Beating Ducks Never Sucks


Image result for lakings hockey vs ducks
It never sucks to beat the ducks, especially for Kings fans living in Orange County.  While there is always joy in kicking ducks, even when they are down wallowing in their own mess, my elation is heavily tempered.  To quote John Smoltz, "...irregardless..." (for you Paychex) I am significantly happier than I was last week.


During last nights game, I saw better defensive coverage, fewer prime scoring chances for the other team, better breakouts, and better zone entry on the power play.  I also saw a better fore check, a willingness to cycle down low, and better finishing.  The team did not get trapped in the zone as often either.  So now, we should march through the league unscathed, right?  Hardly.

All of the positives we saw last night are directly correlated to an emaciated and struggling set of quackers.  Had the Kings struggled against them, I would have been excessively worried about this team.  They did not struggle, and that is how it should be.  If one were to believe Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports, there is no hope for the Kings.  Mr. Benjamin, being either a casual observer, and clearly not an astute student of the game, or simply too lazy to actually do his job, is way off.  I don't disagree with his ranking the team, dead last.  The Kings deserved that in every way.  His review, however, was dismissive and quite frankly ignorant.  There is hope for this team.

The real test will be the upcoming games against Minnesota and Calgary, both of whom are near the top of the Western Conference.  The Kings will need to continue to improve to compete with these teams.  Both teams will expose weaknesses, fore check effectively, and make the Kings pay for mistakes, laziness, and ineptitude.  The real sign of the turnaround, is if the Kings can turn the tables, and put the pressure on them, and test their weaknesses.  While I anxiously look forward to these tests, I will never forget that it never sucks to beat the ducks.

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