The Potential Is There
The Potential Is There
On Thursday night the Kings faced a Columbus team that is fighting for a playoff spot in the hotly contested Metropolitan division with a scant 17 points separating the top from the bottom. The Blue Jackets came out firing, and the Kings came out ready for a nap. For twenty minutes, we watched the good guys in the black jerseys chase the visitors around the defensive zone. Breakout after breakout was a complete disaster. I was a bit disheartened as this has been a major problem since the holidays.
Luckily, the fans got to see a different team come out for the second period. The Kings were flying, denying space and creating turnovers. Then, a role player, a new to our team role player stepped up. Thompson unleashed a wicked shot over the pad and rang it off the post. The Kings were back in the game. Later, Iafallo and Pearson responded with tip ins. A grim night was starting to look bright. The good guys were up 3-2. While the boys in black stole time and space for the most part, they still needed Quicky to be on his game, and he also responded from a less than stellar first period to send the Blue Jackets back to the locker room dismayed.
The third period got even better as Carter once again demonstrated his speed and scoring touch with a lethal backhand. A few minutes later, Iafallo drove hard into the zone. Brown drove hard as usual which opened up space for Iafallo to pick up a deflected pass and walk right into the low slot unmolested. He shelved it like a grocery store box boy.
Soon there after, the beating ended and the Kings had more than a few players to thank. Christian Folin stacked three assists on top of a stellar defensive performance. Iafallo who, for most of the season, seems cursed to grind in the corners while Brown and Kopitar light the lamp walked away with two. Pearson who spends so much time in front of the crease, that I think his junk mail gets delivered there, picked up a goal followed later by his line mate Carter. And, once again, possibly the most pivotal goal came from the bottom two lines with Thomson's goal early in the second.
We now know that the Kings have the ability to shrink time and space on the opponent, to make good passes and decisions in their breakout, and create scoring chances while doing so. With the top two lines producing, and the bottom two making legitimate contributions, the fourth line often holding possession and cycling better than the rest of the team, the Kings are sending the NHL a message that they have every intent on contending for the cup.
On Thursday night the Kings faced a Columbus team that is fighting for a playoff spot in the hotly contested Metropolitan division with a scant 17 points separating the top from the bottom. The Blue Jackets came out firing, and the Kings came out ready for a nap. For twenty minutes, we watched the good guys in the black jerseys chase the visitors around the defensive zone. Breakout after breakout was a complete disaster. I was a bit disheartened as this has been a major problem since the holidays.
Luckily, the fans got to see a different team come out for the second period. The Kings were flying, denying space and creating turnovers. Then, a role player, a new to our team role player stepped up. Thompson unleashed a wicked shot over the pad and rang it off the post. The Kings were back in the game. Later, Iafallo and Pearson responded with tip ins. A grim night was starting to look bright. The good guys were up 3-2. While the boys in black stole time and space for the most part, they still needed Quicky to be on his game, and he also responded from a less than stellar first period to send the Blue Jackets back to the locker room dismayed.
The third period got even better as Carter once again demonstrated his speed and scoring touch with a lethal backhand. A few minutes later, Iafallo drove hard into the zone. Brown drove hard as usual which opened up space for Iafallo to pick up a deflected pass and walk right into the low slot unmolested. He shelved it like a grocery store box boy.
Soon there after, the beating ended and the Kings had more than a few players to thank. Christian Folin stacked three assists on top of a stellar defensive performance. Iafallo who, for most of the season, seems cursed to grind in the corners while Brown and Kopitar light the lamp walked away with two. Pearson who spends so much time in front of the crease, that I think his junk mail gets delivered there, picked up a goal followed later by his line mate Carter. And, once again, possibly the most pivotal goal came from the bottom two lines with Thomson's goal early in the second.
We now know that the Kings have the ability to shrink time and space on the opponent, to make good passes and decisions in their breakout, and create scoring chances while doing so. With the top two lines producing, and the bottom two making legitimate contributions, the fourth line often holding possession and cycling better than the rest of the team, the Kings are sending the NHL a message that they have every intent on contending for the cup.
Comments
Post a Comment