Scuderi shines

Drew Doughty gets most of the attention for being the Kings’ hotshot defenseman. He’s paired with Rob Scuderi, who’s garnering more attention as he’s shining on the big stage in the Stanley Cup Final.
“He comes from a pretty good background of winning with back-to-back Finals with Pittsburgh losing and then winning,” Kings coach Darryl Sutter said.“ He’s one of those old school, classic, comes to work every day, he’s a good pro. I think as we went along, down the stretch in the playoffs, he’s shown that even more.”

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Matchup questions for Kings

In a perfect world, the Kings want their best defensemen matched up with Ilya Kovalchuck – whom the Kings tried to sign when he was a free agent – on the ice. But Darryl Sutter isn’t overly concerned about this.

Sutter said: “Again, I think it’s based on ice time, not so much ours. You know what, he’s out there a lot. As I said, you start chasing a matchup during the game, that’s kind of a dinosaur. You start chasing it, pretty soon you’re just chasing the puck. You get guys tired or out of position. It’s like when you talk about Robby at the start, Rob Scuderi can handle that just as well as Willie Mitchell can. Slava and Drew, they’re right-handed guys that can skate and make plays. There’s not a big difference.”

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Where was Kovalchuck in Game 1?

Devils star Ilya Kovalchuck – who scored 37 goals this season – went missing in Game 1 and had just one shot in 21 minutes, 13 seconds of ice time.
New Jersey coach Peter DeBoer downplayed his team’s reliance on him.
“Yeah, you know, I think our identity is a four-line team. Kovy is a piece of that, but he’s not the team. I don’t think that’s how we’re built. I don’t think that’s why we’ve had success.
“You know, we’re capable of surviving on nights when he doesn’t score or isn’t at the top of his game, just like we’re capable of surviving nights that Elias or Parise or other guys aren’t. I think that’s the strength of our team.”

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Fashion police tag Darryl Sutter for…


Kings coach Darryl Sutter has now worn the same red, checkered shirt on Tuesday for media day, Thursday for practice and Friday for practice. Did he really pack just one shirt. Do you like it? Are you a superstitious sort? Kings won Game 1 so he has to wear it until the Kings lose? Or are you, like me, wondering if he could bring another shirt for a change of scenery already!


Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Devils coach entertains curved stick question


New Jersey Devils coach Peter DeBoer was asked Friday if he remembered the last time he called for an illegal stick check.
DeBoer said: “I actually do remember it. (laughter). Mike Richards would remember it, he was my captain in Kitchener.
“We had Corey Perry, who plays in Anaheim. We had all been together with the World Junior team. I had found, probably a little unethically by coaching him, that his stick was illegal at Christmas. We played London in the playoffs. I had Richy call Corey for an illegal stick. We actually got it. Didn’t score in the five-on-three. I think London scored shorthanded and we lost the series. It backfired. Yeah, it’s a funny story.”

Asked if he’d not called it since because it hasn’t come into play or not, DeBoer said: “Didn’t work. You know what, they changed the rule to make the bigger curves more legal since then. You know, you have to have a boomerang basically now in order to be called for that. So it’s not even an option.”

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

New York TV station doesn’t know its hockey teams, either

A New York TV station made a big mistake last night, so L.A. television stations aren’t the only ones. We all know two LA stations have used the Sacramento Kings logo and one referred to Jarret Stoll as Dustin Penner.
New York is getting in on the act, too. Head-shaking, considering New York is the top TV market in the country, and L.A. is No. 2.
A New York station had a logo of the New York ISLANDERS, instead of the New Jersey Devils. Funny, since the Islanders haven’t been to the STanley Cup Final since 1983, when it last won four consecutive titles.
To see the unbelievable error, click here.

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email