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 playing under a purple haze.
The Kings play the second of a back-to-back series against the Ducks in London. Game one was a high-energy game, with Michael Cammalleri scoring two power-play goals, Anze Kopitar adding two assists and rookie Jonathan Bernier making a strong debut, as the Kings beat the Stanley Cup champion Ducks, 4-1.
Speaking of goaltending, Jason LaBarbera is in between the pipes today/tonight for the Kings. It'll be interesting to see how the team responds to an angry Ducks team, who started to play well late in the first game.
After an atrocious singing of the national anthems, the game is underway. The Kings are slower this game, as the Ducks seem more aggressive. Apparently Tom Preissing can't keep his helmet on. He's lost it for the second time in as many games.
After John Zeiler gets whistled for high-sticking, the Ducks start the scoring off. A scramble around the net, with several Ducks taking whacks at the puck, allows the puck to bounce to Corey Perry, who chips it past Jason LaBarbera to make it 1-0. The frustrating thing about that goal was the Kings just killed off a 5-on-3 penalty.
The Kings get a power play, but do very little with it. The Kings are being outshot 7-3 midway through the period.
Brady Murray gets called for a penalty, and the Ducks go back on the powerplay, and Chris Kunitz scores on a chip-in from behind LaBarbera to make it 2-0.
The Kings take four penalties, and the Ducks are able to capitailze twice. The two Ducks goals were on the PP, and the cause of players being out of position, as well as some rebounds given up by LaBarbera. The Kings finally start to look alive late in the first period, so maybe they'll come out firing on all cylinders in the second. They wind up with 6 shots to Anaheim's 9.
First period: Ducks 2, Kings 0
But the Kings come out as flat as they did in the first. They just can't seem to get to the puck. Brady Murray lost his stick, allowing the Ducks to set up shop for a while. And Corey Perry is able to shoot another past LaBarbera to make it 3-0.
Moen then scores to make it 4-0. Modry can't clear the puck, and the Ducks pounce on the opportunity. Both Modry and Johnson been out there for the last two Ducks goals. That pairing is just bad. The youngster's inexperince can't make up for the lack of play from the vet. L.A. seems to be skating in a haze.
Cammalleri comes back and gets one back for the Kings. O'Sullivan feeds the puck to Cammalleri at the faceoff circle, and he kncoks it up high to make it 4-1. The Kings have dialed in a little more now.
Thornton and Parros square off, as tempers start to flare. Remarkably, Thornton peppers Parros with punches before being dragged to the ice. Maybe that'll get the Kings fired up.
Blake is able to unload a couple shots form the point, as the Kings show some signs of stirring from thier purple haze. Murray is a ball of energy, as he skates with the puck, shedding Ducks left and right with his quickness.
Trying to boost up Nagy, Crawford throws him out there with Kopitar and Brown for a few shifts. With Cammalleri off to a hot start, maybe they can get the free agent on the board.
The Kings get a power play when Hnidy gets the box for shooting the puck over the glass, but the Kings are unable to get anything going. Kopitar has a good shift though, quarterbacking the play, often with two players on him. Cammalleri gets another good look at the puck, but is turned away by Hiller.
The defensive pairings are off. To me, it makes more sense to have Blake and Johnson paired and have Modry with Visnovsky. Blake can adjust to make up for Jack's inexperience, and Lubo can carry Modry on his back.
The Kings limited themselves from taking stupid penalties in the second. Only Thornton's fighting major was the team's lone penalty.
Second period: Ducks 4, Kings 1
Cammalleri gets another good shot on goal. He now has 5 shots on goal, leading the Kings.
LaBarbera lost his stick with the Ducks in the zone, but the Kings are able to skate the puck out, allowing Jason to grab it again.
The Ducks are clearly working the clock, and playing defensively. If the Kings are to make a serious run, they'll need to get some more chances in the offensive zone. But that may be hard with Anaheim curled up in a tight defensive bubble.
Jack Johnson is starting to realize he's going to have to take charge when paired with Modry. He's skating well with the puck, and really stepping up his game.
Kings buzzing late in the third, with O'Sullivan hustling out there with Calder and Thornton. I really like that line, but behind this late in the game, I'm not sure they'll be able to really take advantage of their strengths.
Bertuzzi exchanges words with Brown, that could be interesting. Johnson out there with Staurt, which is another good pairing for the youngster. Johnson is logging lots of playing time, which is nice.
Perhaps maybe the Kings shouldn't have played in the Red Bull tournament. While the other teams in the NHL are still warming up their clubs gradually, the Kings go from Vegas to Austria to London in a whirlwind tour that would kill non-athletes.
A late tripping penalty allows the Kings to go on the power play. And after five PPs, the Kings register only one shot.
And that's the game. The Kings come out flat, as the Ducks are able to exert their will up and down the ice. The Kings didn't help their cause, not being able to come out with the fire in their gut, like they did last night.
The long road trip is over, with the Kings coming home to play St. Louis at the Staples Center.
Final score: Ducks 4, Kings 1
The Kings and the Anaheim Ducks finally drop the puck on the 2007-08 season, as they meet up in the O2 Arena in London. The playing surface itself is three feet shorter, but it's the neutral zone that takes the hit.
Early in the third, the Kings add another goal to their total, when Tom Preissing scores his second of the game on a power play. Kopitar feeds Tom Preissing at the point, and the free agent defenseman puts the puck on net to make it 3-0. After the game, the goal is credited to Cammalleri, and Preissing is awarded an assist, along with Kopitar, Anze's second of the game.
