Hey everybody... here live at Staples for the season opener.

Was out at the red carpet for the players earlier. The players seemed a little less than thrilled to run the gamut of fans leading into the VIP entrance. But the red carpet was maybe 20-25 feet, so many of the players politely waved and headed inside.

Saw Vic The Brick, wearing a huge crown and introducing the legends who are being honored tonight. Apparently the price of beer has gone up... again. Last season, it was eight bucks for a domestic brew. This season? $8.75. Yikes.

I was here reeeeeeeally early today. So early, I forgot to eat lunch. As I was setting my equipment up, they were testing the lights and sound system. And they were playing a Fox Sports commercial for the L.A. Kings. (Imagine that...)

It was your typical commercial, heralding the return of the team. They also referenced the new vets that the team has signed, but only showed Calder and Nagy. The voiceover was something to the effect of "with the additions of the new veterans, the Kings are close to returning to the playoffs..." So far, no problem.

But then it goes on to announce "If rookie goaltender Jonathan Bernier can man the pipes this season, the Kings can go all the way!" No pressure, right? Unbelieveable. I don't think Crawford and Lombardi are very happy about putting that kind of publicity on their young netminder.

Posted by Matt Murray at 6:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

For the next season, I'm planning on rearranging how I do things on here. So, until I sort it all out, please visit my future site for Life In Hockeywood.

I'm still planning on updating this blog, which will be renamed, but with more news-related items. Life In Hockeywood will be more of my observations that you've come to expect, as well as some new ideas I've been kicking around.

One of those things is maybe doing a weekly Podcast. Now, I'm as hip as the next cat online, but would you bother downloading a Podcast, even if it's just to hear my nasal voice reverberate through your tinny speakers?

Posted by Matt Murray at 5:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The wait is finally over. Michael Cammalleri and the Kings have finally heard back from the arbitrator, and the result is a two year deal worth $6.7 million. But considering that Cammalleri was asking for $6 million per season, I'm sure he's a little disappointed. But, that's how the game is played. I don't blame him for asking for the moon, that's what I'd do.

Cammalleri did receive the largest amount from arbitration so far this off-season. So at least there's something.

But now that the waiting is over, we can now proceed with the business at hand. Frozen Fury, baby! This will be the first time I make the trek to Vegas to see the Boys In Royal Blue battle the Avalanche.

I've seen plenty of hockey games the past two seasons, but I'm really excited to see this exhibition game against Colorado. And why? Just the thought of going from a furnace blast of air in the face to going inside the icy confines of the MGM Grand to watch hockey sounds like fun.

Who's going? What are you looking forward to?

Posted by Matt Murray at 10:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

As the world watches Barry Bonds chase Hank Aaron's home run record, I have found myself oddly disappointed.

The whole backstory revolving around Barry's alleged steroid abuse has put a damper on what should be the crown jewel of all American sports records, the home run record. This is the record that is most revered, and turns the player who obtains it from iconic to immortal. The player's name reverberates through the annals of time, like that disembodied voice in the movie Field Of Dreams.

But instead, it has left such a bad taste in the majority of sports fans' mouths, that this death march toward 856 has become most unbearable, especially for those of us in the newspaper industry. Every night since he's been in striking distance, we've had to basically plan two front pages for both A1 and the sports section. And because he plays on the Giants, the majority of the games start at 7 p.m., so there's a chance he might hit it right on deadline.

After another such night on Wednesday, I was thinking back to when another hallowed record fell. It was back in 1994, and once again, Southern California was the stage. It was on the lips of many sports fans, and there wasn't a hint of hatred anywhere. And oddly enough, I was working at a newspaper at the time, albeit my college paper.

We were putting the Viking, Long Beach City College's newspaper, to bed that night when Wayne Gretzky broke Gordie Howe's all-time goal scoring record with a power play goal against the Vancouver Canucks. We didn't have a television in the newsroom, so I was huddled around an old clock radio that I had found in the paper's dark room. I was wearing my Kings jersey that night, and I spilled Mountain Dew on my desk as I stood up and cheered, sending day-glo green soda everywhere. Thankfully my mom took pity on me and removed the stain when I got home.

I had only been a hockey fan for a few years before then, but I understood that Wayne's feat was truly a remarkable site. It seemed right that "The Great One" unseated "Mr. Hockey" for the all-time goal record. There was some grumbling by Howe when he did it, but no one really paid him any attention. It became, at the time, Wayne's crowning jewel to his career. Fans in the Great Western Forum roared like the Kings just won the Stanley Cup. A career retrospective was shown up on the scoreboards. Gretzky embraced NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, who looked estatic to be there. It was a moment to remember.

And if you think back, maybe you can remember what you were doing too.

By the way, if you have the clip with Bob Miller calling it, by all means, upload it to youTube and help me take Clements off!

Continue reading "Back when a record meant something" »

Posted by Matt Murray at 1:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

If I hear one more person try to tell me that David Beckham will do for the MLS what Wayne Gretzky did for the NHL by coming to Los Angeles, I'm going to jam a spork in my eye.

Last night, I watched the "debut" of Becks in his first game as a member of the L.A. Galaxy. I told everyone on the sports desk that I will give the Galaxy this one chance to get excited about the sport of soccer. I had watched with great interest the World Cup back in 1994, when the U.S. hosted it. But the excitement quickly died down for me once hockey started back up. And the Galaxy came along in 1996, and I was pretty much over soccer by then.

I figured in the interest of being a sports fan, I should give the Galaxy a try when Beckham signed. Since the biggest soccer star was going to be in my backyard, maybe I could start paying attention. So I watched with mild interest when Beckham and his Spice Girl wife, Victoria, started their trek to SoCal, three months before he even stepped foot on the Home Depot Center. I was amused when they unveiled the new Galaxy logo, since the club went from having a logo with a bunch of stars evolve into one with one giant star. A harbinger of things to come? Perhaps.

Continue reading "Please! Beckham is no Gretzky" »

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

So, after travelling out to El Segundo, and recording a ton of footage, I finally was able to sift through it all. And that was a chore. I must have recorded about six hours of stuff over four days at the developmental camp.

When I decided to provide something different for fans, I thought doing video would be perfect. But I have to say, my hat goes off to the real heroes of hockey coverage: the cameraman.

I can follow the puck in person, no problem. I can watch it on TV, because I understand how the game is played. But put me behind the camera, and I'm completely lost. I'm squinting through the black and white viewfinder to save my battery, and let me tell you, I just about got an aneryism. Even the flipout screen wasn't much help. You think it's hard to follow the puck on TV? Try doing it on a surface no bigger than the size of a credit card!

Needless to say, I barely knew what I had before I got back and uploaded it all. A lot of time, I didn't really capture much. During the game on Wednesday, I was in position for Lauri Tukonen's breakaway goal, but my thumb slipped and the camera went dead, just as he scored. Doh!

But I did get some good stuff from practice, which is easier, because you know where the action is going to be. The people at the Kings were also very cool in allowing me to interview a few prospects. I missed out on the big boys, mostly because this is their summer vacation, and I don't want to bother them. In addition to my interview with coach Crawford, I was able to ask Lauri Tukonen and Jonathan Bernier a few questions, which I will have up next week.

All in all, I really enjoyed playing cameraman with my little Sony camera. And now that I've done it, I'll know more of what to expect when training camp rolls around. So until then, stay tuned!

Posted by Matt Murray at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I woke up this morning, and clicked on lakings.com, as is my habit. I thought I had a dream that the Kings signed two defensemen and three wingers to fill some of the holes we had on the ice last season. I was greeted by this splash page:

I can't get over just how swiftly Lombardi struck after we were denied by Gomez, Briere and Drury. He had his ducks in a row (no pun intended) and knocked them down. This team has a completely different look than last season's club. Nothing against the players last season, but they just didn't have enough firepower or muscle to put up much of a fight.

Plus, we have the financial flexability to re-sign our young players like Cammy and Lubo. And if the cap goes up again, we might be in position to make a run at another high-end player. And this time, we might not be shut out.

Posted by Matt Murray at 8:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As the dust settles on the first day of free agent signings, fans are scratching their collective heads on why the Los Angeles Kings, who are under the salary floor, didn't sign any of the flashy free-agents who were rumored to be on their way to L.A.

Scott Gomez? To the Rangers. Seven years, $51.5 million.

Chris Drury, who goes surfing with Rob Blake? To the Rangers. 5 years, $35.25 million.

Center Daniel Briere, the other high-profile center? To the Flyers for 8 years, $52 million

Defenseman Scott Hannan? 4 years, 18 million was the price Colorado paid for his services on the blueline.

All over the league, teams were making a splash into free agency. The Kings? They cast out a few lines, but barely a nibble.

Hockey pundits, like Tim Panaccio of the Philadelphia Inquirer, are calling the Kings among the biggest losers of free agency so far.

GM Dean Lombardi is now a sitting "Duck" in the Southern California market. A few years ago, the Kings ran an ad campaign about "serious hockey." It was a not-so-subtle marketing ploy that inferred the Anaheim Mighty Ducks were Disney creations. Who's serious now?

Truth is, Los Angeles has been adrift for too long for things to be fixed by a simple free agent signing. Even Lombardi admitted this to Rich Hammond last week:

Ideally, we'd like to be going in with one or two holes to fill, but we have eight.... We want to be aggressive and fill one or two of them with this (free-agent period) opportunity and then project and say, 'OK, this is what it's going to look like in a couple years.'

Truth is, signing one or two of these high-priced players won't really make that big of a difference on this team. Sure they might give the Kings a few more wins, but they won't make the playoffs. The one thing the Kings did do on the first day of free agency was get Hobie Baker finalist Scott Parse to verbally agree to a two-year deal. The terms of the deal haven't been released.

There are still plenty of free agents out there that would be a nice fit on the roster. Forwards Branden Shanahan and Bill Guerin, and defensemen Brad Stuart and Tom Preissing are still available, as of 10 a.m. Monday. Personally, I'd like to see Stuart in the Kings uniform. We'll see how it goes.

Posted by Matt Murray at 11:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So, there has been much talk about the Kings' draft, especially Dean Lombardi's seemingly left-field selection of defenseman Thomas Hickey. Kings fans were appalled that the Kings didn't select the top defensive prospect according to the Central Scouting Service, or even the second-best prospect. Kings fans questioned whether Lombardi still had what it takes to be a good general manager. And Kings fans complained, as they so often do.

Overall, fans were miffed that the Kings didn't go with a "safe" pick. They couldn't believe that Dean overlooked a "sure thing" in Karl Alzner, who went to the Washington Capitals with the very next pick. While Alzner was being likened to Chris Pronger by some hockey experts, Hickey was touted by Lombardi as a Scott Niedermayer-type player. Alzner could make Washington's team next season, while Hickey still needs some more time to mature in the Kings farm system.

Now that the dust has settled, it's time to look at this with a clear head.

I'm as big a Kings fan as anyone. After all, I'm writing a blog about a team buried in the Pacific division. Since the Kings had the number four pick in the draft, I wanted to become well-versed in the prospects out there for the taking. After all, what was I going to do as the Ducks marched toward the Stanley Cup?

So I read many draft previews, looked up analysis on some of the players that were being commented on. I even wrote a post about who the Kings should take. Keep in mind, I really only started having interest in the draft this season, and I was basing my thoughts on what I had read. By no means would I consider myself a pro scout, but I felt like I had a handle on what the situation was.

Lombardi knew the player he wanted, tried to trade down, couldn't, so he decided to get the guy anyway. Was it a stretch? Perhaps. Or perhaps not.

Our intrepid friends over on HockeysFuture.com did some analysis of three of the top defensemen, including Hickey.

After seeing this, do you still think Hickey will be a bust? Do you still think Lombardi is out of his head? Or maybe he's got a plan and he has the guts to stick to his guns. For years, the Kings have played it safe and where has it gotten us? I think fans should allow Lombardi to continue to rebuild this club from the ground up the right way.

The NFL Draft and the NBA Draft have spoiled sports fans. One player can seriously help or turn around the fortunes of a team. Players' shelf lifes in both those sports are relatively short.

The average NBA career is 4.82 years. The average NFL career is about 3.5 years. The average baseball pitcher can play close to 5.6 seasons, a hitter's career spans close to 6.5 . But the average, solid NHL player can play upward of five to eight seasons. That should illustrate why understanding the depth of the draft is crucial. Sure, Alzner may beat Hickey to the NHL, but Lombardi is banking on a more productive career from Hickey.

Either way, it's ridiculous to hold this one draft pick under such severe scutiny. The CCS rankings are just a tool to help people understand NHL prospects, it isn't the Bible. So back away from bashing the Kings and Lombardi. Let him do what we brought him in for.

Posted by Matt Murray at 7:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

They both have a song named after them.

Swedish rock band Mando Diao has included a song called "Welcome Home Luc Robitaille" on their newly released album, Ode to Ochrasy. At first, you might think that the song is about fans welcoming Luc back to L.A. But according to the website, songmeanings.net, the song was written by one of the band members who, after returning home from touring, found an old Luc hockey card. And he started to recall his childhood.

For the lyrics to the song and the Red hot Chili Peppers' song about Magic Johnson, check out the extended entry.

Continue reading "What do Lucky Luc and Magic Johnson have in common?" »

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If you are like me, and something tells me you are, you may find yourself in the unenviable position to eat some crow to a friend or co-worker who is a Ducks fan. Whether they are a long-time fan from when the Ducks were "mighty" or they just happened to jump on the Black, Gold and Orange bandwagon this post-season, these fans deserve your attention.

To help you maneuver through this difficult process, we here at Life In Hockeywood have some suggestions for you to maintain your dignity while still being able to command respect.

First, make sure you seek the Duck fan out first to congratulate them. By calling first or going out of your way to offer kudos, this will allow you to dictate the terms of the conversation. It takes most of the wind out of their sails as you offer your hand in true sportsmanship, and throws them off-kilter.

Continue reading "How to deal with "those" kind of Ducks fans" »

Posted by Matt Murray at 2:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

As many people who have met me, I shave my head. But not many people know the reason why.

Sure, my hairline was receding faster than a Chris Pronger cheap shot. Seeing my Dad hold on to his precious strands of hair by combing them over a la Homer Simpson caused me to swear if I ever lost that much hair, I'd go the Jean Luc Picard route.

But mainly, my head is slick due to a foolish bet made way back in 1994. It was the summer after the Kings had lost to the Montreal Candiens in the Stanley Cup Finals. I was riding a wave of euphoria due to the fact that the pieces had fallen together for a magical run. We had the greatest player of all time, we had key role players, we had good goaltending. And suddenly, we had company.

Continue reading "It's all up to me" »

Posted by Matt Murray at 8:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So, as I was tooling around the house this morning, I heard the news that Kobe Bryant wants to be traded from the Lakers. I guess he wants out of L.A. after toiling around for three seasons since Shaq left. And I didn't give it any thought, since I'm really not one for off-season basketball talk. A lot of it is just worthless blathering about what impossible trades that the Lakers should make.

But then, I heard the most chilling words ever spoken by KLAC's Steve Hartman on the Loose Cannons Wednesday afternoon:

"The Buss family might as well sell the Lakers to Anschutz if they trade Kobe."

Continue reading "Worst case scenario, Kings fans." »

Posted by Matt Murray at 2:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

With the Ducks victory in Game One over the Ottawa Senators, I knew what to expect heading into today.

Being a die-hard Kings fan, I understand I am going to reap what I've sown over the past 14 years. Since the Ducks entered the league back in 1993, I have firmly stood on the side of the Kings. Nearly everyone who knows me on a personal level knows that I'm a hockey fan and my team is the Kings. I was one of the lucky fans to be selected for those custom "Kings Rule" decals decals for the back window of my car when the league came back from lockout. I have been to more Kings/Ducks games than any other series combined. I have "invaded the Pond" and hung a duck from the Wild Wing statue
at the Arena after a Kings victory. I have taught my daughter that "Kings Rule" and that ducks are meant to be eaten. I have even toyed with the idea of getting a tattoo, but have decided against it, since I'm such a nancy boy.

However, now that the Ducks are in the Stanley Cup Finals, it's going to be a long two weeks. The day started for me when they opened the Ch. 5 Morning News talking about the Ducks opening game win. As I drove my daughter to school, it was the talk on all the sports talk stations. The biggest offender was KLAC, whose tagline "So L.A., It's In Our Name" and actually claims to be the "home" of Kings hockey. They even have a Kings logo on their homepage. Today, they unveiled that not only are they "so L.A." but apparently they are all about Orange County! They even added a flash opening to their home page with "Orange County" splashed across the page!

When I went to go get coffee at It's A Grind, I was asked by the barista behind the counter: "How About Them Ducks?" Afraid he might hock a loogie in my drink, I just shrugged and waited for my drink. Another barista joined in, asking if I was rooting for the Ducks. I just shot him a look and said flatly "No." I got my drink and walked calmly out. In the newstand was a newspaper rack with several rack cards pronouncing other newspaper's coverage of the Ducks.

Continue reading "And so it begins" »

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

...because I love me some playoff hockey. I'd love it more if the Kings were in them. But I still do watch the games, especially when they are games that mean something. And in the playoffs, every game means something. PLayoff hockey is about the most exciting thing to watch, because the stakes are so high.

It just so happened that this game was an elimination game between the Sabres and the Senators, and was being broadcast on national television. The President's Trophy-winning Sabres were facing an uphill battle against the Ottawa Senators, after winning Game 4 at Ottawa. They were coming back to a passionate crowd at home to try and eke out another win.

I have special interest in this game, because it is rumored that the Kings will be movers and shakers this summer, and may try to acquire Chris Drury as an unrestricted free agent. Also former King Joe Corvo is playing for Ottawa, so my interests were split between the teams.

The game started slow, with the Sabres scoring first early in the second period. But then the SEns rattled off two goals later in the period, to make it 2-1. The Sabres fought back valiantly, and finally notched a power play goal midway through the third. From then on, it was what playoff hockey is all about. The crowd was electric, as the Sabres outshot the Sens, 11-3.

We are heading into overtime when we get the message from Dave Strader that NBC will be cutting away from action to give us "exciting coverage from Pimlico and the Preakness." The game was to be concluded on Versus.

Exciting coverage of a horse race? You're turning away playoff hockey for horse racing? Horse racing, where tiny men mount big horses and whip them around the track? That's a sport? This even gets considered in the normal world? Who watches horse racing except for chronic gamblers and old people? This is why the league didn't decide to sign with ESPN? They sign with Versus with the opportunity to be given national exposure on NBC, only to be cast off because of a pre-game show OF A HORSE RACE? ARE YOU FREAKIN' KIDDING ME???

Continue reading "So I'm watching the Senators and the Sabres..." »

Posted by Matt Murray at 8:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In this NHL.com article, Doug Ward points out that Kings GM Dean "The Don" Lombardi is seemingly making all the right moves, maintaining a core of young talent and building around that nucleus. He also points out that rebuilding from the ground up is a long process, which may well stretch into the following season.

But he also offers this small bit of optimism:

Attendance at Staples Center dipped from 17,821 in 2005-06, to 16,743 last year, suggesting the Kings' ridiculously loyal fan base might be growing a bit impatient. Still, there is a difference between the intensity of the frustration of patrons at Staples Center and the fans at a place like Madison Square Garden, when things aren't going well. With a loyal fan base and dispassionate media corps, Los Angeles just might be the perfect place to rebuild a hockey team from the ground up.

Kings fans have been waiting ever since Wayne and Co. took the club to the Stanley Cup. We came so tantilizingly close to the prize, that many have jumped ship to go root for the OC Ducks. But there are still some who have shown the patience of Job, and we may soon be rewarded.

If your allegiance is still to the Purple, Black and White after this past season, then you are truly a Kings fan. When the Kings start to win consistantly, and your friends suddenly decide it's cool to be a Kings fan again, you are now allowed to make fun of them as "bandwagon fans." All the years of frustration and disappointment are drawing to a close, as The Don works his magic.

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here is a great video recapping all 20 of Kings phenom center Anze Kopitar this past season. The music is by Muse and it's called, aptly enough, Showbiz. If he can build off his performance this season, Kings fans will have plenty to cheer for.

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

With the Kings' season well over and the playoffs underway, I honestly thought that my attention would be on other things. Baseball is in full swing, and I joined three fantasy teams in anticipation of all this free time I was going to have with hockey off the radar.

But something happened during the past two weeks. I started to follow the World Championships, mostly because I was interested in how Anze Kopitar was going to play. I also wanted to make sure the future of the Kings franchise wasn't injured by some thug from eastern Europe.

Oddly enough, Slovenia isn't playing for the World Championship this year. This year, they are competing for the right to play in Canada next year for the World Championships. And because Slovenia is playing in the B Division, coverage has been understandably hard to find online. But being the crack journailst that I am, I've been piecing together coverage from Slovenian websites. I've uncovered several websites, such as hockey websites slohokej.netand hokej.si, as well as online newspapers siol.net and rtvslo.si.

"But wait, Matt," you say. "You can speak Slovenian?" Uh, no. But I've had lots of help. First, an Slovenian-to-English online translator which someone forwarded to me, has helped a little. I've learned several words in Slovenian, such as hokej, which is hockey, remarkably enough. But a lot gets lost in the translation. Take this sentence:

Slovenska hokejska reprezentanca do nadaljnjega ne more računati na usluge Iva Jana, ki si je na tekmi z Madžarsko poškodoval hrbet.

Using the online translator:

Slovene hockey team to further can't to count on of free service Ivo Jan, that are is on contest with Hungary hurt back.

Huh? Basically, Slovenia will have to carry on without the service of Ivo Jan, who hurt his back against Hungary. Not too hard to follow, but you try to read a game story written that way, then try to decipher what happened. My head is swimming.

The World Championships has an English site for fans to follow, but the coverage is as in-depth as any other "official" sports website: stats, rosters, and small gamers and features. They also have a link to visit their online store, where I'm hoping to purchase a Slovenian hockey jersey. But alas, it's not open yet.

The greatest help that I have received in following Slovenia has come from my new friend Milana, whom I met on letsgokings.com. Milana has translated several articles for the fans over there, including a few interviews with Kopi. Here's a few excerpts from one of the articles Milana has dutifully translated to English.

From RTVSLO.si after Slovenia's first game against Romania:

Q: Anže, how did you feel while playing on your home ice in front of Slovenian fans after 9 months abroad?

Anže: “Playing here again was really great. I must say I’ve expected such a great audience and cheering. That really gave us the extra wings, especially in the second and third periods, when we were a lot better than Romanians.”

Q: Anže, what do you remember most from your first NHL season? Your first goal or the All Star Game in Dallas?

Anže: “Well, it’s hard to say now because that game was really something special. I met many All-Stars and we had a great time (at the All-Star Game). But, I can say that my first goal was really the most special for me.”

Q: You’ve met many players and trainers during this past NHL season. Who was the most influential?

Anže: “My teammates. But most of all Rob Blake. He is a great person, a world-class hockey player, a member of the national team at many Championships and Olympics, and a winner of the Stanley Cup. I’ve learned a lot from him each day, both as a teammate and in my personal life. He is really special.”

Q: Have you thought about the next NHL season?

Anže: “Yeah I think a bit about next season. But right now, I have to stay focused on this tournament and on each game, because it wouldn’t be fair to the other guys and the fans. Then, I will take a week or two off. And after that, all my thoughts will be on next season. I think it’ll be harder. As my dad said, it’s easier to get to the top than to stay there.”

Posted by Matt Murray at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kings defenseman Jack Johnson caught the Red Wings' Game 2 playoff game against Calgary with his good friend Justin at Joe Louis Arena. Makes sense, since he's a long time Red Wing fan. But instead of wearing the winged wheel, JJ sported a Los Angeles Kings cap.

According to Justin, someone commented "who wears a Kings hat to a Red Wings playoff game?" Jack responded "A guy who plays for the Kings." Apparently the fan finally put two and two together and recognized Johnson and they all had a laugh about it.

As if that wasn't good enough, Jack and Justin enjoyed watching Flames defenseman Brad Stuart. Los Angeles is apparently atop Stuart's short list in the off-season to sign as a free agent. If Stuart signs with the Kings, that will bolster one of L.A.'s weaknesses tremendously.

Justin also pointed out that as soon as Jack saw him wearing the red and white jerseys, he quickly threw a Kings hat and t-shirt at him to wear. And when Jack Mother Lovin' Johnson throws something at you, you're thankful it isn't a fist.

Note the USA hockey jacket on Jack? It was announced Mondaythat Johnson will be representing the United States, joining winger Michael Cammalleri and Kings associate coach Mike Johnston in Moscow, Russia for the 2007 World Championship tournament. Cammy and Johnston will be on Team Canada.

During a conference call, Johnson sounded very excited and honored when asked how it feels to play for Team USA.

“I expect my experience from USA hockey and the results I had in Ann Arbor are going to help tremendously. I’m not going to be a stranger to international games and how competitive they are and how much pride is on the line when you put on those jerseys. It’ll be nice playing with other guys I’ve played with before like Phil (Kessell) and Cory (Schneider) and those guys are competitors and we’re looking forward to getting back into the fire of international play.”

Team USA announced its roster on Monday, and it consists of 12 players under the age of 25. Joining Johnson on the national team are Paul Stastny and Tyler Arnason (Colorado), Andrew Alberts, Phil Kessel and Brandon Bochenski (Boston), Lee Stempniak and David Backes (St. Louis), Chad LaRose and Erik Cole (Carolina),
Keith Ballard (Phoenix), Toby Peterson and Matt Greene (Edmonton) and Chris Clark and Brian Pothier (Washington), and college forward, Nate Davis of Miami. The goalies will be Philadelphia's Robert Esche, Carolina's John Grahame and Boston College standout Cory Schneider, who is a Vancouver draft pick.

Posted by Matt Murray at 7:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

After two dismal seasons, the L.A. Kings have announced that they aren't raising ticket prices for season ticket holders. Good news, right? Well....

Turns out that the St. Louis Blues have announced a price reduction next season. The Blues are currently 13 points ahead of the Kings in the standings.

Add to that the speculation that STH's will be missing one less game, due to the season starting over in London, and the Kings' decision to stand pat on prices seems less altruistic.

Posted by Matt Murray at 10:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Monday being a rare day off for the Wife and I together, we decided to take our Demon Spawn to the Happiest place on Earth. No, not the DMV. We went to Disneyland. This season has been rough, seeing all these bandwagon Ducks fans come out of the woodwork, wearing their crisply-ironed jerseys and new hats balanced on their mis-shapened heads. In the few times I've gone to Disneyland this season (we have season passes), I make it a point to wear something related to the Kings, whether it be a sweatshirt, ball cap or beanie. Being that deep in the heart of Orange County and sporting the Purple, White and Black is just my way of sticking it to the OC.

Today, I was sporting the Luc Robitaille third jersey I bought myself for Christmas. Since I've been blogging for the Press-Telegram, watching some home games up in the press box, I haven't had a chance to actually wear it in public. Being a chilly day, I figured it was time to pull it out and slip it on.

On our way into the park, The Wife stopped in the Disney Store down in Downtown Disney to find some dance clothes for the little one. I meandered through the store, aimlessly looking at coffee mugs, character crayons and feetie pajamas, my eyes settled on some apparel that caused me to stop dead in my tracks.

A Mickey Mouse hockey jersey. I walked over and picked it up and was amazed just how familiar the jersey was: It was damn near the same style as the Kings' third jersey. Same hue of purple, same stripes on the arms, and as close to the same shape and design elements of the Kings' logos. The bottom of the logo was very similar to the Kings crown logo. The name? The Mighty Mickey's, an obvious nod to the now defunct Disney hockey franchise. Last time I checked, the apostrophe is not a toy.

As I picked it up to show The Wife, some of the Disney clones behind the counter were commenting "Aww, how nice. He wants to buy it for his daughter. They'll look the same. How cute." I managed to keep my bile from issuing forth, and just politely smiled. The Wife just rolled her eyes, and my three-year-old saw it.

"What's that?" she asked. "A lame hockey jersey," I replied. She looked closer and asked: "Where's the crown?" I just shook my head and said "I have no idea" and quickly put it back. "Well, I don't like it, Daddy. It's d-u-m, dumb." she said. I just smiled and said "It's spelled d-u-m-b, honey."

Posted by Matt Murray at 8:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

During warmups tonight at Staples Center, the usual rock and roll music stopped, and an odd song started to play. Turns out it was Na Golici, a polka-style song that is sort of Slovenia's informal anthem. It is usually played at all sporting events, but usually after all Slovenian hockey scores.

When it started to play, fans started to look around and wondering aloud what the song was. After hearing the song earlier today over at LetsGoKings.com, I recognized it immediately. And I wasn't the only one. Anze put his head down and started to chuckle to himself as the polka continued on.

After about a minute, the song stopped and warmups continued with Collective Soul's Heavy.

Posted by Matt Murray at 10:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This should be the recruitment picture for the Kings to lure Jack Johnson from Michigan.

This is Fernanda Motta, Michael Cammalleri, Raica Oliveira, Patrick O'Sullivan, Ana Beatriz Barros and Anze Kopitar at the SI Swimsuit Party in WeHo on Valentine's Day. Not too sure if any of the boys got the digits, but I wouldn't be surprised.

For more pics from this event, check out LAKings.com

Posted by Matt Murray at 4:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Found this video on youTube, and it was too good to pass up. Anze's first goal, seen four ways!

Posted by Matt Murray at 5:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Funny thing about karma, it always seems to follow you. No matter what you do, you can't outrun it. Nashville's Martin Erat learns his lesson the hard way. This video is brought to you by our good friend Tickles McGinty, who thinks The Beatles are a little "old-timey."

Posted by Matt Murray at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So, mired in a hopeless season where wins are few and far between, the Kings have to drum up support the old fashioned way, using sex.

This gorgeous creature is Lucious Liz, a DJ from Los Angeles radio station Power 106. She graced billboards all over the Southland last season for Los Angeles.

Now this tack is hardly uncharted territory for sport franchises to try and drum up business. The most famous L.A. cheerleaders must be the L.A. Laker Girls. Known for dancing in between timeouts and TV breaks, the Laker Girls are very much a part of Lakers basketball as purple and gold jerseys, Jack Nicholson in the front row and championship banners hanging in the rafters.

Down the 5 Freeway, the Anaheim Ducks have the Power Players who wiggle down the aisles to assist in giveaways, contests and anything else.

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have the Strike Force, a group of girls who fire t-shirts through a cannon to the masses around Anaheim Stadium.

So, this is not unchartered territory the Kings are navigating here. Sex sells, and the beautiful people are drawn to the ice like paparazzi to the red carpet. And since attendance has been lagging due to a lackluster showing this season, the Kings brought Liz back for a second go-around.

And it hasn't gone unnoticed. Apparently one of Sports Illustrated's online columnists, Steve Hoffstetter, caught wind of the Kings' new billboards, and decided to write a column about it.

I have nothing against a hot blonde. They just shouldn't embody Kings hockey.

'The idea must be to attract fans by selling sex, something that beer commercials and the LPGA have done for years. But this is not what the Kings need right now.

How about this -- a billboard with a picture of Wayne Gretzky above the phrase, "Hey, we couldn't win a cup with him, either."

Apparently, he forgot about his employers' most heralded issue of the year. And no, I'm not talking about their NHL Preview Issue (the preview which was sandwiched between a feature on the NFL's Nastiest Rivalry and Who Can Derail a Subway Series in New York). You see this week, SI publishes it's annual foray into soft porn with it's annual Swimsuit Edition. Husbands nationwide look forward to trying to beat their wives to the mailbox in hopes of rescuing said magazine from being used to line the bottom of the kitchen trash can.

I'm not a smart man, but I know what sex is. /Forrest Gump voice And I understand why the Kings are using Liz in their latest campaign. It's the same reason SI rolls out the glossy pages the cold months after Super Bowl but before the spring thaw. It's no coincidence SI does this. Interest in sports lags heavily after the Super Bowl, and magazines struggle to maintain readership at least until the start of baseball season.

Then again, maybe Hoffstetter didn't beat his wife to the mailbox this week... If so, you can have my copy, brother.

Posted by Matt Murray at 8:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The great Helene Elliott wrote a column in last Sunday's L.A. Times about the NHL lending support to the movie "Breakfast with Scot." The film is an adaptation of the 1999 book by Michael Downing. The NHL let filmmaker Paul Brown turn two of the main characters, who happen to be gay, into a former Toronto Maple Leaf player and the team's lawyer.

Even though the director didn't want to make an "issue-y" flick, he's certainly not shying away from it. And the support of one of the major sport league in North America makes it that much more groundbreaking.

The article was eye-opening to me, because thanks to Helene's brilliant investigative reporting, she uncovered a surprising fact about the owner of the L.A. Kings:

The caretaker of this most macho of sports, the NHL has long been insular and conservative. Among its most prominent figures is Denver billionaire Philip Anschutz, who owns the Kings and Staples Center and has given financial support to an anti-gay ballot measure and anti-gay groups in his home state of Colorado.

Since I work for a competitor of the Times, I am stuck between a rock and a hard place. But the article is great, and I suggest you stop reading this blog and check out her article right now. Be sure to come though...

Posted by Matt Murray at 6:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

According to ESPN.com, the Kings will open next season across the pond. No, not the Honda Ponda in Anaheim, but the bigger one called the Atlantic.

Apparently, L.A. will be playing several games at the O2 Arena (formerly the Millenium Dome, renamed by the new owners and operators, AEG), one exhibition and two regular season games. The Ducks and the Canucks are two teams that are being considered accompanying the Kings to Great Britian.

One wonders if this will cancel the wildly popular Frozen Fury, the annual trek out to Las Vegas. FF is usually near the end of the exhibition schedule, and has grown to be a profitable venture. Obviously, the amount of West Coast Kings fans will miss out on this historic event. I, for one, would love to go see a hockey game in jolly old England. However, next season is Year Two of the rebuilding project, so I have reservations on how good the hockey club will be by then.

It also seems weird that the NHL would consider sending West Coast teams over East Coast teams, just from a marketing standpoint. I get the whole "Kings" angle, very clever. But wouldn't it be better to send the Bruins and Rangers? Aren't they more established?

Either way, I'm interested in seeing how this plays out.

Posted by Matt Murray at 2:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Earlier this week, former NBA player John Amaechi announced he was gay. Several of radio personalities in the desolate wasteland of L.A. sports talk radio, the topic was brought up in hopes of starting a firestorm of controversy. But the resulting conversations fell way short of many listeners' interests, who would rather call in and talk about the Lakers, USC Football or to yell at Vic "The Brick" Jacobs: "Feeling you!"

One interesting conversation took place Wednesday night between KLAC's Joe McDonnell and former P-T Sports editor and founder of Outsports.com, Jim Buzinksi. During the course of the interview (which can be heard via podcast or download over at am570radio.com, listen to hour 1 of the 2/7 show), Big Joe made an observation that if any professional athlete were to come out while they were still playing, that would probably be someone from basketball or hockey. He noted that it would probably never happen with football players because "they're a different breed" and baseball players are "around each other too much in the clubhouse that it would get weird." But he could see a basketball player or a hockey player have an easier time coming out.

Continue reading "Gays in the NHL: no problems here" »

Posted by Matt Murray at 11:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So, the past week has been an off week for us here in Hockeywood. Apparently, some hacker decided to get cute and flood LANG's server, knocking all of insidesocal.com offline for a while. In that span of time, the hockey season has started back up, and a lot has happened in Hockeywood.

Continue reading "Blip in the Matrix can't stop Hockeywood" »

Posted by Matt Murray at 7:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The NHL unveiled their new uniform design today, which was met with great anticipation and hullabaloo.

Well, not really.

The announcement kicked off the festivities for All-Star... uh, Midweek? What's the deal with that? Why is the All-Star game on a Wednesday? Who are the wizards that came up with that? But I digress.

NHL commish Gary Bettman took to an elaborate stage to announce the next generation of hockey jerseys designed by the NHL and Reebok. "This is evolution, not revolution," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. "It took three years to get this right." According to NHL.com, close to 100 different versions were created in tweaking the jerseys to make it just right. I guess there's saying something in planning. Apparently four different fabrics are used in the new jerseys, which will make the new jerseys lighter, drier, and provide more protection.

To me, it seemed less like an official NHL press conference, and more like a commercial for Reebok. Back in 2004, when Reebok bought Hockey Company Holdings Inc., it provided the athletic shoe company a sort of a hat trick of three of the major sports. They also have deals to provide the NHL and NBA with game jerseys and sell licensed apparel. Ever since I heard Reebok was going to provide the NHL with new uniforms, I knew that they were going to change up the jerseys. They did the same thing with football and basketball.

Not that I had a problem with new jerseys. The current Kings jerseys struck me as weird when I first saw them, with silver-flecked thread and the odd placement of "Los Angeles" at the bottom. The color selction was weird, too. Black and purple? That's the color of bruises, which is appropriate in hockey, I suppose.

Monday's press conference touted the new generation jerseys as a way to bring the sport into the "new era." They even brought out NHL Heir Apparent Sidney Crosby to pump up the new uniform. "I'm pretty picky about my equipment, so I'm probably a good one to test it on." But what else is Sid the Kid going to say? He's been the official spokesman for Reebok hockey since before he strapped on the skates for Pittsburgh.

Don't get me wrong: there's nothing wrong with the NHL updating their uniforms. They should have the best equipment they can to play at the highest possible level. But all this talk of the uniforms being "a system" and making players "quicker" seems hollow. At the press conference, they described the jerseys as "14 percent lighter." A whole 14 percent? You mean it can't get any lighter? Couldn't they find one percent somewhere to round it up to 15? They also said the new jerseys have a nine percent reduction in drag. I'm sorry, but does a jersey that's 14 percent lighter and have nine percent less wind resistance seem pretty minute?

The jerseys are apparently water resistant, which will make the jerseys lighter at the end of the game, because they won't be bogged down in sweat. I just hope that blood will still stay on the jersey. The socks are different, too. According to the snazzy new Reebok site, tape will become a thing of the past, because the new socks are tighter, hugging the pads tighter. Whatever. I never heard any complaints of players upset about having to tape up their socks.

The real excitement will be when they actually unveil the new jersey designs for the clubs. There has been plenty of speculation that fans of the Original Six will rise up if the unis of their favorite team is drastically changed. Already, several teams have been forward-thinking enough to design jerseys that will be incorporated into the new uniform design. Just last Friday, the Blue Jackets announced that they will be changing the logo on the front of the home and away jerseys next season. What will the Kings do? You've seen my proposed designs. I imagine that they won't be too far off of that.

Whatever happens, Reebok looks to make a mint off of this deal. For a fan to purchase an authentic RBK Edge personalized jersey, it will run them $425, as opposed to $280 now being charged for an authentic personalized jersey from NHL.com. Personally, I may pick up a replica. But truth be told, I'm going to wait until the current jerseys go on sale, then go on a little spending spree. Can you say Kopitar authentic?

Posted by Matt Murray at 3:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

All of Staples was abuzz with the real reason a capacity crowd came out for two bottom-dwelling teams. As far as you could see were fans donning Robitaille jerseys. Old school forum gold and purple jerseys, the black and white Gretzky-era jerseys, and current Crown and Shield jerseys. I even spotted an old school Campbell Conference All-Star jersey during warmups. It was appropriate to see all the jerseys, because Luc was the only player in Kings history to play in the most variations of the Kings jersey.

During warmups, every King player was wearing a number 20 jersey. His number was behind both goals, banners stretched across several sections, and a big Thank You Luc was placed under the Kings bench. The giveaway tonight were little Luc banners, and Team LA had special items commemorating the event.

At center ice, a big stage was placed with his name and number, where the Master of Ceremonies Bob Miller stood. As soon as the lights went out to show the video montage of Luc's career, the fans were calling out "LUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUC!" Season Ticket holders lined the red carpet running out to center ice, all wearing different Luc jerseys. As names from the past came strolling down the carpet, the fans lustifully cheered (in some cases booed). Wayne Gretzky got the loudest response. Luc's dad fell to the ice, but was O.K. Miller made the comment that "They say Luc couldn't skate either."

As the second video montage ended, Miller introduced Luc to the throngs, and the place exploded with "LUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUC." Derek Armstrong said he could still hear Luc's two favorite words: "I'm open!" Matty Norstrom skated over from the bench and stated that even though he was known as "Lucky Luc," there was nothing lucky about him. Jim Fox recalled Luc's first training camp, and how he knew Luc was something special. He also spoke of Luc's love for the game, and how it transcended fellow players, coaches, and fans. Barry Melrose recalled a story about Luc and some other Kings taking out Alexei Zhitnik from Russia out to a gentlemen's establishment. Luc was "thoughtful enough" to bring a camera so he could send pictures to his mother back in Russia. He also spoke about Luc's loyalty to his team and friends. He also said that when fans came to see Luc, they never felt cheated. "Every time I watched Luc Robitaille play, he reminded me of why I love this game so much," he said.

The Kings presented Luc with a Steve Holland painting. Holland's art regularly appears on the covers of the King's “Game Night‿ magazine. Also the Kings' private offices at the Staples Center look like a one man gallery of his work. He was the artist who painted the picture for Wayne Gretzky when he retired. Luc also got a 2007 Toyota Tundra truck for his home in Park City, Utah. He also received two Polaris snowmobiles custom designed by West Coast Choppers' Jesse James. Noticed the excitement on Luc's sons' faces, Miller cracked that they might be more excited for the snowmobiles than him.

After a third video montage, Luc took the microphone. Luc said that it wasn't about scoring or winning trophys. It was just about playing hockey. Ever the gentleman, Luc went down the line and thanked every friend who came out. It took quite a bit, as there were close to 30 past players. He recalled many funny stories involving former players. He commented how he was scared to death of Marty McSorley, because he wasn't so sure what he was going to do.

He summed up his speech, which went about a half-hour longer than alloted: "I lived the dream. I heard your chants every time I touched the puck. And I'll take this until the day I die."

With that, the standing-room capacity of Staples gave Luc a roaring round of applause and more booming "LUUUUUUUUC" calls as he went and hugged his family. Then, he ushered his wife Stacia and their two sons over to the face-off circle. There, his two sons helped raise his jersey high into the rafters, as it was lifted from the ice high above Staples. There wasn't a seat in the house occupied.

Posted by Matt Murray at 7:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

According to the New York Post, the NHL will unveil the much-feared new Reebok jerseys at a press event on Wednesday. The jerseys are described as tighter, sleeker and way different than the sweater-type jerseys being worn today. It's made of a new-fangled material to draw moisture away, and allow for a greater range of motion.

But read what some Sharks players said about the new jerseys, when several of them didn't exactly blast the new jerseys, but didn't give them two thumbs up either. And the new unis aren't just limited to new jerseys. They are also redesigning the socks players wear.

Among the reasons cited as pros for the new duds: performance and protection. Protection in the way that the tighter fit will hold pads in place better than the looser CCM ones. Performance in that the new material is lighter and doesn't absorb water. But if the jersey doesn't absorb sweat, just where exactly is it going to go?

Since the new threads are described as a "Performance Fit Uniform System," I just have a vision of a small flask hidden somewhere in the waist of the hockey pants, connected to tubes under the armpits. Sweat is absorbed throughout the jersey and drawn into these tubes, where it gets collected into the flask. What to do with all the collected perspiration? Why not market a sports drink?

Whatever they look like, here's two things that are intriguing. According to Andy Strickland from ESPN 1380 in St. Louis: 1) home teams are going back to wearing white/light jerseys and 2) there will be no third jerseys. The home whites may take some of the pressure off the new jerseys, but the deletion of the third jersey is a little disappointing. I prefer the purple third jerseys the Kings wear now, as opposed to the black jerseys. Black and white jerseys are so boring. I would hope that the road jerseys... er, "Performance Fit Uniform System"... for the Kings is actually purple and not black.

Another concern is whether or not the NHL has decided to actually change the crest of some NHL clubs.
According to Strickland, the design of each club's logo hasn't been changed, only shrunk slightly. I think this isn't a bad thing, considering the Kings Crown on the jerseys now feel like a Kevlar vest. That may be a plus for hockey players, but it does feel a bit odd when I hop into the car to head to the store, and try to put a seatbelt on over this bullet-proof material.

Here's USA Today commenting on the new jerseys...

The NHL and Reebok have been designing and testing the new uniforms for 30 months. That quiet period has spawned several myths, Jennings told USA TODAY. No, NHL players won't wear form-fitting garb like Olympic speedskaters. No, the new uniforms won't eliminate horizontal stripes, although some clubs will experiment with vertical striping next season.[/quote]

The Toronto Star's story, which is accompanied by this pretty picture...

And the Sabres' new duds won't change too much (at the bottom of the article)

Many teams will be changing designs because horizontal stripes at the bottom of the jersey will either disappear or diminish. The Sabres were made aware of the upcoming changes, so their jersey does not have stripes at the bottom. The new sweaters will have different cuts and seams under the arms and along the sides.

Being a bit of an artist, I took some examples of the new RBK designs and applied what I think the new Kings jer... um, "Performance Fit Uniform System"... could look like. The basic design looks like the practice jerseys the team is selling down at team LA. They aren't horrible, but they are a far cry from the jerseys I've grown to love and collected, which has ballooned to 20 this season with the addition of a Luc Robitaille jersey I received from Santa Claus. I'm still debating picking up an Anze Kopitar jersey before they stop making them altogether.

What do you think of my proposed designs? I'd like to hear other opinions about the new jerseys.

Posted by Matt Murray at 7:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

These jerseys are being worn by the Reading Royals, the L.A. Kings' ECHL affiliate, New Years Day against the Dayton Bombers. Yes, they are jerseys that are designed to look like tuxedos. But what is the deal with the arrow pointing down?

Posted by Matt Murray at 11:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

According to LAKings.com, the Kings have activated Alyn McCauley to the 23-man roster, moved Mathieu Garon from the injured reserve and put Dan Cloutier on IR.

Now, this is a very sticky situation to be put in. As a human being, wishing an injury on a player it outright wrong. Cloutier has been put in a tough position this season, netminding a struggling, young team. I can appreciate the fact that whatever Cloutier has done this sdeason, he is trying his best. It doesn't change the fact that he's a good guy.

But the fan side of me is sighing a big sigh of relief. Having Crawford wheel Clouts out in goal every night has just been brutal to watch. And it's even harder to swallow when we have several decent rookie goaltenders in the pipeline. Add to that the whole Jason LaBarbera reverse-waiver fiasco the Kings had put themselves in, and the odds were stacked against Dan the minute he laced them up for Los Angeles.

No matter what Lombardi, Crawford or anyone else is saying in the upper ranks of the Kings management, 2006-07 is a rebuilding year. And to prop up an aging goalie in place of several promising goalies in the system doesn't make much sense.

Posted by Matt Murray at 5:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by Matt Murray at 5:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This time of year always makes me a little reflective. I recall things that I had done during the past 12 months, and think of ways I could've done them better. One was brought to my attention by a fellow journalist, Mark Pargas, a staff editor for the New York Times.

If you recall, I took Mark to task over some discrepancies in his story that he had written for the Dec. 1 editon of the Times' Escapes section. The way the story appeared, it seemed he had forgotten how the NHL playoffs had gone back in 1993, stating that the Kings lost to Toronto. Perhaps with a little too much glee, I attacked Mark and the New York Times, one of the industry's great newspapers, without giving him the benefit of the doubt.

In his email, Mark pointed out that even though his name was on the story, he did not make the mistake. He stated that according to space constraints, his story was trimmed by copy editors, blending several stories to make it fit. Within hours of publishing the story online, the Times' did indeed correct the story online, and they ran a correction in the printed edition on Dec. 8. However, as is the case with many corrections in the print edition, it went unnoticed by many, including me.

The Internet, as many of you already know, has become this leviathan of information. Countless opinions are voiced in a million different ways. Often, many take these opinions as facts, which in turn becomes misinformation. As is the case with bloggers and similar forms of communication, some writers hide behind the veil of denial that blogs should not be considered no more than just opinions and observations.

However, that should not be the case with journalists, where we should take fact-checking very seriously. According to Mark, he had the right information, but it was deleted in the course of editing by the copy desk.

This has turned out to be one of those things that, upon reflection, I should have handled differently. As in the case of CBS Sportsline's Wes Goldstein, I shouldn't have called him by name, and for that, I am sorry. The errors that appeared in the story were ones that were put in by copy editors, and not Mark.

So in the spirit of Christmas, Chanakuh, Kwanzaa and Festivus, I wanted to take this opportunity to extend an olive branch, bough of holly, Festivus pole and any other holiday-related item to publicly apologize to Mark for any trouble I may have caused him in all of this.

At the end of his email, he asked why was Dan Cloutier keeps giving up goals like he did to the Flames' Tony Amonte the other night. Mark, your guess is as good as mine.

Posted by Matt Murray at 12:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

When I started blogging about the Kings this season, I wanted to make sure I got to see certain teams in person. Being a SoCal native and a hockey fan has its disadvantages. Since I work nights designing front pages for the Press-Telegram Sports section, going to games is a bit hard.

However, I had a lot of vacation time that I have accrued this past year, so I picked several dates to would just happen to coincide with games I'd like to see. Asking time off for work was easy, convincing The Wife was another thing. A long-time Kings fan, she was a little jealous that I got to go to these games. But, I told her that this was going to be strictly business, and that I wouldn't really be enjoying it, as if I was watching as a fan.

After I got the green light, I was cleared to see four teams that I've been wanting to see in person: the Rangers, Penguins, Flyers and Devils. I had guys that I wanted to see on each team, such as Jagr on New York, Sid the Kid on Pittsburgh and Brodeur on NJ. Since there are so many displaced East Coasters out here, I know they would represent their clubs en masse.

After Anze Kopitar put a puck past Brodeur in the shootout Monday night, I realized this would be thge last time I'll probably get to see some of these guys at all. Jagr is on the backside of his career, and Brodeur is a legend. Lord knows how Crosby is going to be in three years. I feel lucky that I was able to witness Alexander Ovechkin last season, when I happened into the lower bowl seats against the Capitals.

I'll just come right out and say it. This "plan" hatched up by the NHL to focus exclusively on inter-divisional rivalries is stupid. Coming off a lockout, the league needs more chance to show off their product. The fact of the matter is, the East Coast teams are ultimately better than the ones out here. No West Coast team has won the Stanley Cup. Why is that? Could it be that teams west of the Colorado River are regarded as novelties? Could it be as soon as a player reaches the peak of their skill, they would rather play in a city where there is actually snow, instead of rolling blackouts.

Hell, even the Anaheim Ducks are shunned by major papers out here in Los Angeles, and they are among the creme of the crop this season. The Sharks have some great young players, but does anything think they could take an Eastern Conference team in seven games?

Today, as I was working some magic on the front page for Thursday's section, our esteemed columnist Bob Keisser made a rare evening appearance in Sports. After talking a few minutes about the Kings, he asked if Deano was going to make some moves this season. I told him what I figured: that we'll probably send Conroy off for some prospects, as well as any other reasonable player we could unload. He made this comment: "I think it's official that Kings fans can be considered 'long-suffering.'" And I couldn't argue that observation. It's true. We haven't been good enough to seriously contend for anything since No. 99 was skating around the Forum.

And like the Clippers of years past, the Kings' only marketing strategy that makes any sense is to promote other teams coming to town. How successful can they be when the best teams in the NHL are shuttled in here every three years? Cue Jerry Seinfeld: "Who were the ad wizards that came up with that one?"

I know I'm not the only person who thinks this "plan" is really weak. When I told some of my friends that I'll be going to some Kings games for free to blog, they were amazed at my luck. "Dude, that's totally awesome. You are so lucky." To which I replied: "Yeah, I'm lucky to go see Phoenix and Chicago." Which prompted them to say: "Oh yeah. That kinda sucks."

Don't get me wrong. I'd go watch the Kings play an over-80 team from Leisure World playing broom hockey wearing socks and party hats. I love hockey, in any form. But to have the billion-dollar owner cite the lame scheduling on saving money on "travel costs," it irks me as a hockey fan that they would fork out some extra coin to insure they show off just how good the league can be.

Instead, they want to stick it to the consumer to fork out $150 to be able to watch all the teams. But here's a news flash, Gary Bettman: you aren't the NFL. Each NHL team has 82 games a season, not 16 games like the NFL. Football games are events, hockey games have to compete against other stuff on the TV, like the NBA, CSI and infomercials.

Take this weekend... Which are you more apt to watch: The Kings taking on the Ducks or USC vs. UCLA? Back in the Press-Telegram's Sports Department, I don't think I have to tell you which is going to be on our screens.

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

First period, he sprays Jose Theodore with a mound of ice and he gets called for a penalty. The penalty leads to a two-goal spurt by Colorado to take the lead.

Later, he scores a short-hander on a give-and-go from Frolov to help lift the Kings.

In the third, he scores a goal to put the Kings up for good.

Avery is truly the Kings' version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. We've been treated to many Avery meltdowns the past two seasons. Tonight, against the Avs, he proved to be a cataylst, not a distraction, for the Kings. This is the Sean Avery we need to see more of. He was everywhere: playing on the penalty kill, the power play, crashing the net and creating havoc in front of the net.

In an ESPN.com story, Avery told David Amber that his career is currently in a "transformation":

It might take a whole season to change how things go. It's frustrating. At times, I want to go back to some of the old things I used to do that got me in trouble with the refs, but you have to be careful and remember it's not worth it in the long run.

Many fans are already calling for his head. Has all his antics the past two seasons with L.A. been enough? If he plays more like he did last night, I think Avery may turn out to be a great player for the Kings.

Posted by Matt Murray at 10:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Taken from a screengrab from FOX

One of the illustrious posters over at letsgokings.com made a remarkable discovery on the October 30th episode of FOX's Prison Break. This screengrab shows the last names of four young promising NHL players: Kopitar, Ovechkin, Kotalik and Crosby. Apparently, someone over on the production side of Prison Break is a huge hockey fan.

Posted by Matt Murray at 12:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The last loss to the Coyotes left a bad taste in my mouth. Here, the Kings come into Phoenix, a little worse for the wear, but playing the worst team in the league right now. The Coyotes have allowed the most goals in the league, and just have stunk it up this season. This game should have been a good one to win, to go into the two-day break on a high.

And they did reel off a 3-1 lead in the first, causing Gretz to pull CuJo. Things were looking up. But then, as the city's name implies, Phoenix rose from the ashes to bury the Kings with a five goal barrage, leaving those of us watching to think, "What the heck?"

Posted by Matt Murray at 5:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So, as the fans of Staples Center rained down boos from the rafters last night on Cloutier, I started to think. One person shouldn't be getting all the blame. Yet, all I heard from the post-game show were callers ragging on Cloutier not being the best goalie on his team, about how Crawford signed him to a two-year extension and how good Garon has been playing.

I thought to myself, 'Are these callers actual fans? Am I taking crazy pills?'

Yes, Garon has played exceptional well... against teams currently at or under.500. The two times he faced a good team, Dallas, he was beaten both times. He took Anaheim to overtime, and got a point. But lost in the shootout.

Crawford didn't sign Cloutier, Lombardi did. I'm sure Crawdaddy had a say in it, but Deano writes the checks around here.

And Cloutier has played bad, because he's out of shape. He hasn't played full-time in two seasons, and I questioned the extension at the time. It seemed very risky at the time, and it still does. But, if he's done one thing, he's stepped up Garon's intensity. And let me say this: if Garon or LaBarbara had the defense last season that they do this season, we would've made the playoffs. In the past five games, the Kings have outshot their opponents by an avrage of ten shots. Not only that, they've held the opposition to under 30 shots a game. However, Cloutier and Garon still need to make the saves.

So, as I was driving home, collecting my thoughts, I started wondering why other players aren't getting harped on?

Where's Conroy? 0 goals and 3 assists in 15 games and is at -7.

Where's Thorton? 0 goals and 1 assist in 15 games, at -8.

Where's Willsie? 1 goal and 1 assist in 15 games, at -8.

Where's O'Sullivan? When he's not on the bench, 1 goal, 1 assist. He is even in plus/minus. And even playing in 12 games, he's currently sixth on the team in shots. He's taken more shots than Conroy, Thorton and Willsie, as well as Frolov and Armstrong. Honestly, if we're rebuilding.. ahem "reloading"... then let the kids play, for Pete Demers' sake.

If you're gonna pile on Cloutier, then, as Kings fans, you gotta share the blame with some of these other guys.

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

To keep doing something and expecting a different result? Coach Crawford keeps wheeling goaltender Dan Cloutier out. And even though he faced 29 shots, he let in 3. Cloutier now has the worst goals against average in his career this season. But is it his fault? Only one of the goals was on the power play, and the team seemed to be locked in and focused more this game than the last one, when Cloutier was forced to face several 5-on-3 shifts.

The Kings are in a rebuilding mode. They are hoping forwards like Cammaleri, Frolov, and O'Sullivan start lighting the lamp regularly. But Crawford had defenseman Kevin Dallman out there taking faceoffs, and he lost all three. Meanwhile, O'Sullivan logs the least amount of ice time once again, second only to Ivanans. Patrick must really be in the doghouse with Crawford if he can't crack the Kings' top three lines.

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sure, it was nice to see the Kings get a win over the hapless Coyotes. Yes, it was nice to see Garon get the call, then turn around and serve up a shutout. Yes, it was nice that we scored four (count 'em, 4) power play goals.

Keep in mind that the 'Yotes are a team that the Kings should beat. Beat badly. Which they did. It's not time for Garon to assume the throne over Cloutier just yet. Starting Sunday, L.A. has to play 3 games in 4 days. That is going to be rough on the boys. And conceivably, the Kings could go 1-4 in the next 5 games. Columbus, Anaheim and Minnesota are tops in the league in power play percentage.

Rob Blake continued his strong play from against the Wild Thursday night against the Coyotes. He had two assists, and is settling into game shape. O'Sullivan had a couple chances, and he is settling into his role. Even Sean Avery played well, barring his game misconduct in the final seconds of the game.

Here's a stat that I don't think I've seen in a long time: As of Thursday, Los Angeles is second in the league in shots on goal. All those calls of "shoot the puck" during the Andy Murray Walking Dead regime seem to have stuck this year. But with the good comes the bad, L.A. is also second in penalty minutes.

Posted by Matt Murray at 10:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As much as this pains me to say, the Kings are really not going to contend for anything this year, except maybe the first pick in the NHL draft.

So, since we're all in agreement, let the kids play on the same line! Kopitar, Cammallari and O'Sullivan should be getting plenty of playing time together, since we are building around this nucleus, and not Armstrong, Conroy and Blake. Against the Red Wings, Crawford had these guys paired up on some of the PP opportunities. This should continue.

And speaking of the Kings power(less) play, the Kings lead the league in PP opportunities. In 6 games, L.A. has had 53 chances with a man up. The Kings have responded with 6 goals in those 53 chances. That's less that 10 percent of the time, we score with one or more man on the ice! Pathetic!

Because we can't score on the PP, teams are going to take runs at our top players. Other teams' thugs are going to try and goad Avery into fighting. At 53 chances for a PP goal, L.A. is getting NO respect from the league. And it's just going to get worse. Because guess what? The Kings are near the top of the league in penalty minutes as well!

Posted by Matt Murray at 10:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Being a goaltender has got to be the worst job in the entire world of sports. No other position has so much riding on the success of the person behind the mask. Cloutier hasn't convinced many fans that he's deserving of the number one job. The fact is the Kings played poorly last night, with no real standout players. You can't fault the goalie for the loss. But some people will try.

Cloutier let in a soft goal with 19 seconds gone in the first, and the boo birds were out in force. Some started to chant for Garon, the club's leading goaltender last season. But Crawford stood firm, and Cloutier played throughout the whole game. According to Crawford's post-game comments, Garon will be in goal for the Kings. If Garon wins, all hell is going to break loose in the Kingdom.

Three games is not a good barometer of how good a player is. But I think if Garon plays well, it will force Crawford to rethink the situation sooner rather than later. Bottom line, Crawford will do what is best for the club, and he doesn't strike me as someone who would put a prior relationship with a player before the good of the club.

After playing a small part early in the season, Patrick O'Sullivan picked it up Thursday night, logging in his most ice time this season. He also had some great shots early in the game. He led the club with 5. He's settling down and learning his role. He'll be lighting the lamp soon enough.

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

What do the Kings' first periods of Friday night's game against the Ducks and Saturday night's game against St. Louis have in common?

Give up?

No, it's not the fact that the Kings outshot their opponents, two shots to one. Although, that's a pretty impressive stat.

No, in the first period of each game, the Kings had four power play opportunities. And each game, they came away with no goals.

In what has become an almost unbearable cross to bear, the Kings simply cannot score while they have an extra man on the ice. It's gotten so bad, some fans jokingly ask if the Kings could decline the penalty, like in football. In the past three seasons under Andy Murray, the Kings scored on the man-advantage 14.2 percent of the time, near the bottom of the league. Last season, the Kings were tied with Chicago and Columbus for the worst power play. That fact was probably one of the major reasons Murray and his staff was let go.

It is early, but things are looking up for Los Angeles. Young players, untouched by Murray's poisonous offensive philosophy, are being more aggressive, taking more shots at the net. Not only that, but they are crashing the net to follow their own shots up. That is a recipe for success.

However, the Kings still were 1-for-15 on the power play, against a toothless Blues team, which had the league-worst goals scored average last season.

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So, the Kings signed Dan Cloutier to a two-year extension yesterday, and all I can say is... meh.

Cloutier is a servicable goaltender who may do well in a change of scenery. Remember, he posted three back-to-back-to-back 30 win seasons. His career GAA is 2.66. Garon's is 2.93, but went 3.22 last season. LaBarbera's GAA is an unimpressive 3.11. The Kings and Canucks had similar records last season, three points apart. But the Kings allowed 270 goals to the Nucks' 255. If they expect Cloutier to be successful, the Kings better buckle down on defense.

Cloutier's knee injury still lingers in my memory of why this signing is such a question mark. This was supposed to be his contract year, where players show off what they can do in order to pony up a big contract by the end of the season. However, the current market for decent goaltenders is crazy high. Just look at Rick DiPietro's deal. I'm pretty sure Deano is willing to take a hit now, rather than pay for another quick fix next season. This allows him to give the glut of young goaltenders in the Kings' minor league affiliates a chance to grow into big league netminders. And if there's one thing the Kings have a glut of, it's goalie prospects. Between goalies Brust, Fukifuji, and Bernier have, logic dictates one of them has to pan out.

When Bernier was drafted this last year, it spoke volumes of how highly he's thought of. Al Murray thinks he could be a Brodeur-esque goalie. According to several draft lists, he was the top netminder prospect. However, he's only 18, and he needs to work out in the minors for a couple of years. A couple of years? Why, that's when Cloutier's contract is up... Hmmmm. Let's hope he can live up to expectations. Or at least surpass the expectations of the last goalie the Kings took in the first round.

Remember Jaime Storr? He was the last goalie taken in the first round by L.A in 1994. He was "the goaltender" of the future for years, while being stuck behind Hrudey, then Dafoe, then Fiset. He got a chance to split time with Dafoe for one season, 1999-2000, then a chance to start the following season, when he posted a 19-18 record. He was pushed back behind an older Felix Potvin in 2001.

Let's hope the Kings bring Bernier and all the other goalies along gradually and let them show what they can do, rather than try to find a quick fix for a season or two. Avoid heaping on the pressure by playing with their heads and let the creme rise to the top. One of these goalie prospects must be for real.

Posted by Matt Murray at 10:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Getty Images

The Frozen Fury preseason game may just be a slick marketing scheme to get fans to go to a game that means absolutely nothing, but this year's version may have been the best ever.

A come from behind victory is always thrilling, but this one is especially exciting. Three unanswered goals, topped by a goal from the Kings' top prospect, Patrick O'Sullivan, from a pass by the Kings' second top prospect, Anze Kopitar.

I share the opinion of many Kings fans who think that L.A. should allow these kids to mature together and play at the same level. All signs point to O'Sullivan making the club and Kopitar being sent down for a while before being called up later this season. But, I think these two should be playing and gelling together to form a formidable duo.

Could O'Sullivan/Kopitar be the next Jagr/Lemeiux, Selanne/Kariya, or dare I say, Gretzky/Kurri? I think eventually these two players will be lighting the lamp regularly for the Kings in the near future. I just hope they get the right amount of playing time together to see if it can happen. Too often, players get bumped to the big leagues before they are ready. Expectations of being "The Next Big Thing" are often heaped upon these young players, causing them to buckle under the pressure. If more than one guy can shoulder the load of being a team's "savior", it would make for a better chance of success.

One thing is for sure, the duo of Kopitar and O'Sullivan are something special to watch.

Posted by Matt Murray at 10:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Thanks to one purchase I made 10 years ago, I am the recipiant of the NHL catalog with all the latest clothing and knick-knacks being offered to the masses for the coming season.

This can only mean one thing: Kings fans need not look any further. All the cool stuff gets relegated to teams that made the playoffs, while the Kings gets lumped in the All teams available category of items, which consists of generic shirts and whacked-out apparel.

I get more and more irate when I flip through the catalog, looking at the haves and wishing we weren't the have-nots. It steams me even more now that the Ducks had more items that the Kings.

However, I was surprised this year. As I was flipping through the 2006-07 catalog, I came across two facing pages of a variety of merchandising grouped by room. On the left was a kids room decorated top to bottom with Dallas Stars stuff. On the right was a rec room bathed in the red and white of the Red Wings. I glanced at some of the items and saw the usual disclaimer: select teams available.

I just rolled my eyes and flipped the page and came across another two page spread. On the left was a living room donned in the black, white and yellow of the Bruins. I smirked at the goudy antique stained glass lamp and my eyes settled on the right hand page. It was covered in Kings items! I had to do a double take, so I blinked hard and looked again. It was true.

The Kings were representing office merchandise. There was a Kings blotter, letter opener, desk clock, wall clock, pencil holder, calender, cigar box... it was amazing. I had never seen such a collection of Kings things in one place. Then I realized that as cool as it was, all those things were for people who actually have nice desks at work. I'm lucky if I can find a spot for my water every day.

I quickly closed the magazine and threw it down, before I started to try and justify why I need a wooden Kings memo pad holder. I mean seriously, do I really need a $30 plank of wood with a Kings plate to hold my Post-It notes?

I don't think so.

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

...and all is right with the world.

Rob Blake was one of all all-time favorites on the Kings. Mostly because he was a home-grown talent for the Kings, and seeing him evolve into the Norris award-winning defenseman coincided with the Kings arrival to success.

When he left, back in 2000, it was a huge blow to Kings fans. Many felt affronted by Rob when he spurned the Kings and decided to take a shot at the Stanley Cup with a better team, the Colorado Avalanche. Many fans began to boo him. Lustfully. And I was one of them.

If you aren't donning the purple and black, you are the enemy. And Blake was the enemy. But then, it became much more than that. It became a swipe at Blake and his "greed" for more money for a lot of fans. Many simply don't understand that the NHL, out of all the major sports, have the least amount of job security. I mean, what can an ex-NHLer do? Some go into commentary and sportscasting, like Marty McSorley did last season for FOX. But, the shelf life is really small. You gotta take the big pay-day when you can. And that's what Rob did, and I can respect that.

So, I stopped booing Blake and started counting the days until his return. When Luc signed for one season last year, I knew that the Kings would bring back Rob. It just made sense. And having him out there on the ice tonight... well, it's been a long time, but... the fans were cheering him.

Even Bob Miller made mention of this, when he scored the Kings' only goal against the Sharks. Fans were standing, and clapping, and cheering for Rob Blake. And that should be music to any Kings' ears.

Posted by Matt Murray at 9:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)