***LA Kings @ Ottawa Senators GDT 12/6/22 4:00pm PT on BSW***

VCRW said:
Thank you, Susan et al!

Offensive lines all need to be shaken up. At the very least, move Kempe away from Kopitar. That duo has gone stale. 22-11-13 makes more sense right now. Need to get Gabe and Juice kickstarted again. Maybe JAD centering Fagemo and Kempe.

GKG!!!
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Sounds like we are more likely to see 22-11-34. Also sounds like AI is coming back in to the lineup for this one. Will be a reshuffling for sure.
 
jammer06 said:
Sounds like we are more likely to see 22-11-34. Also sounds like AI is coming back in to the lineup for this one. Will be a reshuffling for sure.
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That leaves Fiala in a corner role if Arty is gonna get his shots. Don't really like that. Fiala needs room to operate. He got that space from Juice. On the other hand, Gabe can score but handles himself well on the boards. My ideal solution would be to swap Danault and Kopi and keep the wingers the same. Swap AI for Moore when #19 is healthy and up to speed.
 
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VCRW said:
That leaves Fiala in a corner role if Arty is gonna get his shots. Don't really like that. Fiala needs room to operate. He got that space from Juice. On the other hand, Gabe can score but handles himself well on the boards. My ideal solution would be to swap Danault and Kopi and keep the wingers the same. Swap AI for Moore when #19 is healthy and up to speed.
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Here's the way they practiced:

Fiala – Kopitar – Kaliyev
Moore – Danault – Arvidsson
Iafallo – Vilardi – Kempe
Anderson-Dolan – Lizotte – Grundstrom
Fagemo

Anderson – Doughty
Durzi – Roy
Edler – Walker
Bjornfot – Clarke

Copley
Quick
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Curious to see how long Gabe lasts as a center this time around
 
Well that didn't last long, per Insider Kempe actually going to play center:

https://lakingsinsider.com/2022/12/...ht-new-lines-copley-to-start-kempe-at-center/

Back To The Middle
As a part of Iafallo’s return, the Kings needed to rework things a bit to get what they feel is the best possible configuration.

The team has a clear Top 9 with Iafallo’s return, but that group consists of only two natural centermen, Anze Kopitar and Phillip Danault. So, to get the players they want in that alignment, someone else has to play center. The obvious options are Adrian Kempe and Gabe Vilardi, who both game through the system as centers but eventually transitioned to the wing as they developed as professional players, with both excelling on the outside. The Kings opted for Kempe as the preferred option to start tonight, emphasizing his blend of size and speed through the middle as positives for playing him in that position.

“Kempe will play
, he’ll start there tonight, it gives us a little more size through the middle, a little more speed,” Todd McLellan said this morning. “He entered the league in that position, we still believe that he’s a really good winger, but right now we’ve got to spread the depth out a little bit that we have, so we’ll play him there.”

As mentioned, Kempe came through the system as a center, playing there until he was converted to the wing on a full-time basis a few years back. Naturally, he’s excelled on the wing, as shown through last season’s production. However, center isn’t foreign to him and he’s still comfortable playing in that role.

He addressed the move ealrier today from three angles – defensive zone, playing with the puck and taking faceoffs.

Kempe On The D-Zone – I think the d-zone is going to be fine, I’ve played in those situations before and just like any other game on the wing, if you’re the first guy back you take care of that. I don’t think that’s going to be the biggest issue.

Kempe On Playing With The Puck – I played one period as a center last game and it was exciting. I felt like I can get a little bit more speed coming through the middle, where as a winger, maybe you get a little more 1-on-1 with the D and stuff like that. I feel like AI and Gabe are so good with the puck and so good on the walls that if they can find me through the middle with a lot of speed, I think it can be a good thing for the team and for our line.

Kempe On Faceoffs – Obviously, faceoffs, I haven’t been taking them in awhile either, so that’s going to be important. I think having Gabe on the line helps for strong-side faceoffs. I feel comfortable on my backhand already and having him as a righty on other side could probably be a good thing, we’ll talk about it before the game.

Kempe spent some time after practice working with Kopitar on draws and went on to credit him and Phil Danault as players he can ask questions. Having Vilardi to potentially take draws on the othre side is big, with duties potentially shared in that department. It’s a very interesting combination of three players who all have skill, all play within the system and all can play in all situations. We’ll see how it goes!​
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​
 
Thanks Susan!!!!!!!

I sense a low scoring game. Like really low. So my poll answers are as follows.

1st - 0
2nd - 0
3rd - 1

Go Kongs
 
Kings lineups updated! Copely to start. He's 2-0-0 against the Senators, and has his only NHL career shutout against them.

Hopefully the boys watched some video from their last game against these guys and figure out a way to deal with their stifling forecheck. Having Iafallo back should help in that department, because he doesn't put up with that crap.

Here are my poll question picks:

1st - 1

2nd - 3

3rd - 2


GO KINGS GO!!!
 
What party? said:
Amazing, have an awesome time. 25 co-workers? Oof. I’ve gone to a Flyers/Kings game (on a date) with seven(of his friends) dudes from Philly,horrible, horrible experience, his boys were all shirtless by the 2nd(our section cleared out-hindsight: they knew something I did not), too drunk to stand by the third. Flyers won. Eff. I feel you, Illegal-Stick.

If it were me, I’d wear a Lemieux jersey and pass out band-aids to everyone pregame, you know so they’re prepared.
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They're all elementary school teachers so the shirts will stay on.... God willing.
 
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Must win game...gotta start the road trip on the right foot especially against one of the worst teams in the league.
 
Kings are not in a good place. They've played 27 games, about 3 more games than the teams that are close behind them. If they don't get on a consistent winning streak, they won't make the playoffs.
 
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Now Chirping

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