Brayden Schenn: LA Kings’ Second-Line Center?

July 10, 2010 by 27 Comments

EL SEGUNDO, CA — As the 2009-10 season wore on for the Los Angeles Kings, what became rather apparent was that they had a hole in their lineup at second-line center.

Although Jarret Stoll and Michal Handzus have tried to fill that spot the last few seasons, both are far more suited to third-line center duty. Handzus, with his size, strength and strong defensive play is also effective on the fourth line.

Once the Kings qualified for the playoffs this past season, that hole in the lineup became a crater and was a major factor in the lack of production from their top two lines.

But help just might be on the way with center prospect Brayden Schenn expected to make a strong push to make the Kings’ 2010-11 opening night roster. Read more of this post

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LA Kings Left Wing Ryan Smyth Suffers Fractured Ankle At 2010 World Championships

May 10, 2010 by 1 Comment

CALGARY, AB — On May 10, HockeyCanada announced that left wing Ryan Smyth of the Los Angeles Kings suffered a foot injury that will force him to miss the remainder of the 2010 IIHF World Championship tournament in Germany.

The injury was later determined to be a fractured ankle.

“I was in practice, driving to the net,” Smyth told TSN. “I stopped at the net and rolled over on my ankle. I thought it was just a minor sprain. But I had an MRI this morning and learned that it was a fracture.” Read more of this post

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Los Angeles Kings In The News: Catching Up

May 8, 2010 by 3 Comments

Frozen Royalty has been taking a much-needed break from hockey, except to sit back, relax and watch the Stanley Cup Playoffs on television. But during the respite, the Los Angeles Kings still made a bit of news, so let’s get caught up…

Dustin Brown: Finalist For NHL Foundation Award

On April 27, Kings right wing and team captain Dustin Brown was named as a finalist for the 12th Annual National Hockey League Foundation Player Award.

The award recognizes an NHL player who applies the core values of hockey—commitment, perseverance and teamwork—to enrich the lives of people in his community.

This is the second consecutive year Brown has been nominated.

The winner will be announced on Wednesday, June 23, during the 2010 NHL Awards. Buffalo Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller and Washington Capitals defenseman Mike Green are the other two finalists.

For further details, including Brown’s rather extensive community work, see Dustin Brown Named Finalist For NHL Foundation Award. Read more of this post

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LA Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi On Prospects Colten Teubert and Brandon Kozun

February 10, 2010 by 16 Comments

LOS ANGELES — For any National Hockey League team, drafting and development of young prospects is crucial to their long-term success. But for the majority of their 42-year history, the Los Angeles Kings generally resorted to foolishly trading away their first round draft picks and their best young players for NHL veterans—some had been star players—who were little more than washed-up has-beens.

That started to change under former general manager Dave Taylor, but the great emphasis on drafting and development has come under current Kings President/General Manager Dean Lombardi, who has built the team’s drafting and player development infrastructure up to what is now regarded as one of the best scouting and development staffs in the league. Read more of this post

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July 1 Was The Time For Dean Lombardi To Gamble

July 3, 2009 by 14 Comments

COMMENTARY: Los Angeles Kings President/General Manager Dean Lombardi filled a hole on July 2 with the signing of unrestricted free agent defenseman Rob Scuderi but still has a huge, gaping hole to fill on left wing. Should he have gambled on one of the top free agents on July 1?

LOS ANGELES — After day two of the National Hockey League’s annual feeding frenzy, otherwise known as the first couple of days when teams can sign unrestricted free agents, the Los Angeles Kings have filled a need on their blue line.

On July 2, they agreed to terms with veteran defenseman Rob Scuderi, 30, who just won the Stanley Cup with the Pittsburgh Penguins, to a four-year deal that is reported to be worth $13.6 million, an average of $3.4 million per season—a nice raise from the $725,000 he earned last season.

The 6-0, 218-pound defenseman scored a goal and added fifteen assists for sixteen points with a +23 plus/minus rating and eighteen penalty minutes in a career-high 81 regular season games last season.

In the playoffs, Scuderi scored a goal and tallied four assists for five points with six penalty minutes in 24 games, averaging 20:29 of ice time. Read more of this post

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