Dustin Brown Deserved Much Better From LA Kings

June 30, 2016 by 8 Comments

LA Kings forward Dustin Brown, shown here during a November 2015 practice at the
Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo, California.
Photo: David Sheehan/CaliShooterOne Photography

LOS ANGELES — Although the decline in his level of play has been rather glaring, even before he helped lead the Los Angeles Kings to their first Stanley Cup Championship in 2012, right wing and now former captain Dustin Brown deserved better treatment than he has received this summer since news leaked that he was no longer captain.

On May 27, TSN’s Frank Seravalli first reported on Twitter that Brown would no longer be captain. But there was no confirmation from the Kings, not even a comment, until June 17, when they named center Anze Kopitar as their new captain.

Brown broke his silence on June 30, and during a very candid, often blunt, media conference call, among the things that became clear was that the Kings bungled the whole situation.

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An Honor Long Overdue: LA Kings Great Rogie Vachon To Be Inducted Into Hockey Hall of Fame

June 27, 2016 by Leave a comment

STORY WITH AUDIO: After 29 years, Los Angeles Kings great Rogie Vachon was named as an Honored Member of the Hockey Hall of Fame on June 27. Read his comments and listen to an exclusive interview with him below.

LA Kings goaltending legend Rogie Vachon
(click above to view larger image)
Photo courtesy Los Angeles Kings Alumni Association

LOS ANGELES — As the saying goes, justice delayed is justice denied, and on June 27, the Hockey Hall of Fame corrected an injustice in the hockey world when they announced that former Los Angeles Kings goaltender Rogatien “Rogie” Vachon will be inducted as an honored member, joining Eric Lindros and Sergei Makarov in the Players category, on November 14 in Toronto.

Pat Quinn was elected posthumously in the Builders category.

Vachon first became eligible in 1987, but had been passed over time and time again, despite the fact that his numbers, honors and accomplishments shined brighter than so many others who had already been enshrined. So when the call came early this morning, Vachon was floored.

“I was in total shock,” he said. “All of a sudden, out of the blue, I get a call from [Hockey Hall of Fame Chairman of the Board] Lanny McDonald in Toronto, and he said, ‘congratulations. You’re in.’ I said, ‘yeah? In what?’ He said, ‘the Hall of Fame.’ I didn’t realize that he was on the Selection Committee. So he was the one who called me.”

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LA Kings Could Be Quite Active On Second Day of 2016 NHL Draft

June 25, 2016 by 1 Comment

2016 NHL DRAFT – Los Angeles Kings Director of Amateur Scouting Mark Yanetti spoke exclusively with Frozen Royalty late Friday night about the Kings plans for today’s rounds 2-7 of the 2016 NHL Draft.

LOS ANGELES — The National Hockey League held the first round of its annual amateur draft on June 24 at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York. But a few teams, including the Los Angeles Kings, did not have a first round pick and were forced to sit and watch the cream of the crop of the 2016 NHL Draft parade pass them by.

The Kings don’t pick until the 51st overall selection in the second round and never had an opportunity to move into the first round.

“We played some [scenarios] out awhile ago,” said Mark Yanetti, the Kings Director of Amateur Scouting. “If you want to talk about the analytic component of moving up and down [in the draft], there’s no way to get from 51 to 30 [the final pick in the first round] without doing something that doesn’t make sense.”

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LA Kings Draft Hits, Misses and Comic “Relief”

June 24, 2016 by Leave a comment

2016 NHL DRAFT: Frozen Royalty’s coverage of the Los Angeles Kings and the 2016 National Hockey League Draft continues with a look at some of the Kings’ hits and misses in recent drafts, and one hilarious draft story.

LOS ANGELES — One look at the Los Angeles Kings’ record of drafting and developing their young prospects will show that they’ve been very, very good at it since Dean Lombardi took over as President/General Manager in April 2006.

Indeed, 18 players selected in the draft by Lombardi and his staff between 2006 and 2012 have made an impact in the National Hockey League, with ten contributing to the Kings winning the Stanley Cup in 2012 and/or 2014, and more are likely coming from subsequent drafts. Given Lombardi’s stated goal of selecting at least two players who would be able to play in the NHL in each draft, his amateur scouts and development staff have achieved a remarkable record of success.

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LA Kings Are Targeting Goalies In 2016 NHL Draft…But That Probably Doesn’t Mean What You Think

June 24, 2016 by Leave a comment

2016 NHL DRAFT: The biggest need in the Los Angeles Kings player pipeline is in goal, with only one drafted goaltender prospect in their development system who is a long way away from the professional ranks. This story will look at the current situation and how it impacts their’ approach to the 2016 NHL Draft.

LOS ANGELES — When you look up and down at the Los Angeles Kings system, Jonathan Quick is firmly entrenched as their number one goaltender. But with Jhonas Enroth heading to unrestricted free agency, the job of backup goaltender is expected to fall to Peter Budaj, who lit up the American Hockey League this season as the best goaltender in the league with the Ontario Reign.

But behind Budaj, the only prospect the Kings have in goal is 20-year-old Alec Dillon, who they selected in the fifth round (150th overall) of the 2014 National Hockey League Draft.

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