Still A Kid At Heart, Bernie Nicholls Reflects On His Time With The LA Kings

February 27, 2010 5 Comments

Bernie Nicholls
Photo: LA Kings

LOS ANGELES — As they have done with so much of their very best homegrown talent over their 42-year history, the Los Angeles Kings traded away prolific goal scorer Bernie Nicholls, but not before he left his mark on the ice at the Forum in Inglewood, California, the Kings’ home arena during his tenure with the team.

The 6-1, 185-pound native of Haliburton, Ontario was selected by the Kings in the fourth round (73rd overall) of the 1980 National Hockey League Entry Draft. After his final season (1980-81) with the Kingston Canadians of the Ontario Hockey League when he scored 63 goals and added 89 assists for 152 points in 65 games, he found himself with the Kings’ American Hockey League affiliate, the New Haven Nighthawks, to start the 1981-82 campaign.

In 55 games at New Haven, Nicholls lit up the AHL, scoring 41 goals and tallying thirty assists for 71 points, and was called up to the Kings to finish the season. Read more of this post

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Butch Goring Was The LA Kings’ First Star, Fan Favorite

February 24, 2010 8 Comments

Butch Goring
Photo: LA Kings

LOS ANGELES — Long before Anze Kopitar’s skates hit the ice at Staples Center, years before superstar Hall of Famers Wayne Gretzky and Marcel Dionne lit up opponents on the ice at the Forum in Inglewood, California, and even before superstar and should-be Hall Of Fame goaltender Rogie Vachon often won games single-handedly at the Forum, center Robert Thomas “Butch” Goring thrilled fans with his speed, scoring ability and hard work for eleven seasons after being selected by the Kings in the fifth round (51st overall) of the 1969 National Hockey League Amateur Draft.

In the 1969-70 season, his first with the Kings, Goring scored thirteen goals and added 23 assists for 36 points in 59 games. But he wound up splitting time between the Kings’ primary minor league affiliate, the Springfield Kings of the American Hockey League and the big club the following season, playing in just nineteen games at the NHL level.

It was not until the 1971-72 season that Kings fans became enamored with the speed and scoring ability of the St. Boniface, Manitoba native, but Goring quickly became the Kings’ first star and fan favorite. Read more of this post

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LA Kings Recall Forwards Richard Clune, Marc-Andre Cliche

February 24, 2010 Leave a Comment

EL SEGUNDO, CA — On February 24, the Los Angeles Kings recalled forwards Richard Clune and Marc-Andre Cliche from the Manchester Monarchs of the American Hockey League, their primary minor league affiliate. Read more of this post

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Dean Lombardi: LA Kings Are A “Playoff-Type Team”

February 23, 2010 3 Comments

LOS ANGELES — Before Terry Murray took over as head coach, the Los Angeles Kings were a mess. They could score goals, but they gave up so many more that they found themselves hurtling into the abyss, ending the 2007-08 season tied with the Tampa Bay Lightning with 71 points in the standings, the fewest number of points out of the thirty teams in the National Hockey League.

That team scored 2.76 goals per game (GPG), ranked thirteenth in the league. But they allowed 3.21 GPG, ranked 28th in the league, just 0.03 GPG better than the league-worst Lightning and the Atlanta Thrashers. Read more of this post

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KingsCast Scores Two Goals This Weekend

February 20, 2010 Leave a Comment

The crew over at KingsCast has been busy lately, and this weekend, they’re hitting us with a slapshot in the midsection and a wicked wrister through the five-hole. Read more of this post

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Overwhelming Outrage About NBC’s Winter Olympics Coverage Should Move IOC To End Exclusive TV Rights Deals

February 17, 2010 29 Comments

COMMENTARY: The criticism and outrage about NBC’s coverage of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver is both overwhelming and pervasive. The time has come to end exclusive television broadcast rights for a single television network here in the United States.

LOS ANGELES — As the heavy criticism of NBC’s coverage of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, British Columbia gets louder and more overwhelming, if that’s possible, it is clear that the time has come for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the United States Olympic Committee, assuming they have a say in the matter, to end the exclusive broadcasting deal with NBC for future Olympic Games.

Indeed, the criticism of NBC’s coverage has been vehement and unending since these Games began. But with their piece-meal, tape-delayed coverage of the Games, despite the fact that they are in Vancouver—not only in the same hemisphere as the United States, but also the same continent—NBC has no one to blame but themselves. Read more of this post

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