Matt Murray has been a Kings fan since the late '80s, when Wayne Gretzky grabbed headlines by defecting to the West Coast. Since then, he has been a card-carrying bandwagon member as the club soared in popularity with their sole Stanley Cup appearance to their position near the bottom of the Pacific. But things are looking brighter, as he is anxious to witness the rise of the new Kings.
Kings win one that they should have
So, the Kings' last two opponents have been earmarked for the bottom of each of their respective conferences, so these are games that L.A. should win. But the first-period-power-play-goal drought continues. Four more opportunities, four failed attempts.
But you can see Crawford's system in place. Gone is the old dump-and-chase method, and now the guys are much fluid in their attack. They are using their *gasp* speed. They are setting up the PP 50 times better so far. Guys are penetrating, rotating, moving! Also, the Kings are shooting more. Tonight, they have outshot the Isles, almost 2-to-1.
Where is O'Sullivan? 9 minutes? It pains me to say this, but I think Patrick will be sent down soon. I think Crawford loves to deal with the hot hand, which explains why Kopitar had double the minutes. O'Sullivan had a chance on the power play in the third period, but just seemed out of sorts out there. I think Crawford is smitten with his new phenom winger, but I also think he may hold on for a while to see if O'Sullivan can settle down and start producing.
