Allow me to introduce Teddy Purcell to Terry Murray. Terry, this is Teddy. You may remember him. 6'3", 202 pounds. Plays right wing. Didn't crack your top 6 because he wasn't gritty enough. Last season, played in only 41 games with you as his coach. Managed 3 goals, 3 assists for 6 points and a -1. Not exactly top 6 forward stats, right? So, your one-dimensional skill stifling, cycling … [Read more...]
THE ROYAL REPORT CARD, PART II: THE LA KINGS’ TOP SIX FORWARDS
May 6, 2011 By
Here is part II of Harry Halkidis' three part Royal Report Card Series In the second installment of this four part series, the performance of the Kings' top six forwards will be analyzed and graded. Anze Kopitar (A+): The Kings fans are blessed to have this rising star grow into a superstar. There are not many players who are considered elite offensive and defensive talents, and Kopitar is … [Read more...]
TOP TEN WAYS L.A. CAN STEAL THE KINGS v. SHARKS SERIES
April 11, 2011 By
10. While the Kings have the puck but unable to get shots on net, David Courtney belts out over the mic "LOS ANGELES GOAL! His 26th goal and 2nd of the game, AN-ZE KOPITAR!" In the ensuing Sharks' confusion, all five Kings drive to the net and bang it home on the third attempt after missing the net two additional times. 9. Terry Murray fakes an epileptic seizure and falls on the ice during the … [Read more...]
SO CAL v. NO CAL. THE LA KINGS DRAW THE SAN JOSE SHARKS IN PLAYOFF ROUND 1
April 10, 2011 By
LA Kings v. San Jose Sharks So Cal v. No Cal The Hockey Gods have humbled the Chicago Blackhawks and put their playoff hope at the mercy of the Dallas Stars v. Minnesota Wild. Out of this, we drew our foes to the north. Excited? I am just glad we made the playoffs and while the prospect of Justin Williams being back for game one does tickle my fan-cy, my expectations are tempered, even … [Read more...]
THE TERRY MURRAY OFFENSE FAILS AGAIN
April 9, 2011 By
Before Justin Williams and Anze Kopitar were injured, the LA Kings' had a consistently productive offense, right? Wrong. Since Justin Williams and Anze Kopitar have gone down, the LA Kings have made the necessary adjustments to the offense, right? Wrong. Certainly, they have stopped going to the same system of getting the puck along the boards and to the point for a shot each and every time, … [Read more...]
GIVE ME VICTORY OR GIVE ME DEATH
April 9, 2011 By
Kopitar and Williams. Excuse number 1. Excuse number 2. That is exactly what those injuries have provided. The LA Kings, from top to bottom including the coaching staff, have this pretext at their disposal. Use it and Terry Murray's job is probably safe for another year. Rise above it and you send a message to the entire league that to underestimate us shall be your demise. I saw a team last … [Read more...]
AM I CRAZY? NO. JUST IN LOVE.
March 28, 2011 By
I was 10 years old when I watched my first Kings' game. They played the Edmonton Oilers. They lost. But there was something very special about the team or, better written, how I felt about the team. Tomorrow, after losing 2/3 of our top line, we play the Oilers. If the Kings are entertainment, then you aren't reading this article and you have never visited this site. If it is logic and … [Read more...]
KINGS WIN GAME, LOSE WILLIAMS
March 22, 2011 By
I think Scribe did something with emoticons and Spartans or some nonsense not too long ago. I wouldn't know, I apparently don't read this goofy site you got here. If memory serves, that post of Kings win past applies today as well. However this is not that post. Nor is it that game. While it is a game that featured many expletives in all directions - some for the fans, some for the … [Read more...]
LA KINGS POST GAME: ANZE KOPITAR HAT TRICK PROPELS KINGS TO 4-2 VICTORY
March 12, 2011 By
Loved it. This game and last, the LA Kings have looked like a different team. Feet moving on the powerplay, quick tape to tape passes and, with limited exceptions, nothing stood stationary along the half boards. Even when they did not convert, the team had quality scoring chances. Add an already solid defense and a surging number two goaltender in Jonathan Bernier and LA Kings' fans received a … [Read more...]
SEVEN QUESTIONS ABOUT THE LA KINGS
March 8, 2011 By
1. Name the last Stanley Cup winning team with a poor and inconsistent power play and 5 on 3. 2. Name a post lockout Stanley Cup winning team that relied on a cycle along the boards - to the point as its offensive system. 3. Are Anze Kopitar, Justin Williams, Dustin Brown, Jarret Stoll, Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson excellent skaters? If yes, is speed really lacking in our top 6 forwards or … [Read more...]
LA KINGS PLAYER PROFILE: DUSTIN PENNER AND EXPECTATIONS
March 1, 2011 By
Who is Dustin Penner? What does he bring? How will he help? Why does he fit? If you are as hockey obsessed as Surly & I, you may have read every article you could get your hands on from proclaimed (self and otherwise) experts, media, and bloggers about the Dustin Penner trade that sent Colten Popcorn Teubert, a 2011 1st round pick and a conditional 3rd to the Edmonton Oilers. But how … [Read more...]
CONTROL, CYCLE, CIRCULATE – THE LA KINGS’ SYSTEM AND ITS FLAWS
January 29, 2011 By
For the past few months, we have written at length about the LA Kings’ offensive system and its perimeter play. Today, I realized much of what we have written has skipped to the climax without the necessary foreplay. Hence, consider us here to flirt and break down an effective offensive system that relies on control (puck possession), cycle and circulation of the puck when compared to that of … [Read more...]
THE TURNAROUND STARTS TOMORROW
January 12, 2011 By
Call me optimistic...or crazy...but my instincts tell me tomorrow night against the St. Louis Blues, our season turns around. What? Why? Come on. I know, I can hear you. Hear me. Willie Mitchell is still getting his legs underneath him. He now has had two starts and several days of rest including the last two. A healthy Mitchell in the defensive fold is the glue that keeps our top four playing … [Read more...]
KINGS GO MASOCHIST IN 7-4 LOSS TO FLYERS
December 31, 2010 By
If the Kings were a 16 year old teenager tonight, they would be cutting themselves and investing in goth makeup. I don't know what the hell our boys thought they were doing out there but if it was hockey, then the entire defense needs to get off the football and stop acting like monkeys. Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson were shades of bad I have not seen in quite some time. Jack put on a clinic on … [Read more...]
CHANNELING RAGE – KINGS v. PREDATORS PREVIEW
December 18, 2010 By
Every smug face at the gym today looked like Steen...and forced me to turn away or risk imminent assault. At the gas station, a fifty something year old man with a St. Louis Rams hat walked to his truck...I suppressed the temptation of spraying him with the gas pump and launching a match. I must manage this anger at the 6-4 loss Thursday night. Medicine lies in tonight's game. The Predators. … [Read more...]
IT’S ALL OVER BUT THE SMILING – KINGS FINISH WINGS 3-2 IN OVERTIME
December 5, 2010 By
As defined by Merriam Webster's Dictionary, lakingsnews.com edition. Red Wings' Fan (noun): A soulless bandwagoner generally without familial or residential connection to Michigan or who is otherwise displaced due to the GM layoffs. See also, Putz. As I told Nick and Daryl on Kings' Talk after the game (right after I won the popcorn), if beating the Red Wings is the symphony, then the crescendo … [Read more...]
KINGS VS FLORIDA PANTHERS GAME PREVIEW
December 2, 2010 By
I've no patience to preview this game. I'm even considering staying home and just watching on TV... though that might have something to do with the green crap coming up my throat and the germ warfare going on in the trenches of my workplace. Then again, maybe the sickness in the throat is an evolution of the sickness in my head which has been slowly developing over 7 of the last 8 Kings' … [Read more...]
SEVERAL QUESTIONS ANSWERED…
November 28, 2010 By
Surly and/or I will write about the game tomorrow. There are too many thoughts swimming in my head to do it now. Rest brings calm. Calm brings focus. Focus filters anger. But, tonight's game helped me track and answer a few questions that I have been asking since the injuries to Mitchell and Poni. Question: Why does Kopitar suddenly look lost in the offensive zone? Answer: Because he has … [Read more...]
MR HYDE PLEASE GET OUT OF MY HEAD
November 20, 2010 By
You are scaring Justin Williams off of the first powerplay unit. The Bruins had some serious fire to start the second period. The Kings still managed to turn the game against the home team when Justin Williams and Jarret Stoll combined to give the Kings a 3-0 lead off a gorgeous passing play. Williams down the right, drop passes to Stoll just inside the blueline. With Smyth drawing … [Read more...]
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