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.
Kopitar a big tipper in second period
The Kings and Stars are now hitting hard. Brown is just a monster. As was noted on the telecast, Brown's hits aren't just lethal, they're also legal. He rarely gets a penalty for them, because they're clean. But he's not even leading the Kings in hits today. Stuart with throwing around his body with wild abandon.
Both teams seemed to have cooled considerably as the second unfolds. Every time one teams seems to get the momentum, the other comes back. Case in point, the Stars are buzzing, cycling the puck and peppering the goal. But Morrow gets two minutes for interference, giving the fourth-ranked power play a shot with a man-advantage.
And L.A. comes right out and scores, as he throws the puck on net, and Kopitar skates in front of Turco, seemingly tripping him, as he gets his stick on Blake's shot. The puck trickles in, giving L.A. their first lead of the game. The All-Star Kopitar gets credit for the goal, as Blake gets the assist. Brown should've gotten credit for the second assist, since it was his forechecking that got that started.
L.A. almost gets another, when Nagy's shot surprises Turco. But he makes an acrobatic save to hold off the Kings. The shots are even again, with each club adding 6 shots. But L.A. keeps up their hit parade. Brown has found his stride, and Blake is playing inspired hockey this game.
Second period: Kings 3, Stars 2
