New-look lines earn good reviews

To follow up on the question of where Dustin Penner might play when he returns to the lineup, it’s worth taking a look at last night’s new line combinations and thinking about what worked. Dustin Brown played well on left wing, Simon Gagne and Mike Richards combined for a goal and Kyle Clifford was more active than he has been in the recent past, with a series of good hits. The Kings still only scored two goals — albeit against a San Jose team that hasn’t allowed many goals of late — but did record 33 shots on goal and showed a more aggressive attitude in the offensive zone. Today, I asked Terry Murray for his evaluation of the new-look lines, and what stood out last night…

MURRAY: “There were a couple things. First of all, the first two periods of our game, I really liked the attitude and the energy that everybody brought. Stolly on the right wing, I thought he looked good, he looked comfortable. He was a big part of that line, getting pucks in and getting on the forecheck with his speed. I thought Hunter played very well again on the right side. Getting an opportunity to play with a top center iceman like Kopi, he responded the right way. And our line with Fraser and Westie and Moreau were a very big part of the game, not only because they got the first goal, but they were keeping the game on the right side of things, getting it deep and were very physical and had a great presence in the game overall.’’