October 9 Rapid Reaction (feat. Dan Murphy): Canucks 8, Kings 2

Rapid Reaction, feat. Dan Murphy of Sportsnet:

Postgame Quotes

Todd McLellan, on what he didn’t like about the loss:
Well, all 60 minutes, I think it’s pretty obvious. I didn’t like any of our game. Right off the bat we got ourselves in trouble. We weren’t under control, we took penalties, we weren’t able to kill it, turned the puck over. So, that question’s pretty easy to answer. You can probably write anything you want, and it’d be correct. I think you find out something about every individual each day, and they reveal themselves in certain situations, and we found something out about our group that has to be fixed, and we’ll work towards fixing it.

McLellan, on the particulars from the loss that stick out:
There are a lot of things that go into the game. There’s the mind and then there’s the skill set and there’s the systematic play and the ability to get involved in the right position, and I thought as the game wore on and it got away on us, that just crumbled. So, it tells me that our group’s got a long, long way to go. Some of the players we’ve counted on or we need to count on have to play a lot better or they don’t belong in the league, and we’ll have to look at some individuals.

McLellan, on how he evaluates Jonathan Quick’s performance:
Well, we’ll look at it. He’s part of the group. Goaltenders have a tough job. They fit in with the other 19 players that dress and the coaches that stand behind the bench, and we’re all in it together. But he, as well as everybody else, has to be better.

Drew Doughty, on whether it was hard to “park” Tuesday’s game and emotion:
I mean, I ain’t going to park it. It’s just embarrassing. I mean, a team like that should not be beating a team like ours 8-2. There’s actually no way. I know they had a lot of energy right off the bat because it’s their home opener and they had their whole ordeal with the captain and whatever. But we had chances to come back, and then we just gave up a goal right after we scored a goal. It was a bad team effort by everyone on this team, I thought.

Doughty, on whether he looks at the back-to-back as an influence on the lopsided loss:
No, you can’t. We play lots of back-to-backs throughout the season. We’re expected to win back-to-backs. It doesn’t matter. I know we went into overtime last night, but honestly it doesn’t matter. You expect to win back-to-backs. It’s a poor team effort. We’ve got to get back home and regroup and get better.

Ben Hutton, on the challenges in the loss:
There were a lot of things that went wrong. They popped in a lot of goals against us. We didn’t stick to our systems. We were trying to be too cute sometimes and making some hope plays and when they were getting an opportunity, they were capitalizing on it. So, we kind of shot ourselves in the foot, and every time we did, they buried. So, that one stings.

Hutton, on any positives from the game:
Yeah, I feel like every game me and partner Walker are getting better and better. We’re building more and more chemistry. We said at the start of the game every chance we get, throw it on net. Walks scored, which was nice, but as a team, it doesn’t matter if you get pucks on net if the score’s that at the end of the night.

Hutton, on his return to Vancouver:
This is where I started my NHL career. Obviously, it’s always going to have a special place in my heart, so it was fun coming back. But, that game wasn’t fun, that’s for sure. So, that one hurt.

Hutton, on Vancouver awarding the captaincy to Bo Horvat:
Everyone in the league didn’t know who the captain was, and the guys in the locker room here were asking me who was going to be the captain. I didn’t know who it was, but I put all my chips in on Bo Horvat. The moment I got there, he’s been a great leader. I feel like he’s the one that deserved the captaincy the most, and I’m happy that they chose him. He’s a great leader on, off the ice. He’s just a good all-around person and obviously a great player.

Hutton, on the Kings’ 1-2-0 trip to start the season:
I feel like when we stick to our game, we stick to our systems, we’re a tough team. What were the shots in the first period against Calgary? Like, they had one shot, maybe? I thought we were sticking to our system, everyone was in the right spot at the right time and when we’re playing our game, we’re a hard team to play against.

Postgame Video

Postgame Notes

— With the loss, Los Angeles fell to 111-106-38 all-time against Vancouver, a record that includes a road mark of 44-63-19. These teams have three games remaining: October 30 and March 21 at Staples Center and December 28 at Rogers Arena.

— With the loss, the Kings fell to 1-2-0 against the Western Conference and Pacific Division, 0-1 in games decided by three or more goals, 0-1-0 when trailing after the first period, 0-1-0 when trailing after the second period and 1-2-0 when outshooting their opponent.

— Vancouver scored eight goals at home for the first time since February 25, 2003, an 8-0 win over Atlanta.

— Dating back to the end of last season, Los Angeles has allowed at least seven goals in three of Jonathan Quick’s last six starts (3/26/19 @ EDM, 4/1/19 vs CGY, 10/9/19 @ VAN).

— In 17:57 of ice time, Sean Walker scored a goal, registered a plus-two rating, took four shots on goal, blocked two shots, and was not credited with a giveaway.

— Drew Doughty has registered a point in all three games this season (2-3=5).

— The Kings attempted 72 shots (39 on goal, 17 blocked, 16 missed). The Canucks attempted 59 shots (25 on goal, 16 blocked, 18 missed). Michael Amadio and Alex Iafallo led all skaters with five shots on goal.

— Los Angeles won 39-of-64 faceoffs (61%). Adrian Kempe won 3-of-4, Michael Amadio won 5-of-9, Anze Kopitar won 9-of-17, Trevor Lewis won 1-of-1, Blake Lizotte won 11-of-13 and Jeff Carter won 10-of-20.

The team’s schedule for Thursday, October 9 will be posted upon arrival in Los Angeles.