August 2008 Archives

On my way out of town on a hectic day, but just wanted to be sure everyone saw that Colten Teubert signed his three-year entry-level contract today.

The Record, a newspaper in Kitchener, Ontario, has a story today about Kings draft pick Justin Azevedo and his strong desire to sign an entry-level contract with the Kings. Azevedo developed a bit of a buzz because of his big scoring numbers with Kitchener in the OHL last season, which led to the Kings selecting him in the sixth round in June. Azevedo indicated to the paper that he hasn't had significant contract talks with the Kings.

``Same old, same old,'' Azevedo said. ``Nothing yet. Exactly the same as it was two months ago.''

It's an interesting story, worth a read...

Azevedo checks in to Rangers camp

Also, the Erie Times-News reported (somewhat randomly) the following today:

``Veteran defenseman Josh Kidd began camp with the (OHL Erie) Otters on Tuesday. But Kidd believes he's a step closer to signing his first professional contract with the Los Angeles Kings.''

The Kings have signed defenseman Viatcheslav Voynov and forward Andrei Loktionov to three-year, entry-level contracts. Voynov was the Kings' second-round selection (32nd overall), while Loktionov was the club's fifth-round pick (123rd overall) in the June draft. The only remaining question is, how many alternative spellings of Voynov's name will they come up with? This is number three, by my count.

Here's the release from the Kings...

The Kings have released the roster for their brief rookie camp, which will run Sept. 13-15 and conclude with the two games in Phoenix on Sept. 16-17. On Saturday (Sept. 13), Sunday (Sept. 14) and Monday (Sept. 15), the Kings will practice in El Segundo from 9-10 a.m. and scrimmage from 10:30-11:45 a.m. Here's the roster...

84 -- Azevedo, Justin -- Center
45 -- Bernier, Jonathan -- Goaltender
55 -- Cameron, Bryan -- Right Wing
81 -- Campbell, Andrew -- Defenseman
72 -- D'Orazio, Mike* -- Defenseman
80 -- Doughty, Drew -- Defenseman
44 -- Drewiske, Davis -- Defenseman
77 -- Fillier, Matt -- Left Wing
37 -- Hickey, Thomas -- Defenseman
50 -- Holloway, Bud -- Right Wing
64 -- Kidd, Josh -- Defenseman
74 -- King, Dwight -- Left Wing
83 -- Legault, Olivier* -- Left Wing
48 -- Loktionov, Andrei -- Center
53 -- Martinez, Alec -- Defenseman
51 -- Moller, Oscar -- Center
75 -- Rowat, Linden -- Goaltender
57 -- Simmonds, Wayne -- Right Wing
79 -- Teubert, Colten -- Defenseman
76 -- Voynov, Viatcheslav -- Defenseman
82 -- Wudrick, Geordie -- Left Wing
36 -- Zatkoff, Jeff -- Goaltender

* tryout

The Kings initially announced that they would webcast both of the rookie games in Phoenix next month, but that has been amended. The first game, on Tuesday, Sept. 16, at 6 p.m., will be webcast, but the game on Wednesday will not.

Michael Cammalleri, traded from the Kings to Calgary in June, had an introductory press conference in Calgary yesterday. Here's what Cammalleri had to say, in the Calgary Sun, about his time with the Kings.

``We really didn't get to that point in L.A. where we really had a clear identity as a team, where we were really establishing something, where we really got to compete at that (top) level, where we really got to figure out where we were as a team as an identity. I don't know if we got married to that concept.''

Here's the full story...

Red and white delight

The OHL website did a story today about some of the league's top prospects and their chances of making NHL rosters this season. Here's what Kings assistant general manager Ron Hextall had to say about defenseman Drew Doughty, the Kings' No. 2 overall pick.

``His understanding of the game is tremendous. He's got to learn how to be a pro, but it looks like he has the chance to be a really elite player. We have spots available, so we will see where he's at. We're not going to promise anything either way, but he'll have a chance to come in and earn a job.''

Here's the full story... (oops, the link works now...)

NHL calling for OHL stars

There's a lengthy story in the Kansas City Star this morning about the Kings' preseason game there, focusing on how many of the Kings' veterans -- that being a relative term, of course -- will play in that game. The Kings also have a preseason game at Staples Center the same night.

"We have no concern about it," Paul McGannon, president of NHL21, who is helping promote the game, told the paper. "They are bringing their best players. We went over that before we scheduled the game.

Seems as though Luc Robitaille has made assurances to the K.C. folks that they will get the Kings' best. Sort of makes you wonder who is making these decisions.

Kings not bringing full squad to KC for NHL exhibition

I got an e-mail question the other day about Thomas Hickey's AHL eligibility. Under the AHL/CHL agreement, a player must be either 20 years old or have played four years of junior hockey in order to be eligible to play in the AHL. Hickey has played three full years of junior hockey, plus five games in 2004-05. I'm told that does NOT make him eligible for the AHL under its agreement with the CHL. A player must play 25 games in order to have officially ``played'' a CHL season. (sorry about the typo earlier). So if Hickey doesn't make the Kings, he will go back to Seattle of the Western Hockey League.

I was a bit surprised to see Ersberg come out the winner of yesterday's poll. I figured that Bernier would be the exciting choice and LaBarbera would be the safe choice, but it seems that many of you were highly impressed by Ersberg's trial run near the end of last season. Fact is, no matter how you look at it, the Kings don't have a goalie who has proved, without doubt, that he can handle being a No. 1. So, given that, how would you handle the backup role? Go with the (somewhat more) veteran LaBarbera, or give experience to one of the prospects?

Who should be the Kings' starting goalie this season? It figures to be the biggest question of training camp and one that doesn't have an obvious answer. Should they go with the potential of Jonathan Bernier or the experience of Jason LaBarbera? Or somewhere in between, with Erik Ersberg? Or a wild card? You make the call...

I had Jack Johnson on the phone for a few minutes and got to ask a few questions about the upcoming season. The main reason for the call was a little Hockey News feature about players who did something interesting during the summer. In Johnson's case, that meant resuming his education at the University of Michigan. Johnson took an upper-level writing class, an American literature class, an American culture class and a psychology class and got an A in each class. Johnson said he intends to take classes every summer until he gets his degree (academically, he's halfway through his junior year right now) and said he might look into taking some online courses during the season.

Here's what Johnson had to say about some topics relevant to the upcoming season...

ESPN.com did its statistical projections for the 2008-09 hockey season. Here's how they have some of the Kings doing this season...

Anze Kopitar -- 28 goals, 44 assists, minus-19
Patrick O'Sullivan -- 32 goals, 34 assists, minus-15
Alexander Frolov -- 26 goals, 40 assists, minus-8
Dustin Brown -- 26 goals, 26 assists, minus-15
Jarret Stoll -- 15 goals, 27 assists, minus-13
Jack Johnson -- 9 goals, 33 assists, minus-19
Teddy Purcell -- 14 goals, 21 assists, minus-12
Drew Doughty -- 3 goals, 22 assists, minus-6

Jonathan Bernier -- 23 wins, 2.74 goals-against average, .915 save percentage
Jason LaBarbera -- 9 wins, 2.83 goals-against average, .912 save percentage

(Oops, let's try this again. The previous poll only allowed for one choice...)

Well, yesterday's vote gave the Kings a fourth line of Handzus, Ivanans and Armstrong, which probably isn't realistic unless Armstrong would move to the wing. More likely, it would be Ivanans, Handzus and Richardson. But it's an interesting debate. Now, moving on to the defensemen. Who should be the six defensemen? How many young guys would you pick?

The Kings will webcast the two rookie games against the Phoenix Coyotes next month live on lakings.com. A team of rookies will travel to Phoenix to play on Tuesday, Sept. 16 (6 p.m.) and Wednesday, Sept. 17 (2 p.m.) and both games will be available on the site. The rookies will be on-ice in El Segundo starting Friday, Sept. 12, and the first full-time on-ice session will be Friday, Sept. 19.

I understand that everyone is clamoring for some type of update on Patrick O'Sullivan and (to a lesser extent) Jarret Stoll, but there simply isn't one to give right now. The word from the Kings today is essentially the same that I reported three weeks ago, that they feel they're closer on Stoll and not panicked by either situation. Should they be more panicked? You can decide for yourself... As far as O'Sullivan, the only real update, from a team official, is that while there is still no agreement, ``nothing bad has happened, there haven't been any steps back.'' I'd like to tell you more, but that's all I can give you right now. Understand that neither side is going to be motivated to tip their hand as far as negotiations. As much as I, as a writer, might like them to negotiate through the press, they know better...

Well, the last poll would have given the Kings a third line of Boyle, Handzus and Calder, but since the first two are strictly centers, that's obviously not realistic. So, since Boyle got more votes than Handzus, we'll bump up fourth-place Matt Moulson and make it a Moulson-Boyle-Calder line. So here's what you've given the Kings so far:

O'Sullivan-Kopitar-Brown
Frolov-Stoll-Purcell
Moulson-Boyle-Calder

Last chance to pick three forwards to crack the Kings' lineup...

The Minnesota Wild announced its single-game ticket pricing today, and it includes ``Premium pricing'' for 12 of the 41 home games. For games against Anaheim, Boston, Colorado, Dallas, Detroit, Montreal, N.Y. Islanders, Nashville Ottawa, Tampa Bay and Toronto, prices will increase by a range of $5 to $20.

Now that you've given the Kings a second line of Frolov, Stoll and Purcell, what to do with the third line? Remember that this can go a couple different ways. Do you try to create a third line that will bring some scoring depth, or focus on more of an ``energy line''? Who's the right center for the line and who might play well with him on the wings?

After the draft, Dean Lombardi praised second-round pick Vyacheslav Voinov for his willingness to come to North American and play junior hockey, if necessary. It seems as though it's going to happen. A story in the Times & Transcript, a newspaper based out of New Brunswick, indicated that Voinov will be at the start of training camp for the Moncton Wildcats when camp opens Aug. 29.

Moncton selected Voinov with the fifth overall selection in the Canadian Hockey League import draft.

``All indications are they'll both be at camp,'' Moncton coach Danny Flynn said, speaking of Voinov and fellow Russian import Alexander Fomin. ``Voinov just arrived in Ottawa on the weekend. He's training there because that's where his agent lives.''

Not surprisingly, yesterday's poll results overwhelmingly gave the Kings a first line of Patrick O'Sullivan, Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown. This one will be tougher. Who would you pick to be on the Kings' second line? This has been a problem area for the Kings over the last couple seasons. Michal Handzus, signed last summer to be the No. 2 center, could not fill that role last season and the team struggled to find some chemistry on the second line. Who would you pick?

With training camp fast approaching -- the first on-ice workouts are scheduled for one month from tomorrow -- it's realistic to start thinking about how the Kings' roster might take shape. I thought it might be interesting to see how people thought the roster could/should be constructed. So let's start from the top. If you're Terry Murray, what's your first line? We'll go through the rest of the lineup in coming days...

I'm told the Kings are encouraged by the offseason work of goalie Jason LaBarbera, who had surgery to repair a sports hernia. LaBarbera, it seems, has dropped a significant amount of weight and is paying close attention to a summer workout program. It will be interesting to see how the goalie situation shakes out, but don't we say that every year?

The goalies spent the past week up in Vancouver, working with goalie coach Bill Ranford. I don't know the exact number of goalies up there, but last I heard, LaBarbera, Bernier, Zatkoff, Quick and Taylor were all headed up there. Ersberg too, most likely, since he's now under contract.

Speaking of offseason workouts, Dustin Brown and Alexander Frolov have practically taken up residence at the El Segundo training facility this summer.

This is going to be quick, and it's not going to be addressed again. I have neither the time nor the inclination to sit here moderating comments. Please act like adults. I presume most of you are. If not, fake it. The interaction here is fantastic and 95 percent of the time, it's not a problem. We're all here to talk hockey, right? Use common sense. No personal attacks. Name calling is for children. If you dislike someone's comment, ignore it or refute it like a grown-up. Thank you very much.

The NHL released its national television schedule today, but don't look too hard for the Kings. They won't appear on Versus this season and aren't scheduled for NBC either. There are two Hockey Night in Canada games on CBC (Nov. 1 vs. Calgary and Jan. 31 at Montreal), one game on RDS (at Montreal, naturally) and one game on TSN (Nov. 26 at Edmonton), but that's it. Mike Knobler of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution sent along a breakdown that shows each team's national TV breakdown in 2008-09...

---------------CBC-NBC-RDS-TSN-Versus----Total
Kings------------2----0----1------1-------0----------4
Anaheim -------0----0----1------2-------1----------4
Atlanta----------0----0----4------4-------2----------10
Boston----------3----0----6------5-------8----------22
Buffalo----------0----0----6------7-------8----------21
Calgary--------13---0-----2-----10------0----------25
Carolina--------0----0----4-------3-------1-----------8
Chicago--------4----1-----1------3-------3----------12
Colorado-------2----0-----1------6-------5----------14
Columbus------0----0-----1------1-------1-----------3
Dallas-----------1----0-----1------3-------4-----------9
Detroit----------3----1-----1-------5------7-----------17
Edmonton-----12---0-----2------10------0----------24
Florida----------0----0-----4-------3------1-----------8
Minnesota------4----0-----1-------1------8----------14
Montreal-------15---0----82------15-----3----------115
Nashville--------0----0-----1-------3------1-----------5
New Jersey-----0----0-----4-------3------6----------13
N.Y. Islanders--0----0-----4-------1------4-----------9
N.Y. Rangers---4----1-----4-------3------8----------20
Ottawa----------13---0-----6------10------2----------31
Philadelphia----3----0-----4--------2------7---------16
Phoenix---------3----0------1-------0------1----------5
Pittsburgh------10---1------4-------1------8---------24
San Jose--------3----0------1-------2------3----------9
St. Louis---------0----0-----1--------1------5----------7
Tampa Bay------2----0-----4--------4------4--------14
Toronto---------24----0---- -6-------17-----3---------50
Vancouver-----15----0------2-------10-----1--------28
Wash-------------2----0------4--------4------7--------17
Total------------138---4----164----140---112------558 (279 games)

OK, here's the final part of the Terry Murray interview. In this last part, Murray talks about his evolution as a coach and how he might have changed over the years.

Hope everyone found the interview worthwhile... I'm sure there will be another long-form interview with Dean Lombardi before the start of training camp, and once players start arriving there will be some Q&As with them as well.

Here's the last part of the Murray interview...

Terry Murray talks here about his new coaches, assistants Mark Hardy, Jamie Kompon and Nelson Emerson and goaltending coach Bill Ranford, why he picked them and how they might work together...

I thought it might be interesting to ask Terry Murray what attributes he considered most important in his players. You probably won't consider his answer to be anything surprising or groundbreaking, but it does give some insight into what type of player might thrive in the new Murray system...

Who made Terry Murray the coach that he is today? In this part of the interview, Murray talks about his coaching mentors, the men who helped shape him and influence his coaching philosophies today. The list includes a former NHL head coach, a former NHL assistant coach and a family member...

Here, Terry Murray talks about the balance between pushing his young players to win without breaking their spirits. He outlines how he intends to deal with young players on a day-to-day basis and how he thinks he can best help them improve...

Picking up from yesterday, here on Terry Murray's thoughts on goaltending, particularly on whether he thinks it's important to establish a No. 1 goalie in training camp and how he feels, in general, about playing young goalies...

I figured this question/answer was worth its own post because it might generate some discussion. This is where Terry Murray talks about how he would like to see the team play, and I think a good percentage of you will like the answer.

I've only transcribed about 30 of the 50 minutes, so there's plenty more to come, resuming in the morning. Here's the last part for tonight...

Toughness seemed to be an area of great concerned in terms of the Kings, and Terry Murray talks about it here, in terms of his emphasis on having a well-conditioned team and the importance of having a team that doesn't allow itself to get pushed around. Here's what Murray had to say...

Terry Murray talks here about the number of young players expected to be a part of the Kings' plans this season, specifically how he intends to evaluate them in training camp and the balance between holding them accountable but not being too tough on them...

Here, Terry Murray talks primarily about leadership, how he believes he can turn around the losing culture of the Kings, how he thinks he can help players develop and, perhaps most importantly, how he will go about selecting the team's captain and assistant captains...

In this part of the interview, Terry Murray talks about why he chose to pursue the Kings coaching job, one that Dean Lombardi has called the toughest in the league. Murray also talks about what his new players should expect from him when training camp begins next month...

OK, here's the first part of today's interview with Terry Murray, who was gracious with his time and sat down with me for well over an hour. I tried to incorporate as many reader questions/topics as possible, but understand that the questions that were very player-specific will be better answered after the first week of training camp or so.

We'll start off general here, with Murray talking about what his first month as Kings coach has been like...

I'll be heading out soon to talk to Terry Murray. Thanks to everyone for the great questions. I've tried to compile a good cross-section of them and will get to as many as possible. Look for the answers to start popping up this afternoon. Thanks!

In celebrity news...

Rachel Hunter Engaged to Ice-Hockey Player Boyfriend

The rookie tournament, on hiatus last year because of the London trip, has returned, but not in El Segundo and not with four teams. The scaled-down version will include two games between the Kings and the Phoenix Coyotes at Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Ariz. The games will take place Tuesday, Sept. 16 (6 p.m.) and Wednesday, Sept. 17 (2 p.m.) and are free to the public for anyone who wants to make the drive out there... Rosters will be announced at a later date.

I'm expecting a sit-down interview with new Kings coach Terry Murray in the next couple days. There are some topics I want to address with him, but please suggest your own questions and I'll get him to comment on some of the more popular topics. Ask away...

The Kings have signed defenseman Drew Doughty, the No. 2 pick in June's entry draft, to a standard three-year entry-level contract. The bigger money comes from potential bonuses that also count against the salary cap. Here's the release...

...at the Gretzky trade, courtesy of longtime hockey writer Elliott Teaford, who now covers the Lakers for our paper and several others. We're glad Elliott didn't become a hood ornament on Aug. 9, 1988.

Thanks to everyone for the feedback below. If you haven't included yours yet, please do!

---------

I was on a two-week driving trip in the Pacific Northwest in August of 1988. I had been to Seattle, Mount Rainer, Yakima, the Tri-Cities, Portland and one of the beach towns on the Oregon Coast (Newport? Or maybe it was Florence). Finally, I hunkered down in Eugene for a few days without driving. I went out for an early-morning run in and around a park that hugs the river that cuts through Eugene. I went for about 90 minutes or so (back in the days when I could still run that long and that far). Went back to the hotel room and went back to sleep. Didn't look at USA Today. Didn't turn on the television. Awoke around noon. Showered (again) and walked across the street to a McDonalds for lunch. Picked up a Big Mac and grabbed a copy of the Eugene Register-Guard, which turned out to be a day old. Flipped to the sports section as I jogged across the street. Glanced at the stories above the fold. Nothing special. Flipped over the section to see what was below the fold. Gasped. The headline read: "Gretzky traded to L.A." I screamed: "Holy smokes" (or something like that). Stopped dead in my tracks in the middle of the intersection and was nearly smoked by an 18-wheeler, whose driver barely had time to slam on the brakes and avoid hitting me.

And that's how Wayne Gretzky nearly got me killed.

Elliott

I'm just practicing my lines, so I'll be prepared when everyone in the newspaper industry eventually gets laid off...

Actually, it's a serious question for you. As the NHL season gets closer, we're trying to determine the best way to cover the Kings. Please know that the Daily News strives to bring you the best-possible Kings coverage in the area. Your support of the print and online products has been greatly appreciated. As I make recommendations to my bosses, it's important for me to understand what you want. To that end, I'd like to take a little survey and see which features of the blog you find most valuable.

Here's a list of some of the things generally provided here during the season:

-- Practice reports: Updates, provided during the day, of home practices and morning skates, including injury reports, lineup changes and player, coach and management interviews.

-- Post-game reports: Reports, provided after home games, including stats and player and coach interviews.

-- Player interviews: In-depth Q&A-style interviews with current players, including reader-submitted questions.

-- Coach/management interviews: Q&A-style interviews with people such as Terry Murray, Dean Lombardi, Ron Hextall, etc., including reader-submitted questions.

-- Prospect interviews: Q&A-style interviews with players and coaches from Manchester, Ontario and (maybe) Reading about development.

-- Videos: Interviews with current players, coaches and management, on video.

-- Audio: Interviews with current players, coaches and management, on audio.

-- Open forum: Q&A-style feature in which I answer questions from readers and attempt to give insight on what's happening in the organization.

Here's the poll. Multiple answers are allowed, and I encourage you to vote for those features you find most valuable. In addition, if there are any I have left out, or if you wish to suggest some new possible features, please leave a comment with your ideas. Thanks much!

20 years later, Gretzky trade remembered for 'seismic impact'

Gretzky Trade: What happened to...

Gretzky forgives and forgets

Twenty years later, it's still a Great trade

As part of ``turn back the clock'' day, I found a story about the reaction of Kings players to the Wayne Gretzky trade. The highlight comes from Jim Fox.

''It's, uh, pretty, uh, very, very blockbustering - if that's a word. It's got to be one of the biggest trades ever, and the first thing you think is 'holy-moly.'''

Blockbustering and holy-moly, indeed. Of course, 20 years later, Jim is one of the best in the broadcasting business...

Here's the rest of the story, for those feeling nostalgic.

Twenty years ago tomorrow, a fellow by the name of Wayne Gretzky took up residence in Los Angeles. The Kings' website has done a tremendous job this week of recapping the anniversary, for those who want to relive the moment. As a journalist, it's always fun for me to look back and see how my paper covered big events at the time. I'll cut and paste the story that the Daily News ran on Aug. 10.

What are your memories of that day?

Jim Fox sent along the answer to a question that was posed a few weeks back. A special thanks to Jim, and to Bob Miller and former Kings television producer Bob Borgen, for coming out to the memorial get-together for Matt McHale last Saturday. Very much appreciated, as is Jim's volunteer work on the blog. There were so many wine questions that I thought maybe we might consider asking Jim to do a monthly wine Q&A!

----------

Provenzano said:
Hey Jim great to see you at the scrimmage today. OK if you were a particular
varietal what would it be and why? Are you a fan of central coast Rhone
wines? If yes a top five would be great! A big thank you for everything Bob
and yourself bring to this organization

Provenzano:
Took a trip to Los Olivos a couple of weeks ago...I know you asked about
Rhone varietals, but I would like to give a Top 5 list of all wines tasted
on my trip...as an FYI, I went on a "wine Country Package" and we only
visited the wineries in our package, plus a couple of tasting rooms, so my
experience may be limited in this area...of the ones I tasted:

5. Sunstone 2005 "Rapsodie du Soleil" Syrah...black cherry,
raspberry...plum nose...
4. Fess Parker 2006 "Ashley's Vineyard" Pinot Noir...dark cherry...intense
fruit...touch of menthol
3. Mosby 2005 "Ossessione" (Montepulciano)...currants...herbal
notes...balanced vanilla oak
2. Lincourt 2006 Syrah, Santa Ynez Valley...Plum, black
cherry...rich...hint of chocolate...nice balance of French oak...
1. Artiste "Attuned" (Bordeaux Blend)...great balance...dark fruit...green
pepper...sweet tobacco...touch of oak...

As I mentioned, this was a "limited" tasting, but I certainly enjoyed all of
the wines listed above...Sante!

There's a good article in today's ``Sporting News Today'' -- the new online newspaper/magazine -- by Craig Custance about Dean Lombardi and the Kings' efforts to build the team and retain young players. In the article, Lombardi talks about his desire to sign Anze Kopitar and Jack Johnson to extensions. It's definitely worth a read, but I think you need to sign up for the (free) service to read it.

Craig also did a blog item in which he talks about his conversation with Lombardi and includes this quote regarding the possibility that teams might pursue future restricted free agents such as Kopitar and Johnson.

"We're not only going to match any offer sheet, we'll have enough space to go after your guys. Go ahead and make our day. If you sign our guy, we're coming back with both barrels firing. You'd better be damn straight that you have the cap space and all your guys are signed."

I caught up with new Kings assistant coach Mark Hardy for a phone interview. Hardy had been in line to be coach of the AHL team in Rockford, Ill., but chose to join Terry Murray's staff with the Kings. Hardy spent parts of 11 seasons as a Kings defenseman and spent six seasons as a Kings assistant under Andy Murray. Here's the interview...

Here are the press releases from the Kings, regarding the hiring of Hardy, Kompon and Emerson and the dismissal of Johnston and Lewis...

Mark Hardy will rejoin the Kings as an assistant coach, the team announced today. He will join Jamie Kompon, who has been promoted to assistant coach, and Nelson Emerson, who has been promoted to assistant coach/development coordinator under new coach Terry Murray. Hardy, formerly an assistant coach under Andy Murray, spent the past two years as an assistant coach in Chicago. I heard that he had been in discussions to be an AHL coach, but Hardy's affinity for Southern California is well known. These new coaches will replace Mike Johnston and Dave Lewis, who have been let go. Johnston has been offered a job within the organization. Bill Ranford will remain as goaltending coach.

Just a few days after he signed on to be a television commentator, Marc Crawford has emerged as a finalist for the New York Islanders' head-coaching job. According to published reports, former Columbus coach Gerard Gallant is another finalist.

Former Kings assistant coach John Van Boxmeer has suffered a heart attack and is recovering in Switzerland.

Still pretty quiet on the Kings front. There's nothing substantial on this at the moment, but don't be surprised if the name of St. Louis defenseman Jay McKee emerges as a potential target for the Kings. McKee is a left-shot defenseman who is due $4 million over each of the next two seasons. This isn't to give the impression that there's anything imminent here; it's just a name right now.

In this morning's New Hampshire Union Leader, Manchester Monarchs coach Mark Morris talks about the upcoming season, including which players he thinks will stick with the Kings and what he hopes to see from his team in the upcoming season. The article mentions Brian Boyle and Teddy Purcell as two players Morris believes ``proved they belong'' in the NHL. Here's the full story...

Watching baseball, talking hockey with Monarchs coach