Game Thread: G74 38-24-11 Kings @ The Legend 4/1/24

[PuckinUgly57]

Game day, hopefully a much better effort is put out after the Calgary debacle. Can't be any worse right? Somehow I don't even believe myself, this team is all over the map this season. Contender to pretender to somewhere in between - that's what happens when you don't have a team identity.

Seems like this team is built for offense but wants to play a checking defensive style; which is fine if you have assembled the personnel to do that which they simply have not.

Regardless, need a bounce back against the Jets who are in a slump of their own. They're 3-6-1 in their last 10 (6 losses in a row), 1 PPGF in the last 20 attempts and the first line of Scheifele/Connor/The Legend has been out shot 95-69 this season as a trio and outscored. That said, they have something most teams don't, and that's a Vezina winner (most likely this year too).in Hellebuyck to offset the shoddy play but can steal a game.These guys were in first place in the league in December so they've experienced a fall like LA has.

Brossoit is supposed to start tonight however, and we will see all the ex Kings sans Euro HOS who was on late in their practice indicating he will be a healthy scratch yet again. Looks like he's getting the Arty Retardy treatment in Manitoba but hey, thats what happens when you've been given opportunities and can't deliver. I'm I'm 100% support of that including Kaliyev, he was only inserted because Turcotte got injured again. Otherwise we would not have seen him in an LA uniform again me thinks and will be gone this summer.

Akil Thomas took line rushes with Kaliyev and Lewis so he will be in a B6 role to start. Dunno practiced but is 50/50, my guess is he doesn't go tonight again. Not this close to the POs and risking further injury to an important player. Talbot first off the ice so he is the projected starter tonight.

The Kings can come back home at 2-2 on this 4 game road trip if they win tonight, a 1-3 trip would be quite a disappointment. 2-2 isn't great either but considering how they were manhandled in both the Edmonton and Calgary games, I'll take .500 coming back to LA. Every point is important right now.

Prediction: Jets 4-3, The Legend with 3 points because...it's LA. PLD gets another one against his former team. Hope I'm wrong again and the Kings win, 6pm start time on BSW.

Let's Go Kings!

 

[Stunner_At_Staples_Kings]

Your point in there with Kings being built for offense. I feel like they always try to play defensive against Edmonton, and I'm wondering at this point why not just open the game up when they play them? CLEARLY it isn't working when they play them the way they've been playing them. Just get the score up crazy and have it so McDavid and Draisaitl have to score 3-4 points each to beat you. They're going to get their 1-2 each, and the Kings gameplan hasn't been to overcome that. Anyway, I still can't get over watching LA play Edmonton the same way 3 years in a row.

 

[Stunner_At_Staples_Kings]

Saw Kempe was given the "A" with Danault out last game. Saw interview with him and he was pretty stoked. I think it was a good choice.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Your point in there with Kings being built for offense. I feel like they always try to play defensive against Edmonton, and I'm wondering at this point why not just open the game up when they play them? CLEARLY it isn't working when they play them the way they've been playing them. Just get the score up crazy and have it so McDavid and Draisaitl have to score 3-4 points each to beat you. They're going to get their 1-2 each, and the Kings gameplan hasn't been to overcome that. Anyway, I still can't get over watching LA play Edmonton the same way 3 years in a row.

Against a team like the Oilers, I'd love to see that. Since McJesus and Draisaitl are double shifted so much, just throttle them in TOI and force them to play basically the entire game end to end. They'll get their 2 points a piece as you stated but they'd have to get more in say a 6-5 game. It's actually a great game plan because like you said nothing they have done has worked 3 years and running now. May as well go completely off the reservation and go gorilla warfare from puck drop.

The defensive piece really confuzzes me. That was their calling card in the Cup era but not now. They were bleeding goals until Copley took over literally not even 15 months ago and have had so many blown leads - in many cases at least 2 goals - this season alone.

Fact: the Kings have the lowest point producing group of defensemen of all PO bound teams so maybe that's why they think they're "defensive". The D numbers and goaltending stats would also prove that, but defensive teams lock shit down from beginning to end. The blown leads alone suggest they are anything but, it's the timing of those lapses vs their actual defensive performances. The eye test doesn't prove that at all because as soon as the pressure is turned up they fall apart (last 5 minutes of the Bolt game for example) but it's not so egregious that it affects their overall stat lines.

This iteration of the team is full of smoke and mirrors and honestly I hate saying this as a fan but it doesn't matter who they face in WCQF, it'll be one and done. The level of slaughter is the only question that remains to be answered.

It feels like the Kings are perpetually stuck in Year 3 of a rebuild.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Pretty crazy lines tonight, Blender King going full max:

55/11/9
12/80/33
22/46/61
34/41 (Thomas)/78

Dunno out again, this should be interesting to watch. TOTM needs to step up, he's fallen completely off the map since late January or so.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Saw Kempe was given the "A" with Danault out last game. Saw interview with him and he was pretty stoked. I think it was a good choice.

Well deserved. He's been through a lot with this team and has developed into a heck of a player.

One of the few bright spots on this team every night - I don't think I've ever said "Kempe took a night off " in recent years.

 

[Kings4OT]

Saw Kempe was given the "A" with Danault out last game. Saw interview with him and he was pretty stoked. I think it was a good choice.

While i agree for the most part, would have like to see him do something more to get those loafs going that night....that was so bad lol

 

[Kings4OT]

TOMO wtf??? Shoot that fucker

 

[Kings4OT]

Jeebus

 

[Kings4OT]

Your point in there with Kings being built for offense. I feel like they always try to play defensive against Edmonton, and I'm wondering at this point why not just open the game up when they play them? CLEARLY it isn't working when they play them the way they've been playing them. Just get the score up crazy and have it so McDavid and Draisaitl have to score 3-4 points each to beat you. They're going to get their 1-2 each, and the Kings gameplan hasn't been to overcome that. Anyway, I still can't get over watching LA play Edmonton the same way 3 years in a row.

Or just run n gun when either of them out and play normal the rest of the game. I wouldnt even mind Lizard, lafer and maybe even Buster out there runing back n forth

 

[Kings4OT]

Wow, Arvidsson, how that go in

 

[PuckinUgly57]

TOMO wtf??? Shoot that fucker

That's exactly the crap I have been talking about, go back to Gavrikov last week. Shoot. The. F**king. Puck!

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Wow, Arvidsson, how that go in

He got a lot on that and had to shift his body, I thought he was going to herniate a disc again or something. Looked awkward as a slap shot on the off wing.

Hopefully shows them this is what you do when you're in a good shooting position.

 

[Kings4OT]

5 sog in the 1st....they gotta do better. Im not saying go back to 45 shots from above the circles..but somewhere in between

 

[Kings4OT]

Fiala, threw it at the net...what do you know 2-1

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Fiala doing Fiala things in a good way.

 

[Kings4OT]

Fiala doing Fiala things in a good way.

Im not as down on him for most Fiala's as some are...except when hes the last man back....not allowed to try to Fiala as last man.....period.

 

[Kings4OT]

Kopistar, im thinking another Broisant shoulda had....not complaining, send it to the net anything can happen

 

[PuckinUgly57]

"We're a defensive team". Uh huh....

 

[Kings4OT]

"We're a defensive team". Uh huh....

Tend to score like one lol