TRH GAMEDAY 49: BOSTON BRUINS – Time To Bear Down
What I am about to say is completely devoid of sarcasm, sensationalism or needless hyperbole.
Tonight in Boston might be the most important game for the Los Angeles Kings since the Stanley Cup-clinching Game 5 against the Rangers.
Let that sink in for a minute. No, not what was probably the first use of the word “hyperbole” in the history of The Royal Half, but the alleged gravity of tonight’s game. So why is a inter-conference matchup on the last day of January so significant?
The Kings, for the first time in quite a while, enter into a game with a healthy dose of confidence. Not the intrinsic type of confidence that is self-derived to keep spirits high when things aren’t going your way. But the kind of gusto that puts the winds in your sails after accomplishing something significant.
Wednesday’s win over the Blackhawks was pretty damn significant for this hockey team. An emotional, come-from-behind victory against not just a rival, but a team that sits near the top of the league. It was a win that had the feeling of a playoff game, both with the fast and intense pace at which the game was played, and with the unbridled excitement LA fans felt after their team pulled off the late rally.
What a great win.
— Jack Wilson (@JACKaWILSON) January 29, 2015
Who knows how but they did it.
— Spike Coffman (@SpikeC20) January 29, 2015
Just oozing unbridled excitement!
Great to see the other team's goaltender melt down and blow the game for once
— Rudy Kelly (@rudykelly) January 29, 2015
And still a fair amount of resentment for the last two months
After nearly two months of underachieving, tough-luck losses and inconstancies, the Kings have given themselves something to build on. They took a couple punches to the mouth from one of the NHL’s heavyweights, and got off of the mat and rope-a-doped their way to two points. It was a win that could easily serve as a catalyst to a much-needed winning streak to get Los Angeles back into the West’s top eight.
But this momentum is all for naught if the Kings lay an egg in Boston.
Win, and you have a team that has been rejuvenated from the All-Star Break, taking down two contenders while getting the kick-start needed to make some noise during a five-game road trip.
Lose, and the Kings are right back to where they were before the break. An erratic squad, with little for recent success away from home, that is spinning its wheels in the Western Conference playoff picture.
The far-reaching postive ramifications a win in Boston tonight would have are only equaled by the potential negative consequences of a loss. This is the precise definition of a swing game. A possible turning point for a team that has needed a shot in the arm.
This is the single most pivotal game of the season for the Los Angeles Kings. I hope that they don’t screw it up.
So much for not using sensationalism.
TRH TENDER SWIPE TO VICTORY MATCHUP™
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