TRH RECAP 16 – MUMPS NO MATTAH
KINGS 5, DUCKS 6 (SO)
Darryl Sutter described the Kings’ first matchup with the Ducks since their 6-2 drubbing of the quackers on the Kings erratic march to yet another Stanley Cup as “…a game of pond hockey.” Given the fact that the Kings had not one, but two two goal leads in the game–a game where the Ducks played without Corey Perry or Francois Beauchemin, who were both sidelined with afflictions that many thought were eradicated at some point during the early-1960’s–there really isn’t a better way to describe the game…
Unless you want to go with something like, “Man, that game was like something out of that 2012 Penguins vs. Flyers playoff matchup,” which may be a bit harsh, given the fact that there was only one definitive cupcake goal allowed.
Lewis’s soft shot completely and totally baffled Freddy Andersen, who wasn’t heard from again. There is an unconfirmed report that states that a Duck intern drove Andersen to the Perry quarantine area, where he was told he couldn’t come back until Corey was ready to start practicing.
Prior to Lewis’s scorching wrister that elicited knuckle puck-esque levels of confusion in Andersen, Anze Kopitar was at it again, displaying why he would be considered a top-two player in the league if he played in the eastern time zone. He took a pass and blew through the middle of the defense, drawing a penalty shot.
He then displayed how good he is/how easy hockey is by embarrassing Andersen…
To close out a period that was, at least statistically, dominated by the Kings, Drew Doughty notched his first goal of the season.
Presently, the defensemen who put up the numbers are the guys that the average hockey fan knows best. It’s the Karlsson’s, the Subban’s, and the Weber’s of the world who are always the favorite to win the Norris because of their obvious (and very basic) statistics that jump out. Due to a banged-up d-corps, Drew Doughty played 30 minutes against the Ducks, further establishing himself as the best defenseman in the NHL, although Jake Muzzin and his Corsi may disagree.
Cam Fowler kicked off the scoring in the second with…a goal. This was followed quickly by Lewis’s tally, which has been mentioned to this point no less than nine times. Jake Silfverberg and his chrome head had the last laugh however, as he too showed that he is one of the best Swedes living in Southern California…with a goal. If you can’t gauge my flippancy in regards to the second period of play, let me tell you: I be flippin’. BUT, that’s only because the third period was so epic, so “seriously? Did that just happen?” inducing that my roommate thought I was having a conversation with someone. Twice.
The Ducks struck first in the third (huh?) with a nifty goal by Ryan Kesler, who is only slightly less/way more annoying than he was when he was getting paid by Vancouver not to be the captain.
Marian Gaborik took a pass down the left wing, simply blowing past a poor Duck defender, and fired a rocket low against Jason LaBarbera (yeah he’s still in the league), who had replaced Andersen when he was sent to be babysat by the bloated Corey Perry.
All things considered, it was a relatively average goal scored by Gabo, but one that really showed what type ability he still has at the age of 45. Good for him.
As explosive as Gaborik’s goal was, Justin Williams followed it up with what can be described as a flubber, which somehow knuckled its way past LaBarbera, giving the Kings their second two-goal lead of the game.
The commanding lead did not last. Kesler scored again, and Getzlaf followed-up with a shot from the corner that made its way past quick, giving the Anaheim fans that consisted of roughly 55% of the audience at the Pond something to cheer about: overtime, which did not go the Kings’ way.
While Quick was able to stop 44 of the 49 shots sent his way, it was not good enough to merit two points. Seriously, when a guy is making saves like this:
…his teammates must be livid they couldn’t come away with more than just a point.
Random Fact of the Game
No King was kicked-out of a faceoff!
Hit of the Game
Eh, Video from a Concert I went to
I’ve never seen it rain heavier than it did about ten minutes after this video began…I hid under a plank of wood placed across two trash cans with two guys who identified themselves as “engineers.” They did good work.
See you tomorrow!
