May 23rd, 2013 at 2:57 PM
By Brandon Der AvanessianThe Los Angeles Kings enter a pivotal Game 5 against the San Jose Sharks on Thursday in a dangerous position. After losing two consecutive games up north, they’ll return to play Game 5 in front of the home crowd at Staples Center, where they haven’t lost in the playoffs and have won 12 straight going back to the regular season.
With a win, the defending champs can position themselves just one win away from clinching a spot in the Western Conference Finals for the second straight year. But a loss would put them down 3-2 in the series heading back to San Jose for a do-or-die Game 6 on Saturday.
“Nothing fazes us,” said Kyle Clifford. “You can throw anything at us. We’ll be calm and cool and collected. It’s going to be fun.”
After a pair of lackluster offensive performances in Games 3 and 4, Coach Darryl Sutter decided to mix the lines up in practice Wednesday. Forward Dustin Brown moved over to right wing on a line with Trevor Lewis and Dwight King, and Kyle Clifford was bumped up to the top line with Anze Kopitar and Justin Williams. Brad Richardson centered the fourth line between Colin Fraser and rookie Tyler Toffoli.
Read more... Join the Conversation... May 21st, 2013 at 11:19 PM
By Brandon Der AvanessianThe San Jose Sharks remained undefeated on home ice in the playoffs with a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals on Tuesday night.
Brent Burns scored his second of the postseason and Logan Couture added a power-play goal, as the Sharks evened the series at two games apiece.
San Jose goaltender Antii Niemi stopped 22 shots, leaving the Kings winless at HP Pavillion for the seventh straight time overall.
The Sharks heavily outplayed the Kings through the first 20 minutes, building a 15-3 advantage in shots and winning 17 of 22 faceoffs. Los Angeles failed to record a shot over the final 9:58 of the first period. Goaltender Jonathan Quick was to thank for keeping the Kings within one at the intermission.
Mike Richards scored the lone goal for the Kings, who pushed hard in the third period, outshooting the home team 14-2. But a slow start that lasted through the first half of the game contributed to a 2-0 deficit early in the second period. After winning 10 of 11 road games during their run to the Stanley Cup last spring, the defending champs have won just once in five tries away from Staples Center this postseason.
Read more... Join the Conversation... May 20th, 2013 at 11:10 PM
By Brandon Der AvanessianAfter a Game 4 loss to the San Jose Sharks, the Los Angeles Kings returned to practice in El Segundo, before heading back to Northern California for Tuesday’s Game 4.
Forward Kyle Clifford, who has missed four straight games with an upper-body injury, not only participated, but skated on a line with Colin Fraser and Brad Richardson. His presence on the fourth line during Monday’s practice suggests he could be injected back into the lineup as soon as Tuesday night. Clifford hasn’t played since Game 5 of the first round against the St. Louis Blues back on May 8.
While the young forward has yet to scratch in the postseason, his physical play and toughness are a big part of his team’s identity.
“First and foremost, he’s an energy guy,” said Fraser. “He’s got lots of life and he’s a guy that plays hard every shift. So we’re happy to have him back. He’ll give us an emotional lift on the physical side and on the energy side of things.”
In five postseason games, Clifford has accumulated a total of 16 hits, and finished second on the team behind Dustin Brown with 155 hits in 48 regular-season games.
Read more... Join the Conversation... May 20th, 2013 at 9:29 PM
By Brandon Der AvanessianLos Angeles Kings captain Dustin Brown is one of three finalists for the 2013 Mark Messier NHL Leadership award, the league announced Monday.
The award has been in existence since the 2006-07 season, and is given to "the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice during the regular season." With the help of team and league personnel, along with NHL fans, Messier selects a list of three finalists, before ultimately naming a winner. Ottawa Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson and Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews are also finalists for this year's award.
Brown was selected as the first American-born captain in Kings history prior to the 2008-09 season. He leads a physical Kings team with his toughness and grit, ranking first on the team in hits for four consecutive seasons since it became an official NHL stat. The 28-year-old forward was chosen by teammates as the Kings' Most Popular Player this season.
As for his leadership off the ice, Brown contributes $50 for each hit he accumulates to the Newborn and Infant Critical Care Unit at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, and Kaboom! Since he began this charitable initiative in 2008, he has helped raise $60,000, and is responsible for the construction of a special playground built in Carson, CA in 2010.
Read more... Join the Conversation... May 20th, 2013 at 5:54 PM
By Brandon Der AvanessianLos Angeles Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick will not face supplementary discipline for his post-game actions in Saturday's Game 3 loss to the San Jose Sharks, reports Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times. Quick was assessed a game misconduct after he chased down officials following Logan Couture's game-winning goal in overtime.
While it looks as though Quick will escape a suspension, a game misconduct for verbal abuse of officials does carry a $200 fine, along with the possibility of review by the league.
The Kings were clearly unhappy about the calls near the end of regulation that led to a five-on-three advantage for the Sharks in overtime. Couture's game-winner came seconds after Los Angeles had killed off the first of two penalties, while the Sharks still held a one-man advantage.
The exact reason for Quick's anger is somewhat unclear, but the 27-year-old goaltender will need to keep his frustration level to a minimum in order to avoid further discipline by the league.
NHL Rule 23.4 states, "Any player who incurs a total of two game misconduct penalties for abuse of officials related infractions penalized under Rule 39, Abuse of Officials, shall be suspended automatically for the next League or Playoff game of his team. For each subsequent game misconduct penalty, the automatic suspension shall be increased by one game."
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