A couple members of the Kings’ staff were really on their games last night, in terms of digging up good statistics in relation to the first NHL goals for Dwight King and Jordan Nolan.
Here’s one: Four Kings scored their first NHL goals in road games against the Dallas Stars this season. Slava Voynov scored his first two NHL goals on Oct. 27. Kevin Westgarth scored his first NHL goal on Nov. 23. King and Nolan each scored their first NHL goal last night. That stat comes courtesy of Rohin Das, member of the Fox Sports West production crew.
Also, King and Nolan became the first pair of Kings to score their first NHL goals in the same game since Oct. 20, 2008, when Drew Doughty and Oscar Moller scored in a home game against Colorado. That stat is courtesy of Nick Nickson.
Also, below are the videos of King’s and Nolan’s goals..
At this point, I suspect DL thinks dumping Penner’s salary for prospects would be a move in the right direction.
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Donald_S Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 10:56 am
@Gustavo,
Who would take Penner, even for ‘future considerations?’. As poorly as he has played, I don’t think there is any contending team that would take a chance.
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Steve C Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:01 am
@Donald_S, Well, Penner may get waived or ride the pine until the season is over. I am pleasantly surprised that King and Nolan have done well. If they keep this up, I wonder what will happen to Jarett Stoll.
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Deke'r Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 1:44 pm
@Steve C, …..I wonder about Fraser, Richardson, or Hunter more than Stoll…
TexasKing Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:20 am
@Donald_S, The only way I think Penner’s salary gets moved is in some sort of 3 way deal where some horrible team with cap space takes him and a pick or prospect or both and we get “our” guy from the 3rd team in the deal. Otherwise Penner is the most expensive healthy scratch in the NHL for the rest of the season.
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Donald_S Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:24 am
@TexasKing,
Why would a horrible team take a rental? If he had 2 years left on his contract maybe, but he’s an UFA after this season.
TexasKing Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 3:48 pm
@TexasKing, It’s not so much about taking Penner, it’s about offering to take him to clear cap space for us so we can make another deal somewhere else. In exchange they would also receive prospects and/or picks. It would be pricey for Deano, but I don’t see him moving Penner without paying a real premium somewhere.
adanac Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:08 pm
@Donald_S, Not much interest in Penner so he rides the pine or we play him in place of Hunter. I just don’t understand this guy, making over 4m per year and appears to have no heart for the game. I guess he doesn’t care about next season or figures he has enough money. I really like the way Richards has worked with the kid’s.
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Duckbasher Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 6:08 pm
@Donald_S,
Penner is ours for the duration of this season (financially responsible no matter what). End of story. i doubt he plays much more given the way King and Nolan bring some much missing and needed intensity to the line-up. But no matter what, DL bought him and he owns him his salary. I doubt there’s anyone out there hard up enough to even consider trading for him or picking him up on waivers. And I’m not getting on him because there’s been enough of that to last a lifetime on this blog. Actually, he seems like a nice guy and I wish him well.
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Rlane420 Reply:
February 14th, 2012 at 2:26 pm
@Donald_S, At this point I would trade him for a pancake.
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FKA PakiFro Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:00 am
@Gustavo,
Waivers to Manchester? The only concern I’d have with that is if someone gets injured, he’d have to clear re-entry waivers and would probably get plucked off the waiver wire.
TFP was speculating the Kings pursuing Paul Statsny…I don’t see it happening. The Kings need a winger, a natural winger, to come in and help.
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Gustavo Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:05 am
@FKA PakiFro,
If you assume Penner will clear waivers on his way down to Manchester, it is reasonable to assume he will on his way up from Manchester, as well.
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bmova Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:20 am
@Gustavo, You never know. Some team might pick him up just to stick it to LA. Didn’t we los Marco Sturm on waivers last year? In any event, aren’t you allowed more flexibility in call ups after the trade deadline?
FKA PakiFro Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:35 am
@Gustavo,
Re-entry waivers cut the cap hit in half, leaving the Kings stuck with half the bill. Taking a flyer on penner at 4+ million is a lot worse thank taking a flyer on penner at half the cap hit.
40YearKingsFan Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:56 am
@FKA PakiFro, They could be pursuing Stastny if they were considering dealing Stoll.
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Ochoniko Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:38 pm
@40YearKingsFan, That’s the only reasonable scenario… If they add Stastny, they must create cap space for that move, stoll’s contract will have to be gone
And, don’t forget, they are buddies and roommates. That has to be extra special. Life changing game for both of them.
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Kings Fan Vancouver, WA Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:15 am
@wavesinair, That had to have been the deciding factor to bring both of them up. Chemistry!! And I love how Richards seems to be gelling with the kids.
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rontheking Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:35 am
@Kings Fan Vancouver, WA,
Yes, and somebody already said–but I was thinking it–that was a brilliant move to put them with Richards….
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Rich, still no other nominees around the league for my “King scoring a goal for a team named Kings” trivia? I still can’t come up with any other NHL player in history who has scored for a team that bears his name (plural or otherwise!).
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Sebastian Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 10:57 am
@Mel Powell, didnt Miroslav Satan play for the Devils? ha, i dont think he did, bummer.
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Shakes Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:09 am
@Mel Powell,
as a kid i always thought the Devils should’ve gotten him for that very reason… closest he got was the Islanders…
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Dominick Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:22 am
@Mel Powell, How many guys named Canuck, or North Star out there? I’d be surprised to even see any other guys bare the same name as the team they play for.
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NamidaEurope Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:59 am
@Mel Powell, I’m not sure, but Tamba Bay is negotiating about sign up Husian Bolt.
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BobsYourUncle Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:04 pm
@Mel Powell, Only player I can find is:
Murray Wing: 1973-74 Detroit Red Wings 1 game, 1 assist
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Mel Powell Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:14 pm
@BobsYourUncle, And James Black scored a handful for the Black Hawks, but neither really counts. John Blue was a goalie…nobody named Leaf per hockey-reference.com, no one named Wild, Paul Ranger only played in TB, no one named Baron when the Cleveland Barons were in the league…
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BobsYourUncle Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 3:04 pm
@Mel Powell, We will just have to settle for “King of Kings”.
Steve W Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 6:59 pm
@Mel Powell, What if Martin St. Louis signs with the Blues? Did Paul Ranger ever play with the Blueshirts?
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Noland and King are on their way to indispensable status. When is the last time a Mike Richards line had a 2 goal game?
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McSorleyfan Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:03 am
@McSorleyfan, *Nolan
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FKA PakiFro Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:08 am
@McSorleyfan,
Probably the last time Richards scored two goals in a game
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Shakes Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:10 am
@FKA PakiFro,
+1
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McSorleyfan Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 10:31 pm
@FKA PakiFro, LMAO Great shot! What a burn…
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Rich,
Any news on Gagne’s possible return to play during or even before the playoffs? His return would definitely seal Penner’s fate, I think
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40YearKingsFan Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:41 am
@Gustavo, All I’ve heard is that Gagne skated for the first time the other day but I haven’t heard anything about how he responded afterward and that is what’s important. Haven’t heard anything about him exercising or riding the stationary bike. Even if the concussion symptome were completely under control, I would think he’d need a couple weeks of conditioning just to get back into hockey shape and then who knows how long to actually find his groove in game situations. A whole lot of unknowns with Gags. I just hope he’s feeling good and is optimistic.
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Penner did great his first few games as a King..till he wasnt allowed to be Penner….Richards did great at the beginning of his career as a King…till he wasnt allowed to be Richards….Kopi started this season as a scorer till the system ate him up….Dont worry King and Nolan will be ate up soon enough….History tells us alot about the future…
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Do these two stay with the Kings for the rest of the season? And if so how long to stay on the 2nd line?
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Sebastian Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:15 am
@KingsGuy, real question is what happens when Stoll is healthy enough to play again. i would waive Hunter and continue to sit Penner and Stoll until one of these kids has a bad game.
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RobSD Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:00 pm
@Sebastian,
Hunter and Stoll are equally useless. What are the face off numbers without Stoll? That is really his only useful quality.
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Deke'r Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 2:20 pm
@RobSD, ….only useful quality??….Hello? Hello? Anybody home? Huh? Think, McFly….
IceGuy Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:37 pm
@KingsGuy,
I don’t think you should call it the 2nd Line.
It would be more accurate to call it the “Richards Line”.
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a bit of a picky note about yesterdays broadcast, but i would have expected them to be aware that 2 guys were scoring their first NHL goals, and maybe they would show someone grabbing the puck to give to them. you can sorta see it in the Nolan goal where King cuts to the net to grab the puck, but they didnt show anyone getting the puck for King’s goal. this sort of stuff, should be shown and highlighted on the telecast. seemed out of sync yesterday as well, many times there were showing replays and overlapping and missing live coverage, some even on power play offensive zone faceoffs.
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wavesinair Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:07 am
@Sebastian,
Yep. But then again, this isn’t The Masters.
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Shakes Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:10 am
@wavesinair, or baseball
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CupRun2012 Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:06 pm
@Sebastian, In the replay, you can see Kopi get the puck for King. Just 2 games and those 2 probably had a dozen scoring chances–and in close…
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I wouldn’t get all worked up over two rookies having a couple of good games, everyone has to know they will fall off. Especially to the point of suggesting that one of them could be a possible replacement for Stoll. That is just ridiculous. I can see maybe trading away Penner for a prospect or whatever but Stoll is such a proven and battle tested player that any idea of trading him and keeping Nolan or King is just ludicrous. Stoll is a great face-off player and in the play-offs, face-offs are so important. He is worth keeping around just for that fact alone.
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bmova Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:22 am
@Lvhatrick, He kills penalties too!
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40YearKingsFan Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:34 am
@Lvhatrick, I wou;ld tend to agree with you. The kids were a pleasant surprise but lets not get too far ahead of ourselves. They gave us a shot in the arm when we needed it but lets not forget neither one of these kids made the team so to think they’re going to tear the league up or even spend a great deal of time as NHL second line wingers is a bit premature. I’d love to see it happen, but conventional wisdom says they will at the very least have a learning curve to go through. I’m glad to see them up, but I think we’re going to need to be patient with them if this is the direction DL decides to go because they’re going to make mistakes and they’re going to have to grow. Don’t want to rain on the affection parade,,,, just being realistic.
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FKA PakiFro Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:40 am
@40YearKingsFan,
I think conventional wisdom is what got the Kings into this offensive mess to begin with. They’ve always played it safe by not rushing forward prospects; even Brian Boyle when he had a killer 5 games with the big club during a season the Kings finished 29th! Why not just let them play? They can’t possibly do worse than the alternatives.
With that said…I don’t expect them to be goal per game players, but at least they’ll bring the energy that just hasn’t been there in Penner’s game and is mysteriously missing from Stoll’s game.
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FKA PakiFro Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:41 am
@FKA PakiFro,
And Stoll can play in place of Hunter/Richardson or any of the other bottom six. Lokti can go to Manchester, even after his two goals over the weekend. I can’t imagine him holding his own in the playoffs.
40YearKingsFan Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:49 am
@FKA PakiFro, You’re right, and I’m not knocking them at all. I like the move and absolutely, let them play. They’re only going to get better on Richards’ line. But they are green and there will be times when we’ll have to be patient with them and this is a very tough time of the season to be patient.
bbb7 Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:03 pm
@Lvhatrick, Agree… I love the got-to-the-net attitude of the rookies but, truthfully, neither was even much of a scorer in the AHL or even in Juniors and we shouldn’t be expecting them to be offensive saviors on the Kings.
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hockeynerd Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:20 pm
@bbb7, HUH?? have you actually looked at Kings stats ? last two years in junior he had huge numbers, He had 24 goals last season and he has 11 this season with 29 pts. ????????????????????
I will agree we need a to trade for a top winger, King and Nolan are not our answer when it comes to that.
Also we need our multimillion dollar veterans to start producing thats why they get paid the big bucks.
King and Nolan are two pleasant surprises, and so far they are getting it done for this team
We need our vets to start producing immediately and we will be fine, King and Nolan producing is that much sweeter. The team success does not rest of those two, they can only do so much, Everyone else needs to get going and we will be fine
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bbb7 Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:35 pm
@hockeynerd, Huge numbers? You must not look much at Junior stats. King’s highest goal total in Juniors was 34 goals and AT BEST you can project half as many goals in the NHL level; more likely 1/3, meaning he’s likely a 12-15 goal scorer in the Show. At Manchester he had 24 goals last season, which would also put him at 12-15 in the NHL.
Some players surprise, for sure, but I wouldnt be EXPECTING much from him or Nolan.
RobSD Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:23 pm
@Lvhatrick,
Stoll is terrible. These two guys show some fire and determination that this team is lacking. Playing with Richards will only make them better. Not every rookie falls off. If they can net a few goals it would be more than Penner or Stoll. Stoll is not a top 6 guy. All he does is dump the puck and shoot wide. I never understood him on the point of the PP. Richards should have that job. Trying something new at this point can’t be any worse.
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Duckbasher Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 6:19 pm
@RobSD,
I totally agree. Stoll has played a very lackluster game all season if you ask me. Heck, I’d try Kopitar at the point. He has one of the heaviest and most accurate shots. And it’s pretty obvious every team in the league has his number on how he only plays the half-wall. Let these kids play for a while. They can’t play any worse than Penner, Richardson, Stoll, or Hunter have for us.
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Not to raise the technicality even more, but I do believe it should be noted that both Nolan and King scored on their first shots of the season as well. Nolan on the first shot of his career.
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MickSorley Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:27 am
@skan, But was it the first time they “thought” about shooting?
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skan Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 11:42 am
@MickSorley, I’d hope not. They had plenty of chances to “think” against the Islanders… They were just half-step behind.
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One thing that caught my attention from DS’s comments after the Isles game … he thought King was the better of the two.
I thought to myself … wha? Although Nolan was the one getting close to scoring, King was the one doing the dirty work.
Watching the Dallas game I really looked at those two differently and sure enough, King was the one really causing turnovers for Dallas on the boards. I still give Nolan a ton of credit going for the net though, we sure as heck need that as well.
Richards is gonna have a ton of fun playing with those two big bodies.
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hockeynerd Reply:
February 13th, 2012 at 12:07 pm
@KC23, I agree this is what i have been noticing from King throughout his pro career, I know everyone focused on nolans chances its hard not to.
King has an all round game, the extra year in pro and 6 NHL game on Nolan may have something to do with it, But regardless i am glad that people are starting to notice what he really brings to the game.
Watch Nolans game winning goal, there King is doing the dirty work, It helps he scored and got an assist but he was going all those things during the Islanders game too.
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I was totally jazzed to see two Ontario Reign Alum score in the big league!
Why didn’t I bid on their jerseys when I had the chance!!!!!!!??????
Keep on rockin boys!
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