Practice 12/7 – Quick Twirl in Toronto + Nice Line, Nice Play, Doughty on Activation, Photos, Mammoth Rink

Practice Day from Toronto!

The Kings were on the ice for a twirl in Etobicoke, Ontario at Ford Performance Centre. The facility is the practice home of the Toronto Maple Leafs and their AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, and today’s home of the LA Kings.

Today’s alignment appeared to be exactly what we saw last night in Ottawa, though this was not really a line-driven skate. The Kings got production they liked throughout their lineup, with Todd McLellan commenting on the victory over the Senators being of the team variety, as opposed to one where the Kings had to rely on certain individuals to power the team forward. The Kings did have some great individual efforts – touched on below – but there were few, if any, passengers in a 5-2 triumph.

With that in mind, here’s how the Kings lined up today during practice –

Fiala – Kopitar – Kaliyev
Moore – Danault – Arvidsson
Iafallo – Kempe – Vilardi
Anderson-Dolan – Lizotte – Grundstrom
Fagemo

Anderson – Doughty
Durzi – Roy
Edler – Walker
Bjornfot

Quick / Copley

As noted earlier today, defenseman Brandt Clarke was loaned to Team Canada, in advance of the upcoming World Junior Championships, and did not skate with the team here in practice. The other 22 members of the roster were all present and accounted for.

Notes –
Nice Line, Looking Nice
Vintage Nice Line.

78 percent of shot attempts, 79 percent of scoring chances and 100 percent of high-danger chances. They didn’t score at 5-on-5, but they certainly contributed offensively, as Viktor Arvidsson buried the third and fourth goals, the first of which came off of an assist from Trevor Moore on the man advantage.

“They were strong, and again it wasn’t at the cost of anything going the other way,” Todd McLellan said of that line’s performance. “I thought they managed their shift length really well tonight. Vintage, I think, is probably a good way of putting it.”

The trio of Phillip Danault between Moore and Arvidsson has become an essential staple for the Kings offensively. Even as the team shakes up their lines, whether it be in game to try and spark some energy or between games in search of more permanent change, that line has remained intact. They’re responsible in their own end of the ice first, but sometimes they don’t even need to be as they control the puck for extended stretches offensively.

It’s very difficult to find highlights of a sequence that was just a really good shift. They usually don’t include those in their entirety in the video package, but the nice line had perhaps the best of the night late in the second period. The shift lasted for 1:16 and the Kings had seven shot attempts in that sequence, frequently winning the puck back after a shot that was saved, blocked or missed the net. As Moore pointed out, Adrian Kempe’s line was on before that and passed the shift off, allowing the Kings to change in the offensive zone. Again, a team-driven performance.

Overall, last night’s game came after a stretch where the line certainly was not poor, but not quite themselves either. It’s been seven games since their last 5-on-5 goal, dating back to the overtime loss in Seattle and they’ve been on the wrong side of the higher-danger looks more often than not. Last night though was the right direction to be trending, though and more in line with their identity as a line.

Arvidsson – Yeah, I think it was and it got better and better. I think we still have some things to come back to, but we took a step in the right direction.

Moore – I think we want to be a puck possession line and we’ve talked about it, we haven’t had enough puck possession. I think we’ve been building it these last two games, we’ve been winning more battles, coming up with more pucks and sustaining more o-zone time.

The nice line being nice is a nice note for the Kings as we continue on this trip.

Doughty On Activation
As noted last night, the Kings felt that, overall, last night was a game in which they scored at the clip they’re capable of, without sacrificing a ton the other way.

“Yeah, I thought so,” defenseman Drew Doughty said when asked that question. “Copper had to come up with some big saves, but you have to expect that out of your goalies throughout a 60 minute game, that’s just how it goes, but we only gave up two and we were in control of that entire game. That’s how we want to play.”

In Doughty’s eyes, perhaps the flow of the game allowed for that. Never one to sacrifice at one end for the other, Doughty felt that when the Kings built a 4-1 lead in the first period, his mindset shifted. It wasn’t as if the Kings started playing prevent defense and they actually wound up increasing their lead in the second period. Doughty had the primary assist on that play too, a power-play goal, on which he spun and fed Kevin Fiala in one motion, moving the puck from side-to-side quickly to give his teammate a lot of space.

Where it changed though, for Doughty at least, was with regards to risk and risk taking. When it’s 4-1 that early, he’s not going out of his way to look for certain offensive opportunities that carry more risk for the team. While defensemen contributed with the team’s first two goals of the night, and four Kings blueliners got on the scoresheet in total, it felt as if the team adopted that mindset as a whole, without sitting back at all to do so.

Doughty on activating and managing risk
I’m a guy that doesn’t play with a ton of risk. I take what the game gives me is I guess how you would say it. I do make some high-risk plays, don’t get me wrong and I try some things that other guys don’t, but for the most part, I’m not cheating, I’m not looking for offense. Last night, we’re up 4-1 in the first period and I didn’t look for offense the rest of the game. Maybe that’s a default of mine, maybe that’s why I’ve never had been point-a-game, but at the same time, I’m just worried about winning the hockey game, I’m not worried about points or cheating for offense, because I know how fast a team can give up a lead and lose a hockey game. My focus is not on offense when we’re up by that many goals, ever.

Good stuff from the leader of that group, which, as noted this morning, ranks as one of the NHL’s leading clubs when it comes to offensive production from defensemen.

Mammoth Rink
A……….mammoth of an announcement today. Though I think the rink is just Olympic dimensions.

The Kings have partnered with The Town of Mammoth Lakes, Mammoth Lakes Tourism, and Mammoth Lakes Recreation to announce LA Kings Ice at Mammoth Lakes within a newly constructed, multi-use community recreation center, which is set to open to the public in 2023. The rink will serve as the home of Mammoth Lakes Youth Hockey and the Mammoth Stars and will also include public skating, youth and adult hockey, figure skating and learn to skate lessons.

More detail on the partnership is available here.

Kings President Luc Robitaille
We could not be prouder to be working in partnership with Mammoth Lakes Tourism, Mammoth Lakes Recreation and the Town of Mammoth Lakes to bring LA Kings Ice to Mammoth Lakes. We know this project will have a lasting and positive effect on the Mammoth Lakes community and we are delighted to help elevate the quality and experience of ice sports for its residents and visitors, many of whom are also avid hockey fans and players.

Mammoth Town Manager Daniel Holler
This partnership with the LA Kings, an iconic NHL franchise, represents an incredible opportunity for the community of Mammoth Lakes. The powerful collaboration with Mammoth Lakes Tourism and Mammoth Lakes Recreation to bring the LA Kings to Mammoth Lakes reflects the Town’s commitment to deliver world-class recreation amenities for both residents and visitors by strategically partnering with the best of the best.

Some photos from today’s skate to take you home, Insiders. Back at it in the morning with coverage from morning skate in Toronto, with several stories in the queue for the next few days!

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