LA Kings Mike Richards On Waivers: Players Taking It In Stride

January 27, 2015 by 2 Comments

Los Angeles Kings center Mike Richards (center, with Stanley Cup behind his right shoulder), shown here during the
the team’s 2012 Stanley Cup Championship rally at Staples Center in Los Angeles on June 14, 2012.
(click above to view larger image)
Photo: David Sheehan/CaliShooterOne Photography

 

AUDIO: Includes audio interviews with Los Angeles Kings Dustin Brown, Robyn Regehr, and President/General Manager Dean Lombardi.

EL SEGUNDO, CA — Returning to practice ice after the National Hockey League All-Star break usually isn’t all that eventful for a team, but that was not the case for Los Angeles Kings, who found out that one of their own, veteran center Mike Richards, had been placed on waivers earlier in the day on January 26.

As reported earlier in this space, Richards’ poor 2013-14 performance has carried into the current season, and he has shown no sign of breaking out of his deep funk. That left President/General Manager Dean Lombardi with no choice, even though Richards is a deeply respected veteran who played a critical role in the Kings winning the 2012 Stanley Cup Championship and contributed to their second Stanley Cup Championship last season.

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Dustin Brown and Robyn Regehr On Rob Blake’s Enduring Impact On The Game and the LA Kings

January 16, 2015 by 4 Comments

ROB BLAKE JERSEY RETIREMENT: In the second installment of a multi-part series covering the retirement of former Kings defenseman Rob Blake’s jersey number 4 on January 17, current Kings players spoke exclusively with Frozen Royalty about the jersey retirement, and about Blake’s impact on the team and the game of hockey.

LA Kings forward and captain Dustin Brown, shown here
addressing the crowd at Staples Center in Los Angeles during
the team’s 2014 Stanley Cup Championship Rally.
Photo: David Sheehan/CaliShooterOne Photography

EL SEGUNDO, CA — With the retirement of former Los Angeles Kings great Rob Blake’s jersey number 4 on January 17, as you might guess, the local media have been buzzing around the team’s practice facility in El Segundo, California, asking about Blake.

But if you look at the roster, only two players actually played with Blake, center Anze Kopitar and forward Dustin Brown, who both played with Blake during the 2006-07 and 2007-08 seasons.

“He was the captain right before I was captain,” said Brown. “We weren’t a good team, but you learned a lot from a guy like that—how he handled himself in the situation of being an older guy on a very young, inexperienced team. He helped Kopi and I kind of grow into the roles that we’re currently in.”

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LA Kings To Sign Veteran Defenseman Jamie McBain As Insurance Policy

November 11, 2014 by 4 Comments

Soon-to-be Los Angeles Kings defenseman Jamie McBain, shown here playing for the Manchester Monarchs of the American Hockey League on October 31, 2014.
(click above to view larger image)
Photo: Blake Gumprecht

EL SEGUNDO, CA — The last couple of months have been quite the whirlwind for veteran defenseman Jamie McBain, who skated in practice with the Los Angeles Kings on November 10, and, as first reported by Lisa Dillman of the Los Angeles Times, will be signed today to a one-year contract worth $550,000, the league minimum salary.

The 26-year-old, 6-1, 181-pound native of Edina, Minnesota has played in 275 career regular season National Hockey League games with the Carolina Hurricanes and the Buffalo Sabres (2013-14 season), scoring 25 goals and adding 67 assists for 92 points, with a -22 plus/minus rating and 62 penalty minutes.

McBain became an unrestricted free agent on July 1, 2014, after the Sabres declined to make him a qualifying offer. He was invited to the Arizona Coyotes training camp, but didn’t catch on.

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LA Kings Defenseman Robyn Regher Is Close To Returning, But…

June 4, 2014 by 3 Comments

LA Kings defenseman Robyn Regehr
(click above to view larger image
Photo: Gann Matsuda/FrozenRoyalty.net

LOS ANGELES — Even if he does not return to action in tonight’s Game 1 of the 2014 Stanley Cup Final against the New York Rangers at Staples Center in Los Angeles, Los Angeles Kings defenseman Robyn Regher is getting closer and closer to returning.

“That’ll be a coaches’ decision,” he said. “I feel like I’ve been working hard at getting back to feeling like I can be ready to roll. At this point, it’s whatever [head coach] Darryl [Sutter] would like me to be. If he feels like he’d like me in the lineup, I feel like I’m ready to go, and if he wants to stay with the same lineup that was successful in Game 7 against Chicago, I totally understand that, too.”

“As a player, coming off a fairly substantial injury and missing a significant amount of time, you work as hard as possible, both on and off the ice, to be as [well-prepared] as you can [be],” he added. “That’s what I’m thinking about right now.”

But after stating that he feels that he’s ready to go, Regehr backed off that statement.

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Contrary To Popular Belief, LA Kings’ Jake Muzzin Is Becoming A Solid NHL Defenseman

May 23, 2014 by 1 Comment

COMMENTARY/ANALYSIS: Los Angeles Kings defenseman Jake Muzzin has been under the microscope this season, so much so that he has become the favorite target of many fans who are highly critical of him and his play. But his play during the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and the increased responsibilities placed on his shoulders, are strong evidence that much of that criticism is unwarranted.

LA Kings defenseman Jake Muzzin, shown here checking
Chicago Blackhawks superstar center Jonathan Toews.

EL SEGUNDO, CA — If there is anything you can bank on when the Los Angeles Kings are in action, at least this season, it has been that social media will be abuzz with criticism of defenseman Jake Muzzin, who has been the frequent, almost constant target of the wrath of Kings faithful when things are not going well for the team.

Some limit their complaints to individual plays, when an obvious mistake was made, while others seem to believe that he is a catastrophe on skates, the worst defensemen to have ever picked up a hockey stick.

In fact, the criticism has been so intense that a Twitter hash tag was created for whenever Muzzin does something perceived to be negative: #MuzzKill.

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