Thursday, November 03, 2005

There was no game tonight

Let's just pretend this one didn't happen, and never speak of it again.

Wednesday, November 02, 2005

Kings 3; Stars 3; Lubo 3

Pretty ugly game, really. Too many penalties in the first two periods, and too many penalties on what were really non-penalties. But the worst game the Kings win is better than the best game the Kings lose, and this was far from their worst game.

LaBarbera continues to impress, and I think it's fairly clear at this point that the number one job is his. Garon will continue to play fairly often. I don't think it will be a typical 1-2 setup, but expect LaBarbera to get the bulk of the action until Garon takes it from him, or LaBarbera gives it up. He wasn't giving up much tonight, only getting beat on a breakaway and a freak deflection while the game was still doubt. His 1.70 GAA coming into the game led the league. Looks like a pretty good signing so far.

The offense got rolling on the power play tonight, getting two goals officially, and a third that went in just as time expired on another. Avery showed that he's not all penalty minutes and lightweight fights (something we've known for a while) by burying a pass from Frolov after Johan Hedberg and Phillipe Boucher got tangled up. Norstrom almost got his first goal of the year, but according to the box score, it went to Jeff Cowan, who honestly deserved it after throwing the hit in front of the net that got the play rolling. Demitra capped the scoring for the Kings in the third, as the CAP line continued to stay hot.

But the hero of the night was Lubomir Visnovsky, who recorded his first hat trick. The first one came on a 5 on 3, with Lubo pulling the trigger from the high slot. Hedberg got a piece, but it wasn't enough. His second goal came about 90 seconds later, as Pavol Demitra walked in from the right point before sliding the puck cross ice to Lubo, who settled it down before banging it home from a sharp angle. His third also came on the power play, this time cleanly burying a slap shot from just inside the right circle. Lubo's 18 points on 6 goals and 12 assists leads the Kings, and leads all NHL defensemen. In the new NHL, defensemen seem to be a bit vulnerable, but nimble skaters can still avoid a fair amount of punishment. Lubo needs to stay nimble and stay healthy for the Kings to be successful this season.

Don't look now, LGKers, but Joe Corvo is a +7. Yes, some of that is because he's been paired with Lubo, but most of that is because he's played very, very well this season.

What a crappy way to start the day

The Angels plan to offer new contracts to television broadcasters Steve Physioc and Rex Hudler and radio announcers Rory Markas and Terry Smith, club spokesman Tim Mead said. Their contracts had expired at the end of the season.
With the terrific John Rooney on the market, the Angels re-commit to Phys and Hud. So goes another season. On the other side, I'm actually glad that Rory and Terry are back, as I like both, even though I rarely listen to games on the radio anymore, what with extra innings, MLBTV, and the difficulties in strapping my entire computer to my back if I want to listen to a game remotely (and yes, I know I can get satellite radio).

Sunday, October 30, 2005

Hmm. Secret Admirer.

I received this email on Friday to the gmail account that this blog links to.
Subject: I love you

I do.. I work with you, you have no idea who I am. But I want you sooo bad. I love your personality, and deep down inside, you know who I am.
Interesting. No links or pictures of naked chicks or anything. It's understandable, really. I mean, I am pretty fucking awesome. I don't think it was the 'I love you' virus thing, because there was no attachment (other than emotional attachment to me, of course). But hey, if there's one thing I don't talk about here, it's work. This place is big enough to troll around for people badmouthing them on the web, and I certainly don't need that headache.

Anyway, it beats getting trollish comments from the likes of Poleski (deleted) and Faley (who somehow managed to avoid deletion).

And no, deep down I couldn't even fathom who it could possibly be. Probably Capt. Trollypants.

Kings 5; Blues 2

Very important for the Kings to come out and take care of a struggling St. Louis team, especially after a lackluster homestand that has included two losses. Tonight's game was a little like a boxing match between two fighters, one a fair amount better than the other. For the first couple of rounds, the two exchanged some jabs, and the underdog landed a couple of punches, even outfought the favorite for stretches. But as the bout wore on, the favorite wore down the dog, andn landed a couple of knockout blows.

If the Kings are going to have a successful season, then the big guns are going to have to come through. And as much as people might want to believe that means Robitaille and Roenick, it doesn't. It means Demitra, and it mean Frolov. Tonight, the big guns fired, with each getting two goals. For the second straight night, the Kings have batted pucks into the net from mid-air, tonight's coming from Frolov who knocked home the rebound of a Dustin Brown deflection of a Mike Cammalleri shot from the blue line. The Kings are playing, to borrow a phrase from basketball, above the ice. Frolov's other goal came on a nifty bit of stick work as he pulled the puck from behind the goal line and banged it home in one motion.

The power play was fairly uninspiring for most of the night, but it did produce two goals in 8 opportunities, so I shouldn't complain. LaBarbera settled down after giving up a goal on the first shot he faced. Perhaps the best goal of the night came from one of the little guns. After Craig Conroy had come out of the penalty box in the second period, the Kings worked a 3 on 2 that ended with Conroy making a quick little move to get the puck to Eric Belanger camped out on the right post. Belanger very calmly lifted the puck over Reinhart Divos, who was sprawled at that post and couldn't cover the top corner. Although the Kings were forced to run a little ragged at time, they eventually got the game under control and made Belanger's goal stand up.

Through 12 games, the Kings are 8-4, and they're playing like a top team, if not an elite team. There are still a lot of new parts that they're working in, which is true across the league. I predict that there will be a few teams that will be a lot better when those parts gel than they are now. I think the Kings can be one of those team, especially back on the blue line. If the top guys on offense are going to bring it the way they did tonight, it's going to make it easier for those defensemen.