Kings trying to `throw everything’ at Smith

The Kings have definitely had enough shooting practice in the first two games of the Western Conference Finals. The Kings outshot the Coyotes 48-27 in Game 1, then 40-24 in Game 2. During the regular season, the Kings never recored more than 44 shots on goal in a single game. This is no accident. The Kings have great respect for the ability of Phoenix goalie Mike Smith, so they’re trying to make things as difficult as possible by throwing pucks to the net in many different angles and situations. Beyond trying to score on a shot, the Kings are also going for the possible deflections (such as Dwight King in Game 2) and rebounds (such as Jeff Carter in Game 2) that can come from shots. It was Carter who set the tone early in Game 2 with a shot in the opening seconds. Jarret Stoll said the Kings know they have to make Smith work.

STOLL: “We have to, especially facing a goaltender like Smith. You have to just throw everything at him. Obviously he’s going to make saves. He’s going to make saves if we’re throwing a lot of pucks on him, but you never know where those rebounds are going. Not only with Smith not knowing where the rebounds are going, but their defense, they don’t know where that puck is going, and maybe we can jump on a loose puck and get second-chance opportunities that way. But very rarely are you going to beat him on a clean shot. We realize we have to get traffic and shots at him. Halfway through the first period, I looked up and it was at 14 or 15 shots already. I was like, `Gee, I knew we were playing OK, but I didn’t think we were getting that many shots at him.’ But it’s nice to see.’’

Facing a lot of shots is nothing new for Smith. In this postseason, the Coyotes have allowed an average of 37.5 shots on goal per game, most of any of the 16 playoff teams. In the regular season, the Coyotes allowed the third-highest average in the NHL, in terms of shots on goals against (31.6). So, Smith indicated that he’s not particularly surprised by what the Kings are trying to do.

SMITH: “I think they’re just a hungry team. Like I’ve said, they’re not in the Conference Finals by accident. They’ve done good things throughout the whole playoffs to give them chances to score. All I can worry about is stopping the puck. I have to do a better job of that. Everyone else will look after themselves.’’