Matt Murray has been a Kings fan since the late '80s, when Wayne Gretzky grabbed headlines by defecting to the West Coast. Since then, he has been a card-carrying bandwagon member as the club soared in popularity with their sole Stanley Cup appearance to their position near the bottom of the Pacific. But things are looking brighter, as he is anxious to witness the rise of the new Kings.
Kings exact sweet revenge in Nashville
The Kings' road trip lurches forward like the Bataan Death March. The worst team in the West heads into Nashville to play the best team in the West. The last time the Kings came to town, they were handed their heads on a platter, 7-0. But things aren't as bad as it seems for L.A. Even though the Kings are winless in February, they have gotten points in their last three games. The Kings have also been lifted by their veteran goaltender Sean Burke, who continues to be a calming influence on the club.
On the flip side, things aren't so rosy for the Predators either. According to a report in the Tennessean, if the Predators can't increase their home attendance by one-fourth, it will cost the city of Nashville two million dollars and open the doors for owner Craig Leipold to move his club to another city (Kansas City, anyone?)
Midway through the first period, rookie phenom Anze Kopitar gets knocked to the ice by Martin Erat. The replay looked worse, as it appears Erat's stick smacked against Anze's head. Kopitar skates off the ice and heads to the locker room. It looked as if the Kings weren't going to retaliate. But a few minutes later, Anze returns to the ice and Kings fan breathe a sigh of relief.
Dustin Brown exacts revenge for the club, when he hammers Erat with a clean, open-ice hit, prompting ohhs and ahhs from the sold out Gaylord Entertainment Center. On the same shift, Mike Weaver takes out Darcy Hordichuk in the corner. According to Bob Miller, Brown received some not-too-nice comments from the Nashville bench as his shift ends and he skates off. As the Kings try to hold the puck in the Predators' zone, Alexander Frolov is nailed from behind by Scott Upshall, sending Fro headfirst into the chest of Steve Sullivan, who was trying to hop on the ice for his shift.
The period ends scoreless, but the Kings have outshot the Predators, 11-6. Sean Burke remains solid in goal, thanks in part to the Kings blocking several shots. At the end of the period, Jason Ward gets tied up with Scottie Upshall and Scott Nichol tries to start something. All three guys get rough penalties, and the Kings will start the second period on the power play.
First period: Kings 0, Predators 0
Thirty seconds into the second, Anze Kopitar scores a power play goal. Rob Blake holds in a clearing pass and gets it to Kopitar, who passes it down low to Michael Cammalleri. Cammalleri takes a shot on Tomas Vokoun, and the puck bounced off his glove, the rebound finding Lubomir Visnovsky's stick. Lubo shoots and the puck bounces off the goalie's pads and winds up locked in Kopitar's sights. Anze shoots it past a sprawling Vokoun to lift the Kings, 1-0. It is his 15th goal of the season, and he has tallied a point in every game on this road trip. The assists go to Cammy and Lubo. With the assist, Cammalleri continues his torrid scoring streak. In the last eight games, he now has 12 points (4 goals, 8 assists). Since December 29th, the Kings have played 18 games. He has registered at least a point in 16 of them.
Now the teams are skating four-on-four, and L.A. strikes again, this time it's Brian Willsie. Patrick O'Sullivan takes the puck and attempts a wrap-around on Vokoun. The puck bounces around in front, finally being deposited to the back of the net by Willsie's backhand.
Kopitar adds to the Kings' lead, when he scores midway through the second. L.A.'s Jason Ward skates into the Predators' zone, relinquishing the puck to Kopitar who skates wide around the net to attempt a wraparound on Vokoun. But Vokoun takes himself out of the play, by trying to poke the puck away from the speedy youngster. Anze skates out in front, only to find David Legwand and Vitaly Vishnevski standing awkwardly in the crease, trying to protect the wide-open net. Anze easily shoots between them for his second of the game.
The period comes to a close with the Kings on top. The Predators shot more that period, but L.A. had one more that period. At the end of the second, Cammalleri and Vernon Fiddler exchange some choice words and both recieve five for fighting.
Second period: Kings 3, Predators 0
The Kings get a two-man advantage early in the third, and who else would capitalize but the King with the hottest hand. Coach Marc Crawford puts four fowards on the ice to put pressure on Vokoun. The puck movement is crisp and Frolov feeds the puck to Cammalleri, who one-times it past Vokoun for his 23rd of the year. Lubo gets his second of the game, and Frolov adds to his team-leading point total.
After that, the Kings focused solely on shutting down the Predators defensively. Sending out one forechecker and keeping four players back, the Kings limited them to only four shots in the third. The Predators avoided the shutout when Dan Hamhuis scores on a deflected shot off Mike Weaver's skate to make it 4-1. But L.A. continues to play solid defense and the lowly Kings, cellar-dwelling in the West for much of the regular season can view this game as very promising. Two players who came over from recent trades registered a point (Lundmark and Ward), and Kopitar and Cammalleri continue to impress as the Kings roll to a victory over the best team in the West.
Third period: Kings 4, Predators 1
