Waking up with the Kings: February 20

The talk of the Kings playing well despite back-to-back losses took a turn for the unimportant when the team lost for the third consecutive time in regulation, falling 1-0 to the Ducks in a Pacific Division rivalry game that continued to remove the games in hand advantage they had over the Flames. I love my FOX Sports West work and would like it to continue, so I try to avoid any of the “UGGH THIS GAME IS BORING SO DULL YOU SHOULD PROBABLY TURN IT OFF AND FIND SOMETHING BETTER” missives, but… yeah. Even for an L.A. team that finds its success keeping games low scoring and limiting scoring chances, Sunday’s game was clearly not a greased up lightning bolt striking a fireworks factory to the sound of 1,000 electric guitars. There weren’t a ton of chances in either direction, and Peter Budaj was excellent in making key saves to keep the Kings in a game in which they mostly checked well but were outplayed, and though Los Angeles produced its best 20 minutes over the final period of the game, weren’t able to find an equalizer as they failed to hold any lead for the fifth time in six games. It’s not particularly fair to single him out when he was among the better players on the ice for the second game in a row, but Anze Kopitar is back in another production rut with one assist and a minus-six rating over the last six games. Ultimately, the game was decided when Brayden McNabb overskated the puck on his backhand in the left corner, allowing Ryan Getzlaf to feed the highly underrated and net-bound Josh Manson for the only strike.

Debora Robinson/NHLI

The Kings have played better than their 1-5-0 stretch would indicate, but Sunday’s game doesn’t exactly fill any watcher with confidence that this is a team as currently constructed that is poised to go on an extended run. Unlike several recent games, Los Angeles wasn’t the better team on Sunday, but they’re not going to be the better team on every night, and despite some recent Anaheim inconsistency, they’re still another stingy team that has banked on the league’s best goaltender, statistics-wise, since Christmas. But John Gibson didn’t have to make any array of acrobatic, gravity-defying saves, and Sunday’s game again illustrated the need for the Kings to find a player capable of playing alongside Kopitar at minimal cost if they’re to make anything of a season that they entered squarely on a bubble and will remain on the bubble until their playoff fate is determined in the final week of the season. You are what your record says you are, and at 28-26-4, there’s nothing really hidden in Los Angeles’ 60 points, other than they’d have a stronger standings foothold had Jonathan Quick played more than 20 minutes this season.

Debora Robinson/NHLI

Nic Dowd returned to the lineup and made his presence felt in his first shift, hammering Sami Vatanen into the boards on the forecheck. Later in the period, he quieted a developing high-grade opportunity when he used his reach to get his stick on Korbinian Holzer’s attempt from the mid-slot. Throughout the first period he showed an excellent motor, though it wasn’t all positive as there was a no-look pass up the middle in an attempted zone exit that was picked off in the second period, and he ultimately finished with one shot on goal and a minus-one performance in 10:44 of ice time. There is a significant and unhelpful drop-off from Los Angeles’ first two centers to their next two centers, who’ve been moving around a little bit as of late. I asked hockey operations two weeks ago whether there was any tire kicking on Martin Hanzal, among the most sought-after centers whose name has been linked to the trade market, but Arizona is asking significantly more than L.A. would be able to spend on the sturdy and physical centerman with an impressive set of hands for a man of his size. On the center front, Nick Shore should be commended for his second quality performance in a row. He’s not scoring – that’s important – but he won eight of nine faceoffs and was sturdy in his own end as he continues to etch out some identity in his fourth line role.

Debora Robinson/NHLI

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