A nice introduction of the four King legends, Vachon, Dionne, McSorley and Deadmarsh. I'll post it later.

The whole ice is awash in video. They are showing a preview, complete with an orchestral score that would rival any Hollywood blockbuster. Funny thing is, no one in the press box is watching it. Everyone is too busy watching the USC Trojans lose to Stanford.

As they introduce the Kings staff, they are playing Teenage Wasteland by the Who. Fitting, considering the average age of the players. The starting lineup for the Kings: Blake and Visnovsky on D, Handzus centering Nagy and Willsie. But the player who got the biggest ovation was Bernier.

The Kings are having a hard time getting something set up in the Blues zone. The only real chance the Kings got was with the Kopitar line, when he peeled off and set up Cammalleri for a one-timer that sailed over the goal.

O'Sullivan is centering a line with the rookie Murray and Ivanans. From what I've seen, this kid's got wheels. Bernier has made some solid saves, including a beauty of a kick save that had Staples Center cheering.

Kopitar draws a foul when he is hooked by Doug Weight, giving the Kings a power play. Frolov is out there with Calder and Armstrong. A potential goal by Calder is waived off by the ref, because it was hit above the crossbar. The Weight penalty is over, but the Kings go right back on the PP when Lee Stempniak gets called for hooking.

L.A. sets up the powerplay. Kopitar, Brown and Cammalleri head the first line, Frolov is now paired with Nagy and Calder on the second PP line. They get a few chances but to no avail.

A new addition to Staples Center are the L.A. Kings Drummers, three guys pounding on plastic trash bins a la the Broadway musical Stomp. I guess it's better the Sweaty T-Shirt Guy.

Whoever had Dustin Brown in the pool for First Kings Goal, congratulations. Michael Cammalleri one-touch passes the puck from Jaroslav Modry to Anze Kopitar, who dekes his way through the Blues defense with speed and passes it over to a wide-open Brown for an easy score. The Kings also debuted a new horn! It sounds more like a train horn than anything. At least they kept Randy Newman's L.A. anthem.

Armstrong gets called for hooking late in the period, giving St. Louis their first look on the power play. During one torrid barrage of action, Bernier keeps his head on a swivel, turning away shot after shot. The Kings kill the penalty, and the crowd gives the club a huge cheer. I'm pretty sure people are focusing their love on Bernier.

Kopitar is showing a lot more agressiveness on offense. The Kings outshot the Blues in the first period. The Kings outshot the Blues, 12-8 in the first, and bernier has played solid once again.

First period: Kings 1 Blues 0

The period starts and L.A. is putting some pressure on the Blues early. Kopitar slides a pass over to a kneeling Cammalleri, who puts it past Legace for his fourth goal of the season. He scored a similar goal in the Kings first game. Cammy's not that tall to begin with, so for him to shoot from his knees... talk about a worm-burner.

4-on-3, Frolov is now paired with Cammalleri, and Willsie is out with Nagy.

The Blues score when Jamal Mayers fires a slapshot past Bernier to put St. Louis on the board. There was no one between Bernier and Mayers, it was just a laser beam. Martin Rucinsky and Steve Wagner get the assists.

Brown levels two Blues players in the span of three seconds, as they go sprawling across the ice. Brad Stuart also hammers David Backes into the Blues bench and halfway onto the team bus, much to the delight of Kings fans.

Midway through the period, the Kings are having a hard time clearing the zone, and the Blues are closing in on the shot total. Hannu Toivonen replaces Legace in goal, and is immediately tested by Kopitar and Brown shots.

The Kings score again, when Kopitar throws the puck in front of the net. Nagy gets his stick on it and redirects it to Brown as he throws some interference in front of Toivonen. Brown hammers it home for his second of the game.

The period ends with the Kings on top.

Second period: Kings 3, Blues 1

Patrick O’Sullivan comes out wearing a shield on his mask. I didn’t notice it before. Stuart gets whistled for a penalty early in the period, and the Kings are two men down. But the Kings hold out for Armstrong, whose penalty from the second spilled over into the third.

Bernier looks comfortable out there, especially with everything the Blues are throwing at him. Kings kill off the Stuart penalty , but Keith Tkachuk deposits the puck past Bernier, for his second of the season. Lee Stempniak and Paul McClement get the assists. With that two-man advantage, the Blues have surpassed the Kings in shots.

The Blues tie it when a weak shot from Backes sneaks under Bernier to tie the game up. , McClement and Stempniak get the assists. The Kings are looking sloppier and sloppier the longer the game goes on. And as the defense is looking more and more shaky, Bernier is perhaps overcompensating in net.

Sellout for the Kings, which is news, since other clubs have announced smaller crowds for their home openers.

After the Blues tie it up, the Kings look to be playing better defense. Cammy had a sweet shot on goal, kicking the puck to his skate before shooting it wide. Othwer than that, the Kings’ offensive opportunities are few and far between.

Modry gets called for a penalty, and the Blues score a power play goal when Eric Johnson rockets a shot from the point to make it 4-3. Paul Kariya and xxx with the assists.

Paul Kariya gets sent hard in the boards behind the net by Rob Blake, causing him to lie on the ice for a while before getting up. Fans cheer as Blake makes his way to the box. Bernier is able to stay focused

Claire the Cheerleader and Peter Patrelli from the NBC show Heroes are both on hand tonight. Cuba Gooding Jr. is also here, and is roundly cheered by Staples Center. I wonder if they forgot Gooding was last seen in Anaheim, wearing a Ducks jersey, cheering for the Ducks to win the Stanley Cup.

The Kings go on the PP when Martin Rucinsky gets the call for hooking.With under three minutes left, the Kings have a pp chance. The Kings pull bernier with a minute left to get a two-man advantage. But Mayers puts in the empty netter to make it 5-3.

Final score: Blues 5, Kings 3