Comments on: LAK 3, VAN 2 (SO) – Post-Game Bullets

By: 54 Points, and Who's Doomed by Points-Blown _/ . MCSORLEY'S STICK _/ . | MCSORLEY'S STICK

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 23:56:35 +0000

[...] I indicate those teams in the points-blown standings with the color red. [...]

By: USHA#17

USHA#17 — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 05:29:00 +0000

Gotta sell what you have. Wasn’t much to thate team beside Brown, Frolov, POS and Cammalleri (and Willsie!). From day one marketing had always floated Brown to the top.

By: USHA#17

USHA#17 — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 00:21:00 +0000

Brown is kinda interesting. There is typical Brown whose play is just above the average player. Middle Ground Brown who tries to step up a level only to fall short and become Charlie Brown (can’t find pucks, ridiculous plays). Then Brown will exit Charlie level and become Captain Brown who elevates his play to a very high level and competes like a super star.

By: USHA#17

USHA#17 — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 00:08:00 +0000

Think your right. Clifford (and King) give the Kings that type of bottom puck retrieval, possession and scoring threat that makes the Kings so dangerous and turned the team around over the past 40 or so games.

A nice surprise is Muzzin. Steady and not a lot of errors. He could be an answer to any cap problems which may arise next season.

By: Kings of Hockeywood

Kings of Hockeywood — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 21:36:00 +0000

I suppose that’s fair in the period since he became captain, but I feel like the preferential treatment for Brown goes back to well before he was captain, back to the Crawford era. There has long been a feeling that Brown can do no wrong. When he is on his game that may well be true, but he has more down periods than pretty much any of the other top 6 guys (well, maybe not Richards so far).

By: DougS

DougS — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 21:33:00 +0000

Yes, but he was groomed from a fairly early age. Which means that he was cut some slack to account for the fact that he was learning on the job. The captainship is also a symbolic role, which means that if you undercut his standing with the rest of the team, you may be undercutting your true purpose in making him captain.

Even now, I suspect that Sutter is saving that as his last-ditch measure, because if you do something that dramatic and it doesn’t succeed in turning the team around… what else you gonna do?

By: Kings of Hockeywood

Kings of Hockeywood — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 21:09:00 +0000

I would think as captain, he should be held to an even higher standard. But I guess that’s just me.

By: DougS

DougS — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 20:22:00 +0000

I noticed that Gagne got some power play time with Richards and Carter, so i wouldn’t be surprised if he and Clifford swap places soon. Cliffy’s promotion was nice as symbolism, but in all seriousness I agree that he will be more visible and more effective back in the bottom 6.

By: DougS

DougS — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 20:20:00 +0000

I have always assumed that Brown’s scratch-proof coating had to do with his early earmarking as The Team Captain.

By: Kings of Hockeywood

Kings of Hockeywood — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 19:43:00 +0000

As to Brown’s scratch-proof-ness, I think it’s always existed. I remember back under Terry Murray he and Frolov were like exact opposites in that regard. Brown would try to single-handedly go through four players, inevitably lose the puck, and a goal would be scored against the Kings and he’d still be out there for his next shift. Frolov would miss coverage on a play where someone else had lost the puck, leading to an outnumbered attack the other way and he wouldn’t see the ice again for a couple of games. That always irritated me.