Jordan Nolan sucks: Kings lose to Boston 3-1

[Frolov 6'3]

First time I think, this team is going nowhere.

The bounces are not there.
Quick is average (not vs Boston).
The puck is staying in the defensive zone way longer than in the seasons before.
Defense is slow.
Carter should not have only 14 goals after 50 games.
Brown you can never rely on, with exception of his work ethic.
In the 1st period there was one sequence of three clear/free shooting attempts, all wide...

I have given up so far.

 

[stonedhenge]

Could somebody tell me, why Kopitar at 19 could dangle through 5 red wings players and Kopitar at 27 is slow and afraid of everything in offensive zone? And why is he afraid to shoot? I wish I could go in his head and see what he thinks of his game. He can still make passes but that's about it. Other than his vision and passing he is Jordan Nolan out there. DL should be careful what contract he will offer to him. He could easily go Mike Richards way in a couple of years.

 

[kingsholygrail]

Could somebody tell me, why Kopitar at 19 could dangle through 5 red wings players and Kopitar at 27 is slow and afraid of everything in offensive zone? And why is he afraid to shoot? I wish I could go in his head and see what he thinks of his game. He can still make passes but that's about it. Other than his vision and passing he is Jordan Nolan out there. DL should be carefull what contract he will offer to him. He could easily go Mike Richards way in a couple of years.

Probably because when Kopitar was 19, nobody knew who the **** he was or what he was capable of. He was just some scrub. He's been around the league for a long time now and besides age, other teams know how to play him. He's not like a Gretzky and just a scoring machine. He's just a strong smart forward and as Jim Fox mentioned, many players that grew up in euro leagues tend to have a pass first mentality. Just comes with the territory(and has been a complaint about Kopitar for most of his time with the Kings). His value is in his ability to excel in all game situations. Many pure scorers suck at other aspects of the game, but get by with their points. Kopitar may not light up the scoreboard, but he's rarely going to hurt the team.

I guarantee some other team will throw money at him if DL doesn't. 100% certainty.

 

[deeshamrock]

There's a string of good posts behind me for sure. I get the sentiments, I really do. But I still think the hate is misplaced at Kopitar. You saw the graphic tonight in the telecast just like I did, he's tied with Kane for leading the NHL in points since December some-date-whatever. I don't get the hate for him.

Guys like Williams, sure. Brown, the play is there--but the production is not and we need it. Gaborik, I feel like he's been okay, but same as brown. Toffoli is growing before our eyes, guy is dynamic as hell and I didn't buy into him as a Williams replacement before but my god I hope he's a King for life. The rest, the heart is all there, but the results aren't. It's a shame because a lot of it is really just **** luck, some bad focus at times, bounces, and having a target on their backs. I mean, it's definitely not lack of EFFORT, but it's lack of effort 100% of the time--it's just that 2% timing lack of effort ends up in a goal against.

Again, to me, if we play every game like these last two, I'm comfortable saying we're in--but as others have pointed out, we've given ourselves a razor-thin margin for error. so It's tough. But it's not time to give up yet.

I don't see any misplaced hate for Kopitar, because some fans are critical of his effort at times. And that 'leading the NHL since Dec in points' is a very padded stat that is largely drawn from that week in December where he put up a boatload of points, that's all it is, it means very little.
He's supposed to be the best forward on the team, that guy in the third period when they are down by a goal that put the team on his back, drives down the center of the ice and becomes a bull on skates, driving until that tyimg or GWG Is in. He hasn't done that. Other than that 1 week in Dec and a handful of other games scattered here and there, he seems to be disinterested and non engaged in the game. LIke the lack of concentration on that terrible pass he made that led to the Empty net goal.

And he has only 5 Even Strength goals thru almost 50 games
Five...that's not getting it done.
No Kings fan 'hates' Kopitar, but perhaps rather the lack of Kopitar thru far too many of the 49 games he's played.

And with 21 of the remaining 34 games on the road, where they generally have not gotten the job done, that's a very steep uphill climb if by the end of this week if they don't win of the next 3 vs Caps, Cats and Bolts, they could be 7 pts back and in 11 in the conference, which now is a very slim 1 pt.

This isnt' 2012, the 'they've done this before and won the Cup' mentality won't work. That was 3 years ago, they are all 3 years older with a lot of wear and tear on them from 3 deep playoff runs in a system that is one of the hardest in the NHL to perform in , it's taxing. And the competition around them has changed, division and conference teams adding players, bringing up talented players, younger and faster. Being the best puck possession team in the league doesn't mean much when you can't score.

 

[KingsFan7824]

And he has only 5 Even Strength goals thru almost 50 games
Five...that's not getting it done.
No Kings fan 'hates' Kopitar, but perhaps rather the lack of Kopitar thru far too many of the 49 games he's played.

Same amount as Lewis, fewer than King.

 

[TL12]

Canucks fan here.

Too bad you guys don't face us earlier, you guys could probably start a winning streak by thrashing us like you normally do

 

[johnjm22]

Even if this team does miss the playoffs, I can't be too let down about it. They've played an incredible amount of hockey in the last 3 years, and have accomplished great things.

As for Kopitar, the organization never put an emphasis on developing his offensive game, and neither has he. Nearly every time he gets the puck in an advantageous offensive situation, he immediately looks to pass to someone who's in a less opportune position. It's very annoying. He's been pegged as playing making shutdown center, but in reality his skill set is more naturally suited to goal scoring.

 

[Nizar]

Could somebody tell me, why Kopitar at 19 could dangle through 5 red wings players and Kopitar at 27 is slow and afraid of everything in offensive zone? And why is he afraid to shoot? I wish I could go in his head and see what he thinks of his game. He can still make passes but that's about it. Other than his vision and passing he is Jordan Nolan out there. DL should be careful what contract he will offer to him. He could easily go Mike Richards way in a couple of years.

 

[KingsHockey24]

Could somebody tell me, why Kopitar at 19 could dangle through 5 red wings players and Kopitar at 27 is slow and afraid of everything in offensive zone? And why is he afraid to shoot? I wish I could go in his head and see what he thinks of his game. He can still make passes but that's about it. Other than his vision and passing he is Jordan Nolan out there. DL should be careful what contract he will offer to him. He could easily go Mike Richards way in a couple of years.

 

[KingsFan7824]

1-6-2 on the road against the East.

Doughty - 9GP, 1G, 7Pts
Richards - 8GP, 2G, 5Pts
Toffoli - 9GP, 2G, 5Pts
Muzzin - 9GP, 1G, 5Pts
Williams - 9GP, 2G, 4Pts
Martinez - 9GP, 2G, 4Pts
Lewis - 7GP, 1G, 2Pts
King - 9GP, 1G, 2Pts
Clifford - 8GP, 0G, 2Pts
Regehr - 9GP, 0G, 2Pts
Nolan - 5GP, 1G, 1Pt
Kopitar - 6GP, 1G, 1Pt
Gaborik - 6GP, 1G, 1Pt
Pearson - 8GP, 1G, 1Pt
Greene - 9GP, 1G, 1Pt
Carter - 9GP, 0G, 1Pt
Stoll - 9GP, 0G, 1Pt
Brown - 9GP, 0G, 0Pts
McNabb - 9GP, 0G, 0Pts

 

[ibleedkings]

I'm Castor ****ing Troy!!!!!!!

 

[BigKing]

Thought they played great compared to the last 60 days. Had better chances than Boston but couldn't get one more.

That game was encouraging rather than discouraging. Played just as well as against Chicago but didn't get the bounces this time.

Play hard, fast and physical like the last two games and they will be fine.

 

[RogieVachon30]

Anyone spot GABO lately?

 

[Chain]

Anyone spot GABO lately?

They put him on a line with Stoll and Lewis. Not exactly going to increase his scoring chances.

Honestly, the lines they started with sucked last night.

Ya, those lines Sutter started with last night sucked. Don't know what he was thinking there. If there's any combo that he should never touch, it's having Kopi and Gabby on the same line. They're not always going to be on fire, but those two belong together. IF he's gotta switch them around, then the only other thing that makes sense is putting Gabby on Carter's line. Put him on any other line and the D can focus on him because they know guys like Stoll and Lewis aren't much of an offensive threat.

They really have to be in playoff mode at this point. We've got a game in hand on Calgary but they're 3 points up on us and now Dallas and Colorado are breathing down our necks too.

 

[ADifferentTim]

Geez, the fact even the OP misplaced the blame on Jordan Nolan shows how most Kings fans are in panic mode.

The team needs to earn points like they need to instead of using the standings as a crutch.

 

[Jeff18]

Geez, the fact even the OP misplaced the blame on Jordan Nolan shows how most Kings fans are in panic mode.

It was a joke. He scored the only goal.

 

[Omni Owl]

Yeah Nolan was actually decent. He had that goal and that nice stretch pass to Shore for his breakaway. The kid is so frustrating because we know he can play well, but doesn't do it most of the time...

 

[KingPuckChoo]

Anyone spot GABO lately?

 

[Reclamation Project]

Geez, the fact even the OP misplaced the blame on Jordan Nolan shows how most Kings fans are in panic mode.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I don't see any misplaced hate for Kopitar, because some fans are critical of his effort at times. And that 'leading the NHL since Dec in points' is a very padded stat that is largely drawn from that week in December where he put up a boatload of points, that's all it is, it means very little.
He's supposed to be the best forward on the team, that guy in the third period when they are down by a goal that put the team on his back, drives down the center of the ice and becomes a bull on skates, driving until that tyimg or GWG Is in. He hasn't done that. Other than that 1 week in Dec and a handful of other games scattered here and there, he seems to be disinterested and non engaged in the game. LIke the lack of concentration on that terrible pass he made that led to the Empty net goal.

And he has only 5 Even Strength goals thru almost 50 games
Five...that's not getting it done.
No Kings fan 'hates' Kopitar, but perhaps rather the lack of Kopitar thru far too many of the 49 games he's played.

And with 21 of the remaining 34 games on the road, where they generally have not gotten the job done, that's a very steep uphill climb if by the end of this week if they don't win of the next 3 vs Caps, Cats and Bolts, they could be 7 pts back and in 11 in the conference, which now is a very slim 1 pt.

This isnt' 2012, the 'they've done this before and won the Cup' mentality won't work. That was 3 years ago, they are all 3 years older with a lot of wear and tear on them from 3 deep playoff runs in a system that is one of the hardest in the NHL to perform in , it's taxing. And the competition around them has changed, division and conference teams adding players, bringing up talented players, younger and faster. Being the best puck possession team in the league doesn't mean much when you can't score.

I agree the ES goals is worrying, as are the road issues, but calling that a padded stat is dishonest. It's when he came alive, and he's been putting up points at a very Kopitar pace ever since. Is 3 points in the last 3 games better for you? That's PPG. No, because he didn't score last night, so he lacks effort. Give me a break.

My point is only that focusing on just Kopitar to save us when he's doing what he's normally done for the most part is foolish. People need to temper their expectations at this point. He is what he is, a near-PPG forward. I don't know. If you're looking for "that guy in the third period when they are down by a goal that put the team on his back, drives down the center of the ice and becomes a bull on skates, driving until that tyimg or GWG Is in" you're going to be looking for a long time because though he does it occasionally you're not going to get that every game from Kopitar. Aaaannnnddd...yes, we still won like that before.

Edit: And yes, I call it "misplaced hate" as a euphemism because there are people talking about being careful about offering Kopitar money/term now because he's going to go full Mike Richards. Guess we should go back to the days of trotting out guys like Stumpel, Armstrong as our top C because hey, gotta save that money!

 

[Trolfoli]

Ya, those lines Sutter started with last night sucked. Don't know what he was thinking there. If there's any combo that he should never touch, it's having Kopi and Gabby on the same line. They're not always going to be on fire, but those two belong together. IF he's gotta switch them around, then the only other thing that makes sense is putting Gabby on Carter's line. Put him on any other line and the D can focus on him because they know guys like Stoll and Lewis aren't much of an offensive threat.

They really have to be in playoff mode at this point. We've got a game in hand on Calgary but they're 3 points up on us and now Dallas and Colorado are breathing down our necks too.

Not that I disagree with you.. but from Sutter's point of view... Gaborik hasn't done anything for the last couple of games.... Now this could be due to Gaborik... or since Brown (I do better when I don't pass) has been bumped up to that line. So Gaborik's been off for a few games.... King/Carter/Toffoli scored plenty last game... so the Kings have plenty of offense.... Clifford's really been trying hard so lets bump Clifford up to the 1st line and spread the talent out over 4 lines.... if you chug a quart of whiskey and slam your head into the wall a few time it would make sense.... (BTW don't try that... as it will usually lead to a hospital trip )

Well... based off last year... Sutter didn't throw his BS out until already down 2 games to the Sharks (Nolan on the second line).... So we aren't going to see a line up with more then 1 decent line until Sutter gets desperate and admits again that he needs offense to win.... The only question is weather he realizes this before the season is over.... Either way... I'd still say there's at least a month before anything happens.

It's much more exciting not knowing... poor Ducks fans already know they're going to make the playoffs just to be eliminated in an early round.....

 

[ADifferentTim]

I know yet got carried away.

 

[Captain Mittens*]

I know yet got carried away.

[Yt]yOWK7Tam01M[/MEDIA]

 

[Jason Lewis]

5-10-6 on the road, 13 home games left, 21 road games left. The Kings are going to have to have a massive turnaround on the road or this is over

Good first 40 minutes, but the likes of Kopi and Gaborik simply cannot be that invisible

They have one of the most difficult schedules in the league to close out the season according to Sagarin numbers.

 

[SettlementRichie10]

I'll consider this season as much of a success as the last if the Kings can simply make the playoffs. That's how absurd this season has been. What a disappointment.