Kings fall to Devils for second time this season 3-0 on Oct. 25th/ Upcoming Tip a King Benefit on November 13, 2011
The LA Kings came into the game vs. New Jersey with a 5-1-1 record with hot goalie Jonathon Quick recording 3 straight shutouts. However, it was pre-determined to give Quick the night off so backup Jonathan Bernier started and didn’t fare too well. After a tight scoreless first period, the Devils struck the net three times in the second period and that was the difference in the 3-0 shut-out. All 3 goals came when the Kings had possession and couldn’t clear the puck including Anze Kopitar who didn’t play up to his normal level.
Dainius Zubrus opened & closed the scoring in between a one time Patrick Elias goal off a great pass from Petr Sykora. Even though the Kings outshot the Devils 31-23 and held New Jersey’s top 2 players Ilya Kovalchuk & Zach Parise scoreless, they had only a few good scoring chances and didn’t play too well. New Jersey lost another goal when defenseman Henrik Tallinder was called for being in the crease after a shot past Bernier. The Devils also hit 2 goal posts and pretty much dominated the matchup as the beat LA for the second time this season (the first coming in New Jersey 2-1 in a shootout).
While Devils longtime goalie Martin Brodeur is healing from injury, Johan Hedberg did a stellar job in net. LA was missing Drew Doughty who was nursing an injury as well but should be back in action in the near future. Dustin Brown said the team had an off night as it is hard to be on your game all 82 games. The team just wasn’t’ there the whole game he added. A big crowd of over 18,000 didn’t have too much to get excited about. LA has big expectations this season after reaching the playoffs the last two years but getting knocked out each time in the first round. They have the players, confidence, coaching and experience to go deeper. They need good play from everyone as there have been a few under-achieving so far including Dustin Penner, Jarret Stoll and Brad Richardson. Newcomers Simon Gagne and Mike Richards will make a big difference and ease the loss of Ryan Smith, who asked to be traded back to Edmonton and was granted his wish.
For upcoming games, info and tickets, please visit www.kings.nhl.com
Don’t miss the upcoming Tip a King event at Sony Studios on November 13th. More info, how to buy tickets and FAQ on the links below.
http://kings.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=74402
http://kings.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=73918