It is conceivable that following an epic comeback drubbing of the sucks on Friday night, the Penguins just may have taken advantage of our balmy weather, being nearly twenty degrees above freezing, and plentiful post sunset distractions. It is also conceivable that the Kings rose to the occasion and found the form that we all so frustratingly know exists somewhere in that locker room. The reality, as is typically the case in life, usually lies somewhere in between. Either way, Saturday night was a good one for the Kings fans that didn't sell their tickets.
Even in the second night of a back to back thousands of miles from home, the Penguins still demonstrated how dangerous they are offensively, creating some significant pressure. The good news is that the best of three very good goal tenders was on his game. I'm feeling a bit like a broken record right now. The kings, once again, have the opportunity to win thanks to superb play between the pipes. Please, don't, even for a millisecond, think about what this season would be like with mediocre goal tending. Some abysmal trenches are better left unexplored.
The brightest spot of the night, however, may not have belonged to the Kings (not really, as beating the Penguins pretty much trumps whatever else is happening). I will say that I thoroughly enjoyed the broadcast's inclusion of a lad from central Long Beach, even if he did go to Poly.
Snoop did make a significant observation that, if the Kings front office holds any wisdom, they will take heed and make steps to address. The Kings have ignored the most important areas of LA. I am convinced that a serious disconnect exists within the professional sports community in LA. The people making decisions predominantly live within a very select few neighborhoods. Having spent a little bit of time in West LA, I do know how egocentric that part of the world can be. The truth is that the West Side is not reflective of LA as a whole.
LA is far more than the West Side. One of the best examples of this is the NFL moving the San Diego Chargers into the heart of Raider Nation. The Nation is alive and strong in LA, just maybe not on the West Side. I hope the chargers enjoy only playing seven home games a year. The Dodgers are another perfect example. Three and a half million fans, every single year show up to that magnificent monument to summer, even when the Dodgers are barely competitive. In addition to the Lakers, the Dodgers, and the Raiders have found a home in the part of LA that Teams and Radio Talk show hosts like to ignore. The real LA, the grass roots fans that sit up high and go broke just to enjoy a beer while watching their team, would love to be hockey fans, if only the Kings would reach out to them.
Gone are the days when hockey was only for Canadians and North Easterners. A friend of mine was shocked when PK Suban, a black hockey player, made the cover of the latest EA sports game. I informed him that no one in hockey could really be shocked at this as PK is one of the best players in the world. Players of African descent are becoming much more prevalent. My friend might also be shocked to hear that one of the top players in the world is half Mexican. The Kings might be wise to do something the Dodgers have always done, and keep an eye on Latino talent. Matt Nieto is a Long Beach native, and both Pacciorety and Carey Price have Latino heritage. Despite the growing diversity of the NHL, advertising can only do so much, and really, how hard would it be to bring Nieto into the fold?
The number one thing the Kings need to do, is to get rinks, and affordable programs into south and east LA. Hockey is expensive, and the Learn to Play program, as good as it is, is simply a free first hit of crack to get people hooked. After their first taste, expensive doesn't even begin to describe the cost of youth hockey. Maybe they should team up with the LA84 foundation, a foundation set up with the profits from the 84 Olympics which has ceaselessly committed itself to helping the underprivileged children of Los Angeles gain exposure to sports that are traditionally white, and get hockey into the true heart of LA.
While sometimes I wish that someone in the LA media would talk about Kings hockey, I honestly don't want more fans. Actually, I wan't all of the Kings fans to go away. I want to go back to 1986 when my hockey team would get five dollar tickets and end up watching the game from the glass. It kinda looks like the team is headed that direction performance wise, and it's painfully obvious that the Kings aren't interested in the true LA.
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