Even though the Canucks defeated my Kings, 3-1, last night, my boys actually looked pretty good, though it was the third straight loss. Sean Avery, Ian Laperierre, Lubimir Vishnovsky, and Eric Belanger played on the same line--for only the second time this season--and were quite strong, exhibiting a speed & aggressiveness I haven't seen so far this season. I hope Andy Murray keeps them together for a few more games. The team outshot the Canucks 38-15 and often mounted a terrific flurry of shots on Dan Cloutier (who was spectacular in net for Vancover.) Sadly, Roman Cechmanek was erratic in the first period & was pulled with about 10 minutes left in the second period.

Other important news: there are about 3000 seats available for theis Saturday's game against the Coyoyes. The Kings have decided they will donate 100% of the take from those tickets to disaster relief and will have people collecting donations at the game. Rumor is all concession sales will also go to relief. Additionally, the organization has already ponied up $250,000 to disaster relief.

~Adam

When he was with the Flyers, Cechmanek always complained that he didn't like to see few shots. He wanted a lot of shots in order to be comfortable. To some extent I can understand but I'd rather the defense limit shots on goal. The fewer shots, the fewer potential goals.

Joe, Patrick Roy and Jean-Sebastien Giguere have also said they prefer seeing more shots to keep comfortable and in the game. I'm with you--I'd rather the defense prevent the shooters from getting through.

~Adam

Saturday night's game against Phoenix was the best, most balanced game my Kings have played this season--and the final score, 7-3, indicates the Kings' offense was firing on all cylinders. Coach Murray kept Avery, Vishnovsky, Laperierre, and Belanger together & the line proved extremely successful, very strong skating and aggressive off every face-off. The Coyotes outshot my boys, but Roman Cechmanek was effective, if not spectacular. As a bonus, my Alex Frolov scored his third and fourth goal of the season in the third period.

~Adam

With approximately 13 minutes left in the third period, my Kings may finally do something they have never done--defeat the Panthers in Florida. Kings lead 3-1 and the Armstrong, Palffey, Robitaille line (especially Armstrong) has been wonderful, often seeming magically to be in the right place to intercept a passed or loose puck. Amusing tv moment: leading into the third period, they talked to Armstrong about meshing with Palffey, but the on-screen chyron read "messing with Palffey." Nothing like Fox Sports for professionalism!!

Uh oh: Mike Van Ryn (cute) just scored on a slap shot and it's 3-2, with the Panthers on the power play.

~Adam

[ November 05, 2003, 06:41 PM: Message edited by: Adam ]

Hot dog!!! My cubicle-mate will be out of the office for the rest of the day so I'll be able to listen to my Kings go up against the Caps (starting at 4:00 pst.) I'd listen to it even if she were here, but this way, I won't have to wear headphones. The Caps are 0-5 against Western Conference teams so far this season and my boys are completing their road trip with this game. Hot dog!!

~Adam

Make it 0-6, Adam. I watched that game last night. I thought the Caps would make something out of it when they quickly tied the game up quickly in the first after Los Angeles' goal. I must admit, though, when I saw that beauty of a set-up for the Kings second goal, I knew this game was over. Robert Lang played well for the Caps, but not much else impressed me. How much longer for Bruce Cassidy? The Caps appear as a team that is trying to get its coach fired. Los Angeles looked sharp!

Hey Adam,

IT's not like it's a challenge to beat the Caps!

Trevor

It was one of the more solid games my Kings have played this season--they have the tendency to play in spurts through any particular game. If one looks at the Pacific standings of the Western Conference, one can see my boys sitting atop the division! As has been usual for the past couple of seasons, their home record is worse than their away record.

As for when Cassidy will be let go, the folks on FoxSports who aired last night's game speculated that he'll be gone by Xmas.

~Adam

Congratulations are hereby in order for the Kings, Adam.

Indeed the Kings are atop the Pacific Division! They have quietly moved ahead of Dallas, following their successful road trip. I didn't realize how tight that division is until I looked at the standings...only five points separating the first and last-place teams.

Well, the Maple Leafs came to town--for the first time since March 1998 [the last time they played my Kings in Los Angeles, they played at the Forum, predating Staples Center]--and my boys, having been leading 4-1 as they headed to the third period, fell apart in the final period, allowing the Leafs to tie the game. Even my Alex Frolov scoring two goals--his first multi-goal game of the season--was not enough to keep me from hurling epithets upon the team as they skated off the ice. And judging from what I could see, coach Murray was doing the same.

An extremely nice moment occurred when Cy Young Award-winner Eric Gagne was introduced to the appreciate crowd (he's a regular at the games.) The Kings gave him the highest honor a hockey player could: they tapped their sticks on the ice for him.

~Adam

Yeah, I've got a roommate who just loves the Leafs and was very happy to tell me this morning that his team got out of Los Angeles with a point!

It seems quite odd that the Leafs hadn't played in Los Angeles for nearly six years. Even before the scheduling changes this year, I thought every team played each team in the other conference at least once per year, so I guess all Kings-Leafs games since '98 were played in Toronto? I thought the normal practice was to alternate sites from one year to the next.

It's great that the Kings and the fans honoured Eric Gagne at the game. Incidentally, the word 'gagner'(the same pronunciation as 'Gagne') means 'to win' and 'gagnant' is 'winner'...so Eric's surname seems rather fitting!

Back from the afternoon game between my Kings and the Blues. The teams wore throwback sweaters, the Kings from '80 (couldn't place the year of the Blues)& that seemed to interest or confuse many in the crowd. The Blues were victorious, 1-0, on a first period goal by Pavel Demitra. When you shoot only 3 shots on goal in the first period and about the same in the third, as my Kings did, it's hard to win. In fairness, it seemed the Blues had about the same number of shots on goal in the final period. First shutout of the season against the Kings. I have been quite impressed with Roman Cechmanek but he seems to be giving Andy Murray fits--the coach likes the netminder to stay in net while Cechmanek seems to wander out to play the puck--more than Murray would like. As the season goes along, this could lead to some tension between the two.

Nashville comes in Wednesday--I have to find someone to go with me...


from marc:

It seems quite odd that the Leafs hadn't played in Los Angeles for nearly six years.

We were scared those Torontons would force us all to start a curling team!! wink

~Adam

[ November 15, 2003, 05:27 PM: Message edited by: Adam ]

Just wait until the playoffs. wink

Adam wrote:

(Groan!) wink Somehow, Adam, I don't think So Cal is ready for curling, what with all the other recreational activities available (surfing, roller-blading and guy-watching at Venice Beach come to mind )

This cracks me up! My Kings have created a calendar designed to raise money for their childrens' charities. Each month features a full-color, on-ice, action photograph of a member of the Kings. The organization sent out promotional kits to the local media, stressing that these are "on-ice, action photographs" taken during games and that the calendar is "appropriate for all ages," and a "great stocking stuffer for young Kings fans." I think this makes it pretty clear the type of photos they used. However, LA media members have been calling the team's pr department asking "How can you guys be putting out a beefcake calendar?" When they explain it's NOT a beefcake calendar, the press members let the Kings know there'll be no publicity for the calendars! No good turn goes unstoned!

~Adam

In my Kings 3-0 victory over the Nashville Predators (the quietest night I've ever experienced at Staples Center--even with an announced 16,900 in attendance) Roman Cechmanek won the 100th game of his career (his record is 100-49-23) as the boys earned their third shutout of the season. Goals were scored by the most unlikely people: Sean Avery and Mike Cammalleri (within two minutes of one another) and Kip Brennan. Cammalleri & Brennan scored their first goals of the season and Avery scored his second of the year. My Kings and puckman's Ducks are tied atop the Pacific Division.

~Adam

As the New Jersey Devils (undefeated on the road so far this season) come to town tonight, my Kings hope to earn a .500 record at home--if they win. Ziggy is highly doubtful for the game, nursing some facial injuries; he has often had great games against the Devils. The Kings organization is offering two tickets to the game to anyone who bring a frozen turkey to Staples Center. The Stanley Cup Champions come to town & an hour before gametime there are still 4000 seats available--and I have to find someone who wants my second ticket!

~Adam

Go Kings! wink

Yech!!! The Devils played typical Devils hockey--patient, deliberate, opportunistic--and defeated my Kings 4-0. My boys were back on their heels all game. Andy Murray, who was furious at the officiating from about midway through the second period, pulled Huet (filling in for Cechmanek--benched for wandering out of the net???) with more than five minutes left in the game. Nothing went right for my Kings--and I won't use the handy "we've got a lot of injuries" excuse (even though, in addition to the usual collection of missing players, Ziggy Palffy and Jozef Stumpel were also out. The Devils are now 5-0-2 on the road, the sole undefeated road team. Scott Stevens tied the record for most games played by a defenseman (1615) and should set the record tonight when the Devils play the Ducks. Man, I hate the Devils!!

~Adam

Because of this:

\"Circumstantial evidence.\" Great comment. Anyway, back to Adam...

Really? If that's so, very interesting.

Preach on, brother Adam, preach on!!!

Regarding Cechmanek and Huet, I had posted in a different thread that, in a conversation with Ian Laperierre, we joked about how Cechmanek's wandering out of net has been driving Andy Murray crazy; the coach prefers his goaltenders to stay in net rather than leave it to play the puck. Lappy mentioned that the defense has had to learn how to play with a wandering goalie as Felix Potvin & Jamie Storr(last year's nmber 1 and 2 netminders) were far more netbound. Murray likes Cechmanek's goal against average but would still like him to remain closer to the goal.

~Adam

Following the Kings 6-5 loss to the Coyotes on Thursday, coach Murray was quite vocal about the problems my Kings had in that game, going so far as to lay blame on Roman Cechmanek, Lubomir Visnovsky, and Jaroslav Modry--"totally ridiculous loss. We presented it to them on a platter.With the exception of those three players, we had everyone on board tonight. Those three cost us a win." About Cechmanek, Murray went on: "He gave up five goals in 22 shots. That's how you lose games, especially if you're not minding the net. Roman has the skills to be a brilliant minder, but he has to learn to remain in posotion." I can only imagine how this public criticism will affect Cechmanek & wonder whether Murray will sit bench him more in favor of Huet.

~Adam

The Flyers and their fans do not miss Cechmanek. Not one bit.

from Joe in Philly:

The Flyers and their fans do not miss Cechmanek. Not one bit.

With a twelve-game unbeaten streak, that comes as no surprise, but just you wait until my Kings face your Flyers in the Stanley Cup Finals. Revenge, thy name is Roman Cechmanek!

~Adam

My Kings defeated the Stars, 2-1, as Mike Cammalleri scored his 4th goal in three games & my Alex Frolov accidently injured Mike Modano--Alex's stick found Modano's face, causing a nose laceration and (more seriously) an eye contusion. Kings' defense was tremendous--holding the Stars to just two shots on goal in the third period.

Far more important than the game itself is the deal my Kings made bringing Martin Straka from the salary-dumping Penguins to Los Angeles for the young Martin Strbak and Sergei Anshakov. Though this further indicates the Penguins are done for the season, with Palffy, Deadmarsh, Allison, Armstrong, Lapierriere, Pirnes, & Brown all out of action (at least for a short time) the Kings needed to get a strong player and Straka seems to be it. I think this also indicates my team has accepted that Jason Allison may not be back this season--if ever.

~Adam

The Blues and my Kings wore throwback jerseys from the early-'80's for their 12/2 game. The Blues' sweaters were sky blue with yellow accents while the Kings wore their truly ugly canary yellow and blue sweaters with a white crown on the chest (in the '80's, they called it "Forum gold and blue" but it's really canary yellow.) I had forgotten how ugly those uniforms were!! The Blues won the game, 4-1, as the Kings were slow out of the gate--they had only 4 shots on goal in the first period--and my boys' defense never seemed to come together. Cechmanek wandered away from the net a bit too much for Andy Murray and was pulled midway through the second period for Huet. Whenever the cameras found Cechmanek on the bench after being pulled, he was glaring at the coach--if looks could kill, we'd be planning Murray's funeral today. Murray is still publicly lauding Cechmanek' goal against average, but behind-the-scenes the tension is building incrementally. On a positive note, Martin Straka played well in his first game as a King, fitting in nicely with Josef Stumpel and John Tripp. Now they get to come home for one game against the Stars.

~Adam

In my Kings' shutout victory over the Stars last night, Roman Cechmanek remained--seemingly tethered--closer to the net than in earlier games. Coach Murray must be happy that his attempt to keep Cechmanek from being a straying goalie seems to be working. Martin Straka was terrific--he was in constant motion on the ice and his skating seemed to energize his linemates. He'll be a good pickup for the team (even though one of the ladies who sits near me deemed him "kinda ugly.")

~Adam

Saturday night, my Kings defeated the Capitals, 7-3, in a game in which neither team seemed to want to play defense! Very little checking & even limited trap work. Lots and lots of shooting--oddly, not that many quality scoring chances, but lots of shots on goal (Kings 37, apitals 33.) I have previously mentioned how Roman Cechmanek likes to wander away from net to play the puck and how frustrating that is for Coach Murray. This is from the Sunday's Los Angeles Times:

Cechmanek added to the excitement by leaving the crease, getting tied up behind the net and battling for the puck near the end of the second period. His foray seemed to last forever. "We're going to tie him to the net a little bit. He certainly made it exciting for everyone," Murray said. "It was interesting. We had a meeting to go over that with our defensemen and Roman yesterday, to talk about how we were going to handle those pucks and how he would play them. He must want another meeting."

And on the purely social note, there were rumors swirling through Staples Center that Paris Hilton (the slut!) has been making time with my boy Alex Frolov! How dare she!!!

~Adam

That beeyotch!! Let's scratch her eyes out on Adam's behalf!!!...on the other hand, if Alex owns a video camera, we could have another "Kings Hockey Nudity" thread...

[ December 07, 2003, 02:00 PM: Message edited by: Joe in Philly ]

Adam, I'm surprised you haven't mentioned the Kings game last night...you ARE a Brett Hull fan, like everyone else on the hockey threads, aren't you? wink Hull scored his 732nd career goal in overtime, placing him third in all-time scoring, just behind legendary Gordie Howe and the Great One. Brett's famous father scored 'only' 610 goals in his career. Interestingly, the player that Hull Jr surpassed was former Los Angeles King Marcel Dionne. I didn't realize that current Kings player Luc Robitaille is in the top ten all-time list (although it shouldn't surprise me, it seems like he's been around forever, even though he's still in his 30s).

On my local sports radio station this morning, they stopped raving about the Flames long enough to talk about the Kings. I didn't catch all of it, but the had high praise for coach Andy Murray and Zigmund Palffy. However, concern was expressed about goalie Cechmanek and his tendency to wander out from the net (as Adam mentioned in an earlier post)...not sure if that was a factor in Hull's goal last night.

Marc, the reason I didn't mention last night's game and the Hull goal is that I'm still in shock that a local sports reporter--here in LA--said Hull suprassed "former King MICHAEL DIONNE" Cechmanek was tethered to the net on Hull's shot; I think the goal had a lot more to do with Hull's love of the dramatic moment--a game winning, OT goal against the Kings puts him above a King on the all-time list. He couldn't pass that up, could he? And, for the record, I am a big fan of the Hulls, father and son. Brett is a great ambassador for the game.

~Adam

Hey, ol' Mike Dionne! I remember him!

My Kings lost an OT game to the Thrashers, 4-3, after leading the game, 2-1, for much of it. Sadly, when my boys were ahead they seemed to play far more cautiously than usual, as if they were playing not to lose rather than playing to win. In fact, the Thrashers scored two goals in the span of about three minutes during the third period, when the Kings' defense was backing off. In overtime, both Huet and Dafoe made a couple of spectacular saves, sprawled out in front of their nets. Tonight, it's on to Nashville where the Predators have recently put together a good winning streak.

~Adam

~Adam

In front of a crowd of just over 10,000, my Kings dominated the Predators, as they have done throughout the Preds history (my boys are 7-0-2 in their previous nine visits to Nashville) and remain in first place in the Pacific division. Backup goalie Cristobal Huet was the star of the game, having stepped into net about midway through the first period when Roman Cechmanek and David Legwand (I think that's how spells his name) collided about 25 feet in front of the net--Cechmanek's still wandering away from net to play the puck--and Cechmanek remained down on the ice for a couple of minutes. He hopes to play Saturday in St. Louis. Favorite moment of the game was during the second period, with my Kings leading 3-0, Huet made a highlight-reel save on a breakaway by Greg Johnson. Beauty!! Even the Nashville crowd cheered it--it may be a small crowd but they were knowledgeable. I am really looking forward to cheering them on next Tueday when the Kings are back at home.

~Adam

Tomorrow, 12/15, it will be exactly one year since Adam Deadmarsh played a game of hockey. He recently entered a new phase in his recovery from a concussion: complete rest. He had been taking part in skating & conditioning exercises in an attempt to fight the concussions' lingering affects (including blurred vision and lightheadedness) but, on November 11, he and Josef Stumpel, who was rehabbing following a chest bruise, bumped each other on the ice, and Deadmarsh became so dizzy that he couldn't walk, much less skate. Sice then, he has taken part in no physical rehabilitation as the Kings' trainers and Deadmarsh's physicians encourage him to take his recuperation from the concussion slowly. Deadmarsh says that he will be back with the Kings (this is in contrast to Jason Allison, who recently admitted that he is thinking of retiring if his whiplash & concussion-related symptoms don't improve--he's been out since last February) & the Kings organization remain positive about the possibility of Deadmarsh's return. In fact, they say that even with his inactivity, once he can get back to rehabilitation, it'll take just two or three weeks for him to be back in the game.

~Adam

I wish him all the best Adam. I recall him from the W.H.L. days. wink

Since I've posted lots of stuff about injuries on my team, thought I'd try to balance the scales a bit with this, from the LA Times:

The Kings had a familiar face playing an unfamiliar position for a portion of Monday's workout when Jason Allison jumped in for several drills as a defenseman. Allison, who has been sidelined since January because of whiplash, said he's feeling a bit better, and [coach] Andy Murray is opportunistic about the center's return. "He's been able to skate off and on with the team," Murray said. "Iexpect him to be able to play in three weeks."

All I can say is hot diggety dog!!!!

~Adam

You guys could certainly use some good injury news, so to speak!

Trevor

It was retro night at Staples Center, as my Kings wore the purple & gold unis from the early '80s, the music was from that period, Kings players from the early '80s were introduced, and even "star of the 1980's hit show, 'Mork & Mindy,' Pam Dawber" was in attendance. The game between my boys and the Oilers was very evenly matched, with both teams getting several good scoring opportunities (LA outshot Edmonton 25-24) and Cristobal Huet--in net for injured Roman Cechmanek--led the Kings to a 4-2 victory. It was reported as a sellout, but the supposed 18,100 in the arena were quite quiet throughout the game, and there seemed to be many empty seats. Each game I see Mike Cammalleri play impresses me greatly and Trent Klatt played a very strong game last night. Two important points from the game: my Alex Frolov scored his ninth goal of the season and got an assist on Joe Corvo's first goal of the season and--very important--for the first time ever in Kings history, they have a native of southern California on the team. Noah Clarke hails from the suburb of La Verne and last night, made his debut with the team (to rather loud cheers from the crowd, which included about thirty memebers of his family and close friends) and even got his first NHL point when he assisted on the first Kings' goal.

~Adam

My boys were leading the Coyotes 3-0 after the first period (including the 10th goal of the season by Alex Frolov) but then the defense became lax and the Coyotes--whose road uniforms [white with adobe red stripes and a stylized coyote] are extremely attractive--got back into the game! It ended in a 4-4 game. Special credit must be given to Ziggy Palffey who seemed to have as much speed and jump in his skates at the game's end as in the opening minutes of the first period--and this even though Coach urray double-shifted him throughout the game.

Side note: I had written of a meeting taking place this week with Cechmanek, Murray, and Kings bigwigs. From what I hear, it did not go well for Cechmanek--he was pretty much told that Murray is the coach and that the goalie would have to suck it up and play according to the coach's plans. I'm sure that Murray--who is a wonderful mediator--and Cechmanek will reach some kind of rapprochement, but it's never good when players go whining to the team president.


Edited to add: this evening, 12/20, my boys face the Avs and it's Team Photo Night (sponsered by Pepsi.) So, I get to see a game, get a gift, and stalk Joe Sakic. It's a Hanukkah to remember!!

~Adam

[ December 20, 2003, 01:56 PM: Message edited by: Adam ]

A rowdy, raucous crowd booed the Avs throughout last night's game, which ended in a 3-3 tie. My Kings were tenacious in defense and the fists were flying (I thought it was an eastern division game) between King Kip Brennan (a true throwback to the days when the Kings defensemen were mostly goons--ah, the late '60s) and Avs Jim Cummins. They had two fights and almost got into a third, but Brennan--wisely--backed off and Cummins got hit with a five-minute penalty for fighting AND an additional two-minute penalty for instigating. That's right--the Kings went on a seven-minute power play!! There were a total of of seven (!) major penalties called in the game--including a pair of them just a half-minute into the game (on Avery of the Kings and Danny Hinote of the Avs.) The Kings outshot the Avs, 37-19, and Joe Sakic (swoon!) scored a hat trick, the 13th of his career. In the final period, whenever Sakic touched the puck, some lady near me screamed "Hit the bastard in his head!!"

Sidebar comment: I had the opportunity to speal with Kings defenseman Ian Laperriere, who has been out (surprise!) following a concussion. This past Friday was his first day skating with the team, following his annual visit to Childrens' Hospital, and after all that, he said he felt dizzy and "extremely shaky." I asked if he has any time schedule for when he might return to playing, and in response Lappy said he thinks it's "50/50 he'll be back" but that he's prepared to quit if he doesn't feel better by February. He added that he normally likes to watch the games from the paying customers' seats but that the crowds and noise still disturb his balance so he has to stay somewhat isolated in the luxury areas. A very nice guy whom I hope fully recovers and gets back to the game.

~Adam

Another day, another concussion. Lubomir Visnovsky is the fifth King sidelined with concussion or "concussion-like symptoms" and will miss at least one game--this evening my boys face the high-flying Canucks. So far this season, the Kings have lost 250 man-games to injuries. I'd suit up for them, but a weekend tennis match left me with a bad shoulder. Why can't there an injured-reserve list for weekend jocks, allowing us to take a few days off work to recuperate??

~Adam

You and the Kings hang in there Adam, okay?

Kings 4, Canucks 4 -- Kings should have won that one, Adam. Visnovsky was surely missed on defense.

Canucks are now 5 points ahead of Calgary and Colorado.

Building up a solid lead only to have the defense allow opponents back into the game has become a trafemark of this year's model of the Kings! Once they have a lead, my boys seem to lose their edge--choosing to play cautiously (as if they are playing not to lose rather than playing to win) and giving their opponents room to make plays. At least they got a point for the tie and my Alex Frolov got his 11th goal of the season. Not only was Lubomir Visnovasky missing (and you're right, he was sorely missed) but Martin Straka was also absent--he was back in Pittsburgh for the birth of his first child (hope he gets his figure back quickly! )

~Adam

They kissed their sister, huh Adam???

I won't bore you with details of the pasting my boys took at the hands of the San Jose Sharks in the first of a home-and-home series (tonight they're at Staples Center--yeah!) except for this quote from Luc Robitaille, responding to why the Kings looked so flat last night:

"You'd look flat, too, if you ate as much fruitcake as we all did!"

~Adam