The St. Louis Blues enjoy winning in dramatic fashion. Tonight’s game was a stronger effort for the LA Kings, but they still found themselves coming up short at the end of the night.

» Continue reading “Kings Lose Second Straight Playoff Game”

Ah, internet memes.  For those of you who are unfamiliar, the expression “Ehrmagerd!” has its roots here. What better way to celebrate Wednesdays than with a little derp?

Dustin Brown of the Los Angeles Kings gets us off to a rollicking start. Silly, Dustin. You can’t play hockey and fly at the same time.

» Continue reading “Hump Day Hockey Cards: Ermahgerd! Hurkee Curds!”

After 45 years of futility, a new team will be inscribed on the Cup. The Los Angeles Kings completed their improbable journey tonight, winning over the New Jersey Devils and hoisting the Stanley Cup for the first time ever.

Unfortunately, this game probably won’t be remembered so much for the Kings finally finishing off an amazing, historical run — but for Steve Bernier delivering this hit on Rob Scuderi.

The resulting five-minute power play from this disturbing hit resulted in three goals for the Kings. Gee, maybe now that a terrible boarding has resulted in a team losing the Stanley Cup, maybe players will stop doing it.

Jeff Carter scored the second goal in the five-minute power play and then increased the lead to 4-0 early in the second period. Adam Henrique then put the Devils on the board with 1:13 left in the second. Two quick goals later in the third, and the Kings were up 6-1, which would be the final score.

Not surprisingly, Jonathan Quick was named the Conn Smythe winner as MVP of the playoffs.

Congratulations to Captain Dustin Brown and the rest of the Kings! Now maybe the Los Angeles sports media will finally get your names and logos right.

For all of your Los Angeles Kings needs, please visit The Kings and I here on Aerys Sports!

In just a few days from now, the Los Angeles Kings and the New Jersey Devils will play for the most coveted trophy in hockey, the Stanley Cup.

We are in for an entertaining series because we have two caliber goalies involved in the finals. Brodeur, who is at the end of his career, and Quick, who could break the records that Brodeur holds with the talent he’s shown so far.

The reason why I’m pointing out the goalies and the numbers is because as a pitcher I stress the earn run average that goes on record for every pitcher in baseball and with the goalies its about the goals against average.

Steven Stamkos scored 60 goals but the tampa bay lightning missed the playoffs. Why? Because the Lightning had given up the most goals against with 281. the lightning finished over 500 but they still had a worse goals against number than the columbus blue jackets who only won 29 games to the lightning’s 38 wins. these numbers make me cringe as a fan because of my pitcher instinct about ERA numbers.

With that, I will breakdown the numbers between Jonathan Quick and Martin Brodeur.
Quick has a goals against average of 1.54 with a save percentage of .946 and 12 wins during the playoffs and they are all the best among goalies during the playoffs but on the other side is future hall of famer martin Brodeur who basically has every goalie record there is.

Brodeur’s numbers is similar to Quick’s during the playoffs with a goals against average of 2.04, save percentage of .923 and he also have 12 wins but Brodeur has been doing this type of thing for the devils since 1993.

What it all comes down to it is this: Jonathan Quick’s numbers vs. Martin brodeur’s experience. Which will win out?

Add in guys like Zach Parise, Ilya Kovalchuk, Patrik Elias and Adam Henrique for the devils and Anze Kopitar, Jeff Carter, Dustin Brown, Dustin Penner and Mike Richards for the kings, this will be one fun finale for the NHL this year. We can only hope that we will have one next year and not head for a lockout with the CBA coming up for negotiations this summer.

It looks like the League was facing a conundrum. On the one hand, they desperately want a New York-LA Finals. On the other hand, once they saw that the Kings wouldn’t sweep the Coyotes, they knew that they would make mad scrilla if they could hold another game at Staples (especially with both basketball teams ignominiously eliminated (go Thunder!)). This is my best explanation for why the Coyotes got 3 penalties in the first period of game 5.*

*On a side note, this is pretty good proof that the guy in charge of NHL conspiracies doesn’t pay much attention to stats, since anyone who spent 20 seconds looking at them would realize the Kings actually score MORE on the PK.

That, or the weirdly lazy way the Kings kept getting caught out of position, allowing multiple odd man rushes and being forced to commit penalties to make up for it. It’s only through the grace of, you guessed it, Jonny Quick that the Kings weren’t losing worst after the first.
» Continue reading “Coyotes Eliminated”

I mentioned last ‘Yotes roundup that I hoped Shane Doan would not be suspended (and indeed he was not, as Shanahan correctly interpreted the evidence before him), but he has made a ruling on Martin Hanzal’s boarding of Dustin Brown.

Can’t really argue with that. Even though Brown wasn’t hurt, it was a nasty board on a defenseless player. In fact, it was Hanzal’s lack of history that kept him from getting more games.

But this is a shame for Phoenix, because though Hanzal hasn’t exactly been a scoring machine (3-2-5 in 10GP), he did score the series game-winner against Nashville and the Coyotes need all the help they can get. Down 2-0 headed to LA, things are do not bode well for the Desert Dogs.

 

Dear Hockey Gods.

 

Hello.

 

I am here on behalf of my team the Vancouver Canucks and I am here to ask and ask politely for you to give us our game back (namely our offense and our defense and last but not least, dear Daniel Sedin.).

Thanks.

 

Now let’s get to the game.

 

Lining Up – Fun Facts

• With the loss of Byron Bitz, Coach Vigneault went ahead and made some more changes to the lineups last night. This time around, Jannik Hansen would play on the first line in place of Mason Raymond. Mason Raymond would in turn play on the third line alongside Samuel Pahlsson and Maxim Lapierre.
• Also, the Amex line was reunited (Ryan Kesler, David Booth, Chris Higgins), much to the delight of fans.
• And also to the delight of fans; the regular D-partners of Kevin Bieksa and Dan Hamhuis and Alex Edler and Sami Salo were re-united. The final D-pairing also saw Keith Ballard back to the line-up. He would play alongside Chris Tanev. Welcome back Keith Ballard!

 

The Fun Facts of the First, the Second and the Third Period

• In which Rogers Arena is filled with chants of ‘Go Canucks Go’ when the puck hasn’t even dropped yet.
• But anyways: the First Period consisted of 1 goal, 3 penalties, 21 shots on net, some LUUing and a Green Men sighting.
• LUUUUU- You get the point.
• Speaking of points, there was only 1(2) points in the first period of Game 2 and that was Kings Captain Dustin Brown’s shorthanded goal with assistance from teammate Mr. Kopitar.
• The Second Period on the other hand, consisted of 2 goals, 2 penalties, more LUUUing and 21 shots on net.
• Jannik Hansen and Dustin Brown would exchange another set of goals, that unfortunately put LA in the lead yet again with a score of 2-1.
• And the Third and Final Period consisted of more LUUUUUUs, 3 goals, 10 penalties (ugh) and 32 shots on net.
• The Nucks and the Kings also had a bit of a scrum with a good 7 minutes left in the period. Vancouver’s resident Dane nearly got himself into a fight and for that received a double minor and a 10 minute misconduct.
• LA would then score 2 more goals, in which Vancouver responded to with 1, courtesy of Samuel Pahlsson.

 

The LA Kings would go on to win the game and now lead the series 2-0.

 

Game 3 will take place in LA, tomorrow at 7:30 pm, Pacific Standard Time and I will see you all then!

Welcome to the Stanley Cup Playoffs 2012.

Welcome to the place where dreams are made, dreams are broken and where we the fans will see history go down.

Welcome to Finding Stanley Round 1; Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarter Finals; in which the Vancouver Canucks (1^st in the Conference) go up against the Los Angeles Kings (8^th in the Conference).

Let’s get started!

Lining Up – Fun Facts

• Today’s line ups saw Mason Raymond back to the lineup. He would play on the 1^st line alongside Captain Hank and Alex Dragon Slayer.  The second line would remain the same, as well as the third. The fourth line, however; consisted of Manny Malhotra, Zack Kassian and Byron Bitz. Marc Andre Gragnani, Daniel Sedin, Andrew Ebbett, Dale Weise and Andrew Alberts were all scratched, some due to injuries and others simply as healthy scratches.
• Our d pairings would remain the same as they did against the Edmonton Oilers and in goal last night was our regular starter Roberto Luongo!
• The Green Men were also seen in Rogers Arena tonight, seated in their usual place next to the opponent’s penalty box. Their sign tonight? ‘This run is for Rypper’ in honor of late Canuck Rick Rypien.

 

 Fun Facts of the First, Second and the Third Period

• The First Period saw 2 goals, 6 penalties, 19 shots on net and plenty of LUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUing.
• The first goal of the night and of the series went to Alex Burrows, who turned 31 yesterday. What a way to spend your birthday! Congratulations Alex and Happy Birthday!!
• LUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUuuu.
• There were plenty of those throughout the night, but not as much as there was during the first period. LUUUUUU would echo throughout Rogers Arena plenty of times over the course of the first 10 minutes.
• There were also plenty of good chances for us to score and lengthen our lead, but unfortunately the puck did not hit the back of the net. It was a very good try on the part of  Messers Booth, Kesler, Raymond and Burrows though.
• The second goal of the night went to Mike Richards and the LA Kings on the powerplay. The score would then be 1-1.
• The Second Period would see 2 more goals, 5 penalties, a post and 24 more shots on net.
• Former Canuck Willie Mitchell would score a power play goal for the LA Kings, making the score 2-1.
• However, their lead was short lived as Alex ‘Eagle’ Edler slipped one past Jonathan Quick, tying the game once more.
• And the post decided it was our friend tonight as a shot of an LA King somehow richoched off said post and out.
• The 3^rd and Final Period contained 2 goals, 2 penalties and 22 shots total.
• Dustin Penner would score for the Kings, as well as Kings Captain Dustin Brown, who would score an empty netter which would also serve as the game winning goal.
• The final score would be 4-2 in favour of the Kings.

 

And thus game 1 goes to the LA Kings.

 

Congratulations LA, we’ll see you in Rogers Arena on Friday for Game 2.

 

Welcome to the Stanley Cup Playoffs 2012.

 

Welcome to the place where dreams are made, dreams are broken and where we the fans will see history go down.

 

Good Luck everybody.

 

Have fun.

 

And may the odds be ever in your favour.

Last night while there may have been 14 games on the schedule, one game stood out more than the rest. While many of you were probably already sleeping (if you’re on the East coast), the San Jose Sharks took on the LA Kings in what was undoubtedly a playoff atmosphere. The tempo of this game was absolutely ridiculous with both the Kings ans Sharks sealing playoff positions by the drop of the puck due to the Avalanche and Ducks losing.  The Kings fought hard, showering Antti Niemi with 18 shots to the Sharks 3 in the first period, Niemi all but standing on his head to make saves.  To really get the ball rolling Jumbo Joe Thornton hammered left handed fisticuffs to Kings Drew Doughty, which was followed shortly after by a bout with Ryane Clowe and Matt Greene.  Throughout much of the first period the Sharks were shorthanded, with the referees dishing out obscene amounts of penalties, definitely gearing up for the playoffs.  Coming out of the first period the Sharks and Kings were tied at one goal a piece.

The second period proved to be just as exciting as the first with both teams prepared for battle. Through the first eight minutes the two battled back and forth, but it would be LA who would one-up the Sharks as Jarret Stoll wristed a power play goal of of a roughing penalty served by Winnick.  A few minutes later Dustin Brown added another tally to their column, providing the Kings with a 3-1 lead over San Jose. The Sharks, unhappy with this result fought until the last whistle of the period, cutting the lead to one goal with just 27 seconds remaining in the period.  If they stood a chance they were going to have to prepare to come strong right from the get go and finish the Kings off.

To get the ball rolling Ryane Clowe waltzed right into the zone off of a rebound and shot it right past Quick to tie the game at three a piece.  To the Sharks advantage their power play was on point for the night as they capitalized twice in the third period, giving them a 5-4 lead, their first lead of the game. With just under four minutes remaining in the third Kings Justin William would capitalize on a power play goal and send the game into sudden death overtime. The teams combined for seven power-play goals, three fights and at least one bizarre play when Ryane Clowe reached over the bench with his stick and touched the puck while L.A.’s Jarret Stollwas carrying it up ice. Clowe and Joe Thornton each recorded a Gordie Howe hat trick – a goal, an assist and a fight, but it was the third-period play by Clowe from the bench that stands out to everyone.

When asked about it Clowe said:

“I have no idea what you guys are talking about. I’ll have to see the video or something. Someone show me the video.”(via NHL Recap)

Stoll, who slammed his stick on the ice after the fact in frustration, a minor reaction at most compared to what he could have done, was more calm post-game stating

“I have no idea what to say on that. It’s something that I don’t think any of us can see much of. You don’t see that play happen a lot. I’m sure Clowe will say afterwards that he didn’t know what he was thinking, either. It’s just one of those plays. You hope they see it, and they didn’t. What can you do? Move on. We’ve gotten some calls this year that maybe we shouldn’t have gotten, and maybe it evens it up.”

In the shoot out it would come down to Joe Pavelski as he carried the puck in against Quick with speed, went forehand, backhand and then top shelf to notch the only goal scored, providing the Sharks with a win and point, placing them as the seventh seed in the playoffs, just one point ahead of the Phoenix Coyotes.  They are set to finish their regular season against the Kings on Saturday night, perhaps a bitter rematch is in store?

 

FINALLY! The Kings get productivity from all facets of their offense, in a 5-2 victory against the Washington Capitals. 11 of the 20 suited Kings were involved in the scoring Monday night at the Staples Center.

Marcus Johansson scored on the Capitals first shot of the night just 1:34 into the 1st, but the Kings Kyle Clifford responded 10 minutes later tying the game with a backhand off the pads of Tomas Vokoun. Then with just seconds to go in the 1st Period, Anze Kopitar strips the puck from the Caps defensemen and dishes the puck to Dustin Brown. Brown slides it back to Kopitar for the redirect right into the back of the net!

The scoring doesn’t stop there, fans; it continues right on into the 2nd Period with Jack Johnson capitalizing on a 3-1 advantage and caps it off by Tebowing, which I believe will become a very popular celly throughout the second half of the season.

Breaking up the scoring, Willie Mitchell tussled with Jason Chimera after what appeared to be a legal check — but honestly, what’s a good hockey game with out a fight?

Later on in the period another forced turnover by Mike Richards allows Dustin Penner to use his size to get the puck on net so that line mate Jarret Stoll can come and put the Kings up 4-1. Tonight, turnovers were the difference maker in the outcome of the game. Big time leaders like Richards and Kopitar went the extra mile on defense and it paid off.

After tonight’s win the Kings go 2 points ahead of the Dallas Stars in the Pacific Division, making Thursday’s game against the Stars that much more important. The scoring needs to continue to come not just from the 1st and 2nd liners, but the 3rd and 4th liners as well, as was shown tonight against the Capitals.

Lastly, congrats to Clifford on his first career 2 point game. A great game it most definitely was for Clifford and his teammates!