Key to success?
Sometimes stats are meaningful, other times they're just numbers. But there seems to be a trend developing with these Kings, involving early leads. The Kings have a 5-1 record this season when leading after one period and a 1-5-2 record when either tied or trailing after one period. Part of that is obvious. A team's chances of winning a game when it leads after 20 minutes are obviously higher. Perhaps there's something more to it for the Kings though, given that they have a young roster that might feel comfortable playing with the lead. I asked team captain Dustin Brown about it...
BROWN: ``It's hard to say, really. Obviously it's a lot easier to play with the lead, as opposed to trying to come back, which we had to do a lot last year. We would get in early penalty trouble or give up an early goal and have to battle back. When we get the first goal, we seem to have a little more confidence in our game and stick to the game plan a little more.''
Looking at the numbers, the first period could be important again tonight. The Stars are 4-0 when leading after the first period and 1-7-2 when tied or trailing after the first period.
3 Comments
Leave a comment
About the bloggers
J.P. Hoornstra writes about NHL and IHL hockey for the Los Angeles Newspaper Group. He welcomes any and all dialogue on the finer points of hockey.
E-mail J.P. at jp.hoornstra@inlandnewspapers.com.
Jill Painter joined the Daily News in 2000 and during the last eight years she's covered the Dodgers, Cal State Northridge, UCLA, Kings, golf and everything in between. Even though she's from Colorado, she still freezes in the Staples Center press box but always manages to thaw her fingers in time to make deadline. E-mail Jill at jill.painter@dailynews
.com.
Vincent Bonsignore is a sports columnist for the Los Angeles Daily News. E-mail Vinny at vincent.bonsignore
@dailynews.com.
Copyright Notice |
Privacy Policy |
Information |
Subscriber Services |
Site Map |
RSS 
MNG Corporate Site Map | Newspaper Media Kit
MNG Corporate Site Map | Newspaper Media Kit
| For more local Southern California News: | Copyright ©2011 |
| Los Angeles Newspaper Group |
I dunno, seems like if both teams have the same tendency regarding the 1st period that it cancels out each other.
In other words, being tied or behind after the first period really doesn't matter with these two teams.
Make sense?
Rich,
Did you make it through the great ShakeOut without any major trama this morning?
One thing I've noticed over the past few seasons with the Kings is their tendency to give up a quick goal to the other team 10 minutes or less into the first period. Sometimes within the first 2-3 minutes. That's due to lack of discipline and preparedness. Then you find yourself constantly playing "catch-up." This also can be exacerbated by them going down 2 goals to zip on occasion. To pull back from that takes a lot of energy and emotion. And sometimes by the third period you've run out of gas or stupid penalties have you spending too much time in the box playing 5 on 4 hockey.
This tendency also puts tremendous pressure on the Kings' goalies, who must save the backside of their team with fabulous stops while, concurrently, the skaters in front of him try to reverse the score. We all agree that the plethora of Kings goalies over the past few seasons just weren't up to the task. That's why - so far - Ersberg the Iceberg has been paying dividends. He has given up few soft goals, doesn't get rattled easily - if at all - and remains calm under fire. That translates well to his teammates, who seem to play a better D game around him. When a goalie gives his team a legitimate chance to win, the dynamic is completely different. Time will tell. So far, so good.
It seems this year that tendency to allow a quick first goal to the other team has been at a minimum for the Kings. It's happened, just not as much. Now that I've said that, have probably jinxed them for tonight's game vs Stars.
Oh well.