LA Hockey Underground

The team seemed to play with a new defensive energy tonight.  They moved well.  They drove to the goal. Their spacing looked decent, and individuals stepped up to make plays when it counted.  That is right, I am not talking about the Kings, rather, the Lakers.  The Kings looked pedestrian, and pedestrian doesn't get things done in the NHL as their last six games would demonstrate as they were outscored 29-8.  I am tired of all the negativity.  I'm tired of seeing it online.  I'm tired of watching it.  I'm tired of seeing it in the score.  I'm tired of feeling it.  That is what we do isn't it?  As a fan of a specific team, we feel the highs and lows.  To quote the sage wisdom of Bob McKenzie, "...this isn't heaven.  This Sucks!"  If we just looked at some of the numbers, we might act like middle schoolers and just blame the goalie.  Quick's Goals Against Average is 4.55, and his save percentage is 0.845....

I am officially at a loss for words.  This is my third attempt at this installment.  Each time I attempt to address what is happening with the Kings, my words simply aren't enough.  Loosing sucks, but being embarrassed and run out of the building every night is unacceptable.  There is no explanation that can justify this team's lack of defensive attention, lack of cohesion, and inability to compete.  I will save speaking of winning for another time.  For now, the Kings are on the precipice of becoming the laughing stock of the NHL. 

Dissociative Identity Disorder...otherwise known as Multiple Personality Disorder: is a condition wherein a person's identity is fragmented into two or more distinct personality states.  People with this rare condition are often victims of sever abuse.  I may not be a doctor, or even play one on TV, but the LA Kings are definitely suffering from Dissociative Identity Disorder.  One night they look like they are ready to make a title run, and the next, they look like they spent the previous twenty four hours on a coke bender with a bunch of strippers from Montreal.  I have no actual proof of this with the exception that they just left Montreal a couple of days ago, and immediately following their win there, they looked like a bunch of chumps. Soupy had a terrible game as well, but what we are facing is far, far more serious.  Even in games where Soupy or J. Quick play out of their minds, the lack of execution in the defensive zone has already reached crit...

I love being right.  More aptly, I love being right when it involves my myopic view of the team I love, and/or its players.  While I am still waiting to get a glimpse of Vilardi doing something hockey related, I am getting an eyeful of our second round pick from 2017, Jaret Anderson-Dolan.  Despite the small sample size, I just might have been right about this young man. Like most people, I work for a living at a regular job.  Following the Kings is purely a passion.  Needless to say, I haven't been able to travel the country watching junior or college hockey, scouting young players in person.  I'm left with finding highlights posted on you tube.  This is dangerous at best, and could be equated to evaluating football players solely based on their fantasy scores.  That being said, if one is critical enough, it is possible to get at least a snap shot of what a player has to offer. When the Kings drafted JAD I had no idea who he was.  A lit...

Well That Sucked.  Apparently someone replaced the Kings gear with lead lined gear.  In addition, the new "experimental" breakout they've been working on, simply banging the puck out of the zone along the boards, has yet to be perfected.  Fine (sigh).  I will set my sarcasm aside, but really, I hope that Tuesday night was the low point of the season, at least where the skaters are concerned.  The score really should have been 7-0 as the Jets beat the Kings up one side of the ice and down the other.  I kept looking to see if LaDue had a step dad in the arena that was going to go Chuck Norris on him, it was so bad.  Though not the best part of the night, the first positive to take away from the game was that Kavalchuck scored.  Hopefully this will continue.  Three points in three games doesn't exactly remind us of Super Mario or the Great One, but in today's NHL, it aint bad, and it surely equates to earning his pay.  I know I wil...

I'm back!  Summer is officially over and our boys are back in season.  Opening night was a blast, and special thanks to my friend Dusty for the ticket.  Otherwise, I'd have been at home with the other blue collar folk that can't afford to buy tickets on a regular basis (#teachersalary).  Regardless of the imperfect outcome, the start of the Kings season was in many ways a success, and in my occasionally humble opinion, we have a lot to be both proud of, and to look forward too. For starters, our big guns look ready to go.  Kopi established his punishing presence early.  Just as a guppy defensemen was lining up to plow him into the boards, with a sudden stop Kopi, in a move that gave new meaning to the words, "Shock and Awe" violently thrusted his shoulder backwards into the oncoming defenseman that was suddenly in pain and reeling backwards.  The message was clear, come into my space, and there will be a price to pay.  Later, Kopi continued hi...