This is only our 2nd of 4 meetings this season with the Nashville Predators. They saved all the games for the end of the season I suppose for traveling reasons. Bernier was in goal for us back in November 2011 at our last match up and Kings won 4-3. The Kings hit the road right after our 4-0 win against the Blackhawks on Saturday. Wow, that was such a fun game to be at. How often do you get to see everyone throwing their hats on the ice at Staples? My throat is still sore from yelling. Jeff Carter stepped on the ice and immediately got his stick on the puck and was noticeable. No points for him yet, but I was amazed at how well he did after just getting traded, on a plane and on the ice all in one day. Can’t wait to see him after he is acclimated to the team. Too bad he didn’t even get a chance to catch up on sleep before he was scooped up on the plane and plays his 2nd game tonight in Nashville. We then fly to Minnesota for a back to back game and the whole team will be able to rest for a few days as we do not play until Saturday vs the Ducks.
Nashville has been a busy bee trading team this season. They traded for Defenseman Hall Gill just two weeks ago and today acquired from Montreal LW Andrei Kostitsyn this morning. Nashville is already in a very good place in the conference and the league at 5th place as the Kings are hanging just out of playoff contention in the 9th slot. A lot of Nashville’s success comes from goalie Pekka Rinne. Rinne is 15-2-3 with a 1.88 goals-against average since Jan. 7. He has started each of Nashville’s last 11 home games, during which it’s gone 9-0-2 and they start 4 games in a row home tonight.
Trade deadline is today at noon pst. and there has been a lot of talk of Brownie going in a trade with Bernier for a scorer. When asked about the rumors Brown said ”I’ve been a King my whole career, and I expect to be a King beyond the next few days, with all the rumors flying around, it’s my responsibility to prepare myself to be the best I can.” After his hat-trick Saturday, I assume he and Bernier will be in our line-up tonight.
A Few Notes:
- Kings are at 34.1% chance of making the playoffs
- The Kings outshot the Blackhawks 30-19, including 14-9 in the second period. If they copy that tonight, they could very well beat the Preds.
- Jonathan Quick made 19 saves for his seventh shutout of the season and his 21st career shutout.
- Brown’s first two goals came on L.A. power plays and his third goal was scored while the Kings were shorthanded.
Kings Lineup
# 23 Brown– # 11 Kopitar – # 14 Williams
# 74 King– # 10 Richards – # 77 Carter
# 25 Penner – # 28 Stoll – # 22 Lewis
# 13 Clifford – # 24 Fraser – # 71 Nolan
# 7 Scuderi – # 8 Doughty
# 33 Mitchell – # 26 Voynov
# 27 Martinez –# 22 Greene
# 32 Quick
# 45 Bernier
Nashville Predators
#10 Martin Erat – #12 Mike Fisher – #74 Sergei Kostitsyn
#27 Patric Hornqvist – #11 David Legwand – #57 Gabriel Bourque
#22 Jordin Tootoo – #13 Nick Spaling – #33 Colin Wilson
#24 Matt Halischuk – #15 Craig Smith – #18 Brandon Yip
#20 Ryan Suter – #6 Shea Weber
#75 Hal Gill – #59 Roman Josi
#51 Francis Bouillon – #8 Kevin Klein
#35 Pekka Rinne
#39 Anders Lindback
Go Kings Go!
The Recipe Seeker
February 27, 2012
I hope they can play as well as they did against Chicago. The travelling is tough and going from Tennessee to Minnesota in 24 hours is going to take its toll. But, they are young and healthy so they should remember what that win felt like on Saturday.
tracykingslover
February 27, 2012
and can you imagine how hard it is on Jeff Carter? He has got to be upside down about now. This is a win we really need and again tomorrow vs the Wild. After that they can rest for a few days. Hopefully Quick is on his game tonight – I think we are going to need it!!
tracykingslover
February 27, 2012
End of trade deadline – no more moves were made by the Kings.
This from Hammond at lakingsinsider: “A couple deadline-related notes. As of right now, per league rules, all players on the Kings’ roster must stay on the roster until the end of the season. That’s good news for young players such as Slava Voynov, Dwight King and Jordan Nolan. Also, from now until the end of the season, teams are allowed to call up four players, who can move back and forth between the NHL and AHL. Teams are also now allowed to go over the 23-man roster limit, as long as they remain under the salary cap.”
More here: http://lakingsinsider.com/
tracykingslover
February 27, 2012
End of first – 1-0 Preds. Kings playing well. Haven’t noticed JC yet. Hopefully he will net one.
End of second – 2-0 Preds. crap.
tracykingslover
February 27, 2012
oh well. If Ducks win, they are within 2
meaganj
February 28, 2012
ack. I hate it when games leave me depressed and sad. Come on boys, bring it tonight against the Wild.
tracykingslover
February 28, 2012
I’m with you Meagan! I swear we have to be bi-polar to be a King’s fan. Up one night, down the next.
Hopefully tonight will be better. Those damn ducks are coming up fast behind us. eerrrrgggghhhhh