attitude and try to win a big game at home.”
(on Raffi Torres’ goals…) “He made a couple good plays on breakaways to score. With our lineup the way it is, we need people to contribute throughout, and he gave us a couple good goals tonight.”
—–
SHANE DOAN
(on the game…) “Everyone has injuries, everyone has people that they are missing. You have to find ways to battle through it and make sure that other guys step up. I thought Raffi Torres was great and (Patrick) O’Sullivan. That line was really good for us. We had guys step up. We’ve just got to find ways to score on the power play. Special teams this year are huge for us and we’ve got to be better at it.”
(on the Kings’ defensemen scoring goals…) “Their blue line is huge for them. They were getting a lot of shots through to the net and they were shooting a lot of pucks through. Their guys were going to the net hard.”
When I watched Sutter’s interview after the game, I could not stop laughing. It’s like a scene out of “Trading Places.” Somewhere Dean Lombardi and Tim Leiweke made a $1 bet that they could pull in a funny-looking, ineloquent guy off the street and have him successfully coach an NHL franchise.
Somewhere Terry Murray is dressed up like Santa with a smoked salmon hidden under his clothes.
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DesertKing Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:02 am
@Tyler,
LOL!! Hopefully without the Colt .45 in his hand!
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Harty Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:37 am
@DesertKing, funny, very funny………could be the next box office hit??
Kings style of trading places?
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Helvetica Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 11:17 am
@Tyler, That is hands down the best use of a Trading Places reference i’ve ever seen. Coincidentally, that movie would end with the ouster of Dean and Leiw, and Sutter taking over and “winning” it all.
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Todd S. Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 12:22 pm
@Tyler, The best “Trading Places” reference EVER! Nice. Tyler FTW!
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Kenny44 Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 1:49 pm
@Tyler,
TM on Sutter: “Did you see him behind the bench that first game? He was even wearing my Golden Seals shirt. Like, oh sure, he played in Oakland!”
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It’s good to hear other teams talking about the Kings driving the net hard.
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puck73 Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:09 am
@What’s the frequency, Kenneth?, Seriously dude!
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“There was no Arizona-based coverage of last night’s game.”
That says pretty much everything about having a team in Phoenix.
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Sebastian Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:14 am
@Chip, http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/sports/articles/2011/12/26/20111226phoenix-coyotes-los-angeles-kings-loss.html
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Gabby Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:16 am
@Sebastian,
They just picked up the AP story. That’s not local coverage.
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Luke M. Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:44 am
@Gabby,It wasn’t that many years ago the Kings had no local media covering their road games. The Coyotes fan base is smaller than four years ago and it’s a huge challenge to get locals interested in an NHL team when they keep hearing they’re going to lose the team.
Kingsfan602 Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:45 am
@Chip, there was coverage in az with coyotes announcers not sure what u talking about
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YuriM Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:53 am
@Chip, yea it sux for a team that does well to no get it’s fans interested in the team =(
I did see some PHX fans @ staples last night so there are a few fans, even saw a few Old School Jets jerseys as well.
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Todd S. Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 12:24 pm
@Chip, I can’t see keeping a team in Phoenix much longer either. There is a nice arena in Kansas City that is in need of a tenant!
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Kenny44 Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 1:50 pm
@Chip, NHL needs contraction. Faster please.
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The Kings won the 1st and 3rd periods last night. As a fan of any team, if your team wins 2 out of 3 periods in an NHL game, you shouldnt have too much to complain about unless TM is your coach and all your shots come from the point or the boards.
TM…BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
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DesertKing Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:29 am
@puck73,
Missed an “O”
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Everyone excited for the trade rumors to start going crazy aroud the NHL? Nothing better then some trade “what-ifs” to keep the hockey mind occupied on the off days.
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Great win last night! I must say I have a new and fresh feeling about the team since DS took over. I realize not much has changed system wise (didnt need to IMO) but the overall attitude is looking much better. Guys are fighting for the puck, moving it alot quicker, and the tenacity is back in our game. The optimism is running high in this Kings fan!
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Gabby Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:18 am
@BrokeKingsFan, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again:
The system/message didn’t need to change; the way the message was delivered needed to change.
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CabbagesAndKings Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:23 am
@BrokeKingsFan, I think the bigggest change has been inserting Richardson and Lewis into the lineup. We feel like a faster team top to bottom.
I imagine TM sat up every night with little scraps of paper with the players names on them, continually switching them around. Don’t you just get the feeling that Sutter stepped out on the ice the first day and went… “You, You, and You.. Line 1. You three over there, Line 2.” etc.
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FKA PakiFro Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:37 am
@CabbagesAndKings,
I don’t. He watched the 4-5 games prior to him getting hired and DL game him 7 games to watch. I’m pretty sure he had in idea of what he was going to do before he actually started. Why Murray didn’t make Lewis and Richardson (arguable the two fastest forwards) line up regulars is beyond me.
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CabbagesAndKings Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:49 am
@FKA PakiFro, I didn’t mean that he didn’t put thought into it… Rather just that it was obvious enough that he didn’t have to think about it long.
BrokeKingsFan Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 11:21 am
@CabbagesAndKings, I never could understand TM making Richardson a healthy scratch for no apparent reason. I think your right that BR and TL both in the lineup makes us a faster team top to bottom and having them playing with top skill guys only makes their game better and will see the puck in the net alot more often do to those skilled players ability to finish.
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God LaBarbera is garbage. I know he was screened or whatever on the goal by Scuds but that thing went in with two feet to spare on the near post. Same with VV’s shot on the far post. His positioning is horrible. Maybe I’m spoiled with Quick/Bernier but how does this guy stay in the league?
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puck73 Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:23 am
@bringbackbutchgoring, There was a time, not long ago, that JL was an all star at Manchester, just like Bernier. Just goes to show you, that just because you put up impressive numbers in the AHL, doesnt alaways mean it will translate to the next level.
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bringbackbutchgoring Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:33 am
@puck73, I know. I totally feel sorry for him; he is a nice enough guy but you can just tell he has lost all confidence in himself. He was practically crying after Brown’s goal…
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DesertKing Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:36 am
@bringbackbutchgoring,
Agree, I liked him as a person when he was with us, but not the best goalie.
NOT IMPRESSED Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:44 am
@bringbackbutchgoring, LaBarbara’s stats are better than Bernier’s. It only means JL had a bad game last night.
LaBarbara stats:
3-5, 2.76 GAA, .910% Saves
Bernier stats:
2-4, 3.10 GAA, .880% Saves
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bringbackbutchgoring Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:51 am
@NOT IMPRESSED, True, maybe I’ve only been spoiled by Quick, not so much Bernier (ssshush don’t tell Poorman)
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yard dog Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 12:21 pm
@NOT IMPRESSED, beautiful and oh so true of a post. Quick is the man and we can afford to trade JB while the trade value is still there.
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EJ Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 1:55 pm
@NOT IMPRESSED, but realistically, I don’t think that anyone in hockey will tell you that Labarbara is a better goalie than Bernier. Labarbara clearly does NOT have skills to be a top-flight NHL goalie.
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It seems like Sutter = Refresh Button!
Keep em rolling – Great game, great win.
GKG
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Sutterville update:
Games: 3
Record: 2-0-1
Pts: 5
% of Points: 83%
Delta 67%: 1
Place: 10th
Chasing: 8th
Pts Trailing: 1
GIH: 0
GF: 7
GA: 6
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Per TSN Gagne has concussion.
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bringbackbutchgoring Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:34 am
@mike in LA, Brown to Left side, Williams to first line?
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Harty Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:39 am
@bringbackbutchgoring, I hate to say it, but good, he is lazy and doesn’t score……let the kids play
(richardson, lewis, Fraser, Clifford, Nolan, etc)
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bringbackbutchgoring Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:45 am
@Harty, I’d have to disagree with you about being lazy. He’s just a finesse player that historically never hit anybody. That’s just his style and we knew that coming into the season. Overall, I think he is/was a good pickup and his goals will definitely improve as the team improves offensively
Marc Nathan Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 11:02 am
@Harty, Nolan very injured… as are Clune, Azevedo and Meckler…
Sebastian Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:38 am
@mike in LA, Someone tell TSN thats this isnt baseball! ITs called an upper body injury
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puck73 Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:39 am
@mike in LA, That sucks
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petemagoop Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:56 am
@mike in LA, http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=383570
here’s another one
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Well, We played for about 45 minutes last night and succeeded in pulling off a win. It was an exciting, hard-fought game by both teams, but you really can tell the difference between facing #1 goalie and a backup in this league. LaBarbara is a heck of a guy personally, but he is a backup. He had an off game too. We should have had about 8 goals off of him or he should have been pulled sooner. He was SO deep in his net, there were plenty of open corners to pick.
That being said, to the guy who says the system was not the problem, I disagree. The DEFENSIVE system is not the problem, but the OFFENSIVE system was! Most here can already see the difference from before. It’s been a lot about confidence and execution, but the cycles are a little different in the o-zone, more physical corner board work, aggressiveness, center lane drive on rushes and ESPECIALLY front net presence by the F1 (Mostly). Almost none of these things were happening on a consistent basis with TM because the offensive focus was ‘Get shots on net, go to the front, but always be read to get back on Defense’. It looks as if Sutter is loosening the responsibility of backchecking on the forecheckers and putting it on the D- & F3 so they can be more aggressive offensively. When they go low to high off the cycle, both forwards makes a beeline for the net. More shots from the point, more traffic, more forwards in position for rebounds.
It’s not an overhaul, but there are several tweaks being done to the offense as I see it, part of them mental for sure. Lifting the burden of over defensive play and loosening the reins a bit can help that as we are seeing.
So far, I’m liking the simplicity of Darryl Sutter. He’s not a media darling, which I find kind of refreshing. It’s only 3 games, but I think the monster that preceds him had done a number mentally on this team in a good way. Like I’ve said, I won’t even consider a hard opinion for 20 games. He needs time with this group, but so far, so good. I like the things he’s doing, especially on the ice.
I have to admit, Richardson-Richards-Lewis looked STELLAR and MENACING last night. Penner had a pretty decent game, Williams worked hard, Kopi was NUTS! That move to the net on his one drive with three guys around him was pure balls! It was beautiful! He almost finished that. If Gags is OK, maybe we should switch him and Richie. Gags-Kopi-Brown is not bad at all! Props to Fraser for doing a LOT of little things last night. Dude is cementing the 4th line center position.
The one bonus I have to mention is my disappointment with Phoenix’s first goal. Jack Johnson should have taken that shot from the top of the circle instead of passing it to (I think it was) Williams in the slot where a guy was already on him. He had a clear shot at the net with a guy in front. Not to mention he was out of position to get back after making a lateral pass, which Torres exploited after the block. I’m sure he got a talking to from Sutter after that one to take the shot next time. The rest of the game he was much better though.
So far, Sutter is growing on me.
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Cynic Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:54 am
@Cynic, Of course I was writing this when Gagne is announced to have a concussion. I agree with bringbackbutchgoring:
Brown-Kopi-Williams
Richardson-Richards-Lewis
Penner-Stoll-Hunter
Clifford-Fraser-Westgarth
Hunter? LOL, I know, but Loktionov is just not there yet. He needs to go back to Manch IMO. He’d get POUNDED on the boards in Chi town.
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outsider Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 11:17 am
@Cynic, very good lines to me…
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bringbackbutchgoring Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:58 am
@Cynic, Great analysis. Richardson adds a lot of grit to any line; I’d always wanted him to get more top line time. I actually think the guy can pot some goals and could be a consistent 15 goal scorer one day. Only small point of contention is that I thought Penner sort of took the game off. He had the sweet pass to Williams but he was loafing on defense and sort of going through the motions offensively. He really was outstanding the few games before that and he’s a guy that can make a big difference the rest of the season.
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Cynic Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 12:35 pm
@bringbackbutchgoring, Thanks. I thought Penner was good most of the game (For Penner that is). The third period he seemed to slow down. I thought he was working pretty hard the first period. I guess he just needs more conditioning. You are right in that I don’t like his defensive play. Looks like he’s moving in slo-mo. Remember that play late in the 3rd where he dove to get a puck with his stick? I SWEAR I felt like I needed to fast forward that to get him to move in real time. LOL!
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Marc Nathan Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 11:04 am
@Cynic, Man, the internet has ruined hockey… you’d think you were paid by the word to care.
Seriously, this nitpicky dissecting crap from every human with a computer has sucked all the enjoyment out of the game. And, it is a game.
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Cynic Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 12:31 pm
@Marc Nathan, LOL! In some cases I might agree. I’m so invested in this freakin’ team emotionally that in reality, I’m paying myself with every word to release stress. The dividend is repeating the vicious cycle of making through the next game without losing my mind. I’m sure I’m not the only one. It’s therapy.
You’ve been a hockey fan for so long that maybe you’ve just hit the wall of hearing it all.
BTW, not sure if you saw my response to you a few days ago as to who I am….Paincorp ring a bell?
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yard dog Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 12:39 pm
@Marc Nathan, And I bet you are reading every word typed ….but why would the internet be ruining hockey? You are here in this blog participating with everyone else. If you feel that way then why don’t you just watch the “game” and move on to the more serious stuff in your life. Most (like me) go beyond the game and have some fun and read, analyze, and shoot opinions among other bloggers and friends….as long as there is sport then the “arm chair quarterbacking” will continue……If one thinks of this in a derrogatory fashion then stay out of here, and just watch the game, and don’t read these bloggs to frustrate yourself… that’s all
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zulov Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 2:46 pm
@Marc Nathan, I’ve been on this forum a whole lot – and last night I went to the actual game – 4th row – it was frigin awesome. Couldn’t see any system, had a hard enough time seeing the puck. Everyone is flying out there. It was incredible. Don’t know how these dudes have any chance to do anything but react.
So, I would have to agree with you whole-heartedly – while at the game I could care less about stats, standings or systems. It was just a pure, intense game.
Watching it on TV makes us all armchair coaches.
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39scars Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 5:17 pm
@Marc Nathan, Best post on this blog. There has been more wine than cheese this season
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http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/world-juniors/broken-foot-forces-canadas-smith-pelly-out-of-world-junior-tournament/article2284121/
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Cynic Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:55 am
@petemagoop, Man, if it wasn’t for those things called ‘Rules’, Tyler Toffoli would be picking up the white courtesy phone about now. Bummer.
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petemagoop Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 10:58 am
@Cynic, no kidding eh
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I honestly believe had TM been gone after last season that a guy like Holloway would have taken his shot with this team instead of signing a 2 year deal in Europe. Guys like Moller and Holloway knew they had no chance here as long as the “Thick” and “Heavy” TM was behind the bench.
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39scars Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 5:18 pm
@puck73, Have a little cheese my friend
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Last night’s crowd was good. it was a pretty packed house. I was impressed.
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We’re about to see what we’re made of. Chicago typically gives us fits, and tWe’re Going to need tohey’re currently playing at the top of their game. We’re going to need to stay out of the box, control the puck WITHOUT reckless play by DD and JJ, and play for 60 minutes.
On another note, I’m liking Penner’s play more and more.
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Kenny44 Reply:
December 27th, 2011 at 2:01 pm
@Ron Reynolds, I have to believe that the Kings will be motivated to put on a good show where their new coach played his entire career.
JJ and DD need to learn one thing from Scuderi – sometimes you have no play, just eat the puck along the boards until help arrives and you can make a play.
Penner was dealing some sweet passes last night. There is a lot of detail to his skill game. If he can keep getting to good positions, he’ll keep making plays.
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I liked a lot about the win, but I get this feeling that even though speed is improved moving into offensive zone, on the defensive end, they were constantly beaten to pucks. Always playing catch up on defense.
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