Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down Post-Hiatus Kings Edition
- Updated: February 10, 2019
After a brief hiatus out of the country myself, the All-Star Break, and a hiatus week for the Kings, I’m back with my Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down for the Kings since returning from said hiatus. The Kings managed to string some wins together, which is causing some (*cough Jesse Cohen cough*) to speculate they could actually scrape into the playoffs this season. With the Ducks tanking (they’ve now lost 19 of 21) and the divisional race within 4 points, it is possible. Kings sit at 51 points in 55 games, Canucks have 55 in 55, Oilers and Coyotes 53 and 51 respectively with a game in hand. Chicago sits at 53 in 55 games, Colorado 54 in 54 and their downward spiral is spectacularly awful in a way only the Ducks can rival. So if the 4-point divisional games go the King’s way in regulation, and a few select teams slide a little themselves, yes it could happen. They play Vancouver later this month, then again in March, Chicago, St Louis and Anaheim twice in March, then finish out April with four divisional games. And true the Kings are trending up, but I’m dead inside and refuse to get my hopes up. And here’s why:
Thumbs Down: Play 60 Damn Minutes
Yeah, I’m gonna start with my gripe first and get it out of the way. Against the Islanders, the Kings had a 2-1 lead for 31 seconds in the third period. It all went downhill from there in the 4-2 loss. The last two goals came with less than 3 minutes remaining. Against the Rangers, the Kings second period was nothing to write home about, and were lucky to pull off the last minute (literally) game-tying play. Then in New Jersey – okay that game was great but again that second period almost got away from them. The tilted third period made it look like the Kings were in much more control than they were. They were literally 18 seconds away from victory in regulation against the Flyers when they let Voracek score. 18 freaking seconds. And finally the Boston game. A 2-1 lead going into the third. Shots-wise it looked like Boston dominated the first then got on the board first in the second, but the Kings rallied. Then just stopped playing. 3 unanswered goals in the first 7 minutes of the period. One was shorthanded for Heaven’s sake. Again they rallied and made it to overtime but seriously?? Play. Sixty. Minutes. Then you won’t have to rally quite so damn hard. Three of the last four games were decided in overtime and I’d contend that at least two of them didn’t have to.
Thumbs Down: They. Traded. Muzzin.
I’m so angry I can’t even talk about it.
Thumbs Up: Tyler Toffoli
In the five games the Kings have played this week, Toffoli has 3 goals, 3 assists, and the game-winning shootout goal. One goal came on the man advantage, a weak spot I’ve been harping on for months. One was the game-winning overtime goal. Is he finally getting on the right side of puck luck, or has his hard work all season finally paying off? I tend towards the latter. In a weak season from the whole team, Toffoli was hardly the only one not scoring. But having someone like Toffoli breakthrough – who’s young enough to still count with the younger kids, but has a couple of Stanley Cups under his belt so is seasoned enough to be a leader – he’s the perfect player to give the Kings the push they need. After trading his old roomie and consistent linemate Pearson, Toffoli was easily the next trade target. Instead, he’s proven that he’s not a has-been already, he does have value to the team, and he can be a part of a winning combination. If he continues this trend, the Kings will be in a much better place to make up those points.
Thumbs Up: Kyle Clifford
Clifford has always been a solid player. He’s 4th line so he doesn’t score that much, but he’s always known what his job is on the ice and he’s filled that role well. Over the past few seasons, he’s improved small parts of his game and one player I’d like to see stay during this rebuild. His penalty minutes this year are the highest on the team but the lowest in the league for a team leader. His goals this season tie a career high he’s reached 3 times in his career, and especially with Trevor Lewis out he’s been consistent on all the little things. He’s good on the boards. He has good stick placement. He’s hard-hitting when he needs to be. But he’s also adapted along with the game. He’s learned to skate smarter, he’s learned when to hit and when not to – because let’s face it the league is trending against the heavy fights it used to, so a team needs someone who can balance being a tough, physical presence but not act like a goon. The Kings need to prove they can transition or they’ll be rebuilding for years. Clifford has proved he has – let’s get the rest of the team on board.
Thumbs Up: Adrian Kempe
Similar to Tyler Toffoli, Kempe has been non-existent all season and breaking through this week. (Did he and Tyler end up at some kind of spa of rejuvenation together over the break?) He’s got 4 goals and 2 assists in the past four games. And wow have those goals been pretty. He’s picked his spots so well, and like Toffoli, has made some smart plays to get those pucks to the net. He even got the game-tying goal against the Rangers in the last minute with the goalie pulled – how many times have the Kings made that successful this season? (Hint: maybe once.) He has speed; he’s also slowing down plays when he needs to in order to get better positioning and work around other players. He’s definitely one of the newbies the Kings want to rely on during a rebuild, and if keeps this up he could be the next upcoming star (she says perfectly aware that this now means he will be next on the injured list.)
Thumbs Up: Trevor Lewis is back!
Do I really need to say any more?
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