Post-game notes

This loss really hurts.
And so does watching our top line.
To me, Anze Kopitar is a great player.
Dustin Brown is a great player.
We're very luck to have them both on our team.
However, Kyle Calder makes these two great players into average players. Maybe even below average players.
They've played about 14 games together and Ive never seen this line score a goal.
Kopi and Brown score sometimes score when Calder is not with them. Generally when they're on a PP or when POS is playing with them.
I don't think there's another coach out there in the NHL that would make the same mistake that this 58 year experienced coach is making.

Now I'm not saying this to piss any of you guys off. Kopi & Brown are two of my favorite players. And it pains me to watch Calder bring them dowm. Even ruining them.

Anze Kopitar should be sitting in the press box for a few games and review video footage of his multiple shanks point blank with an open net in front of him.

How many wide open nets has Kopitar missed already this season? Calder is the least of my worries on this team. The 1st line center, who should be using his size and creating plays for his line mates, is my biggest concern right now.

I dunno whats wrong with him but if Terry Murry is doing anything wrong it's continuing to give Kopitar major time on the ice. In the last 30-40 seconds I was hoping someone other than Kopitar would be on the ice because he's just not the same man child we're used to seeing. And before anyone jumps up and says that benching him would kill his confidence remember that 1 he's not playing with much confidence right now anyway and in fact sitting him would actually push him to snap out of his funk.

Easy now, ModrysGhost. Your point is clear, but you don't need to scratch Kopi as a first step. That's too harsh. Cutting his ice-time in half would send just as strong of a signal, but still give hime 10 minutes a game to do something about it.

I agree. It's been really frustrating watching Kopitar miss the puck when the pass is made and the net is wide open. He's also been knocked off the puck too easily and he isn't skating with as much determination. It looks like he's just watching the game and taking whatever comes his way. Murray should bench him for a game or two, to light a fire under him.

Calder is weighing this team down. LaBarbera is a backup. It can't be made anymore clear. But I guess Ersberg isn't going to run away with it, either... Very frustrating loss. Kings outplayed them except for 10 minutes.

Boy Jill, you sure saw a lot of good things after an ugly game. On another note, Blake has 5 goals and 15 assists with SJ. And we just let him walk...

I'd love to see Kopi scratched too, just to show all the "haters" just how crap the Kings would be without him. Teams know Doughty is good, now, and he's getting shut down more. Kopi and Fro are controlling games for this team and without them, we'd be lost. O'Sullivan has not looked anything like he did in the first 4 games of the season. If anyone should see the game from the Press box, it's him. He's on his own page out there.

With 6:14 left in the second Antropov put a textbook check on Greene's back on a dump-in. I'd love for a good I.T. person to put it on youtube so we could send it to the league to show why Zeiler's hit was not even a penalty the way the rules are written. That rule needs to be changed, though. It's too dangerous.

Losing is frustrating but it was a great hockey game and good to see Toronto also looking better and more organized. Lots of promising young players. As long as we're in games its hard to be too upset.

If there has been anything evident about Kopitar this season, it is that Sully makes him alot more productive.For the betterment of this team Murray needs to put them together.Our goals for are too low to keep them apart.Everyone is asking whats the matter with Kopi?The answer my friends is O'Sullivan on his wing!

"What's the matter with Kopitar?" The best analysis of this, which I think I mentioned previously, was on the Battle of California blog: the blogger pointed out that Brown is carrying the puck more and this is throwing off the Brown/Kopitar equilibrium. This makes a lot of sense to me; so I will argue against the grain, in favor of splitting up Brown and Kopitar. (p.s. he should have buried that pass from Brown last night, but there's not really anything you can do about it; he's gripping his stick too tight right now, that's all.)

If you're going to split up Brown and Kopitar, then what does that do to your forward lines?

Frolov/Kopitar/Moller
POS/Handzus/Brown
Calder/Stoll/Richardson
Zeiler/Armstrong/Simmonds

not bad, eh?

Frolov/Kopitar/Moller
POS/Handzus/Brown
Calder/Stoll/Richardson
Zeiler/Armstrong/Simmonds
not bad, eh?

That 4th line is too weak and unprepared. Way too weak.
Moller isn't really earning his place in the top 6 lately.
The 3rd line isn't bad, but I'd rather see Simmonds instead of Richardson because of his agitating qualities.
Boyle should come back and get some decent minutes on a decent line - Let Zeiler (if we must), Boyle, Armstrong, Ivanans, Richardson, and Moller play the press box merry go round and keep them hungry (unless moller comes back to life on his own, then keep playing him).

You say Moller isn't earning his top six minutes lately? I guess you're basing that on scoring -- which is obviously important -- but it's not the only yardstick. I think he's more than earned his minutes. He's playing probably the best defensive game of any of the forwards on the top two lines, and he's back-checking his ass off. What else? He's not shy about shooting or hitting. He's tenacious on/with the puck. Coaches talk a lot to players about how to play when they're not scoring as much as they would like to; Moller is playing just about perfectly under those conditions.

And there are all sorts of reasons that Kopitar might click with Frolov and Moller. They're all good passers. They're all tenacious. A good blend of size and speed. I could go on.

Zeiler: we don't really know what Zeiler is yet, this year. I'm not lobbying for him, just that he should be given a chance to be the much-needed fourth line agitator (and also that I think the Kings are a better team with him in the line-up instead of Ivanans).

Boyle ain't coming back till he learns to play a complete game and then proves it by playing for the Kings in a checking role. It's not a matter of just "putting him on a decent line." The center position at the NHL level has immense defensive demands.

I disagree with you about the fourth line. Zeiler is a good fourth line option. Simmonds we know is defensively solid as well as intimidating. Armstrong is perfectly serviceable as a fourth line center, not to mention experienced. So I don't see a problem. It's a better line than Ivanans/Boyle/Armstrong etc..

Obviously, I was working with the players currently up with the team. I think a better solution would be to bring up Purcell and Lewis, and then do this:

Frolov/Kopitar/Moller
POS/Handzus/Brown
Lewis/Stoll/Purcell
Zeiler/Richardson/Simmonds

Moller is playing wing. He of course needs to cover for the center at times but his defensive role should be above the circles making sure the puck clears and that the defenseman is covered. If you're top 6, I think you need to be scoring. That's why I want Boyle tried out on a good offensive line. We never asked Frolov to be a great 4th line guy, or Kopitar. There's reason. They've got skills that are rare. I want to know if Boyle has those skill in this league or not. I don't care if he's good enough for the 4th line, 4th liners are a dime a dozen.
You make a good point that Simmonds is playing his role well. I agree. If Moller is playing a good defensive game, why not on the 4th line? Why don't we take the position of getting consistent scoring and moving the guys who are capable of scoring, but playing good defense, onto the 3rd and 4th lines? Would it be a bad thing if Boyle could score 60 points this year on the top 2 lines while Moller and Simmonds played on the 4th line?
Boyle needs to learn to use his size to his advantage for hockey, not to be mean. I'm hoping for Rick Nash or Joe Thornton, not Andre Roy or Raitis Ivanans. Sorry Ivan, that was insulting.
Moller/Kopitar/Brown
Frolov/Boyle/O'Sullivan
Armstrong/Handzus/Ivan-Richardson
Calder/Stoll/Moller

I don't think your's are bad, I just think something like this would be more balanced and lose nothing on the defensive end at all.