Game #40: Kings vs. Blackhawks - 12/30/13 - Regulation Loss, 1-0 Chi-Town Strokefest

[Muzzinga]

Just going to make a catch all post that can be repeated in any PGT loss from here till the end of the season

LOLEWIS

LOLSUTTER

FREEMARTINEZ

 

[Axl Rhoadz]

We all expected a loss before this game. The Kings indeed lost and now this team is lacking several things.

The Kings have done exactly what most of us thought they would do.

Yes, you are correct, it wasn't surprising......it just drives me crazy that this is the one team that continually makes the KINGS look like a below average squad. Every time we play them, I feel a time warp back to like 07 or 08 when the Kings were awful and could never generate much. We compete as well as any with all the other powerhouses in the league, teams who play the Hawks well, but we fall apart against them....drives me ****in nuts.

 

[ibleedkings]

Surprised nobody is talking about Jones. Thought he had a great game and the score could of been 4-1 very easily.

Gonna suck when he gets sent down. He deserves to stay up.

 

[TheSentinel]

Surprised nobody is talking about Jones. Thought he had a great game and the score could of been 4-1 very easily.

Gonna suck when he gets sent down. He deserves to stay up.

This was too obvious to us i'm sure.

But i'm sure he'll get his shot next year.

 

[KINGS17]

I am the first person to say that i would like to have martinez in over even yes muzzin. Imo the kings d was pinching in to much and to early Muzzin was the worse of the offenders. Yes i will agree the hawks have a very well blanced team and dont play there top players as often and can use there bottom players more often. This would be a good reason /excuse for us losing if we gave up the goal against fatiged line playing to much but the only goal was scored 7 mins 5 secs into the game if our players are fatiged this early we have more problems then a couple of 4th line players for sure. I am not a fan of Lewis playing any where but the 4th center or rw spot. I was mostly defending the attacks on clifford who played 9 mins and takes alot of abuse from posters like herby who are putting blame on him where none is needed imo.

Sorry man, you're just flat out wrong about Muzzin. He had one of his best games of the season and trying to carry the puck in over the blue line and losing it, while unfortunate, is not a bad pinch, especially when he was not the last man back and Richards should have covered for him quite easily.

You guys want offense, but you don't want players like Muzzin taking any chances to create some?

Martinez is a great 5-6 defenseman, and IMO should be in the lineup over Regehr, but these comparisons of Martinez to Muzzin have to stop. Martinez can't carry Muzzin's jock. Look at the hits Muzzin made in the Chicago game and the several good pinches he made to keep a puck in the Chicago zone. His detractors never seem to notice those.

 

[KINGS17]

I'm ok with the game. It was a better effort than the last one against Chicago. I would not tinker a whole lot. The Kings play very well against every team in the league, including Chicago, just that Chicago has that extra gear that other teams don't have and that is enough for them to beat the Kings.



Aw, come on, it's not even close. The Blues are 1-7 against the Kings in the regular season dating back to the beginning of the 2011-12 season. Over the same period, the Kings are 4-5 against the Hawks. And on top of that, the Kings haven't had the same sort of spectacular meltdowns against the Hawks that the Blues have had against the Kings.

I'm looking forward to a best of seven against the Hawks in the playoffs. I think that if the teams had switched paths last season (and Chicago went through those two meat grinder series), the WCFs would have been completely different.

For now, I would say don't change a thing; LA meets Chicago just one more time this season. Pulverize the rest of the teams in the league, then figure out the Chicago conundrum at the trading deadline. Nelson Emerson and staff will have three games worth of video to dissect. Hell, call up Vey and Deslauriers for the playoff run. No point in showing the secret weapons until then.

Now, the whole losing against weaker teams does bother me. The Kings better wipe the floor with Dallas tomorrow.

This is a very interesting point Vey and Deslauriers could very well be the type of players that would make a 3rd line against Chicago very difficult to defend. This is not entirely out of the realm of possibility.

 

[KINGS17]

Surprised nobody is talking about Jones. Thought he had a great game and the score could of been 4-1 very easily.

Gonna suck when he gets sent down. He deserves to stay up.

Yeah, we are already taking Jones for granted. He was very solid. What impressed me was his movement or lack thereof, his positioning and rebound control were great.

 

[KingCanadain1976]

Sorry man, you're just flat out wrong about Muzzin. He had one of his best games of the season and trying to carry the puck in over the blue line and losing it, while unfortunate, is not a bad pinch, especially when he was not the last man back and Richards should have covered for him quite easily.

You guys want offense, but you don't want players like Muzzin taking any chances to create some?

Martinez is a great 5-6 defenseman, and IMO should be in the lineup over Regehr, but these comparisons of Martinez to Muzzin have to stop. Martinez can't carry Muzzin's jock. Look at the hits Muzzin made in the Chicago game and the several good pinches he made to keep a puck in the Chicago zone. His detractors never seem to notice those.

I disagree muzzin shouldn't have a green light to pinch. He gets caught in the zone as often as he makes the right play. A martinez has a better insint to pinch and is rarely caught in the offensive zone. The point is Richard shouldnt have had to make the play Muzzin is a defenseman and should have been back to make the play. I agree he had a good game but on that goal It was mostly his fault for not being back in postion to let the hawks have the 2 on 1 in the first place.
As far as wanting offense yes i do but i think we should leave the pinching to slava and drew Muzzin doesnt read the play right as often as he should to me. Again agree to disagree

 

[KINGS17]

I disagree muzzin shouldn't have a green light to pinch. He gets caught in the zone as often as he makes the right play. A martinez has a better insint to pinch and is rarely caught in the offensive zone. The point is Richard shouldnt have had to make the play Muzzin is a defenseman and should have been back to make the play. I agree he had a good game but on that goal It was mostly his fault for not being back in postion to let the hawks have the 2 on 1 in the first place.
As far as wanting offense yes i do but i think we should leave the pinching to slava and drew Muzzin doesnt read the play right as often as he should to me. Again agree to disagree

Yes, he should. Richards sees that Muzzin is carrying the puck, he knows that Muzzin has the green light from Sutter, he was in a position to make the play and just didn't get it done.

Now, would it have been nice if Muzzin had got the puck deep there? Yes, but the other team is making plays too and made one. I have no problem with Muzzin trying to make one there because he knew he had coverage behind him.

I think Martinez would get eaten alive by the opposition players that Muzzin is now seeing on a regular basis.

Why should Muzzin leave the pinching to Doughty and Voynov, it's one of the best aspects of his game. Again, the 2-on-1 against Chicago wasn't a pinch, and it's not Muzzin's fault that Richards doesn't do his job well on that play.

 

[deeshamrock]

Sorry man, you're just flat out wrong about Muzzin. He had one of his best games of the season and trying to carry the puck in over the blue line and losing it, while unfortunate, is not a bad pinch, especially when he was not the last man back and Richards should have covered for him quite easily.

You guys want offense, but you don't want players like Muzzin taking any chances to create some?

Martinez is a great 5-6 defenseman, and IMO should be in the lineup over Regehr, but these comparisons of Martinez to Muzzin have to stop. Martinez can't carry Muzzin's jock. Look at the hits Muzzin made in the Chicago game and the several good pinches he made to keep a puck in the Chicago zone. His detractors never seem to notice those.

Yes it was a bad pinch, and the reason they got the 2-1 that lead to the goal. Most of the fault was Muzzin's. Greene also (by his own admission) misplayed the puck.

Easiliy? Richards had to backcheck hard from the opposite side just to try to catch up the play in progress and he did not get the stick check he wanted. .

Muzzin's mistake caused it. And he is a very talanted young D and they can take years to grow into their full capability. But that comes with mistakes and that play was a glaring one.

But it's not the reason they lost, they lost becaues you have to score goals to win a game.
they put in ZERO.
And Sutter being 'fine' with the game, in his post game comments, I hope was just for the media. Because that's 1 goal the team has scored on the hawks in 2 games.
They have 7 goals in the last 5 games and that just isn't good enough. Part of that is the line combos, the other part is his system, the 'dump and chase' generally does not produce quality cycling time. Although when DB and JW were with Ak it did because they know each othe rso well and were the #1 puck possession line in the NHL.
But those days are gone...at least for now.

Go Kings

 

[Buddy The Elf]

You're blaming that loss on a need for an elite left winger? I'm blaming that on a need for this current team to grow a pair and beat a team that has allowed the 14th most goals against in the NHL. No reason to come up with a goose egg when the Kings have the offensive talent they have. None, whatsoever. That was as close to the utmost pathetic display of an offensive attack, outside the last game against the Flames, that I have seen from the Kings this season.

I agree.

If it makes you feel any better so does Q. He routinely plays Bollig (who actually played well tonight) and Brookbank over talented players that mesh better with their linemates/partners. He also plays those players in situations their talents are ill-suited for. It doesn't get talked about near enough (away from the Hawk boards) because the awesomeness of our roster masks many (of his numerous) poor decisions.

Even if a team is successful, it doesn't make it alright for a coach to keep making these decisions. I can definitely sympathize with your plight. I had to watch Brookbank get worked over all night in StL (in person) and watch my team blow a sure fire victory in the last 3.5 minutes.

This was a great game for us and the best 3rd period we've played all year. In other words it's about the only defensively responsible 3rd we've played all season. I'd rather watch my team win like this than the 6-5 games where we give up some REALLY bad goals.

What is funny is the last 4 Kings coaches have that reputation. I think every coach in the league has that reputation.

-------

The Hawks are a better team. All the Kings needed was one lousy goal to get a point. That doesn't mean they weren't severly outplayed but all they needed was one goal. What gets me is their inability to generate offense. I think Sutter is getting outcoached in these games. They've been able to stifle the Kings breakout and not allow them to forecheck. A left wing doesn't change that. That doesn't mean a left wing isn't a need. It is. The left side is incredibly weak. Couple that with the Hawks superior bottom 6 and they are just not allowing the Kings to even get their game started. They had some decent shifts but rarely could follow it up with a second one. And the power play was powerless.

The damn Hawks own the Kings. It reminds me of the late 90's early 2000's when the Kings would play the Red Wings. The sad part is the Kings are one of the better teams in the league right now. When the Red Wings were owning the Kings, the Kings were mediocre or awful.

 

[Winger23]

I can live with muzzin making a boneheaded play once in a while if he keeps hitting like he did last night. Other than the pinch he played very well.

What's bothering me is the kings need to have another offensive dman on the ice at all times. One of RR, Greene or Mitchell should be scratched. This team relies on shots from the blue line to generate offence and every time I look up RR is the one taking the shots.

 

[deeshamrock]

Yes, he should. Richards sees that Muzzin is carrying the puck, he knows that Muzzin has the green light from Sutter, he was in a position to make the play and just didn't get it done.
Now, would it have been nice if Muzzin had got the puck deep there? Yes, but the other team is making plays too and made one. I have no problem with Muzzin trying to make one there because he knew he had coverage behind him.

I think Martinez would get eaten alive by the opposition players that Muzzin is now seeing on a regular basis.

Why should Muzzin leave the pinching to Doughty and Voynov, it's one of the best aspects of his game. Again, the 2-on-1 against Chicago wasn't a pinch, and it's not Muzzin's fault that Richards doesn't do his job well on that play.

No, Richards wasn't in a position to make the play at all. And who said Sutter gave him a 'green light' to leave Greene alone back there? Muzzin is a defenseman, his first job is to defend his zone. There were 3 forwards rushing, he should laid back until they were in the zone, he chose to pinch at the wrong time and it cost them.
And he didn't have coverage behind him, just his D partner, alone.

Richards was on the opposite side and nowhere near the puck, Muzzin knew that and took a risky chance. It happens, but it was his mistake and one he'll learn from.

 

[KINGS17]

No, Richards wasn't in a position to make the play at all. And who said Sutter gave him a 'green light' to leave Greene alone back there? Muzzin is a defenseman, his first job is to defend his zone. There were 3 forwards rushing, he should laid back until they were in the zone, he chose to pinch at the wrong time and it cost them.
And he didn't have coverage behind him, just his D partner, alone.

Richards was on the opposite side and nowhere near the puck, Muzzin knew that and took a risky chance. It happens, but it was his mistake and one he'll learn from.

Muzzin didn't pinch, he had been carrying the puck the entire time through the neutral zone and was trying to carry it over the line when it was knocked off his stick. Richards can see that and the play is right in front of him. He has to cover for his defenseman in that situation.

Again, you guys want offense, but you don't want a guy like Muzzin to take a reasonable risk to create some offense. Sorry, but Richards was no more than 20 feet away from Muzzin when that play happened.

If it isn't obvious to you by now that Muzzin has the green light from Sutter, I don't know what else has to happen in the games to convince you. Muzzin pinches aggressively, if he was doing that and it wasn't ok with Sutter, Muzzin would be in the pressbox.

Muzzin, Greene, and Mitchell all played well last night. If you're looking for a defenseman to criticize look no further than Regehr.

 

[deeshamrock]

Muzzin didn't pinch, he had been carrying the puck the entire time through the neutral zone and was trying to carry it over the line when it was knocked off his stick. Richards can see that and the play is right in front of him. He has to cover for his defenseman in that situation.

Again, you guys want offense, but you don't want a guy like Muzzin to take a reasonable risk to create some offense. Sorry, but Richards was no more than 20 feet away from Muzzin when that play happened.

If it isn't obvious to you by now that Muzzin has the green light from Sutter, I don't know what else has to happen in the games to convince you. Muzzin pinches aggressively, if he was doing that and it wasn't ok with Sutter, Muzzin would be in the pressbox.

Muzzin, Greene, and Mitchell all played well last night. If you're looking for a defenseman to criticize look no further than Regehr.

I llike Muzzin and never said Muzzin didn't play a good game, he was solid most of the game and esp hitting everything in sight.
But that was not a good play and it cost them a goal. he has no room there at all for that play. It's a lesson a lot of young players will learn and in time, adjust to. But it was a mistake that led to a costliy 2-1.

It also wasn't the reason they lost; they lost because they scored 0 goals. And have 7 i nthe last 5 games, which is not good enough and wont' be going forward.

 

[KINGS17]

I llike Muzzin and never said Muzzin didn't play a good game, he was solid most of the game and esp hitting everything in sight.
But that was not a good play and it cost them a goal. he has no room there at all for that play. It's a lesson a lot of young players will learn and in time, adjust to. But it was a mistake that led to a costliy 2-1.

It also wasn't the reason they lost; they lost because they scored 0 goals. And have 7 i nthe last 5 games, which is not good enough and wont' be going forward.

Can't say I wouldn't have liked to see Muzzin get the puck deep on that play. I don't mind him taking the chance though when he knows he should have help.

The Kings are going to have to find more offense that's for sure.

 

[Butch 19]

We all expected a loss before this game. The Kings indeed lost and now this team is lacking several things.

The Kings have done exactly what most of us thought they would do.

why not hope for a surprising win? That has to happen SOMETIME ya know!!

 

[yankeeking]

During the telecast they mentioned that Chicago's forwards give all the credit to the dmen for starting the offence with good breakout passes that are tape to tape, that's seems to be a difference between us and them we have dmen that carry out the puck more and forwards that are not breaking when we get possession , just a system difference. We never seem to have people in front of raanta last night, we just rely too much on rebounds when the goalie sees every shot and doesn't allow many , hard to beat world class goalies on straight up shots , I do not remember many tips even

 

[HYORI 1963]

We're a big team, a physical team and still one of an elite teams in the league.

But because we can't score, we don't really instill fear in many teams.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

This is a very interesting point Vey and Deslauriers could very well be the type of players that would make a 3rd line against Chicago very difficult to defend. This is not entirely out of the realm of possibility.

Maybe, and I do think we need more scoring depth, but I shudder at the possibility of getting Vey-Deslauriers-XXX(Toffoli?) stuck out there vs. Hossa-Toews-Kane or whatever. It's a tradeoff.

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The Hawks are a better team. All the Kings needed was one lousy goal to get a point. That doesn't mean they weren't severly outplayed but all they needed was one goal. What gets me is their inability to generate offense. I think Sutter is getting outcoached in these games. They've been able to stifle the Kings breakout and not allow them to forecheck. A left wing doesn't change that. That doesn't mean a left wing isn't a need. It is. The left side is incredibly weak. Couple that with the Hawks superior bottom 6 and they are just not allowing the Kings to even get their game started. They had some decent shifts but rarely could follow it up with a second one. And the power play was powerless.

The damn Hawks own the Kings. It reminds me of the late 90's early 2000's when the Kings would play the Red Wings. The sad part is the Kings are one of the better teams in the league right now. When the Red Wings were owning the Kings, the Kings were mediocre or awful.

agreed, and a point I made before that's not a popular opinion--Jamie Kompon. That guy has all sorts of insider knowledge of the Kings players AND is great with video. I don't think it's any coincidence that we have to go "GOD ANOTHER 2-1/3-1" every time we play Chicago. They elude our forecheck to a science and get several odd-man breaks every game. Until we change our look or counter it, we're screwed, because we could dominate the game 40 shots to 10 and lose. I also said I'm hoping we're just stocking Chicago game tape for the inevitable playoff series and just not showing them our playbook so to speak