Jim Fox using gray area to create mental health awareness

Fox at The Guidance Center event last week

Like the Kings' new jerseys, Jim Fox is a black and white guy.

"I'm usually on one side or the other, little gray area," said Fox. "The thing that intrigues me about wine is there's a lot of gray area. There are so many different elements to learn about, think about and educate yourself about - so, it's tough to make a choice or be black and white with wine."

Perhaps, the same could be said for mental health issues.  And last week, Fox used his extensive knowledge of one to help raise awareness for the other.

Although his work with the youth-focused Guidance Center may not have a direct link to his other passion - hockey - he's able to draw some parallels there too.

"We're seeing mental health issues being discussed now in the NHL," began Fox. "That's always been an interest of mine, the mental part of the game - whether it's the positives or the negatives - and the struggles that everyone has."

Specific to The Guidance Center, Fox has a long standing relationship with the group's Executive Director, Patricia Costales. After years of trying to come up with a way to get more involved, last week's wine tasting event in Long Beach seems to have brought it all together.

The event sold-out well in advance and raised over $26,000.

"Trish works with kids who aren't getting help. They need a place like the Guidance Center to get that help," said Fox.

So, he's not only encouraged by the strong turnout and show of support, but also by a greater openness for society at large to talk about issues they may be facing.

"It's something that I think we're all getting better with. We're starting to talk about mental health issues. It's an illness. It's something that can be treated - sometimes you get better, sometimes you don't. But, you can treat it. Trish and everyone involved at The Guidance Center are a big part of that, trying to get people better."

Just like it takes a team of people at The Guidance Center to make a difference, Fox needed some help from his friends to make the wine tasting event more attractive to potential ticket buyers.

VIDEO: LA Kings GM Dean Lombardi on Doughty, rookies

Daryl Evans spoke with Los Angeles Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi earlier today - among the topics: holdout defenseman Drew Doughty and the just completed Rookie Camp. Take a look...

If you'd like to win a pair of lower bowl seats for this coming Wednesday's pre-season game at Staples Center, featuring the Kings vs. the Coyotes, visit www.facebook.com/MayorsManor for all the details.

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POLL: Most impressive King in Rookie Camp game two?

After the Kings-Coyotes first rookie game on Wednesday night, readers of MayorsManor voted Brandon Kozun as the most impressive LA prospect in the game.

He captured 40% of the votes, just enough to beat out Andy Andreoff's 38%.

Yesterday afternoon, the Kings beat the Coyotes 4-3 (game recap here).

If you were at the game or watched it online, who do you think was the most impressive?



Poll closes Saturday at noon.

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LA vs PHX - Thursday's post-game notes and quotes

Kings v Coyotes Thursday (photo: J. Weinberg)

Brandon Kozun can rest a little easier.

Fresh off his rookie season in Manchester last year, he wasn't talking like a player in a meaningless training camp game after Wednesday's 8-7 loss to the Coyotes - where the Kings gave up five goals in the third period.

He was visibly upset and shared his frustrations following the game, calling the loss 'unacceptable.'

While not on the level of a Mark Messier playoff promise - still, though - he all but guaranteed a win on Thursday.  Per the plan, he and his teammates delivered.

Saying the Kings dominated the first period would be an understatement. After barely showing any signs of defensive life for the final 20 minutes of the game prior, they held the Coyotes to only three shots in the opening period of yesterday's game. Then, only gave up eight more in the second. Goalie Martin Jones could have taken a nap in the crease there was such little action in front of him.

Like the night before, Kozun was again front and center for most of the action. He followed-up his two goal performance in the first game by assisting on three of the Kings four goals Thursday - and two of them were things of beauty.

First, he set up Linden Vey to put the Kings up 2-0, after Jordan Weal opened the scoring.

Following the game, Vey said, "It was good to get the win, especially after the way we lost yesterday."

However, he also had some praise for the play of Kozun, saying "I thought Kozy was great in both games." Indeed.

As for the fewer fights and less physical play in game two of the Coyotes-Kings rookie series, Vey said "We were moving the puck better. It's tough to play physical when a team is moving the puck like that."

So, perhaps that's why Jordan Nolan - who's normally known more for his fists than his soft hands - was able to have such an offensively rewarding day. He scored two goals, including the game winner - set up on highlight reel-like passes from Vey and Kozun.

LIVE STREAM: Rookie Camp - Kings v Coyotes (9/15/2011)

Notes and quotes from the Kings 8-7 loss last night to the Phoenix Coyotes can be found here.

Then, at 2pm PST today, the Kings will go for redemption in the second and final game of this series. Thanks to KingsVision we're once again pleased to offer you a live stream of the game.

The stream below will began around 1:45pm PST with a pre-game show, featuring former Kings player, now radio commentator, Daryl Evans.

HINT: I hear there may be a special guest - tune in to see!

At 2pm PST the game will begin.

To get you ready, be sure to check out the MayorsManor top 10 prospect rankings. It will give you a quick update on several of the key players to watch.

You can also check out these other articles to get you ready:

Coach Murray on what he wants out of tonight's game

Full roster breakdowns on today's players - forwards, defensemen and goaltenders

Why Andy Andreoff may be going from camp to Manchester

Like yesterday, I'll be at the game with live notes and interviews - follow along at the links down below to keep up with the action...

POLL: Most impressive LA King in Rookie Camp game one?

This poll is going to be a quick one, as voting will end at 1:30 pm PST today.

If you were at the Rookie Game last night versus Phoenix or watched the game online (right here on MayorsManor!)...who were you most impressed with?

Stats don't always tell the full story of a player's contribution on the ice. However, here are some numbers for your reference:

Andy Andreoff - two goals, plus-2, nine PIM, five shots

Martin Jones - 28 of 31 saves in 40 minutes played

Ray Kaunisto - one goal, one assist, five shots, five hits

Brandon Kozun - two goals, one assist, four shots

Jake Muzzin - two assists, plus-1, seven PIM, one shot, two hits

Michael Schumacher - two assists, plus-3, two hits

If you don't like any of those, feel free to suggest your own...




REMINDER: We'll have a free live stream of the second game between the LA Kings and Phoenix Coyotes right here on MayorsManor, beginning at 1:45 pm PST. Don't miss it!

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LA vs PHX - Wednesday's post-game notes and quotes

Goalie Chirstopher Gibson (photo by: Cikiri)

Rookie game tournament or not, the Kings brass can't be pleased with what they saw on Wednesday night - especially in the third period.

Leading 6-3 after 40 minutes, the Kings came from ahead to lose the game 8-7 after a disastrous final period - where goalie Christopher Gibson gave up five goals.

Brandon Kozun, one of the assistant captains in the game, called the loss "unacceptable" and declared, "We cannot let leads like that get away."

What happened? Well, "there were a lot of nervous guys in that dressing room," Kozun surmised.

Martin Jones started in net for the Kings and stopped 28 of the 31 shots he faced in two periods. Coach Mark Morris (of Manchester) elected to put Gibson in for the third - a move he had planned out even prior to the game starting.

Gibson gave up five goals on 13 shots - three of them were with the Coyotes on the power play.

"All those goals weren't one guy's fault," said Kozun. "They were the entire team. I feel bad for Gibby because we put him in a pretty tough spot out there. It's tough, but everyone has to be reliable out there. It's not one guy, it's the whole team."

On the positive side, Kozun had a pair of goals and led all Kings players with three points.

Joining him with a pair of goals was a player who is quickly growing on coach Terry Murray, 2011 draft pick Andy Andreoff.

The 6-foot-1 center was exactly as Murray had advertised during his MayorsManor interview earlier in the week - gritty and a goal scorer.

Andreoff first scored midway through the first period, then just five seconds later got into a scrap off the ensuing faceoff.

After the game he said "I'm just trying to play hard and get used to the experience here at the camp - getting used to the speed and size and toughness here."

LA Kings main training camp full roster and schedule

Quick note on the Kings roster for the main training camp, which kicks off Friday with off-ice testing, then on-ice activity beginning this Saturday...

The roster basically includes all of the Kings players under contract at the NHL level, the guys in camp this week for Rookie Camp and three additional invitees:

Trent Hunter
RW, 6-foot-3, 210 lbs, played 17 games for the NY Islanders last season

Shaun Heshka
D, 6-foot-1, 208 lbs, with Salzburg EC in Austria last season

Ray Macias
D, 6-foot-1, 198 lbs, Lake Erie AHL and two games with the Colorado Avalanche

Saturday schedule:

LIVE STREAM: Rookie Camp - Kings v Coyotes (9/14/2011)

Thanks to KingsVision we're proud to announce a live stream of tonight's LA Kings vs Phoenix Coyotes rookie game.

The stream below will began around 5:45pm PST with a pre-game show, featuring former Kings player, now radio commentator, Daryl Evans.

At 6pm PST the game will begin.

To get you ready, be sure to check out the MayorsManor top 10 prospect rankings. It will give you a quick update on several of the key players to watch.

You can also check out these other articles to get you ready:

Coach Murray on what he wants out of tonight's game

Full roster breakdowns on today's players - forwards, defensemen and goaltenders

Why Andy Andreoff may be going from camp to Manchester

I'll also be at the game with live notes and interviews - follow along at the links down below...

LA Kings coach knows exactly what he wants tonight

The time has finally arrived.

Tonight there will be something more meaningful than an intrasquad scrimmage taking place on the ice at the Kings practice facility.

Sure, it's not an NHL regular season game - we'll slowly build back up to that over the next few weeks.

However, a division rival is sending over their best prospects and rookies to take on a Kings team that will include Tyler Toffoli, Brandon Kozun, Jake Muzzin, Nic Deslauriers and others.

Phoenix Coyotes vs Los Angeles Kings at 6pm PST in game one of a two-game tournament. You can watch all the action live on MayorsManor, we'll post the video stream later today on the homepage.

Head coach Terry Murray walked me through the process of putting the line-up together for tonight...

"We (Murray, Manchester coach Mark Morris and the rest of the coaching staff) get get together with the amateur scouting staff also. Mike Futa (co-director of amateur scouting for the Kings) knows these guys very well. He gives us some advice, recommendations, opinions on what the players' strength and weaknesses are. So, we try to sit down as a community thing - get our heads together and put players in a position where they can be successful most importantly."

Second only to 'Who is starting in goal?' - perhaps the most often asked question last year of Murray had to do with the line combinations.

For tonight's rookie game, he said "It won't look too far away from what we've been looking at the last few days. It will be close."

Which means you can probably expect Linden Vey and Kozun together on one line, with Toffoli and Jordan Weal on a different line. The other line to keep an eye on features Michael Schumacher and Andy Andreoff. Closer to game time I'll post the official line combos on twitter/facebook.