Thanks, JLB.

Hopefully the Kings will get wise this off-season and make "wholesale changes" in net. LaBarbera is NOT the answer. The guy blows. That last goal was a shot that a professional goaltender needs to stop, and he absolutely lost the game for us (for the umpteenth time). If Dean can secure a top-flight goaltender (even for a year or two, while Bernier is cooking), maybe trade one or two of these prospects for a top-two defenseman, re-sign stuart and others (even though he had a terrible game this evening, he plays with heart and is good for this team, in my opinion). . .well, we will not only compete for a playoff spot next season, but actually border on becoming on of the Elite.

But please, God, give JLB his walking papers. Obviously, same for Cloutier. Where's the Asian Sensation when you need him?

goaltending is our only problem, other than armstrong being completely inept, unable to corral a pass, and giuliano -- who doesn't belong anywhere near an nhl rink -- we are looking very good. you can see how incredibly strong this team is going to be, as soon as next season.

Thanks for the soft goals again Labs

Somewhere....

anthony is penning his Opus.

The finger of blame on Cammi perhaps? Maybe Kopitar is better than Sid.

By why doesn't anthony...

Capitalize?

What the hell is "TV Night". Phoenix TV is painful...they do a fantastic job of not showing any replays (like Brownie's move through the legs).

I'm not sure why Cloutier was pulled but I must say in that 3rd period the Kings were really hustling, which was awesome to see. So they lost, at least they were working. By the way, I love Purcell and Boyle more and more every game.

...and how about props to JMFJ for sticking it through the entire powerplay while visably injured (in the 3rd)

so i didn't see the game, but judging by the recap, labs gave up one goal.

"thanks for the soft goals again labs"?

I've been enjoying this streak of good games. It's weird. Half of me wants us to *lose* yet have my favorite players like Fro, Kopi, Brownie, and Sully tear it up, points wise, and keep the high draft position. The other half just wants to win baby. Anyone else have the same thoughts?

Big Rob in Dallas

I agree with the first post Labarbara is brutal. horrible technique and bad angles. that last goal beat him short side on a steep angle. An legit nhl goaltender stops that shot 9 out 10. furthermore he handles every rebound like it is a live hand grenade. what is perhaps more concerning is lombardi's inability to solve the problem

I agree with the first post Labarbara is brutal. horrible technique and bad angles. that last goal beat him short side on a steep angle. An legit nhl goaltender stops that shot 9 out 10. furthermore he handles every rebound like it is a live hand grenade. what is perhaps more concerning is lombardi's inability to solve the problem

Labs was only in net for the third period. He let one goal in on 16 shots. These people complaining about the goaltending must be talking about Cloutier who played most of the game and did let some softies in.

Let's see: Prince Cammi takes an unnecessary penalty when the team just fought back to tie the score and smiles about it in the box. Then Modry gets called for another penalty because being a man down sucks. Then the three guys who are busting their asses to kill the 5 on 3 have Prince Cammi come out of the box to take command of the penalty kill only after resting for the last two minutes, he couldn't clear the puck either. The result: GOAL! It's all LaBarbera's fault! Get a frigging grip and put the blame on who started the ball rolling. Oh, I'm sorry. Picking on Prince Cammi is taboo.

Yah it is JLB's fault that the Kings could not clear the puck on the PK. It is his fault that PHX somehow kept it the Kings zone for almost a full 3 minutes of PP time. The PK was dead tired and I am pretty sure JLB was too. It was a soft goal but to blame the goalie solely for not making the save is a mistake. You can;t keep blaming the goalies, when will people understand that? Last year blame the goalie yes, this year not so much.

Well it was on the tail end of the 5 on 3 and he let it in right post side. Im sure you can watch the replay, fro's head said it all. Infact when Labs looked behind him and saw it he was upset too. I like Labs but he just lets out way to many rebound and the soft goals are killing us.

Considering Cloutier wasn't on the bench for third period, it would seem that he was injured rather than pulled. But we'll see about that over the next day or so, I suppose.

If we're gonna play the blame game for last night, let's look no further than Michael Cammaleri. (a) His absolutely ridiculous and unnecessary interference penalty started the PK that eventually gassed the Kings comeback attempt; (b) his presence on the top line since his return has just served to derail the rhythm of what was rolling while he was gone. Sully should be on the top line and Cammy should be playing with Giuliano and Ivanans.

Did you ever think you'd see a calendar month where Ivanans would have more goals than Cammaleri? Amazing.

Personally, I'm worried that Anthony didn't have the first post up after the game.

Actually, aside from the soft second goal (that was just a lack of mental focus and awareness), I thought Cloutier played another decent game.

All things considered, though, I'll say the Kings will be back to finally get their first win over this club on Monday.

What up with NHL zebras?!! Two chessey calls in the middle of the 3rd for a 2 man disadvantage after we worked our asses off to get back in the game! What, is this a no-touch-girls league?! I realize we have to earn respect in the NHL, but these guys dik us every chance they get! Goddamnbastards!!!!!

I agree with Shakes that JMFJ impressed the heck out of me with his great skating and perseverence while playing with pain. I'll bet that JMFJ is actually helping Shakes forget about the long departed Kwame Brown...

I also concur with TweenerSongs in that Babs is not the answer in goal. JLB is a FANTASTIC AHL goalie, and is frankly the best goalie the Kings currently have, but he is clearly not the solution. I have no idea what the solution will be while we wait for the Weekend at Bernier era begin, but neither LaBabs nor Inspector Cloutier will ever be able to take the Kings to the playoffs...

If you watched the game you know JMFJ came back after the injury. But what about Cloutier Matt? What happened with him being pulled?

Those of you who complain about JLB need to open your eyes and learn to read some numbers: 1) it was Klutz who allowed three out of four goals (the last goal came after the Kings were not able to clear the puck for the full 2 minutes and could not change 5-on-3 PK-ers, obviously, while being completely on their heels), 2) allowing one goal on 16 shots equals .938 save % - if you don't know that this is great, you have NO business posting on any hockey board, 3) if you spent any time watching, listening or reading about the Kings this season, then you might've heard that their D has been attrocious all along - consider it your last clue!

it seems like one of the goals beachball let in was a soft one also but I agree on one thing that labs is given up way to many rebounds.

Yeah, Labarbera had let in a soft goal. Cloutier on the other hand had let in a sharp angle goal. I think that Clouts was worse. I have to give it to the team though. They really worked thru the whole game. The only problems were bad calls. The call on Cammi should really have been an embelishment on the other guy. That's just my opinion of course.

Before you guys all crucify JLB, he did stop 15 other shots during the third period. Not a bad save percentage of 93.8%!

If you want a scapegoat for last night's loss, how about Dan Cloutier? That second goal he allowed was very weak. All he had to do was hug the near goalpost and that shot never goes in!

Apparently Dan was suffering from the flu. Marc Crawford said that "Cloutier nearly passed out" in walking the 100 yards from the hotel to the ice rink before the game. Why did he start the game if he was obviously under the weather?

Why not also blame Brad Stuart for putting the Coyotes third goal into his own net? That would certainly be unfair, since Stuart was desperately trying to prevent the puck from crossing the goal line but lost his balance.

Boyle and Purcell looked strong again, and the Kings need to leave them in the lineup.

sorry, i was being really picky about you saying "goals" when he gave up just a "goal." but it's probably fair to say that it's been a trend of sorts.

Please, everyone stop visiting hockeybuzz.com. How many rumors can come up in a day, and that eklund jack ass says kevin lowe should gun harder for brown than cammy. DOes he think that we would trade our best 2 way player?

There's a new rumor everyday, and now he's trying to get people to subscribe to that B.S.

Way to go matt, you're always keepin it simple and real.

Over the last month I saw LaBarbera carrying the team, and now it appears the team is going to be carrying him for a bit. I'm content with this, because that means there are a significantly higher number of players on the ice that are working hard.

Everyone lets in a few soft goals, and how many times has the man turned aside 40+ shots this season in a winning effort? He can almost always handle the first or second shot, he's just in a slump right now - like almost everyone else has gone through this year.

i don't think either goalie was really bad, but they both let in a bad goal. still it's hard to blame labs when phoenix had the puck on the PP in the kings zone for two minutes with johnson limping and stuart stickless. it was really only a matter of time before they scored.

We're blaming Barbs for this loss? Cmon, Phoenix had 8 shots during the 5 on 3. We just couldn't get a break clearing the puck out of the zone. We had chances, it just didn't happen. The goal was a weak one, but again..they had 8 shots and the puck in the zone the entire time. Everyone was exhausted, including Barbs. I didn't think Clouts played that bad either. This one I'll put on the refs. The Cammy penalty was ridiculous. He was going to the bench and collided with the Phoenix player. It was incidental. Put the goddamn whistle away. Cammy was smiling because he couldn't believe they called that a penalty.
they showed great heart coming back in the 3rd. They're going to lose games, but at least they showed the heart they've been playing with over the last month.

If you've got the game recorded, watch Cammi's right skate against the Coyote player's left skate. It wasn't incidental contact. Cammi could have avoided the collision since he was skating forward.

Agreed that the call on Cammi was pathetic, which is indeed why he was smiling.

Cloutier's sharp-angle goal was nothing, compared to that last goal JLB allowed, and they'd both tell you that. If any of you play goal, you know that you would NEVER expect a guy to one-time the puck from that spot; when you are anticipating the play, you see a guy that low, and you figure he's going around the net or to the corner. Sure, it wasn't a good goal. . .DC has to have that one. But JLB's was completely, unequivocally bush league.

Nobody is saying that the Kings had a terrific kill, and were let down the goal. They were awful. We had what, five perfect clearing chances? Sad stuff, for sure. But in the end -- and it doesn't matter if they had 20 shots on that power play, nor does it matter if JLB made three of the highlight saves of the season in that two-minute span -- he absolutely MUST stop that shot. Sorry, guys, there's no way around it.

Can you honestly tell me that you've EVER seen Brodeur give up that same shot? Even a punk-ass like Turco will stop that shot 10 out of 10 gimes. oops, times as well. See? he'd even stop it every GIME. Labs is not a strong goaltender, the comment that he's "carried us for a month" notwithstanding. Hard to comment on something that never happened. He's gone through periods of highs & lows, that's a given; but when all is said & done, he's just NOT THAT GOOD. Sheesh, I would stop that shot 10 out of 10 times. We can't have a guy deflating us like that, in the long run. It's great that he's losing games for us now -- or, okay, he's doing his best to HELP us lose games -- but down the road (meaning next year) we need to shore up that position BIG time.

Still, watching this team is as exciting as it's been since the LAPD line. Imagine adding Stamkos to this group of kids!! We are going to dominate in the very near future.

Finally.

I have to stop reading the comments on this blog. Nearly every person posting here is obviously retarded. All of you blaming Labarbera for the loss to Phoenix don't have brains in your damn heads. He allowed *one* goal! You do not blame a goalie for a loss when he gives up one goal! Especially a goalie who had to come on in relief after sitting on the bench for 2 hours.

God, you people are stupid. I can't put up with it anymore. I am officially done reading what you nitwits have to say!!!

TweenerSongs must be Jamie Storr posting from Germany wanting his old job back. That goal JLB allowed was scored from the inside (towards the center) of the face-off circle, aka PRIME SCORING AREA, click on the 3rd period tab and look for dot near coyote's nose

http://www.sportsline.com/nhl/gamecenter/live/NHL_20080216_LA@PHO

What I really would like to know is whether JLB was screened on the play as he did not seem to react in time and I could not see whether there was a screen since PHX's TV crew offered all of one angle. Anyhow, any goalie will allow a soft goal every so many games, yet very few of them play behind such a pathetic defense. JLB has has a better save percentage this season than Turco, Nabokov, Lundquist, Theodore, Toskala, DiPietro, Hasek, Habibulin, Fleury, Budaj, Kirpusoff, Ward, Roloson, Norrena, and yes, Emery who's playing on the team where average d-men like Corvo and Preissing can be +40 for the season. Imagine JLB's numbers had he had d-men who can actually clear a puck after the first save or god forbid attempt to block a shot!

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/stats/byposition?pos=G&conference=NHL&year=season_2007&qualified=1&sort=112

Oh, btw, finishing last still does not guarantee getting Stamkos for two reasons - first, DL seems to be hell-bent on getting a defenseman first; second, you can still lose in a lottery and drop a spot. Additionally, from what I hear, Stamkos is not exactly a model of toughness and this is something this team clearly needs as it has been exposed and proven by PHX five times this season. With Boyle showing a lot of skills and desire to learn, he might just be the guy to play the second center behind highly skilled but very soft Kopitar.

Yeah, mask, Kopitar is "very soft". That sort of precludes any serious consideration for anything you say in your posts. Did you watch the game? the shot was from a bad angle. Stamkos, if you've seen him, is also far from 'soft'. Probably better not to comment, until you know what you're talking about.

And to anyone else who thinks it's silly to blame Labs for that goal: get real. How on Earth does it matter if he has a high save percentage, or if he stops "eight shots on that same powerplay", if he's going to allow soft goals like that at any given time? The guy rarely makes the "spectacular" save, surely you agree to that. The Kings give up a lot of shots, and the vast majority of them are stoppable by a capable NHL goaltender. That last shot is a perfect example.

It would be strange to blame JLB for this goal, if it were the exception to the norm. But sadly, it is not. Would I rather have JLB over some of the other people we've had over the past ten years? Sure. But it's pretty sad if this is all it takes to meet the fans' expectations of what a goaltender should do. JLB is not a good NHL player. Come to terms with that, and perhaps you'll be able to see what i'm talking about.

Garrett, it seems pretty obvious to me -- based on your line of argument -- that you've never played the game. That's fine, but maybe you should learn a bit more about the game before you call people 'stupid' and such. When "one goal" makes the difference in the outcome, or "one goal" makes the difference in the competitiveness of the team, well then. . ."one goal" can be very important, yes? Especially when it comes on a shot that should be stopped 100% of the time. Would Roy be a HOF'er if he made ten amazing saves and then let in a very soft goal, consistently? That's what JLB does. His positioning is terrible, he doesn't use his size the way he should, he seems to show apparent anxiety in net, and he gives up soft goals all the time. What else is there?

TweenerSongs.....You certainly have a very high opinion of yourself. Perhaps you should run for President on "The Know It All Party!" I doubt that you would get very many votes.

You're certainly not cutting JLB much slack. Do you honestly believe that fatigue wasn't a factor in that shot going into the net? The three King players were out on the ice for the entire 5 on 3, and Jack Johnson was injured while blocking a shot. Plus the Kings failed on several attempts to clear the puck out of their zone.

JLB had to be just as gassed having blocked 8 shots prior to that goal during the PK.

Dan Cloutier allowed an extremely soft goal during the first period. Why aren't you on his case about "blowing" the game for the Kings?

Don't you guys get it? Tweener is Cloutier.

Kings will not win shit until they improve defensively. It is not like they lead the league in goal scoring either. In fact with all this offense
they have 1 player (Frolov)
who averages a point a game. The true indicator is that they have no regular players who are plus on the season.
DEFENSE WINS MORE OFTEN
THAN O. Kings have better offense than Quacks but not
comparable defensively. New
Jersey a contender every freakin year with almost no
offense.Build an NHL quality defense and then
La Barbera can really be judged. I don't think he is anything more than a #2
(a good one) but it would be interesting to see what
happened if he had a d in front of him.