.

Warning signs are amidst.

Things have gone from comfortably controlled to ice cold.

Game 5, for the Kings, is about as close to “must win” as you can get without meaning it literally. If the Kings are to lose tonight at Staples Center, they head back to face the San Jose Sharks in Game 6 at HP Pavilion where the “must win” terminology will be as real and literal as it could possibly get.

The Sharks are undeniably phenomenal on home ice, they’ve lost only two games in regulation time in their home confines at HP Pavilion this season.

*NEW KingsCast TV: Episode 198: LAK-SJS Game 3&4 WCSF RECAP

The Kings, likewise, own their ice sheet. Downtown Los Angeles has been a brutal location for opposing NHL clubs this season. Aside from owning the best home record in the NHL throughout the regular season, the Kings have won all five of their postseason games at Staples Center this season, including both of the opening contests against the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference Semifinals.

Let’s hope the trend continues, or else the Kings are in major trouble.

The word to describe it rhymes with ‘pucked’.

King Threat

Looking for an Answer

Domination Station: Although the Kings were only beat 2-1 in each of the last two contests on the road at HP Pavilion, they were outworked, outplayed, and thoroughly controlled by the San Jose Sharks in every facet of the game.

If the Kings don’t have Jonathan Quick in the crease, this series could be a lot uglier than it is right now.

In fact, it could already be over.

Quick has regained the stellar play that earned him the NHL‘s Conn Smythe Trophy last season, and has undoubtedly been the reason the Kings have been able to maintain pace with the San Jose Sharks thus far.

A goaltender, no matter how solid, can only save the team as a whole for so long. To compliment fantastic play from a goalie, the players in front of him need to return the favor by not allowing constant puck control in their own zone, and creating it on the other end – away from their own crease.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Needs it, deserves it: And that respect needs to come in the form of on-ice production. You can praise his play all you want through analysis, but it’s going to do nothing for the Kings’ overall success unless he’s a label of perfection of tonight.

And even for Jonathan Quick, that’s asking a lot in the NHL postseason, and against one of the league’s most lethal offensive tandems in the San Jose Sharks.

It begins at, well, the start of the game, where the Kings have been brutally lackadaisical the previous two contests. The Kings don’t need just early pressure on the Sharks, but an early goal. Against San Jose, your chances only get worse the longer you fail to score, the longer you play Russian Roulette with San Jose’s offensive-prone lineup.

Darryl Sutter needs to work a bit of lineup magic tonight, possibly juggling lines until the Kings show signs of their regular selves.

The Replacements

M.I.A: The Kings were granted quite possibly the most crucial aspect to finding success in the NHL playoffs last season, and that folks, is health. It hasn’t been the same story this season, the Kings heavily weakened on the defensive end without Willie Mitchell, and with a less-than fully productive Matt Greene.

The offense is hurting as well, which shows in the Kings poor offensive results in the previous two games of this series, tallying one goal in each of the past two contests at HP Pavilion.

Offense comes with controlling the puck. And controlling the puck comes from winning faceoffs. Without Jarret Stoll, who has been out with concussion-like syndromes since Game 1, the Kings have been absolutely dominated on referee puck-drops.

Faceoffs set the tone for the upcoming play. And quite frankly, puck possession will bode quite well for you. The Kings, without a doubt, need to win some pucks tonight at Staples Center.

Since Jarret Stoll went down after Raffi Torres‘ high hit in Game 1, the Sharks have gone 113-79 against the Kings in the faceoff circle. The Kings are sorely missing Stoll, their top player in the circle.

And it’s not in faceoffs alone, Jarret Stoll is a staple on the Kings special teams rotation, and the San Jose Sharks have executed in those situations the past two games.

The Sharks won their Western Conference Quarterfinals series against the Vancouver Canucks by getting rich on the man-advantage, scoring an astounding seven powerplay goals in four games. The Sharks have scored two powerplay goals on the Kings in the past two games, winning Game 3 in OT and taking an early lead in Game 4 on the man-advantage.

The only two losses for the Sharks this postseason have come when the Kings have shut down their powerplay.

It’s about staying out of the penalty box. It’s oh so crucial against this team.

Two’s Company

Bad Visit

The Skate of Shame

And those shuffles to the box could quickly lead to a much worse situation than a 2:00 minute personal sit-down with an off-ice official.

It could be the stride to the Kings’ elimination, and their summer.

Lineup Shuffle

Hot-Hand Needed: There are some pretty notable lineup changes heading into tonight’s Game 5 contest at Staples Center. Darryl Sutter hasn’t been receiving quality production from a few big names on this roster, namely the first line likes of Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown, who have been almost invisible on the offensive end.

Brown, who’s mixed in time in the penalty box along with his rather uncharacteristically struggling play, will be demoted to Darryl Sutter‘s third line tonight, playing alongside Dwight King and Trevor Lewis. However, he will be back at his normal position of Right Wing.

Swapping spots with Dustin Brown, and joining Anze Kopitar and Justin Williams on the Kings’ first line tonight will be Kyle Clifford, who, when not out with injury, has consistently been one of the biggest assets of energy and effort on this roster.

Clifford has a good Résumé against the San Jose Sharks, both during this past regular season, and the Kings’ matchup against the Sharks in the 2011 Western Conference Quarterfinals.

Clifford buried two goals against the Sharks at Staples Center on March 16th, and also found time to feed Douglas Murray his own teeth.

Change is good.

Catch ‘em From A Different Angle

But Hit ‘em Square

Lookin’ at You

You’ve gotta earn it.

Tonight’s contest is huge. The Kings, who look to get off the backs of their heels tonight, are facing a challenge unlike any they saw last series, or throughout the entirety of last year’s playoffs.

Tonight’s a test.

Puck drops in Downtown Los Angeles at Staples Center for Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals against the San Jose Sharks at 7:30PM PST.

Episode 198 KingsCast TV: LAK-SJS Game 3&4 WCSF RECAP – HERE
Episode 197 KingsCast TV: LAK-SJS Game 2 WCSF RECAP – HERE
Follow the blog on Twitter HERE
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And like that, the series is tied. The Los Angeles Kings lose a difficult game on the road 2-1 to the San Jose Sharks to net the series at 2 games a piece. In this new episode, Keith makes his triumphant return as we breakdown Game 4, give a Playoff Beard update, present our Top Ten fun facts about San Jose, California and preview Game 5 at Staples Center. GO Kings!

Featured Songs: “Battlelines” and “The People” by Bella Novela and “Gameshow” by Suburban Rhythm.

What a game! In dramatic fashion, the Los Angeles Kings storm back to stun the San Jose Sharks in Game 2, pushing their series lead to 2-0. In this installment Alex and Chris discuss all that was Game 2, give a Playoff Beard update, breakdown the impact of the Stoll & Torres situation and preview Game 3 in San Jose. Go Kings!

The 2nd round of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs has begun and the Kings start off strong with a shutout W. In this episode we breakdown Game 1 between the Los Angeles Kings and the San Jose Sharks, discuss the similarities and history between the 2 teams, give a Playoff Beard update and preview Game 2 at Staples Center. Go Kings! http://www.kingscast.net

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The Kings showed their ability to come from behind in their first-round matchup against the St. Louis Blues, crawling out of a two-games to none ditch.

Right now, their focus is staying ahead; staying ahead of the San Jose Sharks – a team that is equally as capable of overcoming a two-game deficit as the Kings are.

They say a two-goal lead is the hardest to hold in hockey.

A two-game lead, well that can certainly behold the same difficult implications.

The Kings will have to push to stay ahead of the San Jose Sharks heading into Game 4 of their Western Conference Semifinals series Tuesday evening at HP Pavilion, after falling in Game 3 by way of a 2-1 score that saw the Sharks regain life with a game-winning tally off the stick of Logan Couture early in the OT frame.

The Sharks have lost only twice this season in their home confines at HP Pavilion, where they’ve played a total of 27 games.

The Kings, on the other hand, have only won a single (1) game on the road since the month of March.

How do you define difficult?

Comfortable doesn’t exist right now.

Winning in Northern California’s hostile confines can give the Kings a taste of comfort, however.

Game 4 can send the Sharks to the brink.

It can also make this much closer of a series than you would want it to be.

Putting a Spin on it

How do you want it?

Short-sighted: The Kings continue to be without a few key players from their lineup, namely Jarret Stoll, who hasn’t returned to the lineup since the horrendous blindsided blow he took from the now-suspended Raffi Torres in Game 1 of the series.

Stoll, who has continually grown to be one of the most dependable and useful players on the roster, is being sorely missed. Jarret Stoll is the Kings’ best forward in the faceoff circle, he’s a staple on the Kings’ penalty-kill, and he’s a regular on the Kings’ powerplay rotation.

The Kings, who had been able to regroup to cover the loss of Jarret Stoll in Game 2 by shutting down the Sharks on special teams, were fully exposed Saturday night in Game 3.

They’re getting drilled in the faceoff circle. And that’s oh so crucial to the San Jose Sharks‘ success.

Also missing is Kyle Clifford, who has been a big-time performer in the past against San Jose in the postseason, and Matt Greene, who is a specialist in clearing out opponent’s traffic in front of Jonathan Quick – and traffic, without a doubt, has been the Sharks’ strongest strategy.

But thankfully, and fruitfully, the Kings are getting some assistance from the prospects.

From Manchester

With Love

Youth Groove: The Kings’ have been getting some unexpected appearances by youth prospects in their system during the postseason, with Tyler Toffoli, Jake Muzzin, and Tanner Pearson all making their NHL postseason debuts this year.

To raise the bar a level, Tanner Pearson didn’t just make his NHL postseason debut Saturday night against the San Jose Sharks, but his NHL debut as well.

The kid couldn’t have been level-headed. There’s no way.

He might’ve been as coherent as a teenager five beers deep.

Shockingly, however, Tyler Toffoli has been performing in the big-time picture magnificently. And, well, quite impressively.

He presented himself as a worthwhile asset after being added to the lineup in Game 4 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the St. Louis Blues. And he’s apparently proved himself as well, as head coach Darryl Sutter has stuck with the young, inexperienced forward.

Tyler Toffoli has registered points in the Kings’ previous two games against the San Jose Sharks, assisting on Trevor Lewis‘ game-tying goal in Game 2 at Staples Center, and scoring the Kings’ only goal in Game 3 at HP Pavilion.

It’s a youth movement, if you will.

Purple Days

Flavor of the Week: The prospects in the Kings’ organization who came up from the AHL‘s Manchester Monarchs were a big story during last year’s postseason run as well, but those names have changed.

Call it a Sophomore slump if you want, because Dwight King and Jordan Nolan have been disturbingly silent not just during the playoffs, but the season as a whole.

Young bloods.

Like Jordan

Take a Seat

Point at Detroit

How about burying one, Dwight. Then we’ll talk Detroit.

Dwight King hasn’t registered a goal since the Kings’ March 25th contest against the Chicago Blackhawks. He’s got two assists through nine playoff games this season, and holds a less than impressive -1 rating.

Don’t talk back, kid

Speakeasy

Game Four Pour

Short-Circuit: The Kings were able to eliminate San Jose’s biggest threat from their offensive tandem throughout the first two games of the series, but crumbled Saturday night in the worst way, and time, possible.

The San Jose Sharks swept through the Western Conference Quarterfinals with ease against the Vancouver Canucks, and it had quite a bit to do with special teams offensive production.

San Jose scored seven powerplay goals against the Vancouver Canucks in their four-game sweep against Brititsh Columbia’s finest.

In their first two contests against the Kings in the Western Conference Semifinals, the Sharks were shutout on their man-advantage opportunities, going 0-7 against the Kings on their powerplay.

However, three is key.

The Sharks buried both of their goals against the Kings in Game 3 Saturday night on the powerplay advantage.

As you know, that’s the kiss of death when playing the San Jose Sharks.

And as you know…

Someone needs to make a leading statement on this team.

And they need to do it in Game 4.

Word has it, he’s back

Word has it.

How ironic, the Ottawa Senators won their Game 3 contest against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2nd OT period on Sunday.

We’ve got ourselves a sorely-missed asset back in the mix. Maybe.

Comeback Cliff

Call us Rich

But who’s Counting

Who’s Fronting

Richy Rich.

Let’s hope for Christmas-like expectations Tuesday night.

Puck drops for Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals Tuesday night at 7:00PM PST against the San Jose Sharks at HP Pavilion.

Episode 196 KingsCast TV: LAK-SJS Game 1 WCSF RECAP – HERE
Episode 197 KingsCast TV: LAK-SJS Game 2 WCSF RECAP – HERE
Follow the blog on Twitter HERE
Get your Official KingsCast Apparel HERE
KingsCast Hockey Podcast on  —  Facebook  -  Twitter  -  Youtube

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The Kings will stay within California State boundaries for their Western Conference Semifinals series after their triumphant comeback to oust the St. Louis Blues in six games in the Western Conference Quarterfinals, winning four straight contests against St. Louis after facing an early, and gut-checking two-loss deficit.

How they continue to grow.

A best-of-seven date is slated to start against the San Jose Sharks in Downtown Los Angeles Tuesday night at Staples Center.

Everything was aligned for the Kings’ second-round series to involve our neighbors from Orange County – the other NHL club from Southern California.

The Anaheim Ducks just couldn’t keep up.

The Kings will move up, and do so against their Pacific Division opponent from up North, who they have recent postseason history against.

San Jose was the opponent in the Kings 2011 Western Conference Quarterfinals series, and it was a lopsided affair that turned out to be much closer than expected, and was certainly closer than the results that series ultimately showed.

The Sharks prevailed against us in the 2011 NHL Playoffs, but it was so against a much younger, weaker Kings roster.

If you compare the growth and improvement of each of these rosters since that 2011 postseason bout, the Kings’ plus-side blows the Sharks out of the water.

The Kings were without Anze Kopitar in that one and only previous postseason matchup with the San Jose Sharks, while he was recovering from a broken ankle that left him out of the lineup indefinitely.

But the young stars were definite.

Doughty’s dos

No Dought

Drew Doughty, who was moderately quiet throughout the majority of the regular season, but ended up with a respectable six goals and 16 assists for 22 points at season’s end, reignited his clutch offensive ways Friday night against the St. Louis Blues in Game six, notching the Kings’ first goal of the contest with the kind of moves and suave we’ve come to know all too well from #8 the previous two years.

Playoff ‘Bout

Youth Hangout

Plus Some: The Kings’ youth carried them through their last postseason matchup against the San Jose Sharks in 2011, but their development – plus some absolutely crucial additions to the roster via the aggressive ways of GM Dean Lombardi, should make this upcoming Western Conference Semifinals series a great opportunity not just for revenge, but overall self-proof of what this roster has beautifully grown to become to be.

Kyle Clifford‘s the one player who you can connect with both the Kings’ current position, and the Kings’ playoff matchup against the San Jose Sharks in April of 2011.

He was, at times, the best player for the Kings in this past Western Conference Quarterfinals series against the St. Louis Blues.

And as an NHL rookie, he was rocking the same type of impact.

Red Dog, Light

Purple light: The Kings, in that series, would retire a bit of history, wearing purple on the road for the final time in their 3-1 victory in Game 5 of the 2011 Western Conference Quarterfinals.

The player to tally the third and final goal for the Kings in their purple visiting sweaters was Dustin Penner, the same player to bury the game-winning tally on Saturday night against the St. Louis Blues.

Oil left in the Tank

The White/Purple road uniforms were retired that year.

The Black/Purple home uniforms were retired this year.

Dustin Penner won’t be a King next year.

It’s just mother nature’s cycle.

Laser Penner

Don’t get caught up with Dustin Penner now, just love his current play. It’s like a dying light bulb shining it’s brightest before it’s, well, ending.

If playoffs was in her Pepsi cup

This innocent little girl would be choking.

Whether it be like Old Times

Or what Today finds

Just let it Roll

Fresh Feelings

The Kings played the San Jose Sharks only four times during this season’s shortened and compacted schedule due to the NHL‘s rather lengthy lockout.

They pulled out ahead in the end, but just barely, finishing with a 2-1-1 record against Northern California’s black and teal.

Each team has earned two points when playing in home confines. The Kings, however, were able to snag a point from San Jose at HP Pavilion on April 16th, forcing that night’s date with the Sharks to go past regulation.

The Kings outscored the Sharks 13-10 during regulation play.

It’s all off the books now.

Don’t depend on anything.

Not even a Hail Mary

Puck drops against the San Jose Sharks for Game 1 of the NHL‘s Western Conference Semifinals Tuesday night at 7:00PM PST in Downtown Los Angeles at Staples Center.

Episode 194 KingsCast TV: LAK-STL Game 5 WCQF RECAP – HERE
Episode 195 KingsCast TV: LAK-STL Game 6 WCQF RECAP – HERE
Follow the blog on Twitter HERE
Get your Official KingsCast Apparel HERE
KingsCast Hockey Podcast on  —  Facebook  -  Twitter  -  Youtube

For the second consecutive year, the Los Angeles Kings have defeated the St. Louis Blues to advance in the NHL Playoffs. In this new episode, Chris is once again joined by hockey blogger Alex Kinkopf to discuss Game 6, present a Playoff Beard Update (sort of), give an official See Ya! to the Blues and breakdown the Pros & Cons of playing the Sharks or Ducks in the next round. Go Kings!

Boom! The LA Kings storm back to take the game and even the series with the St. Louis Blues at 2 games a piece. In this new installment we breakdown Game 4, discuss the full team effort, give a Playoff Beard update and preview Game 5 in St. Louis. Go Kings!

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A trip home can do it all.

For the Kings, the two game return to Staples Center in their Western Conference Quarterfinals dance with the St. Louis Blues saw them pull off two consecutive wins, tying the series 2-2, while rediscovering their offense that trudged through an uncharacteristically cold and ugly start to the postseason.

They rediscovered their winning ways before rejuvenating their offense, winning 1-0 Saturday night at Staples Center in Game 3 of the series. The Kings maintained their one-goal-per game quota in Game 3, but this time around, Jonathan Quick made sure no off-hand mistakes were made to grant St. Louis any success.

Talk about a save.

The Kings were lifted by a defenseman offensively in their Game 3 shutout victory, Vyacheslav Voynov tallying the lone goal of the contest that would ultimately breathe new life into the Kings’ playoff run.

*NEW KingsCast TV: Episode 192 – LAK/STL Game 3 WCQF RECAP

Voynov, who is playing in only his second NHL season, has looked like a veteran from the day he joined the Kings’ roster as a 21 year-old on the evening of October 18, 2011, his debut game which came against none other than the St. Louis Blues.

Since then, he’s solidified himself as an absolute staple to the Kings’ blue-line.

A staple that locked up Game 3.

Debut Strut

Pro Cut

Game 3 Kaput

Nothing New About it

Quick Fixin’

Cement in the Crease: The Kings, without Jonathan Quick, would not have had a prayer in even coming close in Games 1 and 2 in this series against the St. Louis Blues without last year’s Conn Smythe Trophy winner’s stalwart play.

You can’t expect much when you score just once in 60 minutes.

Unfortunately, though, Quick’s costly mistakes to Alexander Steen‘s penalty-kill pressure in Game 1 and Barret Jackman‘s hapless shot in Game 2 cost the Kings their two losses.

This was as much the fault of the Kings’ offense as it was Jonathan Quick‘s, but Quick proved to be the bigger asset first – granting the Kings a win without a shutout performance, stopping every single one of St. Louis’ 30 shots Saturday night.

The Kings’ struggling offense was saved in Game 3, but two nights later, they took matters into their own hands in Game 4.

*NEW KingsCast TV: Episode 193 – LAK/STL Game 4 WCQF RECAP

Monday night proved to be a barn-burner at Staples Center, the Kings overcoming two deficits offensively, recording four goals against the St. Louis Blues to land their second-straight win, while finally giving Jonathan Quick some well-deserved support.

The scoring itself came in abundance, and it leaked to just about half of the Kings’ roster.

11 Kings players recorded at least one point in Game 4 Monday night.

Record it with a Penner and Paper

Circuit City

Purposeful Penner: Throughout his two-year tenure with the Kings, which will likely come to an end after this season, Dustin Penner‘s presence has been portrayed in a rather negative fashion, which, at times, has been the cold-hard and honest look at the veteran winger’s performance.

He’s found a new wind in the Kings’ playoff series against the St. Louis Blues, looking faster and more prone to induce production than he ever has in a Los Angeles uniform.

In his four games in the Western Conference Quarterfinals, Dustin Penner has been a hot commodity for the Kings’ offensive pressure.

Penner has laid 10 hits on St. Louis, he’s directed nine shots Brian Elliott‘s way, and he’s scored a goal, that quite frankly, the Kings couldn’t have done without in order to pull away with a win in Game 4 Monday night.

Who says you can’t still pull some moves as an aging NHL forward, on and off the ice, even after a nasty divorce.

It’s better than that pancake sh*t.

Speaker City

Kopitar Fitting

20 games, 41 days

That was the span Anze Kopitar had gone without recording a goal until he keyed on Dustin Brown‘s outstanding puck possession and the needle-thread like pass he fed to Kopitar in the 3rd period Monday night.

The Kings were just 12:46 minutes away from a dreadful 3-1 series deficit.

And then, the two most tenured players on this roster, the two names that have been the strongest identities to this organization, the two that have grown together during some of the darkest days this franchise has been through, came through.

Dustin Brown, who built the Kings’ game-tying goal in Game 4 Monday night with his utterly dominating possession of the puck deep in the Blues’ zone, was waiting anxiously for some help to execute on the defensive scramble St. Louis found itself in.

He was waiting for Anze Kopitar to come back.

Family Time

Anze Kopitar came home.

Nothing wrong with coming through the back door.

Rally back, Monkey off the back

Game 5 Jive

How do you want it: The Kings, fresh off a win that saw their rejuvenated roster record points from 11 different players in Game 4, head back to St. Louis, Missouri for Game 5 in the same exact fashion – rejuvenated. 

It’s back to Scottrade Center.

You couldn’t trade the game’s setting for the world.

Because when you’re playing, you’re playing.

Where? It shouldn’t matter.

Keep it going, now.

Puck drops in downtown St. Louis, Missouri Wednesday evening for Game 5 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the St. Louis Blues at Scottrade Center at 6:00PM PST.

Episode 192 KingsCast TV: LAK-STL Game 3 WCQF RECAP – HERE
Episode 193 KingsCast TV: LAK-STL Game 4 WCQF RECAP – HERE
Follow the blog on Twitter HERE
Get your Official KingsCast Apparel HERE
KingsCast Hockey Podcast on  —  Facebook  -  Twitter  -  Youtube

That’s more like it! The Los Angeles Kings hold on for a 1-0 win against the St. Louis Blues at Staples Center in Game 3, making the series 2-1 Blues. In this episode we breakdown the game, preview Game 4, discuss Staples Center concessions, update our Playoff beard tracker and provide genius commentary. Go Kings!