Elvis must love playing hockey in Nashville

Trevor Lewis and Music City, they just seem to go hand-in-hand.

Nicknamed Elvis, due to both guys sharing the same birthday (January 8th), Lewis made a rare appearance on the score sheet Tuesday night.

Entering the game vs. Nashville, he had only three points on the season (two goals and one assist). But, after assisting on Matt Greene's goal and adding one of his own, he nearly doubled his totals.

Also, by scoring the fifth goal in a 5-4 victory for LA, Lewis was officially credited with the game-winning goal - his first such marker of the season. Last year, Lewis picked up his first ever NHL game-winning goal in...you guessed it...Nashville as well.

Here's video of last night's goal, set up by some aggressive play from Anze Kopitar:

Just prior to leaving for the road trip, Jeff Carter had some positive comments about the 25-year old former number one draft pick.  When asked which of his new teammates has caught his eye in the first week, he said - "I think (Lewis) doesn’t get much credit, but he does a lot of dirty work for the team. He’s out killing penalties, and I think on that line with Stolly and Pens, he gets in, he wins battles and stuff like that. He’s been a good player."

In the first few weeks following Darryl Sutter joining the Kings as coach, he too had some thoughts about Lewis' game and what he brings to the team.  Those statements and other related articles can be found below.

The Mayor
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Dustin Brown's game plan vs Nasville, plus LA ticket contest

Nashville's Pekka Rinne (photo by: Ikiri)

Last week, the Kings traveled to Nashville, outshot the Predators 31-28 and still came away with a 2-1 loss. Revenge isn't the top priority for LA captain Dustin Brown at the moment though.

"Considering the situation, at this point in the year, you're not looking at the opponent as a team we just played a week ago," he said. "It's just another game we have to find a way to win."

Actually, 'two-points per night' has sort of turned into the unofficial rallying cry for the next four games. "There are some teams on this road trip that are really playing really good hockey and we have to be prepared to grind games out," Brown declared.

Tonight in Nashville, it certainly won't be as an easy one, as the Predators have earned at least one point in 12 straight games at home.

"I thought we played a good game last time though," said the Kings leading goal scorer. "We went in there and did a lot of good things last time. Now, we have to have the same effort and find ways to score more goals."

Which means, in part, finding a way to beat Nashville's Pekka Rinne. The Preds' stellar netminder leads the league with 36 wins and sports a .927 save percentage.

So how do they beat him?

Coach Murray on Kyle Clifford - 'It's just the way it unfolded'

Jarret Stoll and Kyle Clifford had some weird - um, chemistry - last night.

They were both on the ice to start the game and Stoll took an interference penalty 25 seconds in, forcing Clifford to sit and watch while the Kings killed off the Nashville power play.

Coach Terry Murray put the same line out to start the second period and 20 seconds later Stoll was whistled for tripping, again putting Clifford on the bench while the Kings penalty killing unit went to work.

All total, the Kings had five penalties in the first two periods and Clifford was on the ice for three of them. Even being one winger down for most of the game (Scott Parse left injured halfway through the first period), Clifford played less than two and half minutes in the final period.

Was something wrong?

Jarret Stoll - LA Kings players were 'fed up' with things

With two assists last night, Jarret Stoll doubled his output for the season...and reached a milestone, his 300th NHL point.

It was a 'team win,' with four different players scoring goals and several guys having breakout performances.

After the game, Stoll shared a few thoughts...

On the overall game - "We played a little bit desperate. We knew we had to stop this before it got out of control. We needed to work hard, be determined, be first on loose pucks, play with an attitude and be a little bit mad out there. I think we were that tonight. You could see on the offensive side of the puck we were jumping, we were first on loose pucks, we were getting pucks back to the net - therefore, they were back on their heals a little bit. That's kind of what we've been doing the last couple of weeks, we've been on our heals. I think tonight we were on our toes, we were jumping and we were getting our feet going."

Alec Martinez probably thinks the Kings did 'a good job'

Alec Martinez was recalled by the Kings on November 24th last season and scored a goal in his NHL season debut. He came into last night having played 13 games this season without a point.

Earlier this season, coach Terry Murray even had him sit out the game in Philadelphia, marking him down as a healthy scratch. Thus, you can understand the huge outburst of excitement he displayed when scoring the first goal of the game last night vs. Nashville.

Afterwards, he spoke about his performance, as well as what the Kings had been dealing with in the prior 48 hours.

On his first goal of the season - "It feels really good to finally get that monkey off my back. It was a good effort by everyone all around tonight and we had contributions from four different guys, which is good. So, we're happy with the win."

On the team meeting yesterday morning with coach Murray - "We definitely got into penalty trouble (on Monday vs. the Sharks) and that added to (our problems), considering San Jose is a great power play team. They feed off that. It was definitely something we came into with a focus today and I thought we did a good job."

Murray concerned about Bernier, but he 'sucked it up'

Jonathan Bernier has played twice as many games against the Nashville Predators as he has versus any other NHL team - including starting all four games between the Kings and Predators last season, posting a 3-1-0 record with a 2.25 goals-against average.

This season, Bernier was off to another slow start, losing the only two games coach Terry Murray had put him in for. But, not anymore.

Bernier picked up his first win of the season last night, giving up three goals - including a power play goal - yet, holding on for a 4-3 victory.

After the game, Murray evaluated his performance...

"I was a little concerned at the start of the game, we had a two-nothing lead and the next thing you know it's (tied) two-two. I would have liked to seen something (from him) on that second shot, the second goal that the scored, on the short side [note: that was the power play goal from Craig Smith]. But, I looked at it again on the replay and it was a heck of a shot. So, I really think he sucked it up after that and he made some big stops as they started to give it a push."

Bernier stopped 27 of the 30 shots he faced and lowered his season total to 3.37 goals against. He'll most likely be back to the sidelines for the next few games - with his probable next start coming in about a week when the Kings play a home-and-home series, on back-to-back nights, versus the Anaheim Ducks.

If you missed Dustin Penner's post-game comments, click here now to read thoughts from the big left wing following his best game as a King.

Also, quotes from the Predators locker room - including thoughts from Smith, coach Barry Trotz and more - can be found here.

The Mayor
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Quotes from the Nashville Predators locker room - 11/8/2011

Following Nashville's 4-3 loss to Los Angeles tonight, here are a few quotes from their head coach Barry Trotz, forward Craig Smith and Patric Hornqvist...

COACH BARRY TROTZ:

On overall game - “We weren’t disciplined enough, we took some bad penalties. We battled back, but it wasn’t good enough…I give us some credit, we stayed in it…I knew that the start was going to be critical, we talked about it before the game and we got off to a terrible start…We took too many penalties. We took six penalties and you look at the five-on-three they scored just as the guy got out of the box…They’re not a high scoring five-on-five team, we had to stay out of the box, we didn’t."

FORWARD CRAIG SMITH:

Nashville Predators at Kings - pregame primer and contest

It's the third game in four night for the Kings and things won't be any easier than they have been recently.

Jonathan Bernier needs his first win of the season. Drew Doughty and Dustin Penner need their first goals. Anze Kopitar needs some help. Terry Murray needs to see a sign of life from his club that extends beyond the random 10-minute stretches he's seen of late. GM Dean Lombardi needs all of the above and more.

Bottom line, LA needs a victory...badly.

Here's a few pregame notes to get you ready for tonight's action...

- Bernier: When a goalie has only played 34 games in the NHL it's hard to talk about his 'best numbers,' but here something stands out. Bernier has played five games vs. the Preds, going 4-1 with a 1.80 goals-against average and .940 save percentage. If you like trends, take note that Bernier has also posted a .98 goals-against on Tuesdays - his only day of the week with a number under 2.00. Three of his four career shutouts have been on...yes, Tuesdays.

Which Team Won't Be Back?

The NHL's 2010-11 season is now over, with the Boston Bruins crowned as Stanley Cup Champions.

For those ready to turn the page and look ahead, let's talk about the Western Conference standings.

Every year there is a certain amount of turnover within the eight teams qualifying for the post-season. For example, last season, four 'new' teams made it in the West compared to the 2008-09 campaign.

However, this season, only one team didn't return - Colorado was replaced in the pack by Anaheim.

So, of the eight Western teams that took a shot at the Cup this year, which do you think is most likely to have a drop off...and not return to the playoffs next season?



Results will be posted Monday.

The Mayor
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Anze Kopitar has found his groove, 17 points in 11 games.

PennerMania continues, as Dustin Penner now has points in six straight games.

Jonathan Bernier continues to play well against Nashville, pushing his record to 5-1 lifetime with a 1.80 goals against average.

That's the story, here are the highlights...

The Mayor
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PRIMER: LA Kings at Nashville Predators

Los Angeles has won all three games on the current road trip and is trying to close things out with another two points in Nashville - to mark their first four-game road sweep in franchise history.

Here are seven points to get you primed for the Kings at Predators game coming up in just over an hour...

* Jonathan Bernier will be in goal. Four of his career 20 games started against Western Conference opponents have been against Nashville. In those games he's 3-1-0 with a 1.75 goals against average.

* The suddenly hot Anze Kopitar (7 goals and 15 points in his last 10 games) will be looking to set a new Kings record for consecutive games played. Assuming he's in the line-up, it will be his 325th straight game, passing Marcel Dionne's 324-game mark set from January 1978 through January 1982. If he plans on aiming for the NHL record, he has a ways to go. That's held by Doug Jarvis at 964 consecutive games played.

* Dustin Penner is riding a modest five-game point (2 goals and 3 assists). In 18 career games vs. Nashville he has 10 points (4 goals and 6 assists).

...And Now You're Caught Up - Feb 21, 2011

Now that you're done celebrating Hockey Day in America - which turned into three days this year - it's time to catch up on things you may have missed.

To help you out, below are ten stories you need to know coming out of the weekend...

* Andrei Loktionov was sent back to Manchester. It's a numbers game. With Marco Sturm set to return the Kings needed a roster spot. They can't send Davis Drewiske or Peter Harrold down without first going through waivers. Chances are they wouldn't make it. Both are serviceable sixth defenseman in the NHL and have minimal salaries. At the very least, it wasn't a chance worth taking. Odds are Loktionov will be back in LA before the season is out.

* Still not sure why people were so in awe of Carey Price's mask during the Heritage Classic. The concept has been used by several goalies in the past, including Jonathan Quick's tribute to Rogie Vachon this year. However, my favorite may have been Hannu Toivanen of the St. Louis Blues / Boston Bruins going with the Denis Lemieux (from Slap Shot) look.

* As noted in the Kings Prospect Report earlier this week, Brayden Schenn and Linden Vey (the WHL's leading scorer) were set to meet up yesterday. Vey's Medicine Hat Tigers downed the Saskatoon Blades 5-2. Yet, neither Kings draft pick factored much in the outcome. Both players were limited to just one assist each.

Kings - Predators Preview w/ Nashville's Marcel Goc

Against many odds, the Nashville Predators continue to find ways to win enough games to make the playoffs year after year. Last season marked their fifth post season appearance in the last six years.

Yet somehow, coach Barry Trotz, the second-longest tenured coach in the NHL behind only Buffalo’s Lindy Ruff, is repeatedly over looked for Coach of The Year honors.

In net, things are pretty solid with 6'5" Pekka Rinne. On defense, their young Canadian-American duo of Shea Weber and Ryan Suter rivals the Kings' Drew Doughty / Jack Johnson tandem, in terms of talent and future upside.

They also have another good one on the way in Ryan Ellis, the Team Canada captain who was just voted top defenseman of the World Junior Championship yesterday.

Offensively, well...they're still searching for the right mix of responsible forwards and ones skilled enough to put the puck in the net on a regular basis. For now, it continues to be 'scoring by committee.'

They're biggest off-season move was signing center Matthew Lombardi away from the Phoenix Coyotes - something that should have given them more team speed, in addition to some goals. Unfortunately, he's been out with a concussion since the second game.

They still had Steve Sullivan, a Kings killer (more on that here), up until two weeks ago - he's now out with a lower body injury.  Plus, they recently lost Jordin Tootoo for an unspecified period of time when he admitted himself into the league's Substance Abuse Program.

One bright spot through all of the team's challenges though has been Marcel Goc.  They signed the German-born center to a free agent contract in the summer of 2009 and it's been paying dividends. His 30 points (12g, 18a) last year were career highs and he's on pace to surpass them again this season. He comes into tonight's game with 16 points (7g, 9a).

This morning I spoke with Goc for a quick preview of tonight's game...

MM:  You've faced the Kings twice so far this season.  What have you seen from them that's different, if anything, compared to what you remember from last year?

Then, Along Came Jonathan Bernier

Heading into the game on March 30th of last season, the Nashville Predators were riding a seven game unbeaten streak against the LA Kings - a stretch going back to the beginning of the 2008-09 season.

Then, along came Jonathan Bernier.

With Erik Ersberg suffering from a strained back, he was recalled from Manchester, stepped right into the line-up and delivered a 2-0 shutout - the first of his career (in just his sixth NHL start).

When the Predators came to Los Angeles for the first game of their four-game season series with the Kings this year, Bernier was back in net again.

The Kings won 4-1. Unfortunately, his second shutout was ruined with less than three minutes to go in the game. Still, Bernier 2 - Predators 0 lifetime.

So, it was a natural choice when Kings coach Terry Murray decided to pull Bernier from his near-permanent seat on the bench and return him to the net against Nashville tonight.

On cue, Bernier delivered.

Kings 6, Predators 1.

There's a good chance Jonathan Quick will start the next nine Kings games in a row, beginning Sunday against the Blackhawks.  Fortunately for Bernier, the Predators come to Los Angeles on Thursday, January 6.

Other stats and post game notes...

Westgarth and Simmonds on Nashville's O'Brien

Many professional athletes have memories like elephants. They rarely forget key moments in a game, even many years down the road.

Some situations are more recent. Thus, they're still fresh in the minds of the participants.

Case in point, Shane O'Brien took on Wayne Simmonds in game five of the Kings playoff series with Vancouver last spring. After the scrap, O'Brien (a heavyweight - 6'3", 230 lbs) skated off while playing things up to the hometown crowd.

Some thought it was showboating. Others saw it as just part of the entertainment.

How about Simmonds (who is more like a UFC middleweight, listed at 183 lbs.)? Well, he'll get to see O'Brien tonight when he shows up at Staples Center with his new team, the Nashville Predators. So, we picked up these exclusive comments...

MM:  After you fought O'Brien in the playoffs he did quite a bit of showboating to the home crowd.  Is that still in the back of your mind at all?

Game Preview w/ 'Kings Killer' Steve Sullivan

In 37 career games versus the Los Angeles Kings, Nashville's Steve Sullivan has 10 goals, 23 assists (33 points) and is a plus-nine. When playing at Staples Center, he has eight goals and five assists (13 points) in 15 games.

On the short list of guys known for being 'Kings Killers' - a group including Shane Doan of Phoenix and Mike Ribeiro of Dallas - Sullivan has to be near to the top.

In his inaugural stop into MayorsManor we talk about that and he gives a few keys to night's match-up...

MM: Is there anything that motivates you a little more when playing the Kings for some reason?

SS: No, I don't think so. I had no idea (of his numbers against the Kings).  Those are unexplainable stats.  I don't know why I have such good numbers against LA.  Maybe I just love California (he laughs).

Kings Game Preview w/ Nashville Captain Shea Weber

Here in Los Angeles, Kings fans know all about the awesome Can-Am duo of Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson. Yet, over in Nashville, they have their own dynamic pair of young blueliners in Shea Weber and Ryan Suter.

Back in the February the four were part of one of the best hockey games you'll ever see, when Canada took on the U.S. in the gold-medal game at the Vancouver Olympics. Doughty and Weber helped lead Canada to a win that day over Johnson, Suter and the Americans.

As for the Kings-Predators game today, unfortunately Suter is out hurt. However, we had a chance to catch up with Weber, Nashville's captain, for a few thoughts prior to tonight's game at Staples Center...

MM: We're only a month into the season and the two teams haven't met yet.  What do you know about the Kings so far this year?

Kings lose some tread in Nashville

It was just one of those games.

Since 1996 the Predators building has been called the Nashville Arena, the Gaylord Entertainment Center, the Sommet Center - then for a few weeks it went back to the Nashville Arena...and was recently changed to the Bridgestone Arena. Unfortunately for the Kings, the same ol' Predators play there...the same Predators they had lost five straight games to coming into Thursday night.

The streak continues...and now stands at 0-5-1 vs. Nashville. They'll get another crack at them on Sunday, March 14th...a rare noon start for the Kings on Anze Kopitar bobblehead day.

Things looked good early when Frolov scored in the opening minute of the game, after a face off win by Jarret Stoll. Ryan Smyth picked up his 700th NHL point with an assist on the play. That may have been the highpoint of the night for Los Angeles.

The game did include the debut of two new members of the Kings, Jeff Halpern and Freddy Modin (both were acquired at the trade deadline on Wednesday). Neither factored in the outcome, each playing about 10 minutes.

A fluke goal put Nashville on the board and then late in the second the Kings season long nemesis reared its ugly head again - an EPG. With just seconds remaining until the end of the period Jason Arnott found the back of the net to end things at 2-1 Preds after forty minutes. The goal also continued Arnott's recent hot streak, he had the Preds game winning goal on Tuesday night and started Thursday's game with eight points in his last nine games.

Jordan Tootoo came out half possessed in the third - even willing to fight Matt Greene. The box score said he had seven minutes of ice time in the game, yet it sure seemed like he was always on the ice or in the penalty box for the final twenty minutes. And although the Kings picked up another goal when Drew Doughty scored early in the third, the Preds added two more, including an empty net goal in the final minute.

It was just one of those games. All of the hype coming in surrounded the four Olympic medal winning defenseman that would be featured in the game. Each team had an American and Canadian Olympian on the team, Ryan Suter and Shea Weber for Nashville...and of course, Doughty and Jack Johnson for the Kings. By the end of the game, none of that mattered. In fact, the Olympics seemed much further away at the end of the game than they did three hours earlier.

Reality is upon us. The regular season is ending soon and each night will be a battle for points...much like it has been all year long.

The Kings get a rare visit from the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday (note the 7pm start time) and then will host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday.

Coach Murray will round 'em up and get 'em refocused for the Habs. For sure.

As an added bonus, the Kings will wear their third jerseys when they return home Saturday night. A little Black Magic certainly can't hurt.

The Mayor
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WJC Recap: Day Two

Every spring fans of the NBA watch the NCAA's March Madness to see future superstars do battle in the annual college basketball tournament. In turn, puck heads from throughout North American and Europe tune in to the World Junior Championships each holiday season to get a glimpse of future NHL stars. You'd be hard pressed to name 10 elite hockey players who didn't play in this tourney when they were 18-20 years old. It's the best of the best and it makes for some great hockey. Here are the highlights of day two:

Sweden 7, Austria 3
For the second straight game Austria played a strong game, but took the loss in the end. Sweden continued pressuring their opponents with a roster stacked full of legitimate NHL prospects. In fact, all seven of their goals came from recent draftees: Oliver Ekman Larsson 2 goals (Phoenix Coyotes), Anton Rodin 2 goals (Vancouver Canucks), Jacob Josefson (New Jersey Devils), Mattias Ekholm (Nashville Predators) and Andre Petersson (Ottawa Senators). Not all of their top talent is offense though, they started New York Islanders draft pick Anders Nilsson in net.

USA 3, Switzerland 0
The Americans picked up their second victory less than 24 hours after their tournament opener. Most of the credit goes to the second youngest player on the team, goaltender Jack Campbell. He was a rock star in the first period, stopping all 14 shots the Swiss threw at him. This just continued his stellar play in nets when wearing USA on his jersey.

Last year at the IIHF Under-18 World Championships he was an obvious choice for the tournament's all-star team. Campbell didn't allow any even strength goals while posting a 6-1 record with a 0.75 GAA and two shutouts. Oh yea, and he was the winning goaltender when the U.S. beat Russia for the gold medal. Remember his name when the 2010 NHL draft comes along in June.

In this game, things were scoreless after one period. From that point forward, Team USA's defense kicked in (allowing just 8 shots over the final 40 minutes) and the offense did enough for the win, with goals by Chris Kreider, Matt Donovan and AJ Jenks.

The top line for USA is now being called 'the Original Six' line...because they were all drafted by O6 teams: Danny Kristo (Montreal Canadiens), Derek Stepan (NY Rangers) and Jerry D'Amigo (Totonto Maple Leafs).

Team USA is now 17-0-2 USA all time vs Switzerland at the WJC.

Finland 4, Czech Republic 3
The Fins were down 2-0 after the first and 3-1 after the second. They came storming back in the third with the unanswered goals - including a pair from Anaheim Ducks prospect Sami Vatanen - to defeat the Czechs 4-3 in a wild game. Somewhere Teemu Selanne is smiling right now.

Slovakia 8, Latvia 3
Slovakia netted five goals in the first period and never looked back. Five of their eight goals on the night came from a trio probably bound for the NHL within two years - TB Lightning prospect Richard Panik had two goals, as did 'Mr Excitement' Tomas Tatar (Detroit Red Wings) and San Jose Sharks draft pick Marek Viedensky put one in too.

On Monday Canada will play it's second game of the tournament, against Switzerland. Team USA will take the day off and prepare for Latvia on Tuesday.

The Mayor
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WJC Recap: Day One

If you're a fan of the LA Kings, you had plenty to cheer about. If you're rooting for Team USA, you had plenty to worry about early on in their game against Slovakia.

Day One recap:

Canada 15, Latvia 0 - It wasn't even close. The host Canadians put 67 shots on goal. That should tell you all you need to know. Hang on...

Sorry, I had to check. Canada might have scored again.

Canada hadn't lost an opening round game in the WJC tournament in 12 years. Make it 13 now. Gabriel Bourque, a Nashville prospect, was the star of the game - setting a new Canadian single-game record with 7 points (3 goals, 4 assists). Kings prospects did well too - Brandon Kuzon 5 points (2g, 3a) and Brayden Schenn 2 assists. To see video highlights of the game click here.

Sweden 1o, Czech Republic 1 - Last year the Czechs opened the tournament with a 8-1 loss to Canada. They outdid themselves this year in another lopsided affair. Edmonton prospect 'MPS' Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson put up 5 points (1g, 4a) for his homeland.

Russia 6, Austria 2 - Team Russia featured Anaheim Ducks prospect Igor Bobkov in net. Offensively, they received three goals from guys hoping to hear their names called at the 2010 NHL Draft in Los Angeles - Yevgeni Kuznetsov (2) and Vladimir Tarasenko (1).

United States 7, Slovakia 3 - The first period was wild. Slovakia was playing big, physical, smash mouth hockey. They had the Americans rattled and were up 2-0 early on. To Team USA's credit, they gathered themselves together and came storming back in the second period to take the lead. USA captain Jordan Stepan stepped on the dreams of any Slovakian upset. His goal put the Americans on top and they never looked back. Six different guys put in goals for the USA, including Jordan Schroeder (who is trying to chase down Jeremy Roenick's tournament record for points by an American...he needs five more to tie).

The tournament continues Sunday with three games, including Team USA taking on Switzerland at 1pm PST. It will be televised on the NHL Network. Check it out.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119