High / Low points from LA Kings opening games in Europe

For those unfamiliar with the High/Low segment here on MayorsManor, it's a pretty simple format where we look at three highs and three lows from a game, somebody's career, a team etc.

In the past, special guests who have shared their own High/Low thoughts on various topics include Jim Fox, Rob Blake, Luc Robitaille, Marcel Dionne, Ethan Moreau and many others.

Throughout this season we'll take a look at the performance of the Kings in individual games and/or using small segments of the schedule. First up, a review of the first two games played this season over in Europe...

HIGHS

- Anze Kopitar: He scored the first goal of the season on Friday and added two more on Saturday. For anybody questioning how last season's injury may slow him down to start the season, the answer has been given. He flew back to the U.S. with four points (three goals, one assist) and lead the forwards in minutes played both nights.

- Moreau: Singed in late August to bring some veteran leadership and extra grit to the third and fourth lines, Moreau delivered in both games. He had the second most hits on the team in the season opener, with four (only training Matt Greene's five hits) and was tied for the team lead in the same category on Saturday.

- The power play:  Last season the Kings finished with a dismal conversion of rate of 16.1% with the man advantage. After two games, they're up to 25% on the young season.

Moreau's highs and lows from Edmonton and Columbus

A few days ago Ethan Moreau got his first taste of being inside Staples Center as a member of the Kings. It between observing the work being done to the ice and taking photos with other guests, he shared several thoughts about signing his recent deal with Los Angeles.

First off, even though it's a one-year contract, he doesn't see this as his last year in the NHL. Sure, he's already played 900 games over 15 seasons in the league. However, he says he's finally healed up and ready for more - much more.

In fact, at 35, he says he wouldn't mind playing until he's 40.

Yet, that's the road ahead. And before moving on to training camp with the Kings in a few weeks, he reflected back on the travels that have brought him to this stage of his career.

"Going to the Finals was probably the high and the low point," he said, when speaking of his time playing in Edmonton. "We were one game away from winning a Stanley Cup. Then, losing was probably the low point because you come so close to realizing a dream that doesn't happen - you're left with a very, very empty feeling - which is motivation to get back there with this team and to win it. That's the only thing that will kind of make that feeling go away."

Things were different in Columbus, where he was limited to just 37 games last year due to injuries.

"It was exciting to start last season there. I had a lot of responsibility and I played a lot early in the season. Unfortunately, I broke my hand and had to have surgery, which really derailed my year. Like you said, I only played 37 games, so it was tough to get a great feeling for the organization or the city. But, I enjoyed my time there, even though it was short."

Although Moreau and fellow LA roster addition Mike Richards are very different players, one thing they have in common is knowing what it's like to play in a hockey-crazed market.

Richards has already acknowledged he thinks he'll like it better in LA, where he can focus more on the game and less on answering questions away from the rink.

Moreau already had a taste of a 'less intense' market when he was the Blue Jackets last year. Did he find it any easier?

Kings-Sharks Game Two: High / Low with Jim Fox

The unofficial MayorsManor road reporter is back!

Jim Fox rejoins us today with his thoughts on the Kings 4-0 victory last night in San Jose.

As you may recall from his High/Low article following game one, Fox didn't like the team's minimal shots in the first period that night or their defensive zone coverage on the first goal against.

On the plus side, he was impressed with Justin Williams' two-point performance and how they won the special teams battles - both on the penalty kill and with Dustin Brown's power play goal.

What are his takeaways from game two? Let's check in and see...

HIGHS

* Drew Doughty - he showed that the quicker the pace, the more effective he becomes

* Kings play making - with the puck and the lead, the Kings were still making plays, not just dumping it in...without the puck, the box-out skill of all defenders allowed Jonathan Quick to see the puck

* Energy line - nice to see Kyle Clifford, Brad Richardson and Wayne Simmonds get rewarded for tenacious play

LOWS

Kings-Sharks Game One: High / Low with Jim Fox

Over the last few seasons Jim Fox has stopped by MayorsManor a number of times to share his highs and lows from select games.

Like last year during the Kings round one playoff series with Vancouver, LA's award winning commentator is back again today for some more post-season analysis.

Here's what he had to say this morning about the Kings 3-2 overtime loss to the Sharks last night in San Jose...

LOWS

* Just three shots on goal in the first period - it happened a few times in the regular season too, not the way you want to start a playoff series

* Defensive zone coverage on the first goal against - a few things broke down, but the biggest issue was leaving the 'home plate' area with the opening right down the middle of the ice

* Repeating one of the themes from game one last season vs. Vancouver - winning the special teams battle, getting as many saves by Jonathan Quick as they did (42) and still losing the game

HIGHS

HIGH / LOW with Coach Terry Murray

Yesterday, Kings defensemen Drew Doughty, Jack Johnson and Matt Greene provided their highs and lows from the first half of the season.

Even though last month Willie Mitchell jokingly said "Forwards just skate up and down and don't think" that didn't stop eight of them - including Ryan Smyth, Wayne Simmonds and Jarret Stoll - from adding plenty to the discussion here.

And while some have criticized coach Terry Murray's even keeled approach behind the bench, know this - he's never allowed others to make excuses for his team's poor performance. It's been a season filled with incredibly tall peaks and extremely deep valleys and we're only at the midpoint of the regular season.

Here's what he had to say when asked for some highs and lows of the first 41 games...

Murray - "The start of the year was absolutely outstanding. It was the start that we wanted, that we talked about and that we needed - it was there. The players played real well. You get off to that 12-3 start the way we did, out of the box, that's a nice - we've said this in the past - it's a good cushion. We needed it and we're using it right now. We have to start going again. But, we've gone through some stretches of games where we're in the same doldrums as right now. We're not able to find the way to get the job done. This is the second time, maybe, where we're going through this. That's the inconsistency of our game and that's the expectations that are coming to the forefront as you start the year. They're high (the expectations) from within here and from the outside. We have to live up to them. That's hard to do sometimes, but we're trying to do it. We're a young hockey club that's a pretty good group of guys, a great group of guys. We've just got to be better at living up to that part of the deal."

With seven losses in the last eight games, tonight will be the team's last chance to impress the home crowd before heading out on a short two-game road trip next week.

It's time they start living up to some of those expectations Murray referred to.

The Mayor
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RELATED ARTICLES:

HIGH / LOW with LA Kings Defensemen

HIGH / LOW with LA Kings Forwards

Five Questions with Willie Mitchell

Coach Murray on Kyle Clifford's Promotion

Coach Murray on Brayden Schenn (audio)

   
photo courtesy of Michael Zampelli

HIGH / LOW with LA Kings Forwards

Earlier this week the Kings reached the midpoint of their 82-game regular season. In a separate article today we shared comments from the Kings' defensemen, providing their thoughts on the first half of the season.

Now, let's see what eight of the forwards have to say...

Wayne Simmonds - Obviously, I don't think up to this point our season has gone the way we wanted it to. But, we just have to put that behind us and we have to get going here. It's half way through the season now and every point counts. I think we're going to have to be a desperate hockey team in the second half.

Ryan Smyth - I thought we started out really well, played very decent at home. Then, we lost seven out of eight - we didn't need that. But, I thought at times throughout that we played pretty well - we just didn't get the end result we wanted. Right around Christmas we were going good. We were strong and had a few good games - against San Jose, Anaheim and Edmonton in there too. We had some confidence and felt really good as a group. For whatever reason as of late, from then on it hasn't been the greatest. It's been spotty. I don't think we've played up to our potential by any means. But, the best thing is we have the second half that we can move forward with and hopefully gain some points.

HIGH / LOW with LA Kings Defensemen

In the past we've used our popular High / Low format to have guests review various things - Rob Blake and Luc Robitaille reflected on their careers, Jim Fox offered opinions on opening night and playoff games, and even some guys from Manchester have stopped by to talk Monarchs hockey.

With the Kings reaching the midpoint of the 82-game NHL schedule earlier this week it seemed like the perfect time to survey some members of the team for their High/Low points of the season to date.

Let's start with some guys on the blueline...

Jack Johnson - We got off to a great start and we've had some pretty tough losing streaks here. It's pretty easy to pick those out. During the course of the year you're not going to play great every game, over 82 games. You're going to have some tough stretches. But, I think ours have been a little bit longer than we would have liked or that would be expected.

High / Low - Game Two with Jim Fox

Kings' Analyst Jim Fox was in the booth for both of the team's games this weekend north of the border.

Yesterday he stopped by MayorsManor with his thoughts on the Canucks game. Fortunately, after a big win on opening night there was little to criticize.

Now, following the first loss of the season to the Flames on Sunday, he's back with his opinions on the play of Dustin Brown, Jarrett Stoll, Wayne Simmonds, Jake Muzzin and Jonathan Bernier.

Sunday night was certainly less than a perfect ten for the Kings. Entering the game in Calgary they were 0-9 at the Saddledome since Christmas of 2005. Unfortunately, they added to the streak with a 3-1 loss.

Less than 24 hours prior there was plenty of praise being thrown around for players like Anze Kopitar and Jonathan Quick, following the team's performance in Vancouver. Then, true to form in the NHL, the Kings found it difficult to win on back-to-back nights.

Here are Foxy's three Highs and Lows from game #2:

HIGHS

* Dustin Brown's full speed approach - another three hits (big ones), six shots on goal and a tip-in goal

High / Low - Game One with Jim Fox

Dos Equis brings you inspiring stories from the World's Most Interesting Man...we bring you the insightful information from the Man With the Perfect Hair.

Jim Fox was a frequent visitor to MayorsManor last year and was kind enough to provide his thoughts after the Kings big win in Vancouver last night.

Foxy appeared to be extremely frustrated with the Kings loss in last year's season opener to the Coyotes. How did he see things last night?

Here are his Highs and Lows from the game...

HIGHS

FOX:  Brayden Schenn's involvement in many areas

High / Low with Corey Elkins

Next weekend the Kings will be hosting HockeyFest at their training facility in El Segundo, CA. Things should get off to a raucous start when General Manager Dean Lombardi opens the second annual event as the featured speaker.

In recent years his 'State of the Franchise' sessions have been can't miss events. While much of the discussion this time around will probably focus on his efforts to acquire a certain big-time unrestricted free agent this summer, past topics have included building his reserve list via the draft. Rarely talked about has been another Lombardi special - acquiring young free agents who have yet to appear in the NHL.

Just in the last few years he's signed guys like WHL Goaltender of the Year Martin Jones and OHL Defenseman of the Year Jake Muzzin.

Another such signing was Corey Elkins of Ohio State University.  After leading the Buckeyes with 18 goals and 41 points his senior season he moved on to the AHL last year, where he led the Monarchs with 19 points (8g, 11a) through 30 games...leading to his first NHL call-up in December.

He was with the big club for three games, even scoring a goal in one of them.  However, he finished the year in Manchester as a major contributor to a team that went all way to the Eastern Conference Finals.

In the interview below Corey reflects on his rookie season there, talks about getting advice from Dustin Brown and plays word association with some of his teammates - including Jonathan Bernier, Thomas Hickey and Kevin Westgarth.

High / Low with Ethan Moreau, Edmonton Oliers captain

Since entering the league in 1979 the Edmonton Oilers have been one of the most successful franchises. They've made seven trips to the Stanley Cup finals, winning five. However, its been a tough few years since their last run in 2006.

Back in the late '80s and early '90s they were one of the LA Kings biggest rivals. Sure, Gretzky came to LA after winning four cups with the Oilers, but it was more than just that trade that made things so special. It also didn't hurt that they played in the same division at the time.

After a big trade 10 years ago, involving seven players, Ethan Moreau arrived back home in Canada. Five years earlier he was a first round draft pick of the Chicago Blackhawks and would soon be playing along side Jeremy Roenick, Chris Chelios and Bernie Nicholls in the Windy City.

Now, the Captain of the Oilers, he is trying to guide the team back to the promise land one more time. Prior to tonight's match-up with the Kings he took some time to chat with the Mayor. Here's the first part of the interview:

Who is the smartest player you've ever played with and what did you learn from him?

I'd have to say Chris Pronger. He's probably the best player and the smartest player I've ever played with. I didn't learn too much from him on the ice because he plays a different position. But, he has a real professional approach to the game, he's always prepared to play and he takes a lot of pride in the way he plays. So those are probably things I took from him.


Let's take a look at the first few months of the NHL season. What have been the highs and lows so far?

HIGHS

1. Parity - nobody is running away with things and nobody is out of it

2. Big Hits - I think that's entertaining for everybody

3. Dustin Penner

LOWS

1. Attendance - it's been tough in certain markets

2. Travel Schedule - things have been compressed because of the Olympics

3. Ice Conditions - we've played on some poor ice...some cities can handle the multiple events in the same buildings, others can't

Let's try word association with some of the guys you've had as teammates throughout your career:

Eddie Belfour - eccentric
Chris Chelios - competitive
Jeremy Roenick - entertaining
Tony Amonte - great release
Chris Pronger - smart (guess I set him up with that one earlier, eh?)
Ryan Smyth - hand-eye
Matt Greene - funny
Jarret Stoll - one timer
Patrick O'Sullivan - toe drag
Lubomir Vishnovsky - quick
Craig MacTavish - gray (note: he was his coach, not a teammate)

Finish this sentence: I'll be a better player this season if I ____

stay healthy

* * * * * * * * * * * *

To read more from our exclusive interview with Ethan Moreau - including his thoughts on the trade that brought him to Edmonton, his friends on the Kings, Craig MacTavish, Chris Pronger, Dany Heatley, his near nude pics in ESPN The Magazine and lots more, click here for part two.

The Mayor
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HIGH / LOW: Kelly Hrudey on Duty

If you've been following the High/Low series here on MayorsManor you know we've had guests like Jim Fox, Mark Hardy and even ESPN's John Buccigross stop by already this season.

Well it's time to dip into the Kings past once again to call upon a former player turned broadcaster, Kelly Hrudey.

Kelly played for eight years in Los Angeles, minding net for the team during one of its real glory periods - including the famous 1992-93 season when they went all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals. He now works for the CBC in Canada and still watches plenty of hockey. With October about to end we thought it was the perfect time to get Kelly's take on the first month of the season. Here's what he had to say:

HIGHS

• Colorado Avalanche - off to an unbelievable start
• Craig Anderson - ditto (a fellow goalie...but of course!)
• LA Kings - no pandering here, you have to respect them

LOWS

• Minnesota Wild - thought they'd be better
• Florida Panthers - surely thought they'd be better too
• Toronto Maple Leafs - hoped they'd be better

As most predicted, the race in the Western Conference is as tight as ever. While we had Kelly's attention we played word association with those 15 teams and here were his answers:

Anaheim Ducks - gritty
Calgary Flames - interesting
Chicago Blackhawks - exciting
Colorado Avalanche - surprising
Columbus Blue Jackets - unsure
Dallas Stars - work in progress
Detroit Red Wings - respect
Edmonton Oilers - building
Los Angeles Kings - underrated
Minnesota Wild - feel sorry for
Nashville Predators - model of consistency
Phoenix Coyotes - pretty good actually
San Jose Sharks - love them
St Louis Blues - should be better
Vancouver Canucks - love them too

To wrap up this part of the interview I asked Kelly if he were a GM of a new team given the ability to pluck six guys off of the 30 NHL rosters (3 fwds, 2 dmen, 1 goalie), who would he take:

Forwards - Malkin / Crosby / Ovechkin

Defenseman - Nicklas Lidstrom ("Not sure how many more seasons he could give me, but I'd have to take him.") and Shea Webber ("Tough bugger...very hard to play against.")

Goaltender - "Brodeur is the obvious pick, but I would need a guy for the future. I really like Ryan Miller and Luongo. But, I'd have to go with Marc-Andre Fleury. I just love him. He's a big game goalie and I'm not as critical of him as others are. Last year he played exceptionally well. He'd be my guy."

Kelly provided many more opinions about the current game, as well as the guys he played with and against. We went all the way back to him growing up in Edmonton, being drafted by the Islanders and later being traded to the Kings. The full interview should be posted by the end of the weekend. Keep an eye out for it.

UPDATE: the full interview with Hrudey has been posted - click here to read

The Mayorwww.twitter.com/Mayor119
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RELATED ARTICLES

Interview with Robb Stauber - the man who battled Hrudey in net during the Kings '92-93 season

Interview with Rob Blake - the most controversial player in Kings history stops by MayorsManor

20 Questions with #20 - Luc stops by MayorsManor a few days before entering the Hall of Fame

Interview with Gary Shuchuk - Kings playoff here in 1993

Reflections of a Cup - Roy, Melrose and Blake comment on the Kings vs. Canadiens


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photo courtesy of bestsportsphotos.com

HIGH / LOW with ESPN's John Buccigross

If you were following hockey when the Y2K craze was in full stride, you probably spent a fair amount of time watching the NHL2Night on ESPN. The 30 minute show gave hockey fanatics their nightly fix of scores, highlights and analysis. Guiding the puck fest was John Buccigross, an ESPN anchor and now author. He's hard to forget - with his music references and pure love for the sport. In between duties for ESPN we caught up with John to get his take on the first week of the NHL season.

With one week in the books, what would say have been the HIGHs so far?

1. Calgary Flames - I picked them to finish first and they look good so far. They seem to have a little magic to them.

2. Sidney Crosby - He's now a good faceoff man. That's the sign of a winner. Keep improving.

3. Alex Ovechkin - 70 goals? Another MVP? Probably.

And on the flip side, the LOWs of the young season?

1. Boston Bruins - Trade Phil Kessel and the offense is severely hurt. They should get better.

2. The Referees - A lot of ticky tack calls.

3. Toronto - All bark, no bite so far.

Later this afternoon we'll post a more in depth interview with John. Fear not, we'll be looking for answers on why he reversed course and now says the Kings will not make the playoffs. Enquiring minds want to know. And the Mayor needs answers!

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119
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RELATED ARTICLES

Interview with John Buccigross of ESPN

Interview with Kelly Hrudey - former Kings goalie, now a commentator on TSN

Interview with Luc Robitaille - sit down with #20 a few days before his Hall of Fame induction

Interview with Mike Modano - arguably the greatest American born hockey player of all-time

Interview with Bob Miller - legendary voice of the Kings talks favorite players, games, moments, etc.

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HIGH / LOW : Jim Fox returns for more

Like most fans, Jim Fox was not that impressed with the Kings opening night performance. While he had positive words for Ryan Smyth and the power play, his sharpest Low was delivered to the doorstep of #8 - calling Doughty's performance his "worst game as a King." Say what you will, but you can't really argue with Fox. You're talking about a guy who has arguably seen more Kings games over the last 20 years than all but a handful of people. The man knows his hockey.

A veteran of Kings broadcasts and NHL coverage, both on radio and TV, Fox has continued to enlighten fans with his hockey insight since hanging up the skates in 1990.


MayorsManor is proud to have Jim back for his second of three columns. He'll be providing thoughts after each game of the opening week home stand. With the Kings beating San Jose on Tuesday night, the final score was certainly better than game one. However, things weren't all roses, as the Kings let the Sharks back in the game and made a lot of people nervous throughout the third period. How did he see things?

Jim's take on game #2:

HIGHS -

• Huge key to the game was Handzus/Frolov/Simmonds outplayed Thornton/Heatley/Setoguchi 5 on 5.
• Overall, much better on the fore-check. The spacing allowed for immediate support and some sustain offensive zone play, Simmonds goal was a perfect example.
• Solid play from the “unheralded” defensemen - Harrold, Greene, Drewiske.
• Bounce back game from Drew Doughty, 24:08 TOI, +3, we expected it and he delivered.
• Jarrett Stoll was 11 of 15 on face-offs (73%).
• Recapturing composure in the 3^rd was a key issue, 4 or 5 solid shifts preceded the Purcell goal.
• Coming to the aid of Drewiske after the Staubitz hit is an intangible area the Kings are trying to address. The Kings did it effectively, without taking any unnecessary penalties.

LOWS -

• Must state the obvious, the PK is completely out-of-sync. The fine line between being aggressive and running around has been crossed. Fundamentals like sticks-in-the-lanes must get better.
• No “bad” goals vs. SJ, but your goalie has to be your best penalty-killer.
• Last season a big key was face-offs. Stoll was solid, but in the 2 games so far the Kings were 43% and 41%, this must improve.

If you read Jim's first High / Low article (click here to read if you didn't), you may recall that he commented Doughty "rarely lets it linger" when discussing the possibility of the kid's poor play in game one carrying over to the second game. Well...he called it. Doughty was a stud in game two, like so many games last year during his rookie campaign.

Thursday night the home stand concludes when Minnesota comes to Staples Center. The Wild are predicted to finish out of the top 8 in the Western Conference by most experts. Thus, the Kings need to capitalize on their (perceived) weaker opponent and capture the two points. A two game win streak would be a nice way to start the long trip out east.

We'll have another High / Low feature with Jim following the game on Thursday. In the meantime, feel free to leave him a comment below with your reaction to the game and/or his thoughts on the team's play vs. San Jose.

The Mayor
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photo courtesy of NHL / HHOF

HIGH / LOW with Jim Fox - special guest doesn't pull punches

Earlier this summer we debuted the High / Low feature here on MayorsManor.com with guests like Mark Hardy and Terry Murray. This quick hit series has provided intriguing reactions to training camp, the prospect series with Phoenix and a myriad of other topics. So, we wanted to kick the season off big this year - even if the Kings didn't cooperate last night - by going out and partnering with somebody that knows a thing or two about hockey. This puck expert was named the Best TV Analyst in 2006 by Sports Illustrated and has worked with NHL Radio to cover the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

We're proud to introduce the man with perfect hair and a gift for gab, Jim Fox.

A true King, through and through, Jim has become equally known for his career off the ice, as well as his accomplishments on skates. He officially became a man of royalty back in 1980 as the first round draft pick of the Kings. Wearing the colors of only one team for his ten years in the league, Jim amassed 479 points in 578 career games. Even though his playing time was cut short due to injuries, he still ranks in the top 10 in several key categories for the Kings. After hanging up his jersey he's become one of the faces of the franchise - not only providing his insight on television broadcasts, but also being actively involved in charitable causes throughout Southern California.

Always a fan favorite wherever he goes for one simple reason...Jim is as passionate about the Kings as any die hard fan you'll ever meet. Tommy Lasorda can bleed Dodger Blue, Jim Fox has purple and gold (and probably some silver) running through his veins.

For the first three games of the opening week home stand Jim will provide his Highs and Lows of the game here on MayorsManor.com. Like most people that watched the Kings play Phoenix on Saturday night, Jim wasn't that impressed with some things he saw on the ice. However, he did manage to find a few bright spots in an otherwise agonizing 60 minutes of hockey.

Jim's take on Opening Night:

HIGHS - Sold out crowd…Ryan Smyth’s debut was effective…early on he made his presence felt down low…he was instrumental on the Power Play, helping to move the puck around as well as it has been moved in a while…the PP was extremely effective with crisp passes, strong support and penetration to the net - which opened up so many options…on the PP, options + execution = success

LOWS - Puck movement on breakouts was sloppy at best…when the defense over-handled it, the play was gone…when the forwards handled it, way too risky to the middle of the ice…the spacing on the fore-check was too wide…not enough support to get an effective fore-check or to be in position to create follow-up chances…one chance at a time does not work in the long run…Quick’s goaltending was sub par…one bad goal (the first of the game) and a few other “stoppables”…I blame the goaltender when the play was well-defended, but the puck still ends up in the net…that is where we can let Quick off the hook because most every goal had a clear breakdown…Drew Doughty played his worst game as a King…don’t remember any game last year where he was directly involved in multiple goals against

After being critical of the second year defenseman, he didn't appear to be worried about the mistakes leading to a sophomore slump, noting that Doughty "rarely lets it linger." So #8 can be counted on for a better performance when the Sharks come to town.

We'll have another High / Low feature with Jim after Tuesday's game versus San Jose. In the meantime, feel free to leave him a comment below with your reaction to the game and/or his thoughts on the loss at Staples Center.

The Mayor
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New Feature - High/Low with LA Kings coach Terry Murray

Today begins the launch of a new feature here at Mayors Manor...

It's a little piece called High/Low, where the object is to give your "high" and "low" moment for the day. Or in the case of the Kings, usually it will reference the high/low of the game.

First up is Kings Head Coach, Terry Murray.

For much of the last week the Coach has been on the ice leading the young Kings prospects through their camp - carefully explaining...and often reexplaining...what he and the other coaches want from the team and from each player as individuals.

After watching yesterday's terrible performance against the Coyotes the Coach chose not to speak to the team last night. Perhaps it was his way of not stepping over the coaches that were behind the bench for the disappointing 6-1 loss. Perhaps he needed time to collect his thoughts. Regardless, he did address the prospect team this morning and again reminded them that you have to work hard every shift, every night to play in the NHL.

Later this afternoon I caught up with Coach Murray and asked him to help us kick off the new High/Low feature. Here were his comments on game one:

HIGH - Competitiveness. (note: I must have looked perplexed when he said this, as he followed up with...) Guys were aggressive - not just with the fights - but, battling for pucks.

LOW - Team Play. There were too many guys playing as individuals.

Thanks Coach.

Currently there is no charge to play along at home. Leave a comment with your high/low from Wednesday's game.

The Mayor
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