Will the NHL’s “second season” be more fruitful for Alexei Ponikarovsky than the regular season. When the Kings signed Ponikarovsky to a one-year, $3-million contract last summer, they touted his history of 20-goal seasons. Well, that’s not quite how it worked out this season, as Ponikarovsky played 61 games — sandwiched a round a couple [...]
Archive of posts tagged Alexei Ponikarovsky
Ponikarovsky’s play coming around
Statistics haven’t necessarily reflected it, but Alexei Ponikarovsky has had a recent string of impressive games. It’s been an up-and-down season for Ponikarovsky, who has dealt with injuries, demotions to the fourth line and, occasionally, time as a healthy scratch, but Ponikarovsky seems to be peaking at an opportune time. He scored a big power-play [...]
Ponikarovsky also returns to Pittsburgh
Much have been made of late about Rob Scuderi’s return to Pittsburgh — Fox Sports also did an interview with Scuderi that is available here — but it’s also a lower-profile return for Alexei Ponikarovsky. Ponikarovsky was traded from Toronto to Pittsburgh in early March, but had only 16 regular-season and 11 playoff games with [...]
Everything old is new again
The last time the Kings played in Calgary — the second game of the season — Alexei Ponikarovsky was on a line with Michal Handzus and Wayne Simmonds. A month later, Ponikarovsky broke his finger. From that point on, Ponikarovsky played on the fourth, second and first lines, respectively, and missed time again with an [...]
Going `fourth’ with some strong play
Terry Murray often talks about balance, and the ability to roll four lines, but not often this season has he been able to find that balance. Actually, most coaches talk about it, and it’s relatively hard to find around the league. But over the past few games, the Kings’ fourth line has arguably been as [...]
Ponikarovsky postgame quotes
Alexei Ponikarovsky’s postgame thoughts… (on his game…) PONIKAROVSKY: “I had a couple of injuries at the start of the year and I’m kind of recovering after it. It’s a normal process and you just have to go through some tough times. Today, everybody had a good effort. We put a lot into the game so it was just [...]
Search continues on the first line
Today in practice, Alexei Ponikarovsky skated on the first line with Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown. Tomorrow? Well…check back tomorrow. Over the past 10 days, Ponikarovsky has gone from a first-line winger to a healthy scratch to a fourth-line winger to a first-line winger. To be certain, none of this takes place because Terry Murray [...]
Looking for four-line balance
As earlier noted, the Kings will go with a fourth line of Alexei Ponikarovsky, Michal Handzus and Trevor Lewis tonight, with Kevin Westgarth as the healthy scratch. Westgarth was also scratched in the first Kings-Oilers game of this season, on Dec. 23 — a 3-2 Kings shootout win — when Terry Murray went with a [...]
Murray wants more from Ponikarovsky
It’s been quite a roller-coaster week for Alexei Ponikarovsky. On Saturday, he returned to the lineup after missing six games with an ankle injury. On Monday, he skated on the first line with Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown. Today, he’s out of the lineup entirely. Ponikarovsky played just under 15 minutes on Monday against Toronto, [...]
Happy returns for Mitchell, Ponikarovsky
Willie Mitchell and Alexei Ponikarovsky both made their returns from injury last night, and while neither player got on the score sheet, both played significant roles — Mitchell played 21:25, while Ponikarovsky played 13:54 — and helped keep the Blue Jackets off the score sheet. The Kings’ penalty-kill unit has struggled of late, but went [...]
Murray has high hopes for Ponikarovsky
It’s been a season of fits and starts for Alexei Ponikarovsky, who played 13 games, then missed 12 games with a broken finger, then played nine games, then missed six games with an ankle injury. Ponikarovsky has three goals and four assists in 22 games, mostly in a third-line role, but tonight will return to [...]
Bonding time over for Mitchell, Ponikarovsky
Today, I jokingly told Willie Mitchell that, soon, he and Alexei Ponikarovsky will be able to star in some hockey-themed buddy movie. To the chagrin of both players, they’ve been able to spend plenty of time together this season because of similarly-timed injuries, and now both will return to the lineup in the same game [...]
Greene, Mitchell, Ponikarovsky updates
As previously noted, Matt Greene apparently has been suffering from flu symptoms, and it’s not known whether he will be able to play tonight. Willie Mitchell and Alexei Ponikarovsky both participated in today’s morning skate. It’s been clear, in the last couple days, that Ponikarovsky is close to a return, but Terry Murray indicated today, [...]
Ponikarovsky, Mitchell updates
Alexei Ponikarovsky returned to practice today, wearing a green jersey along with fourth-line forwards Brad Richardson, Trevor Lewis and Kevin Westgarth. That means Ponikarovsky, who has missed the past five games, is nearing a return, but Terry Murray said Ponikarovsky will not play Thursday against Nashville. MURRAY: “Not quite, but very close now. He had [...]
Quick tomorrow; injury updates
Jonathan Quick will get the start in goal tomorrow night against San Jose. Willie Mitchell and Alexei Ponikarovsky went on the ice after practice for skating and a few drills, but there’s no return date set for either player. Terry Murray indicated that Ponikarovsky remains day-to-day and that Michell could be out another week or [...]
Fourth line earns coach’s confidence
The Kings, once again, will go with a fourth-line look of Trevor Lewis centering Brad Richardson and Kevin Westgarth tonight. Terry Murray said Alexei Ponikarovsky, out with a lower-body injury, is “still a little lame. … He’s not able to cross over, pivot, open up, all those things that hockey players have to do.” Still, [...]
Kings not afraid to let it roll
The Kings played back-to-back games, Sunday at home against Anaheim and Monday at San Jose. That’s worth noting because, for the most part, it didn’t show on the ice. On Monday, having played less than 24 hours earlier, and facing a San Jose team with three days of rest under its belt, the Kings came [...]
Lineup set; Westgarth in
The Kings have announced that Alexei Ponikarovsky is day-to-day with a lower-body injury, so Kevin Westgarth will be in the lineup with Brad Richardson and Trevor Lewis.
Ponikarovsky postgame quotes
Alexei Ponikarovsky’s postgame thoughts… (on responding after being dropped to the fourth line…) PONIKAROVSKY: “Well basically, I know what needs to be done. I just have to put my mind in it. It’s the coaches’ decision, and they have to do whatever they can to improve the team. So that’s basically the call from the [...]
Success for Ponikarovsky (and Simmonds)
By all accounts, last night was a successful return for Alexei Ponikarovsky, who had missed the previous 12 games with a broken finger. Ponikarovsky played 12 minutes, 19 seconds, and had two shots on goal and one hit. In general, he looked aggressive, with and without the puck, and, as Terry Murray points out later, [...]
