Accountability and Consequence Leads The Kings to Play Full Out

By Jim Ellis
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Updated: October 21, 2019

So the Los Angeles Kings decided to play 60 minutes, for the first time since … who knows when.

For 20 minutes in each of the three periods of the 4-1 victory against the Calgary Flames on Saturday, the Kings did not fold; they did not experience a lull. They played full out, full rink press, and basically kicked ass the entire game. It was a welcome surprise after a disastrous couple of years, which included last year’s 71-point season where they barely beat out the Ottawa Senators as the worst team in the NHL.

So what happened? What gives?

Though the season is very young, the team has not, arguably, played a full three periods this year, even in its two victories, which had its ups and downs.

Was Saturday a fluke? Was it a dream? What so inspired the team?

I have a thought.

It all came down to a threat, a not-so-empty threat, if we review recent results.

After its second consecutive shutout at the hands of the Buffalo Sabres on October 17 (even with 47 shots on net), the teams’ enforcer Head Coach Todd McLellan brought the hammer down, saying, “We’re going to find guys that can play in the system, and if they can’t play, then they’re going to watch.”

Now, what does it do to a professional sports player to be told he could be sitting on the bench (or worse) if he doesn’t perform? I imagine it depends on each specific player’s own psychology. But in general, I imagine a player – any sort of person – will rise to the challenge if the challenge is set and the consequences are clear.

For example, during past Olympic hockey matches, there was a consequence / penalty for any player who got into a fight: he was thrown out of the game. Guess what? No fighting. In many sports situations, if the consequence is clear and consistent enough, the players will take it seriously and adjust behaviors … and possibly even attitudes.

In Saturday’s game – with possibly McLellan’s hammer still pounding in their heads – the Kings players did not let up on the pedal. Even when the team took an impressive 4-0 lead, they still played full out. Even when the game was pretty much out of reach, they kept playing hard and fast.

Hey, wait a minute. Is this the same team that would get soft after scoring only one goal, swiftly allowing an opponent’s equalizer? Isn’t this the same squad that announcer Jimmy Fox says goes into “human nature” mode when they get a lead? (Always hated that sell-out statement from Jimmy.) Why would the team still be playing with intensity after getting so far ahead?

The LA Kings – a proud bunch of athletes who need to be held to the highest of accountability – were not playing according to the clock, according to the fans, according to their salaries, according to the score. They were playing according to a coach who would be observing them and then sitting their ass at any time they chose to let up.

Accountability! That’s the name of the game. Not just a word bandied about in a talking point by the previous two meek and weak Kings’ coaches, but an actual action that spelled the consequence of being taken out of the game, or off the team. With our previous two coaches, it was if we had a substitute teacher in grammar school, and the students chose to get all lax. With McLellan, it is hoped that we have more of a hard-edged, no-nonsense type in the likes of a coach Don Shula or Bill Belichick or – dare I say it – Darryl Sutter, the type of coach who will ride men’s asses to bring out their best, and if necessary, let them know they can be disposed of if they don’t play up to standards.

And this would go for any player on the team. No one is exempt. There are no favorites; there is no special treatment. Since everyone is held to the same standards, this takes each player to play at the level of “team,” not individual, showing no one is above the collective.

With such a culture – where each player rises to the challenge, shows up as a team player, and is pushed to his best through a looming harsh consequence – a team will be rewarded with victories … and a full team effort.

For all 60 minutes.