***Minnesota Wild vs. Los Angeles Kings GDT 4/15/24 >>>6:30pm<<< on ESPN***

[jom]

It looks like the Kings won't be playing VAN in the first round. So we are stuck with EDM or DAL. Both look like early exits to me.....

jom

 

[MiketheKing]

It looks like the Kings won't be playing VAN in the first round. So we are stuck with EDM or DAL. Both look like early exits to me.....

jom

Well, do you believe in miracles?

 

[Halfwall]

It looks like the Kings won't be playing VAN in the first round. So we are stuck with EDM or DAL. Both look like early exits to me.....

jom

Is that ironclad? If Van wins both and Dallas loses to St. Louis they would have identical records but Van with more ROW. Of course the KIngs have to lose to Chicago with Vegas winning one of two. I think after a quick glance.

 

[orpheus]

A vulgar display of mediocrity.

 

[jom]

Is that ironclad? If Van wins both and Dallas loses to St. Louis they would have identical records but Van with more ROW. Of course the KIngs have to lose to Chicago with Vegas winning one of two. I think after a quick glance.

Yeah, I might have missed that. I was looking more at NSH and their record. I had assumed that DAL was going to be the top team in the West....

As to playing VAN I'm not sure that's much of a help either. I just don't like how the Kings are playing...but who knows. Things change in the playoffs.

To be honest I WANT to play EDM....because I'd love to kick their ass.

jom

 

[Tiranga]

I don't remember, but was the sentiment in the 2012-13 season the same this close to the playoffs?

 

[Pevsfreedom]

..after the game, the Kings will follow up by explaining that Santa Claus doesn't really exist.

say what now?

 

[Dr. Tran]

I never want to say the Kings have no chance in the playoffs. But I've never been this unsure about them winning a round no matter who they play. I guess we have a better chance against Vancouver but it's highly unlikely that we meet. Between Dallas & Edmonton we probably have a better chance against the Oilers. But enough to beat them? I don't know. The Kings were supposed to build a team hat could beat the Oilers. Not only does it not look like that but I think the Oilers are better this year than the last 2 years. At least they're deeper.

What's really making me doubt how the Kings are going to do is how we're playing right now. This wasn't a meaningless game. You have to be playing well going into the playoffs & the Kings aren't. They're 5-5 in their last 10. This game & the 1st Anaheim game are games the Kings didn't show up in. It's kind of depressing.

 

[LAKingSteve]

Kings have 3rd easiest schedule remaining (Minn/Chi)
Vegas has easiest schedule remaining (Chi/Ana)

We lose tonight and could very easily see us ending up as WC2 facing Dallas in the first round.

Pick your poison I guess.

One step closer to Dallas. This team is too predictable.

 

[fake_it_make_it]

Poopy game and poopy outcome. I swear this game made me think it's all some plan to get Vancouver if we tie with Nashville.

Problem is we have worse stats than Nashville.

 

[Rog or Reg?]

A few observations from tonight's game...

...first a big shout out to LAKingSteve for the parking tip. The lot on Hope and 11th was perfect: Safe, secure, close to the arena and reasonably priced. And thanks to Susan for the tip on the lot on Blaine, but Blaine doesn't work for me since I don't take the freeway (I come in from Glendale/2nd Street).

As for the game...sigh...the Kings passing was abysmal all night long. It was actually pretty funny...they simply could not connect on one meaningful pass. My buddy had never been to an NHL game, but as a young man he played hockey in SoCal at all the usual places...Pickwick, Culver, Laurel, et al...and he said "The Kings looked disconnected...like a bunch of strangers on the ice playing together for the first time. "Spot-on.

And I know I sound like a broken record, but the Kings are not going anywhere until we get bigger. We got pushed around, again, and we lost almost every puck battle on the boards and one-on-one. Pathetic.

Kaprizov was by far the best player on the ice. And it wasn't even close. His skill level is far beyond any player on the Kings team.

The Kings should not be remotely concerned who they play first in the playoffs. I'm tired of hearing about it. There is no hiding in the playoffs. To keep advancing, you have to play the best teams at some point. The only thing the Kings need to concentrate on is the wild inconsistency of their game.

In my opinion, this schizophrenic group needs a complete rebuild. Tear it down and start over from scratch, from top to bottom. Kick Blake to the curb and hire a new coach and put some of the older Kings out to pasture. As much as I hate the thought of beginning yet another rebuild, the Blake experiment has failed. This team is a mess.

If the Kings win one game in the first round I will be shocked. I just don't see any fight in this team. Sometimes they look like they'd rather be anywhere else but out on the ice....the golf course, the beach, a club...their heads don't seem to be on the task at hand. I don't blame the coaching staff, this is on the players.

And finally I am starting to wonder if I will ever see a Kings win in person again. This is by far the longest losing streak since I started watching hockey in 1967.

 

[symbology]

I don't remember, but was the sentiment in the 2012-13 season the same this close to the playoffs?

The way I remember it, the Kings played pretty well down the stretch. I remember the Blues just manhandling the Kings early in the season. Down the stretch the games were tight and you can tell the team was heading in the right direction. This team is just garbage in comparison.

 

[Clif]

The way I remember it, the Kings played pretty well down the stretch. I remember the Blues just manhandling the Kings early in the season. Down the stretch the games were tight and you can tell the team was heading in the right direction. This team is just garbage in comparison.

Thank you for this. Exactly why the ‘12 comparisons are so baseless. That wasn’t a team who had banked points that backslid into the playoffs at basically a .500 clip. They found their game in a huge way late just to make it and never let up.

 

[Rog or Reg?]

Thank you for this. Exactly why the ‘12 comparisons are so baseless. That wasn’t a team who had banked points that backslid into the playoffs at basically a .500 clip. They found their game in a huge way late just to make it and never let up.

That 2012 team had true grit.

This team has zero grit.

No comparison.

 

[05/29/93]

While the Kings lost the last two games of the 2012 season (both to the Sharks, one in a SO and the other in OT), they had been rolling the past month of the season. After the Carter trade and bringing up Nolan and KIng, they were still defending incredibly well (as they had all season), but now were also scoring in bunches. We saw the results in the playoffs. While they lost a few games here and there, none of them had the feel of last night's game, (or the Anaheim and Calgary road games) recently. This team is headed towards a first round exit in 5 games, regardless of who they play. I would love to be proven wrong!

 

[hokiecat]

What's really making me doubt how the Kings are going to do is how we're playing right now. This wasn't a meaningless game. You have to be playing well going into the playoffs & the Kings aren't. They're 5-5 in their last 10. This game & the 1st Anaheim game are games the Kings didn't show up in. It's kind of depressing.

The Kings also didn't show up for Calgary and the effort in Winnipeg was lacking too. Before those 2, Edmonton just plan shredded the 1-3-1. Aside from the Kaken and Canucks wins, the Kings have looked very poor in the last 10. Evans was talking last night on Kings Talk how the Kings are just trying to end the season but I think he was downplaying a few weeks of uninspired play into a couple of recent games.

 

[jammer06]

Congratulations to the following posters who correctly guessed 2 points for the D and/or 9 points for the forwards, nobody tossed an assist to the goalies:

Both (4 points):
mugs
Byron
dannybuoy1
forum gold

Defense (2 points):
Dr. Tran
VCRW
VegasHockey
DRGinLBC
Rogie-Vachon
Rusty
KernCoKingFan
JETS GARAGE
Shackleford
DRice
beady eyes
empire
SirJW

Forwards (2 points):
hornman
JayWells24
randdog
Hockey53
Chateau Bow Wow
pray4mojo
puckoff
Nyssa42
Liz4LA

At this point can we call up the black aces, if they win against Anaheim let them start? Every one of the vets on the team owes every fan in attendance their ticket price back.

 

[symbology]

The Kings also didn't show up for Calgary and the effort in Winnipeg was lacking too. Before those 2, Edmonton just plan shredded the 1-3-1. Aside from the Kaken and Canucks wins, the Kings have looked very poor in the last 10. Evans was talking last night on Kings Talk how the Kings are just trying to end the season but I think he was downplaying a few weeks of uninspired play into a couple of recent games.

At the start of December this team looked like it could win a playoff round or two. Since then, their play has not deserved a playoff spot. I think I will be happy, NO, NO... scratch that. I am expecting the Kings to go out in 4 games, so it will be a "surprise" if they can find a way to win 1 game.

The Kings winning a single game in this years playoffs will be "the miracle".

Many of us during the trade deadline were asking Rob to get help any way he could. Needed size and aggressiveness on the bottom 6, and if you paid attention to last nights game.... they need a LHD that can quickly get to the puck in the corner and get it out of the freaking zone. With 5 minutes left to play and you are down by 3 goals... If Gavi is your offensive puck moving LHD you are in trouble.

Blake needed to find a way to make some moves to better the team, or he should have sold off some assets to try to setup for next year. He did neither, and as many of us expected..... Here we are.

 

[xcheck]

I don't remember, but was the sentiment in the 2012-13 season the same this close to the playoffs?

They were a force. They didn't make the playoffs until the last game and it was a must-win game. They just steamrolled through everyone and kept that momentum into the playoffs.

This team reminds me more of the year that Anze got hurt in the last week of the season. They got pushed around a lot, got beat up, lost their best player to injury, and a first round exit. This team doesn't even have an injured top player to point at. They're just not strong on the puck.

 

[symbology]

The way I remember it, the Kings played pretty well down the stretch. I remember the Blues just manhandling the Kings early in the season. Down the stretch the games were tight and you can tell the team was heading in the right direction. This team is just garbage in comparison.

I want to add to this. I seem to recall that after the trade deadline the Coyotes and Kings were 1-2 for best record in the home stretch. As others have mentioned, this team, this year... is NOTHING like the 2012 team.