Darryl Sutter’s postgame thoughts…
(on the fighting and penalties…)
SUTTER: “I said, this morning, that it would be a close game, and it was. Both teams have that nature about them. I don’t think it was any more physical than any other game. You’re probably just counting the fights. The fights started because Brownie hit Klesla, and their captain responded to our captain. Other than that, I didn’t think it was any more physical than any other game.’’
(on the game…)
SUTTER: “We had a lot of good opportunities in the first period, with guys who should have them, and they’ve got to put them away. If you want to say anything about a playoff atmosphere, that’s what a playoff atmosphere is about. You’ve got your best players, your goal scorers, scoring goals at the critical times. It’s simple.’’
(on the second and third periods…)
SUTTER: “Halfway through the game, the shots were 16-8, I think. I was disappointed we didn’t get another power play in the second. We had two that were called. One of them has to be called, shooting it into the stands, and then obviously Mike (Richards) got one for yapping at one of the officials. I wasn’t really sure which one. But you’d think there would have been one (penalty) the other way, when we were spending a lot of time in their zone.’’
(on the number of missed shots…)
SUTTER: “If you (have) a wide-open chance and miss the net, that’s your problem. There’s not much you or I or anybody else can do about it. But I think the defensemen’s shots that missed the net, there was a lot of traffic. There was a lot of traffic there tonight.’’
(on trying to rally against Phoenix…)
SUTTER: “I’ve said it 100 times. This league is about having the lead and scoring the first goal. It’s a big difference in the game. They’re no different than anyone else when they have the lead.’’
‘playoff atmosphere’ may be as close to the playoffs as this bunch gets
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Jimbo Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:58 pm
@petemagoop, I have been a Kings fan since my old man plopped me in front of the TV and we watched Gretz tear it up. He is the one who inspired me to play hockey. for 17 years roughly a fan (young). Lombardi you obviously don’t like your job. I am not watching another game until a player with offensive ability puts on black and white. I’ll monitor websites to see if any trades happen, but you have lost one dedicated fan. Imagine the casual fan who came out because of your “Its Time” ads on the back of buses and on billboards, they will go home trying to figure out what the heck just happened out there. Nash or bust.
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Cruiznblue Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 1:04 am
@Jimbo,
But…but…they keep saying “the time is now”. We’re going to go deep into the playoffs this year! Didn’t you know that?
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jack Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 5:54 am
@Cruiznblue, Amzzing, that the PR dept. is asleep at the wheel? I wonder whats the policy on changing advertisments once the original doesnt apply anymore?
Deke'r Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 2:28 pm
@Cruiznblue, ….nothing personal…it’s just business…
insider001 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 3:41 am
@Jimbo, I’m with you, I’ve followed them from the start 1968. If i was quick I would leave to another team who can score. This is getting stupid now
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Danny of Pasadena Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:45 am
@insider001, I would not hold my breath on this team. Nash aint comin make no dif anyway. Suter resignes to say “this is the way it is” as of this writing, want kings to move to kansas city and become duck fan. Beter organization better coveraage beter players, kings had to break federal law just to have a good taem. Goodbye cruel NHL
Mike Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:33 am
@insider001, Not to split hairs, but the start was 1967. I, too, have been a fan since day 1 and I will continue to be so, no matter what.
California Royalty Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:10 am
@Jimbo, See ya. You were never a real fan if you’re abandoning them
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Kings of Pedro Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:17 am
@Jimbo, I say good riddance to those of you who like to brag about how long you’ve been around and then threaten to leave. You’re not going anywhere. If you’ve really been around as long as you say then turn down your hearing aid, put the walker in the corner and watch something else. But something tells me you’re coming back for the Calgary game….
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DD8 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:53 am
@Kings of Pedro, WELL STATED, GOOD RIDDANCE!
California Royalty Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:16 am
@Kings of Pedro, Exactly. The team is in much better shape now than 3 or 4 years ago
deadcatbounce Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:21 am
@Jimbo, Good teams have players, bad teams have slogans…
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Jimbo Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 12:39 pm
@deadcatbounce, To everyone who is giving me the finger. Never said I was going to stop being a fan, just not watching what Lombardi puts on the ice as of 12:37 PST. Don’t criticize me for my hatred towards my team right now, they suck! At least when Tampa Bay loses they go down in flames by a score of 6-5 5-4. Nothing is worse then a game with no scoring. Playing a system? See who makes a mistake first? That’s a good way to go about putting together a contender.
pnm Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 1:34 pm
@deadcatbounce, Now that’s the smartest thing I’ve read in a while!
For the rest of the league, it’s about scoring the first goal… for us it’s about scoring A goal.
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Paul G Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:50 am
@bbb7, This has gone from embarrassing to pathetic
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Saw several instance when the Kings d-Men playing waaaaayyyyy to conservative in the oZone. The dMen gonna have to get better on knowing WHEN to jump on the play. Kings also need to exploit that front of the net more aggresively.
One guy in front of the net is NOT gonna create too much scoring opportunities.
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Cruiznblue Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 12:47 am
@rogiesbackup,
I felt the D didn’t really help very much at all on the attack…even before they got setup in the offensive zone. Doughty was quiet….JJ was quiet…and everyone else on defense isn’t really much of a puck moving defensemen.
I don’t think the Kings attacked as a 5-man unit tonight…
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Eggplant Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 1:40 am
@Cruiznblue, I think Doughty looked really good in the first period. Then the Yotes got upset with the hit on Klesla and the Kings jumped on board.. After that we lost all momentum and didn’t start playing ’til 15 minutes into the third period.. as usual.
I miss Voynov on the blue line, though. At least he got his shots on net.
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What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 5:48 am
@Eggplant, They got totally sucked into the Coyotes’ violence vortex, and the officials played along and screwed the Kings over, and the Kings, instead of sucking it up, played a crap game until the last few minutes.
jack Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 5:56 am
@Eggplant, Thats what happens when you try to rely on emotion as a spark instead of skills and brains..
We could have had like 2-3 penalties probably had we not gotten involved in some scraps..
brian spain Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:56 am
@Eggplant, I think they should have beat the crap out of there goalie, the way he went after Kopi. Brown should not have fought with Doan, that was a cl
lean hit, they guy got rocked. And Hanzal going after Richards was Bush league. You could see as soon as he spotted Richards he took a big stride and hit him in the side of the head. Bet Shannahan doesn’t see that one.
PP Anybody? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:28 am
@Cruiznblue, They never attack as a 5 man unit. Same story, 1 or 2 men in, everyone else up high. And people wonder why the shooting percentage is so low on this team. Well, when you’re taking shots from the boards or the blueline, the goalie will stop the puck 99% of the time, hence the shooting percentage.
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California Royalty Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:12 am
@rogiesbackup, You should be an NHL coach. You’ve got it all figured out
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Bill Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:57 am
@rogiesbackup,
Thank you….that’s the most frustrating thing for me too…..if you watch teams that score goals it really starts with the defense being more aggressive, joining the attack, making themselves available on the weakside, and pinching in…..the forwards are getting too much of the blame. They do their part in the defensive zone, but the defense doesn’t do their part in the offensive zone. They can open things up so much more for the Kings!
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Your best players need to score at critical times Unfortunately our best players, Quick excepted, are B-level talents.
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I dont think missing the net is such a big deal usually….first we complain that we are shooting at the goalies chest…well, if you aim away from him at a corner, you might miss the net…what a novel concept!!!
Now Darryl..are you guys drilling on these things that you dont like, or are you just saying them?? Drills like shooting in traffic, from 3 ft away sudden pass, all quick decision things???
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also, if you play garbage time around the crease, and your dmen dont join, who is going to be free?? if you dont make quick passes to shift people around, sticks will be bothered…
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Shooting drills please … Your not gonna score when u shoot it right into the chest
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Btw, Wayne Simmonds had two goals tonight…
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kingrussell Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:20 pm
@toemas_sandstrom, He seems to do that almost every night.
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DLB Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 12:05 am
@kingrussell, if that were true he’d have 50-60
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ta Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:21 pm
@toemas_sandstrom, yes he did right on the door step. That’s another thing that this years team doesn’t have. Net presense
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toemas_sandstrom Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:33 pm
@ta, Crap! I didn’t realize it’s his 20TH, 20TH OF THE SEASON! We can’t score at gun point and Simmers got 20. Ugh…
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KINGCANADA87 Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:26 pm
@toemas_sandstrom, handzus scored aswell.
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Snakes Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 4:11 am
@toemas_sandstrom,
Great comment, Simmonds did have 2 tonight. He’s playing great. But Richards needs some creative players on his line. A TRADE IS A MUST NOW. We can’t score.
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Cyberflyer Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 5:07 am
@Snakes,
Simmonds also took a puck in the face in warm ups, took 25 stitches, had to wear a face shield and still comes out and has great game. You can’t say enough about a net pressence and having big body if front to get you those dirty goals.
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 6:15 am
@Snakes,
Almost every single night I noticed on the highlights there is an ex King that scores. Simmonds or Schenn when Philly play. If it’s not them then it’s Brian Boyle, Zus or Purcell.
Current Kings prefer to play defense.
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PP Anybody? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:30 am
@number 6, All those previous players “liked” to play defense while with the Kings, too.
Dude, like Mr. Sutter sir, the game has changed since the last time you had success with a team. The game is even more defensive. So your old plan won’t work now. Duh!
As for getting the first goal, look what Phoenix did to you tonight! They sucked out your first period with a bunch of crap play. How do you counter that – you have to make them pay. But your outdated “system” can’t do that with this team so what now?
Tonight was about bad coaching, bad reffing and a stupid penalty.
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Danny of Pasadena Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:03 am
@MmmmYummy, you are so very right. This antquated approach does not work. I still think the kings assistant coach would of done just as good if not better. Rick Nash is not voing to help your post concussion team. I would like the kings to make wholesale changes meaning get rid of their top two lines and dump salary. You will not win with t.his core. They traded away their core for post concussion players who had a history of this comin in. you saw it comin since gagne went down and blamed the pancake man. The yotes intimidated the younger kings and kicjked their ass.thats the name of that tune. Once something has been broken its not the same. Things are getting deep around here. Here comes tbe judge.
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How bad was it? Kopitar was on a line with Richardson an OHL level forward with 3 goals for the season
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KingsFletch Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:24 pm
@TheZamboniMechanic2, EXACTLY!!! people saying we have B level talent guys are incorrect.. it’s just when we have to pair Richardson with Kopitar/Williams it completely wastes Kopi. Seeing those odd man rushes with Richardson on them just made me turn away because it was a total waste. Having Richardson out there makes me cringe. Can’t wait till he’s gone.
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Stuart Reply:
February 18th, 2012 at 9:07 am
@KingsFletch, Richardson should’ve given it back to JW for an easy back door tap in… but no hands, no confidence, no skills sent it to the crest instead…
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I honestly don’t think this team watches tapes of their team and other team and see what their doing wrong. Almost seems so obvious why they’re not scoring.
I saw couple times when the Yotes had TWO guys in the middle in front of Quick. Brown was a disaster at screening goalies awhile back showed again tonight…go figure!!
Also why bench Penner he was starting to play good…..ONE off-night……give me a break!!! Put him back in!!!!
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PP Anybody? Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:50 pm
@rogiesbackup, Two guys in the middle? What a thought, huh? Kings are doing real well with 3 guys in the neutral zone and 2 guys behind the net, aren’t they?
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Snakes Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 4:13 am
@rogiesbackup,
Kings need to quit watching tape of their own team. I think they need to watch evey game Detroit has played at home 21 WINS, and find out how they SCORE GOALS!!! JAMIE Kompon must be FIRED IMMEDIATELY.
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DD8 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:57 am
@rogiesbackup, I Agree, Penner was just gettin his poop in a group and Sutter benches him WTF?
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I hate to say it, but the team is really missing Ryan Smyth…or a least a Smyth-like player. There are too many “role players” on this team and not enough producers.
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Buster Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:40 pm
@friarking,
I’m going to go further. We miss Frolov more than we think.
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friarking Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:44 pm
@Buster, Good ole Fro. I wish he’d come back to the NHL.
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Subby Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:54 pm
@friarking, Always loved him. I think you nailed it on there being too many role players.
Cruiznblue Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 1:01 am
@Buster,
+1…he was always one of my favorite players…even though he was inconsistent at times.
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zulov Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 2:07 am
@Cruiznblue, Frolov was awesome. Yeah yeah, he wasn’t Malkin, but he was a heck of a lot better then most of the bums we have out there on offense. Fro, Lokti plus one would make a great line. Instead he has clifford, and although I like Lewie, he aint a scorer.
What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 5:51 am
@Buster, I never understood the hate for Fro. I thought he did pretty well, considering his surroundings.
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brian spain Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:03 am
@What’s the frequency, Kenneth?, Have you ever seen a Russian player get into the corners and battle? me either. They are weak. Fedorov was probably one of the best players but he did it with speed and strength. Loktionov has neither. I wish they would get rid of him. put him in with any deal.
California Royalty Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:19 am
@What’s the frequency, Kenneth?, I always loved him and still do. I just think at times, his effort was in question. Could you imagine him, Richards and Nolan on a line? Yikes
What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:04 am
@brian spain, I think that’s an unfair generalization. I try not to treat players from one country as though they’re the same player. They’re not. I thought Fro was a good puck possession player and played his role on defense.
We’re gonna have to pay more for this next year? If we still play D first next year Im out. No way in hell Im paying more. They should give us a discount for having to sit thru this crap they call hockey. Sorry DL your time is up, and take your “defence wins cups” with you!
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PP Anybody? Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:51 pm
@Pesus, Word.
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Totally missing net presence……..just plain totally missing the net
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Its simple he says, your best players have to score. Well I thought kopi was the best player on the ice tonight and he didnt get a shot on net. And Richards recorded 1 shot. So whats thats say about our offensive system when your 2 best players get 1 shot on net?
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:50 pm
@Pesus, both Richards and Kopi are playmakers. There first instinct is to pass. If they had any Wingers who could score then they would be awesome. Unfortunately when you are in a serious scoring slump which this is, it isn’t so easy to get out of it. Why do you think they are missing the net so much. They are gripping there sticks too tight. They need to settle down, loosen up and let it fly.
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PP Anybody? Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:57 pm
@Jeff_R, How many shots is Kopi going to get when his coach has him following the forecheck up BEHIND THE NET? Pretty sure that it won’t matter how loose his grip is, he’ll still be hard pressed to get a shot on goal from back there. As for being play makers that’s true, but once again you have to instruct your shooters to get in the slot to receive a pass, not only tell them to support the puck along the boards.. There are plenty of things that can be changed and addressed, yet the plan remains the same.
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Pesus Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 12:05 am
@Jeff_R,
I agree with you 100%. I’ve been saying kopi is a pass first center for years now. What he needs is wingers that can finish, Williams is ok but you need a real finisher on that line. Put Parise kopi and williams together and I bet Kopi gets 100 points.
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Kings x Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 12:41 am
@Pesus, Parise is a center
MrMister Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:00 am
@Pesus, Parise is left wing
King Alex Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 12:46 am
@Jeff_R, A scoring slump does not last all season. Our O stinks. It stunk last year & the year before that too. We can’t break out of our zone. We can’t make tape to tape passes & we can’t even hit an open net without shooting big, wide or just plain whiffing. I admire your faith but IMO you are dreaming or taking something if you think this is just a slump. We are dead last in scoring & we have been dead last all year. This will not change unless we get better finishers. We have the depth in goal & D. It’s time for a trade as no big UFA’s ever sign here. They almost always go to an original 6 or back east. I’ve been a fan since Charlie Simmer was a rookie & this O we have is the worst I can remember.
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:07 am
@King Alex, How do you explain guys that have scored 20+ goals year after year all of a sudden can’t score worth anything and they are still under 30 years old. Do you really think these guys suck? I believe that something other then suckage is going on. These guys are in there prime or just before it and they shouldn’t be slumping the way they are. The fact that the scoring is way down has become more psychological then anything (suckage.) It is all mental now. They can’t even score when there is no goalie in the net. Unfortunately it is too late now to hope they will get out of it themselves, so changes need to be made by Feb 27. The only way to break this psychological force over this team is to bring in a scorer that scores consistently and then it can become infectious. The fact that people are complaining about our 3rd and 4th line guys shows just how bad the slump is. The pressure is really high on these 3rd, 4th line guys and they have fallen under it. They need the top 2 lines to start scoring consistently and then they can go back to playing for fun and scoring the occasional goal. Which brings me back to the trade deadline. Whether it is Nash or a combination of guys, we need to bring in a scorer(s) that can break this psychological hold that is over these guys.
I dont even know what to say. I am so frustrated. I dont have anything rational or logical to say. I am so effing angry. So tired of this. We had no offensive drive, no net presence, No heart, No drive.
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Kings x Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 12:42 am
@Mars, Right there with you. Get your game face back for Saturday. That’s all we can do. Or hate blogging, whatever works for you
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:12 am
@Mars, Saying the Kings have no heart is wrong. I know it is frustrating and I am sure it is for the players. How would you feel if you scored all your life and then for some reason you couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn? This is how the players feel now. What makes it worse is the longer it goes with them not scoring, you see how the guys try anything to score. This leads to mistakes and the other team scores. How close have we come to scoring only to not. This is not a bad team or bad coaching or bad front office. Maybe they need to go through an Exorcism, that would be the only way out of this.
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If you guys that says we should stand pat and believe that this team as is, is going to start scoring what do you think now? This team needs a major shake up. Nash would be the best help to get us out of this. However we might be aced out by San Jose for his services. Then where will we be?
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Subby Reply:
February 16th, 2012 at 11:55 pm
@Jeff_R, If I am the Kings I go for Nash 52895762938times as much so that a Division rival doesn’t get him.
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nykingfan Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 5:19 am
@Jeff_R,
If we would have scored 3 would you have changed your mind?
We have proven goal scorers who can’t even hit wide open nets. I don’t know what it is anymore, but it is frustrating as all hell!
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:14 am
@nykingfan, I would of been a little happy but I still would be asking for changes to be made because I know that 1 game does not a slump end. If they had gone 10 games straight or more scoring 3 goals or more then I would feel that the slump is over. I still however say we need a scoring winger or 2.
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 6:17 am
@Jeff_R,
To be quite frank about it, imo this team needs a philosophical shift (i.e. front office….. you can read into that what you want) more than it needs Rick Nash.
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:14 am
@number 6, I disagree….
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I used to feel that this team has talent and just needs to keep pressing. However, the lack of scoring has lasted too long to be called a streak. At this point they need to find players who have the ability to shoot the puck around the goolie and not right at him. We need a couple of sniper, do whatever you need to get them as long as we keep Quick!
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Kings x Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 12:38 am
@jbyoungman, 4 months late on reaching this realization
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 6:18 am
@jbyoungman,
DL doesn’t care too much for that type of player. He did draft Tyler Toffoli who is probably the only player in the entire system that seems to have that knack. Whether or not it’ll translate at the nhl level only time will tell.
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:18 am
@number 6, To say DL doesn’t like a sniper is ridiculous. He just won’t break the bank for one especially if they aren’t the right fit. Kovy was not the right fit. Someone like Nash or Parise is. Brad Richards was the right fit but he chose to go to NY. I think the fact that DL doesn’t know how to close is a bunch of hogwash. These players have made up there minds beforehand and the only problem DL has had, is that he hasn’t been able to change there mind. Kovy I am really glad we didn’t get him even if his cap hit was 5.5.
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Nashhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh by Sunday I think, Johnson is gone I think
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Lewis and Richardson work hard every game. That’s the problem right there. Because those two were the guys who had 2 or 3 grade A chances each but unable to finish. You work your a$$ off, you are in. Really? How about you miss the opportunity you are out? Think about it. Because if this league count hitting the crest with “Bulls-eye!” as a goal, they would have been the top goal scorers by now. But as long as the league doesn’t, they are just chance, time, rooster spot, wasting machines. Send them down to the miner or trade away if it’s ever possible.
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Kings x Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 12:37 am
@goldielocks, Trade em or cut em. Fresh blood
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:20 am
@goldielocks, I know they had great chances and it didn’t go in. However these guys aren’t paid to score. Yes we espect them to score the occasional goal, but to blame these guys or say they should be in the minors isn’t right. They deserve to be here and I am sure they would have more goals if the top 2 lines would score consistently.
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For the critical importance of scoring the first goal to achieve sucesss why is it that your team is so horribly bad at it. This team is 30th in the league in scoring and has scored the least amount of goals in the first period. If that is the case why don’t you focus specifically on the first 20 mins to get the f ing lead to hold onto?
It goes hand in hand with a team whose offensive strategy is completely dependent on a front net presence but yet have no players who can or will go to the net to make a front net presence? Like simmer, Zeus or smyth. Doesn’t it seem like you are playin without a goalie?
Pull your head out of your A
Loyal kings fan
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PP Anybody? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:37 am
@Kings x, The Kings offense was terrible last year too, even with Zeus and Smyth. I can’t remember how many people on here complained about how old, slow, and ineffective those guys were game after game, but it was a lot. Imagine if this team had a GM who thought balance won championships, not just defense?
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jbyoungman Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:46 pm
@Kings x,
Old thoughts Kings x, we need fresh ideas and a new philosophy not last years players!
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So I am thinking Mike Smith is fun to watch.Dude gets involved in the play.That’s who they are. Extremely well coached hard working Hockey Players. They deserved that win.Then I remembered we are playing at HOME.The last 3 minutes of the third period should be shown Over and Over to the Boys of L.A. That’s the energy you need for sixty minutes….Period. Push the puck at these teams..Period…I hear quacks and duck calls coming up the creek…..peace
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PP Anybody? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:41 am
@Melty, It’s not about the energy played for the last 3 minutes. It’s the fact that DS won’t green light the defense to join up into the attack until there is less than 5 minutes left in a game and we are trailing. The energy level jumps up because the D get involved and all five guys actually try to score. The energy also jumps up cause then everyone has to hustle more to cover any mistakes or to hold the puck in.
If the Kings were allowed to do that for 60 minutes instead of 5, well, they might just score more than 0 goals a game. but who am I to talk. I’m sure they’ll just keep doing what they are doing.
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I’d like to see King/Nolan get more playing time than Lewis/Richardson on Saturday. King I’m not sold on yet but Nolan looks good out there with the puck. Give the young guys more opportunities!…got nothing to lose at this point.
Maybe we could utilize zome of the 3rd/4th liners more on the PK…so were not draining our top guns short handed?
DD2 looked awful at times tonight…I could count at least 2 times where he coughed up the puck in open ice. Funny how he was angry about not being in the line-up…
14 teams played today and only one team couldn’t put a goal on the board.
Blah blah blah…hope we have a better showing on saturday.
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vakingsfan Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 3:56 am
@Cruiznblue,
DD and JJ never cough up the puck?????!!!!!!!
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:23 am
@Cruiznblue, I actually thought DD2 played a good game. It is a fact that during the course of a game the puck is going to be coughed up. That is why you have 4 other guys on the ice and a Goalie to make sure that mistake doesn’t lead to a goal. Mistakes are going to happen they are human and nobody is perfect, not even Bobby Orr.
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PP Anybody? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:42 am
@Cruiznblue, I’d like to not see Lewis or Richardson play another game in a Kings uniform.
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The Kings just don’t know how to play. How many times do we have 3 guys at the side boards battling with bot dmen at the point? How many times do we have 3 guys behind the net with both dmen at the point? Why do we rarely have a trailer coming down the slot? How come when we do go to the net, we have 3 guys right in front with opposing D all over them? Why can’t we break cleanly out of our zone or even make basic tape to tape passes? If it wasn’t for the Bettman BS point for regulation ties, where the hell would this team be? Quick plays great again. We out work the Yotes for most of the game & 1 stupid penalty by JJ for delay of game & bingo! A PP goal & we lose 1 to zip. Between Kopi, Richards & Brown, we had 2 shots on goal by all 3 combined. How the hell does this happen? DL’s 5 year plan is a bust. We dumped TM & it is not enough. This game was against the Yotes. Wait until Boston & Detroit come to town. This season has turned into an exercise of futility. DL has turned the scorers into Dmen. This is just like the Borg from Star Trek. Resistance is futile!!!
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TheZamboniMechanic2 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 6:38 am
@King Alex, Great observation…no system… lack of individual hockey sense
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:26 am
@King Alex, Don’t you think that maybe this so called lack of hockey sense and no system has more to do with there confidence and all because of the lack of scoring? There confidence is shot making them do things they normally wouldn’t. I mean they are doing a great job defensively and keeping the puck out, with the help from Quick. So this leads me to believe the problems lie in the lack of scoring goals.
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PP Anybody? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:44 am
@King Alex, See a pattern here? Where do patterns come from if it applies to all 23 players? Hmmm…
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bfstyle33 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:35 am
@King Alex, one word guys……. CHEMISTRY. NO CHEMISTRY WHATSOEVER!
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Wow give this coaching staff a “How To” book already. EVERYONE knew this was going to be a one goal game, those games are decided by special teams. 4 days, no games, no PP goal. King’s last 10 is now 4-5-1. This team was winning when the PP was going, what happened? Answer me that Darryl.
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Game summary: Coyotes know they cannot win, night in, night out, so they play at the border of legality. Their guy gets injured on a clean hit by Brownie, and they go over the edge. The officials blow a couple calls, and get defensive, making it worse. The Kings get distracted by all the dirty hits by the Coyotes, forget about goal scoring, and yap at the officials, making it worse. The officials hand out half-imagined penalties to the Kings while overlooking blatant unsportsmanlike plays by the Coyotes, and everyone gets to feel self-righteous. Tippet smiles as they walk out of the building with two points they really needed.
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King Cobra Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:31 am
@What’s the frequency, Kenneth?, Sad but true
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poe Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:34 am
What’s the frequency, Kenneth?, your game summary is spot on. This was one of the dirtiest games I have ever seen in 50+ years of watching hockey. However, this does not preclude the inability of the Kings to score a blank blank goal as an excuse for their poor play. A King is down in front of the net trying to score—but there are 4 or 5 Yotes down there with him protecting their goalie. On the other hand, there are 2 or 3 Kings standing at the blue line doing nothing and certainly not involved in the play. Too, most King shots are into the belly of the goalie and easily stopped. Where are the corner shooters? Coaching is not good, this is out-dated and lacks offense. A good coach will try to change, not keep doing the same thing over and over again. Why would Nash want to come here? The same thing would happen to him as to the others…his creativit would be crushed b a moribund system
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What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:21 am
@poe, Absolutely! The officiating is only one variable in a hockey game, and rarely decides it (barring last-minute hijinks, etc.) It takes the team getting screwed to lose control in order to put the game out of reach. I mean–it was a one-goal game. All they had to do was figure out how to score once. They seemed to realize that with about six or seven minutes left–about 30 minutes too late.
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Very discouraging when you play as well as the Kings did for the most part and can’t score 1 friggin goal.
There are too many talented players on this team to be geting shutout every other game..or so it seems.
Either we miss the net or put the puck dead center into the goalie’s chest protector. Richardson had glorious chances to score and hit the goalie dead center each time. JW has a breakaway and misses the net.
As for the game..a terrible job by the officials all night. Kopi gets knocked into the goalie and gets attacked. How does he get 2 min for goalie interference?
Richards takes a hit to the head..clear as friggin day and they completely missed it. There are two of them on the ice, how do they miss so much?
Brown’s interference penalty at the end..are you kidding me????????
Richards yapping..that goes on for 60 min a night in every game…what could he have possibly said to the ref to warrant the minor penalty?
One player I was angry with last night in the 3rd was Westgarth…what was he thinking dropping the gloves with Bissonette when we had possession of the puck in the offensive zone? that was a bonehead play! There was plenty of time during that game for the two of them to go at it, he got suckered into it by Bissonette and we lost a chance to possibly score. Use your damn Ivy league brain the next time!
Nolan again with a dumb offensive zone penalty. 3 games..2 bad O-zone penalties. That’s how you write your ticket back to Manchester.
As depressed as I am losing another 1-0 game, I still have confidence in them…I’m a glutton for punishment I guess!
It just makes saturday’s game that much more important.
Go Kings!
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 6:28 am
@nykingfan,
Sorry man. Good morning. I agree with part of what you say. Yes I do agree that there are talented players on this team. They are Kopi, Richards, Quick, Doughty, Voynov, Mitchell (a specific talent imo).
I don’t agree at all that there are offensively gifted guys on this team. Of the first four that I mentioned, only two are forwards, one a goalie and one a dman. Two gifted forwards is really nothing special. Columbus has at least two or three talented forwards. Proof that that isn’t enough.
I can’t blame a game on the refs. You probably saw Carolina lose an OT game last week vs. the Ducks where Corey Perry Trips the guy (you’ll never see more blatant)… so Caro should have a PP, and instead Perry scores the winner 5 seconds later.
Everyone has to deal with bad reffing. There have been games where the Kings had perfect refs and were shutout.
Sorry, I don’t buy it. Someone somewhere did a blog (I don’t want to call it out here) about the fact that in almost six years Dean Lombardi has not developed one single top six forward. Look at the lineup. He’s absolutely right. No question. Like a radio station……. welcome to K-I-N-G….. all ‘D’ all the time.
Sorry but that’s the way it is and he’s far more responsible for the lack of offense than the refs are.
Mike Scoscia often said about games where the Angels lost by a run or two that they have to be good enough to absorb the things that happen, the bad calls, during a game. I agree with him. The Kings have virtually no margin for error. They’ve scored an average of ONE GOAL A GAME in the games that Quick has lost this year. Not too good is it?
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puck73 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:38 am
@number 6, Thank you for that refreshing blast of truth and reality. You just said it the way it is.
Now I am going further down and post something really distastefull.
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nykingfan Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:57 am
@number 6,
I can’t even argue with you anymore. The results are all that count and those are disgusting right now.
I didn’t mean to blame the refs for us losing…they were terrible, but we didn’t score a friggin goal..AGAIN!!!!!
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:01 am
@nykingfan,
Hey my friend…. listen, I’ve NEVER, repeat NEVER once on any blog said a coach should be fired, a player sent down or gotten rid of. But I’ve seen with my own eyes for two years that the Kings are not a fast team. They were a very slow team w a group of forwards that had a good work ethic but not loads of skill.
That’s how DL likes to do things. And I respect that. Truly I do. How can you not respect someone else’s point of view. But at the same time, even announcers like the Islanders tv crew were saying that the upside of the Kings would be limited due to the lack of speed. It’s just how DL has put the team together.
When you hear on xfm home ice the announcers saying that Brian Burke’s approach to building the Leafs is vastly different than what he did in Anaheim because he recognizes how important speed and skill is in the league now, that’s another shout out. Whether the Leafs get into the playoffs or get a lottery pick, at least Burke is adaptable. Lombardi to my way of seeing is showing that he lacks that same sort of flexibility and clearly there is just no doubt that he completely and utterly put so much focus on defense that they have a good to very very good defense….. but the price that has been paid is that they can’t score goals and haven’t been able to for four years now. And it’s trending down!!
So I’m not saying he should stay, and I’m not saying he should go. But I am saying he should be accountable for that. Especially given that during a few years period the Kings had more draft picks than any other team. You’ve simply gotta do better than that.
Scot Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:52 am
@nykingfan,
This team has far too many not-talented players. Even our players with talent don’t have very good hockey IQ, outside of Richards and Doughty. That’s what this team lacks the most of. We have no creativity. And that blame is on Dean Lombardi, and his scouting staff.
We need more European players. They are smart, crafty, and create plays out of nothing. The scouting for this franchise has got to be some of the worst in the league. Do they even go overseas? How much time do they spend there?
Dean Lombardi had us going for awhile. His specialty is going to a broken franchise, dealing all the veterans for a ton of draft picks, while signing terrible free agents so that he ensures that the team will have a lottery pick for a couple years. It was his plan the whole time.
So when you have so many draft picks, some of them have to pan out right? That was his philosophy. He created a (decent) core, but when it comes to “hockey related” business, the guy is out to lunch. He has not once surrounded his core with the right players. He has failed miserably, and he is being exposed for it now. And he knows it.
It’s time for him to go, it’s time for the coach he hired to go, and it’s time for the Kings to get some brand new leadership that’s in touch with today’s NHL. Get rid of Brown, get rid of Johnson, get rid of Penner, and get rid of the entire bottom 6 forwards, and start scouting and bringing in HOCKEY players. Mike Richards is a start. Parise would be a start.
If it were up to me – This would be the core I would build around: Richards, Doughty, Voynov, Quick. (Maybe Kopitar, but I’m not convinced he’s a legit top line center – I think he’s a GREAT 2nd line center)
Yes, Doughty is a good player. And has even more room for growth, especially under a better coach with a better philosphy. Outside of those 4, I would be willing to trade anyone and get some flat out better players. But it starts with management. Are we capable of bringing in smart management?
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:04 am
@Scot,
Listen Scot, honestly, at this point I’ve just seen too many errors from Lombardi. It’s not that complicated.
If the Penner trade was the only one, I’d be very happy with that. Everyone is gonna make mistakes.
From all of his first round picks now that he’s been here going on six years we have Doughty!! Doughty. 2nd player picked overall. Yes we also have Bernier, but he doesn’t get to play so nevermind.
And then there is Schenn. Straight across with a 2nd rd pick for Richards and you absolutely have to make that trade. But add Simmer and it becomes a bit rich for my taste.
He’s made some atrocious first round picks on top of a few poor trades, bad coaching decisions. I’d personally be ok to bring in someone else if I had a trust in AEG that they’d know Who to bring in. But that’s another subject.
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TheZamboniMechanic2 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:16 am
@number 6,
If DL had let the Kings lose the last meaningless game of 2008, he could have had the #1 pick – Stamkos.
California Royalty Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:25 am
@Scot, I stopped reading when you said “we need more European players”
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tacomakingsfan Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:42 am
@Scot,
I have to admit Lombardi did a great job turning this organization into a solid defensive team but that’s really about it. Like many have stated before, you’re going to have a lack of offensive skill if you build from the back end and that’s where we are at. He probably thought with free agency and trades that he could have solved that problem but it didn’t work.
Just like TM’s fate I wouldn’t mind seeing DL let go. TM taught a defense first type system and DL built a defensive team. Now it’s time to bring someone who can put the offense back to the Kings.
As far as trying to get Nash or anyone who can infuse offense in the system I highly doubt he’s going to be our savior. This problem is the composition of players we have. They’re pretty much all grinders with no damn talent.
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nykingfan Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:45 am
@Scot,
European players are notoriously lazy players…espeically Russian players How is that supposed to help?
We had Frolov..the King of lazy (before Penner)
We have Loktionov..certainly not a lazy player, but i don’t see him lighting up the scoresheets on a regular basis.
Kitsyn isn’t doing anything in the KHL (thanks puck).
Oscar Moller was no better than anythign we have right now.
I don’t udnerstand how european players would help improve where we are?
We’re also going to disagree about Kopitar. He’s an elite player. Things are just not going well for him or any of our guys right now.
I also don’t understand how you don’t feel guys like Brown, JW, etc are not talented players?
Both are 30 goal scorers in this league. Were they just lucky?
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:05 am
@nykingfan,
Hey, I’m not going to his defense. That’s for sure. But it does seem to me that since the 2006 draft Lombardi has kept things exclusively limited to Canada, America and the occasional Russian once they did their homework to make sure that said Russian would come to play junior hockey in Canada. The only exception to that is Oscar Moller and we all know how that’s turned out
But again, to me this is an issue of being flexibility. It’s not about Europeans, it’s about being open to other possibilities.
It is time to start for Sutter to get on Kings’ players faces especially the forwards and centers. Last night’s lackluster offense effort by the Kings summarizes what the Kings season has been so far. Misses opportunities and lack of execution. This Kings team at the moment does not look like a playoff team and the way the offense is going soon the Kings will be out of the playoff race. Bad way to start a two game home stand.
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jack Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 6:07 am
@Cesar A, thats the problem….No one knows whats happening behind closed doors, but it doesnt seem that he is motivating them either. OR, he is not giving good direction…hard to know who is driving the bus.
He needs to get in their face and start coaching with some emotion during the game….there is no sense of purpose or desperation on the bench…Its business as usual over there. The proof will be in the pudding regarding coaching, when they show that they studied and made some logical choices in regards to puck movement in the Offensive zone, and player positioning in the Off. zone. For now, the better second half of the season might be a fluke, and it could have happened with Terry Murray. (they have been in good streaks with him as well).
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Cesar A Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:00 am
@jack, The quotes that Kings’ players make after a loss are filled with excuses and what ifs. There is no certainty with this team. This season has been demoralizing to anyone who follows them. Lack of emotion and fight in this team is what currently makes it not a play off team. As of now they are 8th in the Western Conference. A few more losses and they will drop more spots in the Western Conference. It will be somewhat of a fluke if the Kings make it to the playoffs. We’ll see about this. Last night thanks to the Kings’ players missed opportunities and lack of execution they made Smith from the Coyotes like a Veniza winner goal tender. It looks very bleak now as far as the playoffs is concerned. Time to think about next season if there is one because NHL players and management need to renew their contract which expires this September.
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Raffi Torres needs a season-ending injury.
There. I said it.
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In all honesty, this is just sad. At some point, there needs to be consequences for not doing your job (scoring), not just Penner, everyone else as well.
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 6:31 am
@Alanj21,
I’m not sure you can put together a team of Fraser’s, Clifford’s, Richardson’s, Lewis’s, Hunter’s, Penner’s, King’s, and Westgarth’s, and get on them too much for not scoring. I think you’d do better to ask the question of the guy who put them together.
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IceGuy Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:31 am
@number 6,
I’ll try to keep this short, but …
The one to make a blockbuster decision now is Tim Leiweke. And by “now”, I mean in the next 9 days. He has to decide if Dean Lombardi remains the GM of the Kings for the future.
As it stands right now, Lombardi has the ability to control the Kings next 2-3 years with trades he may or may not make or with call-ups he may or may not make. We’re not only talking about the addition or subtraction of players, we are also forced to consider the financial future as well. Do you give Dean Lombardi the power to continue his “re-building” program or do you say enough is enough. Does Leiweke look at the product on the ice and say, “Yes, this is the team we’ve needed in LA.” Or, does he say, “Dean, we’re going in a new direction.”
Leiweke must very soon decide what base motivation is driving his GM – improving the Kings, or saving his job.
All this talk about Nash coming to the Kings. Does anyone honestly believe that this one addition to the Kings roster will solve all the problems we have on offense? Will his wearing our sweater suddenly give Richardson and Lewis soft hands? Make Lotki stronger on the puck? Give Westgarth the common sense to NOT fight while the offense is on the attack? Get Kopi ( a Center) off the boards? Make point shots that are not wide of the net? I, for one, think not. Rick Nash is a good hockey player, not a savior. And his price tag, both in dollars and lost assets, will simply be too high.
So it seems to me the question really is does Leiweke support his GM, assured that Lombardi can fix the problems he himself has created, or does Leiweke support the organization and seek someone with a new perspective? Leiweke had better make THAT decision before we start getting new faces on the bench and wave farewell to others.
Maybe Daryl Sutter was wrong. Maybe this IS Baseball.
We don’t need Rick Nash. Maybe we need Roy Hobbs.
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:51 am
@IceGuy,
That’s a fantastic post IceGuy. And I concur 100% with what you say. Some people think that bringing in one player fixes their problems. I don’t. Even Wayne Gretzky in his prime wouldn’t solve the problems of a team that is dead last in scoring. Dead last! That isn’t like in the lower third. It’s LAST.
So the peeps who think that that trade would completely change the Kings fortunes are mistaken. A slight improvement? Oh…. for sure. But that really isn’t saying a lot is it? And the price for said slight improvement would be moving a goalie who Might, repeat might A) have to become by default the next Kings No. 1 if Quick doesn’t stay and B) also who might end up himself being a very very good goalie in the league.
It’s not fair for people to judge him based on how seldom he’s played so far.
TheZamboniMechanic2 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:21 am
@IceGuy,
Great post…spot on. Do you think Burkie would come out west again…please?
Simmonds,Schenn,Smyth,Purcell,Boyle,Handzus,Ponikarovsky,Frolov, are all better than their replacements. The Kings are
much worse than a year ago as to the talent level at the forward positions. I would blow up the forward positions at the
trade deadline for draft choices and start ovr. We way overrate the talent of Kopitar Richards Brown and Williams. They are all as unproductive as Penner. I would trade any of them and start a new rebuild. This group will never win a playoff round. Richards even up for Schenn or Simmonds might have been ok bu for both was a joke.Lombardi has continually downgraded the talent level with bad drafts and trades he is the problem not Kompon who is irrelevent. It is the players not the coaches.
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I take my hat off to the Yotes…..no fan base….no ownership…a GM who built a winning team from odds and ends and left-overs.
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DesertKing Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:59 am
@TheZamboniMechanic2,
Key word – Tippett. Get rid of DS at the end of the season and go after Tippet.
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What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:29 am
@DesertKing, I’ve been looking for that opportunity for the Kings to get Tippet for a long time–bet Lombardi had too–until he got Sutter.
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Cap? Maybe….but money is not the real issue about affording Nash:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2102440/Tottenham-takeover-AEG-make-450m-bid.html
AEG got funds.
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Color me feed up. I’m embarrassed to be a King fan. Congrats DL, you put together the most boring King team in their history.
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:35 am
@KC23, I rather have a boring team that wins then an exciting team that loses. Whether or not this team makes the playoffs remains to be seen. We do need to make 2 or 3 trades come the deadline. I am hoping one of those is Nash, but even if we make a couple of mid level ones I will be fine with that, as long as they can break the funk of not scoring.
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What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:31 am
@KC23, Yeah….here they were down 1-0 in the third period, and I was falling asleep. Usually, that’s about as exciting as it gets, but I couldn’t help but notice the fans in the nosebleed section had gathered to watch some fresh paint dry.
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Coach said it perfectly. Your best players HAVE to score when they get those (rare) opportunities. They had open net chances in the first period and later (I counted 4) or clean breakaways where either a)missed net completely b)fanned c)shot directly into Smith’s chest. No Finishers+No Goals=No Playoffs
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THE TIME IS NO … oh crap, wide left. Nevermind. The time has passed. All we can do now is hope they can convince Quick he has a chance to win HERE, when we all know he makes nearly any other team a cup contender immediately.
We can always look forward to Frozen Fury, right?
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I guess the Rangers and Kings are the front runners to land Nash. With the Rangers being as good as they are, they may not want to change too many things.
It appears as though Bernier and Johnson would be gone, making Martinez/Drewiskie and Voynov regulars. With Hickey and Forbort waiting, that’s not too bad.
Having said all that, Nash probably won’t be dealt until the offseason when more teams will be in the mix. It appears as though Jeff Carter could be the one coming this season. It seems the Kings can never get the guy they want and have to settle for plan B and/or C
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What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:32 am
@California Royalty, The good money’s on Nash going to the Rangers. :-/
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If I were Mike Richards, I’d be praying for a fire at the “NHL36″ post-production facilities.
Seriously, Richards is but a shadow of the player he was prior to suffering the concussion. I hope, for his sake and for ours, that he will succeed in getting his game back.
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What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:33 am
@Ron Reynolds, I don’t know where you were, but I saw a lot of fire in him last night. Took a lot of courage getting into that fight.
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Now is NOT the time. Thanks DL and all Kings players for under-performing yet again. So much hope in September, so much disappointment in February.
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If they are going to a supposed plan B, thats all the more reason to do nothing rather than making impetuous trades. You know what Penner cost?
The Kings traded Cammalleri to Calgary to be able to move up and draft Teubert. So those two assets gone, Plus last years first round pick plus this years 3rd.
That’s FOUR ASSETS traded to get Penner. Three coaches hired so far. Dean isn’t a bad GM, but he’s far too intractable in his d at all costs approach. And now, he’s painted himself into a corner where they would have to take on someone’s huge contract and trade assets to get a forward to score. I did some research and there have been plenty of talented offensive forwards available in almost every single one of his drafts at the time where they were drafting. It’s not a question of missing Giroux. Lots of GM’s missed on Giroux, but it’s a pretty impressive list of talent that they’ve fanned on.
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TheZamboniMechanic2 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:26 am
@number 6,
DL also passed on whitney of coyotes last summer…at least he’s consistant.
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TheZamboniMechanic2 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:26 am
@number 6,
DL also passed on whitney of coyotes last summer…at least he’s consistant.
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And to think after a good nights sleep I was going to come on here and apologize for my horrible comments about DL and the rest of the organization.
After thinking about it for roughly a couple of seconds, not a chance!
Instead, I have decided to go buy 2 Kings hats today, 1 to pinch a loaf in, and the other to cover it up with.
Apologize? No, I think DL and leiweike should apologize.
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nykingfan Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:52 am
@puck73,
lmfao!
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DesertKing Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 7:57 am
@puck73,
I am going to try that with some Duck’s hats that we got at the Kings/Ducks game in Anaheim last season. Well, maybe not…………..
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I didn’t get to watch the game, but did listen to the last 10 minutes of the 3rd on the radio (Nick and Darryl were perfect as usual). As is the norm when we are failing on offense, I only heard us go to the net once. As is the norm when we are failing on offense, we failed to score on the PP (esepcially when we really needed it at the end of the game). As usual, when we are failing on offense, our top goal scorers have almost no shots on goal (see Kopitar). As usual when we are failing on offense, our team is taking shots from bad angles and far away.
While the Kings under DS have been pulling in some points, it is becoming ever more obvious that nothing has really changed under DS. The defense and goaltending are the same – excellent! The offesnse and PP are still the same – horrible! The DS Kool-Aid is wearing off and it is becoming more apparent that the hiring of DS didn’t really change a whole lot. DS lives in TM’s house, is still utilizing large portions od TM’s system, and getting the same results (no offense). Maybe it is time to light a fire under DS or start looking for a metal detector for him similar to TM’s so they can both become beachcombers together and share the title of “former King’s coach.”
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I was worried about Richards after the Hanzal hit, which looked to me pretty hard with Hanzal’s shoulder right on Richards’s head. If Richards goes down again with a concussion, that trade looks real bad. The Philly commentors say Richards used to raise his game for the big games and I didn’t see it last night.
I think Lombardi came in and had a lot of sensible things to say about how to do a rebuild and then lost discipline and made the classic blunders he warned against, mainly leaving the rebuild too soon with the idea you can trade for one more player to put your team into the elite status. So I didn’t like the Penner deal or Richards deal on general principals–and it’s looking like the Kings had some bad luck with them as well especially if Richards is hurt. IMO, he hasn’t been the same since his concussion last year. Bummers.
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What's the frequency, Kenneth? Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:36 am
@vicarious, This is what kills me. Fans demand trades during the rebuild process then they gripe about the trades. They think the GM has this magic power to make the perfect trade every time the pressure’s on. Few perfect trades are out there, and every imperfect trade is a risk that you’re going to lose someone you under-appreciated. That’s one of the reasons I hate trade talk and get sarcastic when people demand trades.
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MESSAGE TO DL FROM CONCERNED FAN(S)
IF YOU DON’T GET RICK NASH, J QUICK IS GOING TO LEAVE THE KINGS, and thus too, you will end up losing your job!
by not getting rick nash, you are saying two things to JQ:
a) “sorry JQ, we’re not willing to address the scoring woes (at least in the immediate terms), so you can get use to losing these types of games, and feeling like crap… oh, and you know that vezina-esque year you’ve been putting together for us, the good thing is we’re going to reward you with a lot of rest with a nice long off season, how about starting around the end of april?”
b) “sorry JQ, but in spite of you picking this franchise up and putting it on your back since you came aboard full time 3 years ago, we still don’t truly believe you’re “our guy” yet… our actions will speak louder than words by keeping j bernier, instead of utilizing his trade value to attempt to address the gaping hole called “scoring” in our lineup… you still have not proven yourself, and we feel that in a game like last night, the best use of a valuable asset for this organization was better served sitting on the bench as a backup goalie, instead of on the ice trying to tie or win that game… thanks, we like you JQ, but we think you need to come into yet another training camp with the same JQ or JB debate hanging over your head… oh, and by the way, we still do want to resign you… what? why don’t you want to stay?”
DL, please do us all a favor, and just go do whatever you have to do to make it happen… if not, i hold by my opening remarks…
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:08 am
@ddc,
Someone like Rick Nash might improve the team by 12%. That number just came to me. I don’t know why. This team needs a 60% improvement to start to move into the group occupied by the better teams. The talent up front is average. That’s it. Average. Every single NHL team has good talent up front.
Edmonton isn’t going to even make the playoffs and they have staggeringly good talent up front. The Islanders have some very very good forwards. They aren’t gonna make the playoffs either. It’s only down to Quick plus a pretty good defense that DL comes out looking as ‘good’ as he does.
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Jeff_R Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:39 am
@number 6, If 12% means scoring 2 more goals then they are scoring now then i will take that.
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number 6 Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:46 am
@Jeff_R,
Not what I meant and I sort of regret even making the post to be honest with you. Probably they get a few more shots on goal. Occasionally over the season score a few more goals. I wasn’t thinking two more goals a game. Frankly that would surprise me if just bringing in Nash created that. Anything is possible but I wouldn’t count on it.
tacomakingsfan Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:50 am
@number 6,
Haha 12%? Sure why not. Just watched a repeat of NHL tonight and Dreger said the Kings are NOT one of the teams Nash is interested in. Hell, I don’t blame Nash.
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Deirdre Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 8:55 am
@tacomakingsfan, How would Dreger know who is on Nash’s list unless he’s Nash’s agent. He’s guessing…
tacomakingsfan Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 9:00 am
@Deirdre,
Yeah I know he was guessing but think about it. If you were Nash would you want to go to the Kings or a playoff contender?
Deke'r Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 3:24 pm
@tacomakingsfan, ….Rangers would be my first choice as well…..they will be hoisting the cup this year…bank on it…
Whatba waste of time and money that was. Funny the last game i attended was 1-0 loss to CBJ. Pathetic
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Deke'r Reply:
February 17th, 2012 at 3:25 pm
@Sebastian, …so you’re the reason…..(jk)…
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We don,t have quality players not only scorers.goalies ok,defense so-so,offense none.coaches none gm none assistant coaches none.Think.
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Yeah not a good game when you lose 1-0 to the team right behind you in the standings. I do notice that a lot of times when the Kings enter the zone, usually when Williams has the puck, no one is supporting him entering the zone. A lot of the Kings attacks have no depth. Very easy for the other teams D to figure out the Kings attacks. Also will the D please hit the friggin’ net for once!!!!! Especailly when DD shoots, his shots are way too often wide of the net. Just get the freakin’ puck on net and try for the rebounds. The Kings forwards do drive to the net, but the puck either gets there too late or too early. What they do in practice I wonder?
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