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Pre-Game Talk: Series Discussion: WCQF: (1) Vegas Golden Knights vs (WC1) Los Angeles Kings

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Who wins this series?

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    119
TwzKing said:
Got my game 1 tickets and hotel, I'm taking a vow of silence til game time. Wish me luck :)
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I grabbed a seat for game 1. It’s my first time going to a game there. I’ll be in LV all week for work, so I’m interested to see what effect the NHL playoffs has on that town. I’m almost afraid to bet on the game due to karma. But I’m definitely betting on game 2 and the series after game 1.

Prices have gone up in my section by around 15% since Saturday night. One price saver is that tickets are less for the side the Kings shoot twice on, so I was able to get lower bowl in my budget.

I’m expecting a circus atmosphere at the arena. Wasn’t able to see a way into any VIP areas outside of suites. Something similar to Premiere seats at Staples.
 
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Vegas in six. They are the better team and although I understand the Kings have some players with playoff experience, I don't think that turns the Knights into a pumpkin. Also, the key player on the Knights, MAF, he's got playoff experience and a few cups. He was a large reason why the Pens won a CUp last year. He's been playing well and I think their confidence in him has a lot to do with their energy and effectiveness.
THey have avery effective system that rolls all 4 lines with great results. THat pressure, esp with the Kings short a couple d, I think will make a difference. They've been pretty stable all year. And I like what the coach does, he's had playoff success and is a good motivator.
 
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deeshamrock said:
Vegas in six. They are the better team and although I understand the Kings have some players with playoff experience, I don't think that turns the Knights into a pumpkin. Also, the key player on the Knights, MAF, he's got playoff experience and a few cups. He was a large reason why the Pens won a CUp last year. He's been playing well and I think their confidence in him has a lot to do with their energy and effectiveness.
THey have avery effective system that rolls all 4 lines with great results. THat pressure, esp with the Kings short a couple d, I think will make a difference. They've been pretty stable all year. And I like what the coach does, he's had playoff success and is a good motivator.
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Such a hard series to call. On one hand, top to bottom Vegas is the better team. Deeper at every position. On the other hand, the Kings elite players are a lot better than Vegas'. They have no one near the level of Kopitar or Doughty. And then you have Fleury that can steal a series. But then you also have Fleury that can tank a series. It'll be interesting to see if depth wins out over top end talent. Obviously it's a lot easier to predict after 2 games but if it's Vegas up 2-0 after 2 games then in my opinion it's over. This Kings team doesn't have the same kind of heart and will the 2014 team had.
 
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WHOneedsSOX said:
Such a hard series to call. On one hand, top to bottom Vegas is the better team. Deeper at every position. On the other hand, the Kings elite players are a lot better than Vegas'. They have no one near the level of Kopitar or Doughty. And then you have Fleury that can steal a series. But then you also have Fleury that can tank a series. It'll be interesting to see if depth wins out over top end talent. Obviously it's a lot easier to predict after 2 games but if it's Vegas up 2-0 after 2 games then in my opinion it's over. This Kings team doesn't have the same kind of heart and will the 2014 team had.
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You'd be hard pressed to find a team with more heart than the 2014 team, including the recent Stanley Cup winners, Sox. Still, we led the league in wins this year after being scored on first. I think that indicates that this team has a lot of resolve
 
WHOneedsSOX said:
Such a hard series to call. On one hand, top to bottom Vegas is the better team. Deeper at every position. On the other hand, the Kings elite players are a lot better than Vegas'. They have no one near the level of Kopitar or Doughty. And then you have Fleury that can steal a series. But then you also have Fleury that can tank a series. It'll be interesting to see if depth wins out over top end talent. Obviously it's a lot easier to predict after 2 games but if it's Vegas up 2-0 after 2 games then in my opinion it's over. This Kings team doesn't have the same kind of heart and will the 2014 team had.
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Do the Kings look as bad as they did against the Sharks in those first two games, or are they at least competitive this time?
 
WHOneedsSOX said:
Such a hard series to call. On one hand, top to bottom Vegas is the better team. Deeper at every position. On the other hand, the Kings elite players are a lot better than Vegas'. They have no one near the level of Kopitar or Doughty. And then you have Fleury that can steal a series. But then you also have Fleury that can tank a series. It'll be interesting to see if depth wins out over top end talent. Obviously it's a lot easier to predict after 2 games but if it's Vegas up 2-0 after 2 games then in my opinion it's over. This Kings team doesn't have the same kind of heart and will the 2014 team had.
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I would say yes up until the trade deadline, I think you are underestimating what Phaneuf and Thompson bring to the team as far as work ethic, intangibles etc, I know it's cliched a this point, Phaneuf, Thompson, Mitchell bring leadership and work ethic to this team, before them you had guys like Ladue, Gravel, Andreoff, Shore, etc, while they may have been working hard, they were like spinning wheels on a stationary bike, not going anywhere, when Thompson tells Kempe something, Kempe's gonna listen a helluva lot more than when Shore says something, and that's not saying Thompson is better than Shore, but more experience etc. I think that plays in big time.
 
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It'll be interesting to see how far the Kings ramp up their checking game. One of the criticisms of Sutter was that he expected the Kings to lay the wood every game for an 82 game season, which resulted in the team getting worn out. We didn't see nearly as much checking out of this Kings team with Stevens at the helm during the regular season. I wonder if they can ramp it back up for the playoffs.

One person to watch will be our good friend McNabb. He could make a decent pass to exit the zone when he had time and space, but we've all seen him cough it up (sometimes to the crease) when he gets pressured.
 
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KingTrouty said:
You'd be hard pressed to find a team with more heart than the 2014 team, including the recent Stanley Cup winners, Sox. Still, we led the league in wins this year after being scored on first. I think that indicates that this team has a lot of resolve
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GoldenBearHockey said:
I would say yes up until the trade deadline, I think you are underestimating what Phaneuf and Thompson bring to the team as far as work ethic, intangibles etc, I know it's cliched a this point, Phaneuf, Thompson, Mitchell bring leadership and work ethic to this team, before them you had guys like Ladue, Gravel, Andreoff, Shore, etc, while they may have been working hard, they were like spinning wheels on a stationary bike, not going anywhere, when Thompson tells Kempe something, Kempe's gonna listen a helluva lot more than when Shore says something, and that's not saying Thompson is better than Shore, but more experience etc. I think that plays in big time.
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Yeah, I agree with you guys about the Kings definitely having what it takes to come back, especially after the trade deadline. What I meant mostly was that going down 2-0 to St. Louis in 2013 and being down 3-2 to Anaheim in 2014, we pretty much didn't even care. The Kings would still win the series somehow. Even being down 3-2 to San Jose in 2014. Would the Kings be able to win 2 more in a row to make the impossible come back? We mostly all had faith it would happen. Could this year's team come back down 2-0 or 3-2? Of course. Kings won't give up. No way. I just don't think it's as likely, fair or not.

 
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WHOneedsSOX said:
Yeah, I agree with you guys about the Kings definitely having what it takes to come back, especially after the trade deadline. What I meant mostly was that going down 2-0 to St. Louis in 2013 and being down 3-2 to Anaheim in 2014, we pretty much didn't even care. The Kings would still win the series somehow. Even being down 3-2 to San Jose in 2014. Would the Kings be able to win 2 more in a row to make the impossible come back? We mostly all had faith it would happen. Could this year's team come back down 2-0 or 3-2? Of course. Kings won't give up. No way. I just don't think it's as likely, fair or not.

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Agree to a point, only because I think you can say that about any time. Even WHILE it was happening, people were questioning if they could come back etc, going down 2-0 in a best 4 is a hardship and a helluva hole to get out of, and players will play differently knowing that any mistake can put them down 3-0 etc,
 
deeshamrock said:
Vegas in six. They are the better team and although I understand the Kings have some players with playoff experience, I don't think that turns the Knights into a pumpkin. Also, the key player on the Knights, MAF, he's got playoff experience and a few cups. He was a large reason why the Pens won a CUp last year. He's been playing well and I think their confidence in him has a lot to do with their energy and effectiveness.
THey have avery effective system that rolls all 4 lines with great results. THat pressure, esp with the Kings short a couple d, I think will make a difference. They've been pretty stable all year. And I like what the coach does, he's had playoff success and is a good motivator.
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Hard to bring the hate against Vegas. New team, no playoff history, fresh faces everywhere. We'll see how much experience and those intangibles are worth this series.
 
lumbergh said:
Hard to bring the hate against Vegas. New team, no playoff history, fresh faces everywhere. We'll see how much experience and those intangibles are worth this series.
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I don't know. The Kings have history with Engellund and Reaves. Karlsson was running around like a bag of dicks the last few times they played. I think there will be plenty of hate.
 
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I think Stevens will have a very short bench. Look for Kopitar, Brown and Carter to be over 20 minutes every game. Lord knows how many Doughty will play.

I think doing the above will be enough to get LA to round 2, but there will burn out and injury. So I Do not see LA getting passed round 2.
 
For those watching Kings/Knights on NBCSN, it'll be Chris Cuthbert and Ray Ferraro calling the series.

They are excellent. Folks in the LA TV market will get the games on FSW/PT - NBC will be blacked out.
 
deeshamrock said:
Vegas in six. They are the better team and although I understand the Kings have some players with playoff experience, I don't think that turns the Knights into a pumpkin. Also, the key player on the Knights, MAF, he's got playoff experience and a few cups. He was a large reason why the Pens won a CUp last year. He's been playing well and I think their confidence in him has a lot to do with their energy and effectiveness.
THey have avery effective system that rolls all 4 lines with great results. THat pressure, esp with the Kings short a couple d, I think will make a difference. They've been pretty stable all year. And I like what the coach does, he's had playoff success and is a good motivator.
Click to expand...


I like Gallant and he had great success early in this decade in the QMJHL and winning a Mem Cup - 2011 but he's done virtually nothing post season wise in the NHL. I just wonder if he's going to be one of those coaches that is strong in the regular season but when the playoffs rolls around he seems to lose his shit.

Kings need Muzzin back in the worst way. I believe Reilly Smith is due back for Vegas which is huge for them. Heart says LA but head says Vegas in what should be a long series.
 
YP44 said:
I think Stevens will have a very short bench. Look for Kopitar, Brown and Carter to be over 20 minutes every game. Lord knows how many Doughty will play.

I think doing the above will be enough to get LA to round 2, but there will burn out and injury. So I Do not see LA getting passed round 2.
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Not really too worried about Doughty getting 30-33 minutes. What I am worried about is Phaneuf and Martinez having to play 25 minutes.
TonySCV said:
For those watching Kings/Knights on NBCSN, it'll be Chris Cuthbert and Ray Ferraro calling the series.

They are excellent. Folks in the LA TV market will get the games on FSW/PT - NBC will be blacked out.
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Cuthbert is my favorite. Love his calls. Too bad it's blacked out (not that I hate Faust as much as most people).
 
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WHOneedsSOX said:
Not really too worried about Doughty getting 30-33 minutes. What I am worried about is Phaneuf and Martinez having to play 25 minutes.

Cuthbert is my favorite. Love his calls. Too bad it's blacked out (not that I hate Faust as much as most people).
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Right with you on Cuthbert.


I am more so worried about the forwards TOI than Drew as well.
 
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