Word Association with Theo Fleury

When you think Flames vs. Kings it's hard not to conjure up an image of Theo Fleury.

He brought more passion to a single game of hockey than some players bring in an entire season. Over multiple teams in a career that lasted more than 1,000 games in the NHL, he epitomized the line 'You hate him, unless he's on your team - then you love him.'

There's no denying his success on the ice. He finished his career with 455 goals, hoisted the Stanley Cup and won an Olympic gold medal with Team Canada.

Just hours before the Kings play another critical game in Calgary tonight, I had the honor of speaking with Theo about a variety of topics, including several of his projects away from the game of hockey.

Of course, we often found our way back to the NHL though.

Regarding some of those legendary contests back in the late '80s, early '90s, Theo was quick to point out "I loved playing at the Great Western Forum, especially after they acquired Gretzky. The atmosphere was always electric, even though many people there didn't like me."

Flipping the tables a bit, I asked which NHL players he likes in today's game. Fresh off the NHL All-Star Draft last weekend, what would Team Theo look like?

"Marc-Andre Fleury, my brother from another mother, would be in goal. Shea Weber and Duncan Keith on defense. Up front, Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin, paired with Jarome Iginla."

Still loyal to the Flames after all these years.

Although it provided a perfect transition for us to talk about the persistent rumors that Iginla might be traded soon. It's a business - something Fleury knows having been traded himself (he says he never wanted to leave Calgary, but there were money issues) - so, while he knows it's a possibility, he just doesn't envision a scenario where Iginla gets moved. Even more so, he's insistent that Iginla deserves to retire someday having spent his entire career with the Flames.

Finally, we played word association...

Lanny McDonald - class
Gary Bettman -interesting
Tomas Sandstrom - hard to play against
Luc Robitlaille - great hands
Kelly Buchberger - little talent, hell of a career
Sandy McCarthy - best friend
Sean Avery - different
Eric Lindros - strong
Mark Messier - leadership
Ryan Smyth - pain in the ass

I hope to have Theo back on for an extended conversation before the Flames come to Los Angeles next month.

Until then, check out his book Playing With Fire. He lays it all out there and takes readers inside the mind one of the most intriguing players to ever grace a sheet of ice.

The Mayor
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RELATED ARTICLES:

Interview with Kerry Fraser - tells a very raw and emotional story about Fleury as a NY Ranger

LA Kings Players on Calgary Captain Jarome Iginla

Revisiting a Rivalry - Kings vs. Flames

Interview with Kelly Buchberger

Interview with Shea Weber

LA Kings Players on Calgary Captain Jarome Iginla

It's February, which means the hockey world is alive with rumors everywhere you turn.

Sure, there are plenty of stories out there suggesting Jarome Iginla, the Calgary Flames captain, is coming to LA. However, if you don't want to believe their GM - who has said he won't be trading him - at least know this, if something was going to happen, it certainly won't be before the Heritage Classic on February 20.

So, for now, we can focus on the game. With the Los Angeles Kings in Calgary tonight it must be brought up that they haven't won a game in the Saddledome since December 2005 and are now 0-10-0 in their last 10 visits.

After a tough start to the New Year, they seem to have found their stride more recently, going 4-0-1 mark in their last five games.

The game tonight will not only be a chance to work on those streaks, it also presents the challenge of shutting down one of the best players in the league.

Recently, I asked several Kings' players what it's like to play against Iginla...

Ryan Smyth - I think he's turned it on really well as of late. He's a big factor for that team and it's a matter of shutting him down at times. He has a great shot and hopefully we can limit his chances.

Michal Handzus - He's one one of the top players in the league, for sure. He's one of those guys who's very good with the puck. He has a great shot. He can beat you so many ways. He's very strong. He's a gritty guy with great hands. You have to play a good all around game against him, with really good checking and always know where he is because sometimes he just disappears and then he reappears in the slot. He has a great shot and a great release. So, you need to always know where he is on the ice.

Anze Kopitar - It's always tough to play against him. He works so hard. At the same time, he has a ton of skill. His shot is really deadly and it's burned us a few times when we've played against the Flames. So, you always want to be aware when he's on the ice and make sure you have everything under control.

For more Kings and Flames related news, be sure to check out the interview with Kerry Fraser from yesterday. It's an incredible conversation and he doesn't pull any punches when talking about the biggest names in the game - including Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Alexander Ovechkin and many others. Perhaps the most raw moment though is his description of a situation involving Theo Fleury. Check it out here.  It's an absolute can't miss!

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119
www.facebook.com/MayorsManor.com



RELATED ARTICLES:

Interview with Kerry Fraser

Painting by Numbers with Ryan Smyth

10 Tidbits on Michal Handzus

Kopitar Comes Close at NHL All Star Game

Revisiting a Rivalry - looking back at Flames vs. Kings history
.

photo courtesy of Michael Zampelli

MayorsManor Podcast - featuring Kerry Fraser

Very few people in the world of hockey ever become as well known as the players on the ice.

Then again, there aren't many people like Kerry Fraser either.

He's perhaps the most recognizable referee in the history of hockey. In his 30-year career he managed to get under the skin of fans in nearly every NHL city. Yet, he was simply doing his job in most cases.

At the end of last season he hung up his whistle after more than 2,000 games all across North America. He penned a book, The Final Call, while taking those last laps in stripes. It's a telling memoir featuring candid insight and often provides the emotion behind stories fans may not have otherwise been privy to.

In the podcast below Fraser shares some of those memories. He talks about lecturing a young Mario Lemieux and the friction it created, allowing Mark Messier a little latitude when taking care of a situation on the ice and recalls a crushed Theo Fleury asking him for help.

Of course, he also talks about several key events involving the Kings - including the non-call on Wayne Gretzky in the '93 playoffs vs. Toronto, Marty McSorley's illegal stick in the Stanley Cup Finals, coach Tom Webster throwing a stick at him and quite a bit more.

He shares the experiences of receiving death threats, contemplates rule changes and offers opinions on calling penalties in the final minutes of play.

Like many MayorsManor interviews, we also play word association and you may not believe what he has to say about guys like Gary Bettman, Chris Pronger, Sean Avery, Patrick Roy and several others. The most shocking though may be his comments on Alex Ovechkin.

[Audio player after the jump]

Kings v Oilers Highlights - Canadian Feed

The Los Angeles Kings defeated the Oilers 3-1 in Edmonton last night. Ryan Smyth was originally credited with the first two goals - that's since been changed to Drew Doughty.

Last season's Norris Trophy finalist now has six goals on the year, half of them coming against the Oilers.

For a different look, here are video highlights from the Canadian feed...

One questions to ponder - if Jarret Stoll would have buried that penalty shot, how much more would it have stung that coach Terry Murray didn't include him in the initial three shooters during Tuesday's game in Minnesota?

The Kings lost that game to the Wild 1-0, when Anze Kopitar, Jack Johnson and Dustin Brown all came away empty against Niklas Backstrom.

And it certainly seemed odd to exclude Stoll, especially considering he had scored the game winner in the Kings' previous game - a shootout victory over San Jose at Staples Center.

Either way, the Kings are 4-0-1 in their last five games and now travel to Calgary to take on the Flames Saturday night.

The Mayor
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STAT CHECK: LA Kings at Edmonton Oilers

Game two of the Los Angeles Kings' road trip continues tonight in Edmonton.

Here are some key stats to know before the puck drops at 6:30 pm PST...

* Overall, the Kings are 6-0-4 in the last 10 games vs. the Oilers, including two wins this season. In their last 10 visits to Edmonton they're 6-4-0 - yet, they've four straight, dating back to Nov. 26, 2008.

* Breaking down goals by period, the Kings are an even scoring team - with 46 in the first, 46 in the second and 45 in the third. The problem this season has been the second period, where they've given up 53 goals (compared to 36 in the first and 34 in the first).

* The Oilers get stronger as the game goes on, having scored 31 goals in the first, 40 in the second and 48 in the third.

Prospect Showdown - Schenn vs Weal

Over the past few weeks several of the Kings top prospects have been facing off in junior hockey.

First, it was Maxim Kitsyn vs. Tyler Toffoli in the OHL (recap here) and more recently Jordan Weal took on Linden Vey (recap here).

Now, it's time for the big dog. Brayden Schenn, the Kings first round draft pick in 2009, will meet Weal and his Regina Pats tonight in Saskatoon.

Schenn, who has only played six games with the Blades since being traded there a few weeks ago, is coming off his best game of the season.

Last night he was hit hard in the first period by Brett Ferguson of the Red Deer Rebels. After laying on the ice motionless for a few minutes he eventually shook off the cob webs and ended up scoring two goals and added an assist - the first multi-goal game with his new team.

The second one was also his 100th WHL goal.  That's not even close to a record though.  In fact, former King Ray Ferraro scored 108 in one season back in 1983-84 for Schenn's old team, the Brandon Wheat Kings. 

How Well Do They Know Tyler Toffoli?

A quick video from the Ottawa 67s - How well do three of his teammates know Tyler Toffoli...



As noted, Toffoli was a second round pick of the LA Kings at the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. He's currently leading the OHL in scoring with 83 points (43g, 40a) in 48 games played.

Here are three follow-up articles you may also enjoy:

Toffoli is Terrorizing the OHL - posted in January

Interview with Tyler Toffoli - from the Super Series

Interview with GM Brian Kilrea - talking Ottawa 67s hockey

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119
www.facebook.com/MayorsManor

Point Break at 50 Games

It's not uncommon for coaches to break the NHL season down into 10-game segments. Things are just easier to digest that way.

Last year there were several articles on MayorsManor that followed the progression of the Kings throughout the season using this simple approach - which also helps even out the highs and lows that may come with a few wins or losses.

Given the strength of the Western Conference this year, 96 points is a good benchmark to use when drawing a line in the sand to determine a minimum number of points needed to make the playoffs.

For easy math, that means a team needs to average about 12 points per 10 games (using eight ten-game segments you'd get 96 points, then use games 81 and 82 for seeding purposes).

So, where are the Kings? And more importantly, what's needed on the current road trip?

POLL: Player of the Month (January)

Last month Jonathan Quick was denied the hat trick when Dustin Brown garnered 41% of the votes - capturing the title of Player of the Month for December.

The Kings starting goaltender had been a back-to-back winner, having captured the title in October with 51% of the votes and November with 52%, beating Justin Williams both times.

We're probably going to have a new winner this month though. Brown had just three points in January, so he's not going to repeat. And the goaltending wasn't stellar for more than half the month, so Quick may not get many votes.

However, he did make a strong run the final week - including a 2-0 shutout over the Boston Bruins and 3-2 shootout victory over the San Jose Sharks.  Those numbers earned him the NHL's second star of the week earlier today.  Will it be enough?

On another positive note, Jarret Stoll bounced back from a disappointing December and had a strong month.

Here's the list...

(in alphabetical order)

Anze Kopitar - eight points (1g, 7a) and was plus-1

Jonathan Quick - record of 4-6, one shutout, gave up an average of 2.2 goals in 10 starts

Ryan Smyth - ten points (5g, 5a) and was plus-7

Jarret Stoll - nine points (6g, 3a) and was plus-2

Justin Williams - seven points (3g, 4a) and was plus-6

Who gets your vote?


Poll closes tomorrow at noon.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119
www.facebook.com/MayorsManor

...And Now You're Caught Up (2/1/2011)

It's been forever since the Kings played a game, right?

Well, not exactly. It only feels that way.

Later tonight they'll begin what they hope is their playoff push over the final 32 games of the season.

To help get you back in the swing of things, here are ten stories you may have missed during the five-day All Star break...

* Jonathan Bernier will make his first career start tonight vs. the Minnesota Wild. Coach Terry Murray actually made the announcement prior to the Kings final game before the break. Jonathan Quick will start tomorrow vs. Edmonton.

* Andrew Brunette will play his 1000th game for the Wild tonight. Keep an eye out - later today we'll have an article up detailing some of his accomplishments, like only missing three games since the start of 2001-02. In 42 career games vs. the Kings he's posted 30 points (8g, 22a).

* Now for your scary stat of the day - according to the 'strength of schedule' table shown here, the five teams with he most difficult schedule in the second half are: Phoenix, San Jose, Edmonton, Chicago and Los Angeles. So, the good news is, three of the other four teams facing tough times are clubs the Kings are battling for a playoff spot in the West. More good news? Teams 6-10 are: Nashville, Anaheim, Columbus, Dallas and Calgary. Thus, the West will probably continue to be a dog fight all the way until the very end.

Kopitar Comes Close at NHL All Star Game

The Los Angeles Kings (and their fans) have faced many injustices this season - from what should have been Ryan Smyth's game tying goal in Ottawa to Jonathan Quick not being included on the NHL All Star team. And yes, there was also the blown call against Phoenix, which later cost GM Dean Lombardi a $50,000 fine.

What happened in Raleigh, NC over the weekend wasn't quite to those epic levels. Yet, it did once again put the lack of respect west coast hockey faces front and center.

Friday night's All Star Draft was a fantastic event. What sounded great on paper delivered even more than expected. One criticism - how in the world does Anze Kopitar not get selected until the 15th round (30th overall)?

During Saturday's Super Skills competition you could probably argue Kopitar didn't do himself any favors. Competing in two events, he finished with less than stellar results. In the hardest shot competition he posted a best of 94.5 miles per hour, only good enough to rank him 10th out of 12 shooters. And in the breakaway challenge, which was basically a trick-shot competition, he finished fourth out of six in fan voting (12.5 percent of the vote). However, as things played out, he probably had the best shot at beating two-time defending champion Alex Ovechkin. Unfortunately for Kopitar, his super slick second shot didn't make it past the goaltender.

Then on Sunday, when it mattered most, Kopitar let his skills shine through - even though the pre-game line combinations could have been perceived as partially another slap in the face. He was placed on the fourth line, centering Phil Kessel (the last player taken in the above mentioned draft).

Once the puck dropped it didn't matter. Kopitar scored the first goal for his team - after they had dug themselves a 4-0 hole - and later added a second one for good measure.

Top Ten NHL All Star Game Tweets

That's it. The 2011 NHL All Star Game is over.

Team Lidstrom came back from being down 4-0 in the first period to defeat Team Staal 11-10. Patrick Sharp was voted the game's MVP and the Kings' Anze Kopitar had two goals.

Kudos to all the changes the NHL put in place this year, especially the draft on Friday night. Overall, it was a great weekend.

As for the game itself, well - leave it to the fine people on twitter to bring some unexpected humor to things. Here are my ten eleven favorite tweets that appeared during the game on Sunday afternoon...

@DaveLozo - So clearly someone needs to drop the gloves for Team Lidstrom. (note: this was after they went up 3-0)

@Real_ESPNLeBrun - Fleury thinks it's the second round of the playoffs vs. Montreal

@LAKingsGM - #NHLAllStarGame made me realize that every #NHL team should have 1 Sedin. #cloning