2012 AHL All-Star Game - notes on Zatkoff, Hickey, Stevens

The 2012 edition of the AHL All-Star game concluded tonight, with the Western squad defeating the guys from the East 8-7 in a shootout. Kings prospects Jeff Zatkoff and Thomas Hickey represented the Manchester Monarchs on the East team.

Zatkoff played the second period in net, facing 20 shots and surrendering there goals.

Hickey, who leads the Monarchs in plus/minus with a plus-14 rating, recorded zero points and took one shot in the game.

Kyle Palmieri, the Ducks first round selection at the 2009 NHL Draft, also picked up a goal for the Eastern Conference all stars.  He's split time between Syracuse (AHL) and Anaheim this season.

Andy Miele, last year's Hobey Baker Award winner (given to the top player in college hockey) - and a name Kings fans may remember from his stellar performance during Rookie Camp games in LA - had a goal, an assist and was plus-2. The Phoenix Coyotes signed him as a free agent last summer our of Miami (Ohio) University, the same school attended by Zatkoff and Kings defenseman Alec Martinez.

Prior to the game, the AHL held their annual Hall of Fame luncheon. Among the four honorees was Kings assistant coach John Stevens. He is one of only 16 men to win an AHL championship both as a player and as a head coach, having patrolled the blueline in over 800 games as a defenseman and later guided the Philadelphia Phantoms to the Calder Cup in 2004-05 after his playing days were over.

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

RELATED ARTICLES:

Interview with Jeff Zatkoff - making life on the edge work

Interview with Thomas Hickey - the Kings former #1 draft pick opens up

Zatkoff talks prank pulled on Alec Martinez in Manchester

AUDIO: Coach Stevens postgame presser after 2-1 LA win

Comments from interim coach John Stevens following the Kings 2-1 win in Columbus tonight...



More audio:

Postgame comments from Drew Doughty

Postgame comments from Anze Kopitar

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

POLL: Who should be the next LA Kings head coach?

Early this morning we looked at a list of possible candidates for the Kings head coaching position - from pro coaches to guys in junior hockey.

You may want to review that list before answering the following question (link).

For now, Kings GM Dean Lombardi says assistant coach John Stevens will fill the role on interim basis. On this afternoon's conference call, Lombardi was reluctant to say how long Stevens will hold the position or if he's being considered for the full-time role - only that the team has a 'short list' they're working off of.

So, with that that said, which of the following candidates, would you hire to lead the Kings if you were in charge? (note: the list randomly displays with each new visitor to the website, so the order is not meant to imply anything in terms of preference or priority)




Poll closes Wednesday at 11:30am PST.

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

RELATED ARTICLES:

Making the case for Darryl Sutter as the next Kings coach

Calgary Flames Jarome Iginla Craig Conroy on Darryl Sutter as coach

List of possible replacements for coach Terry Murray

Video: Dean Lombardi on the firing of Terry Murray

Video: Barry Melrose on the firing of Terry Murray - why it happened and possible next moves

order here --> MayorsManor Store

View the store to see full line of shirts for men and women, dozen of styles and colors

Welcome to your new (interim) coach John Stevens

Things change quickly in the NHL.

After seemingly being safe about a week ago, Kings coach Terry Murray will now be referred to as former Kings coach Terry Murray.

Watching his team drop four in a row and being unable to score goals, GM Dean Lombardi had seen enough and made the move today to release Murray from his coaching duties.

For now, assistant coach John Stevens will take over behind the bench.

Stevens was originally drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers in the third round of the 1984 NHL Draft. Although he played parts of five seasons in the NHL, he was primarily an AHL defenseman - where he played in 834 games and won three Calder Cups.

Prior to eventually coaching the Flyers, he served as the head coach of their AHL affiliate (Philadelphia Phantoms) for six seasons, including when they won the Calder Cup Championship in 2005 - with Mike Richards at center.

In 2006 he became the Flyers head coach and posted a 120-109-34 record before being let go in early December 2009. In the spring of 2008 he led the Flyers to the NHL's Eastern Conference Finals and was named Coach of the Year by The Hockey News.

Murray was one win away from number 500 as a head coach, a position he's also held with the Washington Capitals, Florida Panthers and Philadelphia Flyers. His overall record as an NHL head coach is 499-383-130. Murray, who coached in his 1,000th NHL game on November 12 versus Minnesota, ranks 17th all-time in NHL history in wins and 19th all-time in games coached.

Just how long Stevens is expected to be the interim head coach will perhaps be addressed on a call later this afternoon with Lombardi. We'll have more on that during the call posted on twitter/facebook.

In the meantime, here's a list of candidates who probably will and won't be looked at as possible replacements.

There is also a POLL of who should be the Kings next head coach should be here - let your voice be heard.

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

RELATED ARTICLES:

Making the case for Darryl Sutter as the next Kings coach

Calgary Flames Jarome Iginla Craig Conroy on Darryl Sutter as coach

List of possible replacements for coach Terry Murray

order here --> MayorsManor Store

View the store to see full line of shirts for men and women, dozen of styles and colors

If Murray goes, list of possible replacements for LA Kings

When a tweet appears from a Hall of Fame hockey writer saying 'Kings may be preparing to fire Terry Murray as coach,' you click the link.

And according to a report filed with the LA Times by Helene Elliott and Lisa Dillman here late last night, that may be the course of action in progress at the moment.

Murray's Kings are one game above .500 and have lost four games in a row.

They're in Boston today, preparing for tomorrow night's game with the defending Stanley Cup Champion Bruins. Currently, it's not known if Murray will be behind the bench for that match-up.

If a move is made this week though, here's a quick look at some of the names that may replace him - starting with five known commodities (NHL and AHL coaches), followed by the five leading candidates from junior hockey and wrapping up with five candidates you may hear about - but aren't likely to get the gig.

NHL and AHL Coaches:

John Stevens - LA Kings assistant coach - he may be the short-term solution while a replacement is secured...however, he isn't considered to be a finalist for the job...Stevens is said to coach the same (or very similar) system to Murray and his results while leading the Flyers were mixed

Randy Carlyle - former Anaheim Ducks coach - he's available, due to recently being fired from the Kings Pacific Division rival...supposedly, his players tuned him out a long time ago and he is thought to be extremely hard on players (which may not be such a bad thing for the Kings right now)...his familiarity with the division could be a plus, but according to the Times' article, the 'Kings are not thought to be interested in Carlyle'

Craig MacTavish - another former NHL head coach (Edmonton), he's now coaching Chicago's AHL team...if there is one other team the Kings are most often linked to besides the Flyers, it's the Oilers...so, Mac T has that going for him...he knows several of the current Kings from their days in Edmonton...also another coach thought to be extremely hard on his players and not well liked

LA Kings' Willie Mitchell on his past, present and future

Willie Mitchell will be staring at part of his past when he steps onto the ice tonight in New Jersey.

"Where it all started. That's the first thing I think about when it comes to playing the Devils," the 10-year NHL veteran said. "It doesn't matter how many teams you've played for, and I've played for a couple, you always have fond memories of where it all started."

He debuted for New Jersey on March 25, 2000, nearly four years after they selected him in the eighth round of the 1996 draft.

Nowadays, as he hands out advice to young players, they probably hear stories of the experiences he went though as a prospect coming up through the New Jersey organization.

"I think in life in general, you try and learn your whole way. That's the journey of life, learning. If you ever think you can stop learning, you're in trouble," Mitchell said, as we reflected back on pieces of his career that have molded him into the player he's become.

"As a pro, I try to learn every day. I tried to learn from guys before me, guys who spent a lot of time in the league. I was fortunate enough to start in one of the best environments ever with the Devils - Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer, Larry Robinson, Jacques Lemaire, I could go on and on. There's a lot of Stanley Cups there. And you don't win those without having a good model for success. I tried to learn from those guys."

Some of those lessons have steered him towards being a certain type of player, just don't necessarily call him a leader.

LA Kings Summer Vacation - checking in w/ Alec Martinez

LA Kings Alec Martinez (photo: D. Sheehan)

A few weeks back we published an article highlighting some of the various activities some of the Los Angeles Kings players have been involved in this summer.

Additionally, a few of them - Dustin Penner, Jarret Stoll, Trevor Lewis, etc. - have stopped by MayorsManor for more detailed interviews.

Here's the latest in our summer vacation series - highlights from a conversation with defenseman Alec Martinez...

- On what he's been up to this summer: "I've been doing a lot of working out - trying to stay in shape, get better. Things like that. Taking some time off to relax as well, being able to go on vacation once the season was over. It's been a good summer, relaxing. But at the same time, I've been getting after it - just getting ready for this upcoming season."

- On the two-year contract extension he signed last month: "It was really exciting. Obviously, I love playing here in LA. I love the city, the fans and everything about it. To be locked in here for two more years is good. I'm excited about it. I think the team has a lot of potential and hopefully we'll follow through with it."

- His involvement in contract negotiations with the team: "You kind of let your agent do the work. That's what you pay them for. I didn't really deal with it too much. I (received) an update every once and a while. The communication process is an ongoing thing. Management does a good job of communicating with the players too - keeping us posted on what they expect from us and also, us letting them know what we expect from ourselves."