Dancing in the Reign: Kings Blank Avs 3-0; Notes on Olympic Break

The Colorado Avalanche came into Staples Center tonight tied with the Kings in the Western Conference standings with 76 points. Colorado, a team that committed to rebuilding after a fire-sale last season, is maybe the most surprising team in the NHL this year. The term “Rebuild” is not a fitting term to describe a team that sits 6th place in the Conference this late in the season. To say their play this season is surprising is an understatement. Colorado coach Joe Sacco, fresh off of two seasons in Cleveland heading the operations of Colorado’s AHL affiliate has utilized a roster full of young, un-proven players to squeeze great results from a mediocre lineup. Tonight, the Kings clearly separated themselves from the team trailing them in the standings with a shut-down performance all around. The Kings came out with a presence, and refused to let down throughout the entire 60 minutes. Great play all around as the Kings dominated on both ends of the ice, which contributed to goaltender Jonathan Quick’s second shutout of the season.

Thoughts on the game:
– Rob Scuderi took a 5-minute major penalty on a boarding call against Colorado’s Chris Durno. Los Angeles was successful in killing off the major penalty which ultimately resulted as being a huge momentum shift in the game.
– Less than two minutes off of the major penalty kill, Rob Scuderi made up for his infraction with a rocket from the point. Just as we saw on Thursday night, Scuds utilized the traffic in front of Colorado’s net by simply putting the puck on net. The key to this goal? Brad Richardson. Immediately after feeding Scuderi at the point, Richardson went straight to the net. Scuderi reacted by shooting and Richardson put himself in perfect position to deflect the puck past Colorado’s Craig Anderson.
– Anze Kopitar tallied LA’s second goal from the sideboards on a 3rd period power-play. The shot was impressive, but Kopitar made it happen with his quick release off of movement to change the angle of the shot. Immediately after receiving the puck, Kopitar moved lateral with a couple of moves to keep Anderson on his feet. The quick release through traffic in front of Anderson was the key to the goal.
– Oscar! The youngster from Sweden tallied his fourth of the season streaking through the neutral zone off of a feed from Richard Clune. Moller’s wobbly shot handcuffed Craig Anderson and finished off great puck movement that rooted from Jack Johnson’s defensive zone awareness.

Record Books:
With tonight’s victory, Jonathan Quick has tied the record for most wins in a single season for a Los Angeles Kings goaltender. Mario Lessard previously held the record when he won 35 games as a Kings goaltender during the 1980-1981 season.

Off to Vancouver:
The Los Angeles Kings will be sending five players to the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.
Team USA:
– Goaltender Jonathan Quick
– Defenseman Jack Johnson
– Forward Dustin Brown
Team Canada:
– Defenseman Drew Doughty
Team Slovakia
– Forward Michal Handzus

Olympic Break Status:
With their final game before the Olympic break tonight against Colorado, here’s where the Los Angeles Kings stand as the NHL takes a 3-week hiatus in respect to the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver.
– 5th Place in the Western Conference with 78 points. 1 Point behind the Phoenix Coyotes for 4th place. The Kings next game will be on March 2nd in Texas to face the Pacific Division-foe Dallas Stars.
– Until then, stay tuned on Kingscast.net for updates on the five Los Angeles Kings players playing for the respective countries in the Olympics.
– Also, with the “trade-freeze” on during the break, look out for thoughts and rumors surrounding the Kings as the trade deadline quickly approaches in early March.