Thankfully, it’s just about that time again. Time for the playoffs to get started around the NHL and as fans (of teams that made the playoffs), we get to see how our team test’s their mettle against the other qualified teams that each provide their own challenge and reason for winning. I suppose I wouldn’t be doing a guest blog here, if I wasn’t going to do one for the Kings and Canucks series, the latter being my favourite team; plus, I think this is going to be one hell of a series to watch for both sides. I like to be fair when it comes to categorizing some teams, that way I know what to expect when I watch two teams go head-to-head and I really think this young & exuberant Kings team will be jumping on the learning curve with a lot of enthusiasm against the Canucks team that has been trying oh-so-hard to build their team on patience and puck-possession and try to seize a winning opportunity.

Since I had Anze Kopitar on my fantasy hockey team this season, I actually watched a good number of Kings games this season and enjoyed watching them in their number of stages this year. When Kopitar was burning up barns to Quick being lights out and then a more well-rounded approach when both their superstars became a little bit more human. There is a lot to like about this Kings team, especially their desire to want to play hard, skate fast and not quit, which will make them a tough team to play against. With players like Dustin Brown, Wayne Simmonds, Brad Richardson and Jack Johnson, the Kings have a great core of players that should be able to lift their “x-factor” into new levels when Game One starts and really have an influence on the game.
I’ve watched the Canucks all year and the key to their success, as much as I hate to say it, has been coaching and the system in place. If it wasn’t for the two rounds in the playoffs in 2009, there probably would have been a little less hope for this team that had a very hard time getting started this season. With injuries to some key players early on in the season, the Canucks managed to stick to their game plan and brought some new players to the forefront, while some of the old favourites took their game to the next level. In this early round, I’ll be looking towards Ryan Kesler, Alex Burrows and Kevin Bieksa to help build the team up when its slipping a little bit and earn their way out of some tough spots. That’s what the playoffs are really about in the end.
Thanks to the Kings website, I managed to look at some of the statistical comparisons between the two teams and it’s fairly safe to say that they do tilt in one direction a fair bit, north. In a lot of cases, the tilt isn’t that big or terribly significant, but in more cases than not, the Canucks do hold a slight advantage in categories. When we start the playoffs, there is plenty of excitement to get going that a lot of teams, especially the young ones that haven’t been to the dance before, get a little overexcited and try to do too much when it gets going and that leads to penalties and the special teams. I’m expecting a pretty physical series between Los Angeles and Vancouver, so the blood is likely going to boil over quite quickly and we’ll probably see more than our fair share of rough stuff from either side, but it will be the team that stays out of the box and/or the team that has the better special teams that will move on to round two. Both the power play and the penalty kill for both teams are exceptionally close, according to their regular season numbers and both have combined percentages over 100%, which is a good index for comparison for NHL teams. It will definitely be interesting to see what lessons learned during the regular season get applied to the meaningful games of the playoffs.
The Canucks hold an edge in the regular season series, going 3-1-0 against the Kings, but Los Angeles did avoid the season sweep in the last game of the season, thanks in large part to a big offensive push and a good outing from Jonathan Bernier on April 1st. I try not to hold too much stock in the season series, because there are a lot of mitigating factors when it comes to what it really means, but it also doesn’t hurt to use against your opponents in trash-talking or clever word play.
Like any good playoff series, goaltending will be front and centre and this series will feature a couple of goaltenders who have had their seasons questioned a little bit from some inconsistencies in their recent games. Both Jonathan Quick and Roberto Luongo are workhorses when it comes to their respective team’s nets, so it should come to no surprise to anyone when fatigue levels start to sink in a little bit. Quick was an absolute warrior in the NHL this season, ranking 2nd in minutes played by a goaltender and picking up 39 wins. Luongo did have a spell where he was injured, so his minutes played numbers are down to Quick’s, but an Olympic appearance and a 40-win season was still manageable for the Canucks keeper, which is likely considered to be a pretty big plus. Like I said earlier, it has been a shaky go of it leading up to the playoffs, as Quick has gone 0-1-3 in his last five appearances for the Kings, including two fantastic appearances in overtime against the Coyotes and Ducks, just falling short in extra time. Luongo, in his last five appearances, did go 3-1-1, but had some shaky performances, including the last game to the Kings, where he was in for all eight of the Kings goals in the 8-3 loss.
Looking at the stats again, the last bit of comparison that I think should be done should look at the experience levels of both teams. The Kings have a 11 players that have played in the playoffs before, while the Canucks have 23, thanks to keeping a good core from last year’s appearance. The Canucks do have a pretty big edge when it comes to playoff experience, but I don’t want to count out the Kings, because there are certain levels of leadership that the Canucks do not have that the Kings are spoiled with from Ryan Smyth, Sean O’Donnell and Rob Scuderi. Now, whether or not those three players can reel in some of the youth on the Kings team is another question that can only be answered on the ice, but you have to know that the Kings dressing room will have a fair bit of confidence oozing from the pores. If anything, Dustin Brown will get a very thorough learning experience on how to become a great NHL captain, thanks to these rugged, playoff-tested veterans.
I think all things considered, it’s pretty lopsided towards the Canucks to start this playoff run, but for Kings fans that saw an excellent regular season, there should be a lot of good taken from this playoff experience for a lot of the young leaders on the Kings, because the team is being built to be a contender for the foreseeable future. It might not be an immediate championship, but much like the Canucks and their slow build towards being an elite team, it does take a lot of time when you’re not drafting players like Sidney Crosby or Alexander Ovechkin 1st overall. Then again, that Drew Doughty guy is already blossoming into a purebred superstar himself and he’ll be the cornerstone of this franchise for years to come.
My official prediction is seeing the Canucks go through in five games, with the Kings taking one in front of their home fans. It’ll be a high-tempo, hard-hitting series, but experience and system should prevail, much like it did against the St. Louis Blues last Spring.

Visit Clayton Corley at his website www.opiatedsherpa.com.
Follow on Twitter: @opiatedsherpa.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7Zyo-PXYOM

January presents the Los Angeles Kings with 14 games; and, with a look at the schedule, the results will play a large factor in the outcome of the season as 9 games feature Western Conference opponents. Staples Center will play host to eight of the fourteen contests, a great opportunity for the Kings to take advantage of home ice. The Kings currently stand at 3rd in the Pacific and 8th in the Western Conference with 49 points.

Ovie and the Washington Capitals welcome 2010:
Los Angeles will kick off the new year as host to a team that sits in 2nd place in the Eastern Conference. A tough opponent indeed, but all of the pieces are in place for a victory to inject a boost of momentum into this young, injury bugged club. Washington, led by Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom are coming off of losses to Carolina and San Jose. Expect the guys to come out hard in front of a home crowd in an effort to shut down the poster-boy of the NHL and start 2010, and more importantly, this month right.

Seven Game Home-stand:
Starting on the 7th against Detroit and ending on the 21st against Buffalo, the Kings have their longest home-stand of the season. A wonderful opportunity for the team to get back on their feet in the comfort of their home building. However, the opponents don’t provide Kings fans much comfort. We see the Western Conference leading Sharks twice, a Red Wings team that is close in the rear-view mirror standings-wise, and a team in Buffalo who is holding their own with a 3rd spot in the Eastern.

Five Game Road Trip:
This month ends with five consecutive matchups on the road. Tough opponents yet again including Detroit, Boston, and the Eastern leading New Jersey Devils with a couple of no-excuses stops in Toronto and Columbus against a couple of struggling teams.

Saturated with San Jose (left):
Arguably the most important three games the month of January has to offer for Los Angeles. Twice at home, once at the Pavilion, the Kings will be meeting a surging division-foe that is suddenly 10 points ahead of the Kings in the standings as well as current leaders of the Pacific Division and Western Conference. If Los Angeles wants to pose any threat as Pacific Division champs, two of these games must be regulation victories.

Erik Ersberg:
I’d like to see Erik Ersberg get a couple of starts in January, and expect him to get the call. As I mentioned in my last post, I think a key part to building his comfort and confidence is to put him in goal in front of the home crowd. Terry Murray was quoted as saying “Quick gives us the best chance to win at home” earlier in the year. That may be true, but I’m not completely on board with his statement. I could harp on this forever but here’s how I see it: Quick is a 2nd year goalie tied for the league lead in starts. Fatigue is bound to set in at some point, he’s tabbed to play in the Olympics (as a backup), and it’s vital to keep your starting goalie fresh. This may not be an issue to some, but developing your backup goaltender, and keeping your 1st stringer fresh throughout the season can eventually.. well, save your season.

Final Thoughts:
Jarret Stoll’s return from a groin injury is much anticipated, especially in the face-off circle. Will this be the month we find a winger who can mesh nicely with Kopitar and Smyth? I expect the Brown experiment to last a few more games to see how things work out. Purcell as their line-mate looks all but finished. I don’t expect Lombardi to make a trade in the near future to replace Williams’ absence, rather as a trade-deadline deal if the transaction is plausible. There’s no question we’re struggling to find a working option, but more time is needed to find the guy who can step up, and Dustin Brown may be that guy.

How do you Kings fans feel about the possibility of a trade to fill Williams’ hole? Sooner or later? Any possible transactions floating through your heads? Let’s hear it!

To mark this event, the National Hockey League is bringing back a contest on Twitter they call the #NHLPick15. The rules are simple. First and foremost, you need to get an account on Twitter. Next, you need to predict the winning team in all 15 games played on Saturday, October 24. The one fan that picks all 15 games correctly will win 2 tickets to any NHL game in the country (excluding only the Winter Classic.) Do it!

To enter, send a message to @NHL, and pick the 15 teams you think will win using the three letter team code below. You must include the hashtag “#NHLPick15″ to be entered, you must answer the tiebreaker question, “What is the total, combined number of penalty minutes that all 30 NHL teams will have in the games played on October 24th?”

Here’s my entry into the contest:

@NHLPicks NYR WAS BOS VAN PHI SJ PIT TB DAL MIN CHI COL LA CAL ANA, 274 pims #NHLPick15

Here’s the match-ups for Saturday, October 24th:

NYR @ MON,   WAS @ NYI,   BOS @ OTT,   FLO @ PHI,   TOR @ VAN,   SJ @ ATL,   NJ @ PIT,   BUF @ TB,   DAL @ STL,   CAR @ MIN,   NAS @ CHI,   DET @ COL,   LA @ PHX,   EDM @ CAL,   CLM @ ANA

For more information (including all rules in English and French), visit NHL.com.

Don’t forget to friend KingsCast up on Twitter and Facebook. Good luck!

Scuderi was solid defensively, despite deflecting a point shot by Coyotes defenseman Keith Yandle past Kings goalie prospect Jonathan Bernier to give the Coyotes a 2-1 lead at the 5:18 mark of the second period.
Continue Reading at Frozen Royalty

At Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Arizona, Wayne Simmonds scored two goals for the Kings, but that was not enough as the Coyotes handed the Kings a 4-2 loss.

Erik Ersberg got the start in goal for the Kings, allowing two goals on sixteen shots in 40:00 of ice time.

Jeff Zatkoff started the third period for the Kings, allowing two goals on fourteen shots.

Ilya Bryzgalov went all the way in goal for the Coyotes, allowing two goals on fourteen shots.

At Staples Center in Los Angeles, defenseman Jack Johnson scored two goals and added an assist while Teddy Purcell and Justin Williams each scored a goal and added an assist to lead the Kings to a 4-3 victory over the Coyotes,

Mikkel Boedker, Keith Yandle and Peter Mueller scored for the Coyotes.

Johnson’s second goal at 11:06 of the third period drew oohs and ahhs from the crowd as he took a lead pass at the Kings’ blue line from defensive partner Rob Scuderi. Johnson carried the puck through center ice, splitting two Coyotes’ defenders at the Phoenix blue line. He them moved in on Coyotes goalie Al Montoya, deked in front and then lifted a backhand top shelf, beating Montoya over his left shoulder for a spectacular, highlight reel goal while the Kings were shorthanded.

Read the rest on Frozen Royalty.

The “30 in 30″ series will air Tuesday nights at 8pm EST on ESPN with upcoming films made by acclaimed directors Frank Marshall, Barry Levinson, Spike Jonze, John Singleton and many more. Sounds awesome!

Hockey Fest Day 3 – Staying on Target

Breaking Misconceptions – Blog on Day 2
Frozen Royalty: Hockey Fest 09 Looks Like a Hit

On a hot and steamy day in the Los Angeles area, Kings fans and Angelenos marched down the streets of downtown with hockey on their minds. People of all ages, many adorning Kings jerseys and t-shirts, filled the grand arena of the Nokia in what kicks off the beginning of the Hockey season.

With interactive trivia games on the jumbo-tron, a video montage of classic Kings hockey moments and the presentation of players past, present and future, this epic all weekend event commenced. ESPN Hockey writer and analyst, John Buccigross, acted as MC, mixing humor and energy into the crowd of vivacious fans. In one of the most powerful moments of the evening, captain Dustin Brown provided his insight into what feels like the most tight knit and team oriented squad he’s ever seen assembled in several years of being a member of the organization.

With high hopes of making the playoffs and bringing a well deserved Stanley Cup to Kings fans, the organization brings to Los Angeles the first annual Hockey Fest which aspires to be only the beginning of long awaited success. KingsCast will be covering the much anticipated event this year with full media access, so keep an eye out for episodes of Overtime, Podcasts, blogs, photos and interviews with players and staff. Stay tuned…

Advantage, Kings. Since things didn’t quite work out with Hossa, Gaborik or Havlat, Deano went ambulance chasing with teams needing to shred payroll and scored with the Colorado Avalanche. The LA Kings get a strong, Deano-approved “Character Guy” and leader who’ll help groom the kids and someone who  isn’t afraid to crash the net and get dirty in the corners.  At first glance the salary seems high, but he’s worth it. Gotta spend money to make money. He is exactly what this team needs in this situation. Smyth is a big piece to the puzzle that is the LA Kings, he will help establish that ‘culture’ that’s been missing and he will help in recruiting hockey talent in the near future.

Lost in the news of the earth shattering Scudari signing, Kevin Westgarth has been re-signed to a new 3-Year deal. It’s pretty sad that this is the 2nd biggest signing of the off-season for the Kings… but I’m somewhat satisfied with it. Sure, the 0 points in 9 games with 9 penalty minutes is nothing special and the core of his existence as “Ivanans Replacement” is a tad distracting, I feel the need to root for him. Good sign, now please improve dramatically.

The Kings have a pretty empty fictitious trophy case. Watching the NHL Awards Show last Thursday in Las Vegas had me thinking. When was the last time the Kings actually won one of these and why does it seem like we are still so far out of this echelon of elite players/teams? Not that the Kings haven’t won any trophies. Except for the Presidents, Vezina, Selke, Conn Smythe, Jennings, Jack Adams and that Stanley Cup one, the Kings have picked up some hardware at the top NHL Level. It’s just, it’s only happened 5 or fewer times in any category. For a team that’s been around for 43 years, frequently had top draft picks and in certain era’s of management, spent money for top talent…you’d expect a list of trophies won to look more extensive then a grocery list. It’s depressing actually. 1 Calder, 1 Hart, 1 Norris, 1 King Clancy, 1 Campbell Bowl. In 43 Years. Throw in 2 Lester B. Pearsons, 3 Mastertons, 3 Lester Patricks (Yes!), 4 Art Ross’,  with 5 Lady Byngs and there you go for the major awards and trophies. Again, that’s in 43 years. The last trophy for the Kings? 11 years ago in 97-98, Rob Blake won the Norris. Wow. Oh and special thanks to Wayne Gretzky, Marcel Dionne, Butch Goring and Dave Taylor for receiving a majority of those.

The Kings need some trophies. At least a Calder Trophy. Come on, when you’re rebuilding there’s nothing more assuring than one of your Rookies winning a Calder. Maybe a Jack Adams trophy? The “Coach Who Leads the Young Team into Contention.” That’d be good. How about a Hart? Could you see a Kopitar, a Brown, maybe a Frolov walk up to the podium and receiving one of those big, heavy-looking, slightly strange Hart trophies? Ah, dare to dream. That era where the Kings are the team to beat, the Kings players are award winning studs and it’s the Kings having raging pool parties at former players mansions with a half submerged Stanley Cup. Someday, I hope. Right now this team doesn’t even feel like it’s playing in the same league as the Penguins, the Wings, and/or the Russian Superstars garnering world-wide attention. Someday. After 43 years…it’s time.

As for a reality check: with the Lakers raising yet another Championship banner up into the Staples Center rafters, does this mean they’re finally going to just go ahead and merge the Kings and Sparks sections? They’re at about the same relevancy: the Kings have their 1 Division Title, their 1 Conference Title and the 5 Retired Numbers. It kinda makes sense. However, the Sparks have actually won a couple Championships. Ouch.