World Championships quarterfinals

I hate to say this, but I don't like our teams chances in the finals.
Robert Esche is a weak goalie.
I watched 4 of the 6 games thus far and he hasn't shown the abilty to make any big saves. A lot of the goals he's allowed have been soft.

Too bad, I'd love to see team USA beat the Finland.
Should be a blood bath.

BTW, guess who leads team USA in goals and points.
Patrick O'sullivan. 6 games. 4 goals and 3 assists. Tied with JJ.
The same O'Sullivan who most of you guys cited as weak and soft.
Well if you watch the highlights, 3 of his 4 goals were right in front of the net (while receiving punishment from the opposing D-Men).
-A rebound
-A deflection
-And a backhand shot (his back to the net)
The 4th goal was on a breakaway.

So much for all these weak and un-supported accusations made about his toughness. I'm sure Edmonton wiil be laughing loudly on us - very soon.

the level of game play will be elevated now, as all our roster players will be playing against better competition...

from a fan's p.o.v., it would have been nice to have this tourney start after the NHL playoffs...but i understand the reasoning behind it...

i guess one of the bigger questions will be whether or not the 2010 winter olympics is the last one the NHL will participate in...so world championships like this one might be the only opportunity for us to see matchups like this one...

as much as i like to keep the statistical integrity of the game intact, etc., i do think the league should shorten the regular season to 70 games...but for many reasons, the most important one being money, it won't happen anytime soon...

but if the NHL regular season were to be 70 games, the opportunities to have all the players compete in world competitions would be greater and many of these conflicts...like the upcoming olympic quandary...would be alleviated...

this way would increase the chances that we would be privy to see the highest level of competition at all levels of league/international play...

Just like the rest of the league.

Did someone mention that these games will be televised somewhere? I haven't had the opportunity to watch any of these online as of yet.

Good for Irish...too bad he's afraid of NHL competition...you know, where it matters.

★ ☆***PLUG RICH***★ ☆
I just got a email from the Kings for a survey, and it ask all kinds of questions. One was about improvements one the web site. You can type in what you think the site needs. With that said and us all knowing that the paper Rich works for is not exactly kicking butt lets get Rich a offer from the Kings to run the blog for the web site. I know I would go there a lot more if Rich was the Blogger. So lets show some love!!!!
if you need help where to write it in
cmbond007@msn.com

Is Kevin Dallamn still in the system?

Shortening the season would be a good idea if it were combined with contraction of the league by a few teams.

Don't know about anyone else, but I miss the amateurs playing in the Olympics. For those of you Americans who were around back then, I'm sure you remember how excited you were when USA defeated the Soviet Union, then Sweden, to win the gold medal in the 1980 Winter Olympics. I don't care what pros play for Team USA in any future Olympic Games, but no team, flat out none, will ever be as exciting as that 1980 team!

Kevin Dallman played last year in the KHL.

Another article, another laughable anthony/O'Sullivan post. Ya O'Sullivan is tearing it up right now eh anthony? Too bad when he's in the NHL he actually plays against talented players and not the all-star Latvians, Austrians, Sweedes (minus all their good players), French and Swiss....maybe one day all NHL teams will change to countries and your boy Sully can be the leading scorer in the league!!!! lol

Tantrum--agreed, the World Championships is not NHL caliber play.....Anthony have you looked over the rosters? Get over Sully already, he's gone, time to move on and stop harping.
I hope the Kings never send another player to the World Juniors because it will mean we are deep into the NHL playoffs.
So what's the opening date of the '09-'10 season?

Another favorable stat for Handzeus is: Zero whacks on his goalie's head.

Nice Sheild...nice. I saw that clip, and I think I replayed it about 20 times...too bad he didn't do that to LaBarbara ever.

In all seriousness...Anthonyy, Sully SHOULD be doing this right now, as should JJ, and Brown. The level of competition they are playing against is about as equivalent to an AHL all-star team. It's not NHL calibre competition, and to use this as a barometer of their NHL abilities isn't too smart.

World Juniors, yes, because they are playing against players who are at their same level...World Championships, never.

mrbrett7, you are so cold! I hate to see what LaBarbera would have played like if he had been smacked upside the head a few times! Then again, I wonder if he had already been...

Not only is the level of competition significantly less in the IIHF, the ice is much larger, physicality is minimized, and players like POS have room and don't have to worry about getting hit. It does not surprise me one bit to see POS doing well over there.

I'm a little disappointed in you, Rich. No mention of the nice stats Doughty has been putting up for Team Canada. Is this Canadian hockey envy? Or do you feel he's getting enough press already compared to the other Kings in the tournament? Seems like a pretty glaring omission....

If the IIHF is soooooo easy, like most of you claim, then why isn't Frolov and Brown tearing it up.

I do believe Brown is only one point behind Sully. If 7 points is "tearing it up", I don't see how 6 points isn't.

As for Frolov, the Russia team is deeper than the U.S. team. His team is undefeated.

And its not that its "soooo easy", but just that its a different type of game than the NHL.

Guys like Fro and Brown thrive in tighter checking, close quarters play like in the NHL. Guys like Sully and JJ thrive in open ice play.

Yeah...I know, that was pretty low. Maybe we should have just have hired Tonya Harding.

Universal Sports (limited availability) will televise the remaining games, including the US-Finland game at 11:15 am Wed. Some, but not all will be carried live. I know that those who have Verizon's FIOS TV will get it.

Nick Nickson and Daryl Evans will be doing play-by-play and color for all of the games probably from a studio here in LA.

Tonya Harding? Now there's a fourth-line grinder! Ha!

I'm missing Patrick on this team. The trade could haunt us, especially if Williams goes down again.

I'll tell you this, and it kind of pisses me off, you can sure bet Murray will give Williams every opportunity to succeed, which is something he DIDN'T do with Frolov and Sully.

meh, players give themselves opportunities to succeed.

Being on an NHL roster is opportunity enough.

Johnny Kick a hole,
You are absolutely right.
DL and TM are gonna try really hard to save their necks. And they're gonna do whatever they can to make sure that that Mr. Injury, Justin Williams, succeeds.
Because if he doesn't succeed and Sully thrives in Edmonton, it will most probably cost them their jobs. Who knows how much more failure AEG is gonna put up with, before heads start to roll.
So we should all expect Justin Williams play on the top line with Kopitar. We should expect Williams play about 1:30 (minutes) on the power play. And we should expect Williams to play about 25-30 minutes a game.
DL, is gonna get really desparate here. This trade better work out, or he'll return to the Philly organization as a scout (where he belongs).
Hey DL, Darian Hatcher is available too. Time to call your buddy Paul Holmgren.

If I may take a thought and run with it...

I just love the insuation that Williams was acquired so DL and Tm could go have beers with him, and that making the team better was an afterthought.

I get the impression you guys think it would be better to adjust the whole team to the style of one player instead of fitting players into a system.

Did all those games Sully played on the top line and on the PP slip your memories?

"DL and TM are gonna try really hard to save their necks. And they're gonna do whatever they can to make sure that that Mr. Injury, Justin Williams, succeeds."

As if trying to make the team better is something they should feel guilty about.

It will be interesting to see if Scott Clemmenson gets the nod against Finland. Esche has been a huge weekness for US over the past 2 years of international hockey. I'm going to stand by my statements about this team being very condusive to international style hockey....aside from our goalie woes.

JDM,
TM didn't like Sully at all. After that contract dispute he had with the almighty Lombardi, his fate was sealed. TM demoted and punished Sully as often as he could. Like he did with Stoll, Frolov, Boyle, and Purcell. Remember that 10 game stretch when Sully played on the 4th line with Peter Harrold. For something Stupid if I recall.

Face it. TM is overated. He's a weak coach. Kopitar, Boyle, Sully, Brown, Frolov all took a dump under this coach. All their point totals dropped.
The only top 5 player from last season who produced more this season was Michael Camalleri. And thats because he's playing on a team with a coach who actually knows how to coach.
For Lombardi, the only qualifications TM needed was him being in the Flyers organization.

You guys make it sound like POS has the potential to be a Crosby or Ovechkin... Give me a break, POS is a very very very very poor man's version of Camalleri.

Again, wasn't anthonyy warned by Rich to knock it off? You really couldn't last a whole two weeks?

scoring leaders thus far:

Player Country Goals Assists Points
M.St. Louis Canada 4 10 14
Jason Spezza Canada 6 4 10
Shea Weber Canada 4 6 10
Ilya Kovalchuk Russia 3 7 10
Linus Omark Sweden 2 8 10
Niko Kapanen Finland 6 3 9
Peter Cajanek Czech 4 5 9
Jaromir Jagr Czech 3 6 9
Steve Stamkos Canada 6 2 8
Dany Heatley Canada 5 3 8
Morten Green Denmark 2 6 8

omark is an interesting player/prospect who plays in the KHL for lulea HF and is NHL property of the oilers, drafted 4th round/97th overall in '07...

if you haven't seen his amazing shootout goal from earlier this season...it's a MUST...here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_X5FdpsWpg

from the "where are they now files"...ladislav nagy has resurfaced...somewhat...and scored the OT game winner for slovakia vs. norway in a game that had no significance whatsoever...

and a bit of a hockey related side note...

espn is reporting that minnesota has narrowed it down to two frontrunners for it's GM position...chuck fletcher, current assistant GM for the pens...and pierre mcquire...yes...that pierre mcquire...current t.v. boob/analyst and former pens assistant (91-92) and hartford whalers coach back in 93-94...ahhhhh...how i miss those uni's...!

i know that fletcher has a history of working w/franchises during a rebuilding mode...so perhaps that might be a indication of what minny's plans are for its immediate future...

my guess is that if mcguire gets it, the chances of gabby staying increase a tad...whereas, if fletcher does, i think it would be an indication that gabby's a goner...i don't know what pierre's view on the situation is...i do know that pierre doesn't think fighting belongs in the game...not because he doesn't like it...but because he thinks that's the main reason why the sport does not do very well in the states...(i don't happen to agree with him)...

either way, it's probable that gabby is out of minny...and maybe w/us come the summer...(?)

Hey Rich do you think you can get an explanation from Luc Robitaille about the lack of a draft party this year. Seeing as how we are picking in the top 5 and Dean loves to talk about how building through the draft is so important why would they cancel it. I think that it is a great way to keep season ticket holders focused on our team seeing as how we traditionally stop playing hockey 2 months before teams that consistantly make the playoffs. If they are not going to let us celebrate playoff victories at least let us celebrate the labors of our mediocre season.

anthony,

"TM didn't like Sully at all. After that contract dispute he had with the almighty Lombardi, his fate was sealed. TM demoted and punished Sully as often as he could."

I will agree that the fact that Sully missed training camp hurt his standing with TM. I can't agree that its because of the contract dispute itself. Lombardi, maybe a little, and I think it did have something to do with him getting traded, but also that he is the odd-man out of Brown, Frolov and Kopi. Also, Sully is who Edmonton asked for (because out of those 4, Sully is by far the cheapest, they would of had to had given up MUCH more than Cole to land Brown, Fro or Kopi).

What you see as some personal problem TM had with Sully, I see as just an unfortunate chain of events that were a result of missing camp and TM going with what he could with a group of players he barely knew. He knew nothing about Sully when the season started, but he knew a bit about everyone else, so he primarily went from there. Sully did not exactly play himself into a better role there on out. Had he played a really good, solid and consistent game (which any player can do, regardless of their linemates), I have no doubt he would have been in ebtter graces with TM from then on.

You can argue that we should have given Sully more time, that this season was hiccup in his development. What you can't do is argue that Sully played half as good as he did last season. Kopi, Brown and Fro's numbers went down, but they still played well.

The situation probably could have been handled better by both parties, but ultimately I think there were several mitigating circumstances that had nothing to do with this personal dislike you percieve.

It could be there, but it's not the only conclusion you can possibly draw from how the season and the trade turned out. You're smarter than that man, I know you are.

Your personal feeling may be as such, but I think you are really reaching to state it as some fact that those of us who like some of what TM and DL are doing are blind to.

As for his coaching, I'll give him one more season. I don't think he's the best coach, and unfortunately I think he is a 'bridge' of sorts, if I dare bring that term up again. I like his defensive system, and I expect more from the offense next year. I also blame much of our offensive woes on Kompon. He's the head you should be calling for, not Murray's.

Fact is we are most likely stuck with TM for atleast this next season and probably the next one as well. With a more Tippett-esque offensive coach, I think things would be a lot better and we would have all three zones covered sufficiently. Sadly, I fear we are stuck with Kompon as well.

Finally, there is only one shred of evidence that anyone has a problem with TM, and that was Sully complaining about line changes. That one bit of print does not outweigh the large marjority of evidence from the players and those close to them (management, staff, Rich Hammond) that they are happy and comfortable with TM.

I will throw you a bone though. I think TM has a good mind for the game, but he is a little stuck in the past. Also, he clearly can't coach stars into superstars. I think he can make Kopi a more complete player, but I think someone else is needed to thrust him into the next stratosphere I beleive he is capable of achieving.

Sorry for the rant.

I think its time to start celebrating this particular day of Mayo.

....what happens to the division/conference when Phoenix moves out?

JDM gets it.:-)

I've watched Hiller closely all year and I knew he was good, but my goodness he playing his ass off. I know he got lucky when they blow the whistle on Detroit's tying goal, but he has been stellar so far.

Take some notes J Quick, we're going to expect big things from you next year!!!

Well I'll say this ... I think the ducks deserved to get a bad call go their way after watching chelios flop TWICE to earn TWO penalties, one of which resulted in the lone wings goal.

i don't care for the ducks but... hey ... i love watching the wings lose ... oh so sweet

and lastly... i really can't get over how CLASSLESS the ducks announcers are ... i would explain but im too tire to formulate

All I have to say is I am so grateful that I get to listen to Bob & Jim rather than Doofus and Nerd. My God, I was hoping the game would be shown on Versus, because when I saw that black screen and knew I'd have to flip over to FSN and have to listen to those two clowns. Man, what homers!! It really reinforces my hatred and loathing of the Sucks. Worst of all was the injustice, the inhumanity, the visciousness of the elbow to the head. I'm not even sure how it drew blood, it looked more like when two friends are nudging each other and that elbow went up high. And you could almost hear those to butt pirates laughing when that goal was disallowed. OK, I feel a little better now. God I hate the Sucks and God I hate Hasie. Lord help me. Go Kings

Dave in Torrance,

Bob and Jim aren't homers?? I would take the duck announcers over Jim and Bob in a heartbeat. Watching Jim and Bob is like watching an old married couple, they're just so damn boring. At least the Duck announcers have life in them, discuss fighting, talk about rough stuff, actually show how the rough stuff occurred, etc. Can't talk bad about that

Any word on why Zach Parise isn't on team USA?

darko,

same goes for Rick Nash or Jarome Iginla on the Canadian team, but it's not like we need them anyways, we're stacked..

Rick Nash and Iginla are too good to play over there

khanon81...Whole heartedly disagree.

The ducks announcers, particularly Brian Hayward are extreemely biast and condescending to the opposing teams and officials on a daily basis. Their way of calling the game as fans and not journalists is as unprofessional as it gets in the industry and in no way do they do a better job than Bob Miller and Foxy. The simple fact that they neglect their responsibilty to call the game 50/50 with a maintained respect for the opposing team and the officials is a mockery of their job.

The "rough stuff" as you call it is focused on so much because the Ducks are a very physical team. But I guess your interest in the fighing and physical play more than the x's and o's says it all about your hockey knowledge. Sorry...had to take a jab. Truth is, its only a component of a game that is far more complex from the coaching angle than most fans care to understand.

As a player of over 20 years, I appreciate a commentator who focuses on the skill and strategy...not the bloodshed. Nothing compares to Foxy's always positive attitude (including when opponents make a great play), and Bob Miller's steady betty style of calling the game.

Harrold is getting some great experience over there. He will need to take that experience and boost his game a notch or two to show that he belongs in the NHL (w/Kings) for the 09/10 season.

Otherwise I am afraid that DL is using politics or playing favourites to build the Kings and hurting the team in the long run.

Cheers

On the radio side of things, Nick and Daryl also rock! They're objective, critical when they have to be, and are light years better than Steve and Brent. Does anyone remember when Daryl had to fill in and do play-by-play at the end of the season a couple seasons ago? His first game was against Anaheim, and when I realized that Nick was out and Daryl was going to call the game I immediately called my brother to have him tune in because I thought it was going to be a disaster. He actually did very well for someone who, I assume, had never done play-by-play before. He still trips over his words on occasion, but that just adds to his charm.

Russia defeats Belarus 4-3. Frolov with one goal. Belarus had a 3-1 lead in the second before Russia tied it in a furious six-goal period for the two teams.

U.S.A.-Finland next at 11:15 to determine Russia's semi-final opponent.

TB,
I totally agree on what you are saying regarding the ducksuck announcers.......THEY SUCK!! just like the team they are representing!!!

detroit wins series 4-2

watch for the Hotwings to be on FIRE

Bob and Jim are not homers, they will be the first to blast a king for screwing up. Hayward is just absolutely brutal to listen to, he has gotten a little bit better but is still 100% biased.

I must admit Bob has slowed down a little bit over the last few years. Maybe he doesnt see as well as he used to. To me it is just like it was listening to Chick Hearn (RIP), or Vin Scully now...... They all slowed down a little bit, but you will always associate that voice with their respective teams. I hope eventually their will be a Bob Miller Jersey up in the rafters just like Chick Hearn.... Ive heard Bob and Nick for that matter since as long as I can remember.

Khanon, I dont think you really believe that, I think you are just trying to stir the pot again unfortunatley. Here you go man, I researched this for you, I am sure they want you here, check it out. http://ducks.freedomblogging.com/

4thlinechecker,

Thanks for the link. I know its kind of odd, but I actually have become a Duck fan this playoff year. I find myself wanting to watch the Ducks in the playoffs almost as much as I want to watch the Kings. I'll tell you why it has gone this way for me. The Ducks are everything I would want the Kings to be. They're big, tough, gritty, great goalies, great coach, great philosophy, great D-men, great young core- Getzlaf, Perry, Ryan, Carter. Lets be real here, wouldn't you want to Kings to play like the Ducks and have a similar roster as the Ducks?

I've been to a Duck game earlier this year, and they don't have that immature south park character on the big screen trying to pump up the crowd like they do at staples. They play hard rock and roll, not the backstreet boy type of music the Kings seem to play. I am still a Kings fan, and always will, but come on, their comes a time when you just have to tip your hat off and respect what they do across the freeway.

Khanon, I can appreciate tough, hard nosed hockey. Never played, only became a fan when ESPN hit the cable market in beautiful northwest Kansas. Happened to be in 86 and have been a closet Canadiens fan since, but I digress. While I can certainly appreciate the way some of the Sucks play, I cannot, nor will not, cross the freeway. A fan is a fan, not a fair weather fan. So yes, while I can grudgingly admit I can admire SOME of what the Sucks do, I will never, EVER cop to have ANYTHING but hatred and loathing for them. Nothing will make me happier than watching them fall apart and subsuquently, out of, the playoffs. Go Kings

Dave in Torrance,

"Nothing will make me happier than watching them fall apart and subsuquently, out of, the playoffs."

I would understand you having those types of feelings towards the Ducks if they were actually a rival of the Kings. But sadly, they're not a rival for a few reasons. First, the Kings and Ducks never met in the playoffs. Second, the Ducks have been competing at such a higher level than the Kings this past decade. Sadly, the Ducks probably see the Kings as the Clippers of the NHL. Since the Ducks and Kings are not rivals, there really isn't a need to have ill will towards them.

On a slightly different note, could you imagine how much better players like Kopi, Brown, JJ, Doughty, and whoever else would be if they played on a competitive team like the ducks. You see a player like Bobby Ryan get thrown in there in his rookie year, and you know he will be a better player as a result. Its kind of sad that Ryan will probably be more mature and advanced as a hockey player as a result of his playoff experience then the Kings core put together.

Again, even if the Ducks were rivals, I would still want them to beat the wings, simply for the fact that the Ducks play the kind of hockey that is exciting to watch, they do a little of everything= they have skill, toughness, grit, guys that are willing to drop the gloves, etc. On the other hand, the wings are the worst thing that ever could have happened to hockey- they're wimpy, classless, dirty, refuse to drop the gloves, throw elbows to injured players, etc.