Good morning, Dallas

Good morning, Dallas, good morning, Insiders, and good evening, seven-city, 12-day road trip.

It’s hockey-related (sorry), but I’ve heard from a team PR representative that Jordan Nolan will receive an assist on Nick Shore’s goal last night, and Alec Martinez will receive an assist on Jeff Carter’s. The omission of Martinez’s goal was a simple mistake, but there was a decision, from my understanding, not to award Nolan an assist on the first goal. I’ve read over the NHL’s official rules and haven’t been able to find anything pertaining to an official scorer’s discretion towards not awarding assists on a deflected goal, but I believe it has to do with something related to the intent of the defending player to play the puck on an own-goal. This may not be explicitly stated in the rule book, but rather the result of off-season communication between the league and its official scorers in the articulation of a rule. In any event, Nolan will be rewarded for his slick move entering the zone and the space he created before dishing the puck to his right. Park and ride.

We’re back in Dallas. It wasn’t the case earlier this year after traveling from St. Paul, but it often seems as though visits to Dallas come on the second night of a back-to-back. Nashville/Dallas. Chicago/Dallas. Minnesota/Dallas. During the 2011-12 season, there was a Long Island/Dallas back-to-back, which was kind of silly, but the Kings took three points from those two games and qualified for the playoffs during the final week of the regular season.

The Kings won’t skate at the American Airlines Center this morning, but after posting WUWTK I’ll head downstairs and share some thoughts from several of the players at the twilight of this trip. If you’re near a TV at 2:10 p.m. PT, I’ll be talkin’ fancy on the NHL Network Arena Cam, and this time I’ll make sure to locate where the camera is. ::shakes fist at Buffalo LED lighting::

Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, and enjoy your Friday, Insiders.

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