NHL Draft - triple header today

Later this afternoon -when the euphoria of the pseudo trade deadline has passed - you can catch up on your 2010 NHL Draft prep with three match-ups to chose from. Tonight's televised games feature some WHL action and three of the top teams in college hockey. You'll have a chance to see over a dozen players that will likely hear their names called come draft time.

Spokane Chiefs at Everett Silvertips (WHL)

In 2007, 2008 and 2009 the Kings took players from the WHL in the first round. In fact, the WHL has had more players drafted than any any other league worldwide in recent years - so, there's plenty of talent being showcased in the Western junior league.

Tonight's game features three players ranked by the NHL's Central Scouting Service. For those unfamiliar, their midterm rankings categorize all top draft-eligible prospects by area (North America-Europe) and position (skater-goaltender) in advance of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft being held in Los Angeles this June.

NHL Central Scouting ranked players in this game:
Everett Silvertips
Goaltender Kent Simpson (#7 N. American goalie)
Skaters - Alex Theriau (#74) and Radko Gudas (#131)

Simpson is a 17 year old goaltender from Edmonton, Alberta who is among the top three WHL netminders in save percentage. Theriau is a 6'2" defenseman from Duncan, British Columbia, also 17 years old.

Gudas, a 5'11" 19-year old from Prague, Czech Republic, represented his country at the 2008 and 2009 World Junior Championships. He also participated in the Kings rookie training camp back in September...and in an interview here, he had this to say about the experience:

"It was a pretty good experience. I was there in the summer in (Kings) development camp and they invited me to the rookie camp so I really enjoyed it. LA’s a great city and the training camp and rookie camp were pretty good...there were many things I learned. The hockey is different from Europe so I had to change my style for playing to another system and smaller ice."

Being a year older than most draft eligible players has led some scouts to say he could be NHL ready next year.

Everett forward Tyler Maxwell (jersey #9) was also invited to that camp after not being selected in the '09 draft. He currently sits second on the Silvertips in goals (27) and points (55). However, at 5'9" he's a long shot for the NHL. Maybe Manchester someday?

The game can be seen on FoxSports Northwest (channel 687 on DirecTV) at 7pm PST.

Minnesota State Mavericks at Wisconsin Badgers (NCAA)

Wisconsin, the highest scoring team in the nation, is currently ranked #1 in the country. Meanwhile, Minnesota State is ranked #22.

Tyler Pitlick, a 6'2" center for Minn-State, is ranked #21 by NHL scouting - so he has an outside shot at going in the first round of the upcoming NHL draft (you have to factor in the European players, plus the goalies).

John Ramage, a 6'1" defenseman for Wisconsin, is ranked #187 - so he's projected as a mid to late round draft pick up.

Other players to watch:
UW Junior defenseman Brendan Smith has been mentioned among the leading candidates for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award.

Jordy Murray, former Kings coach Andy Murray's 'other' son, also plays for UW. As most of you know, Jordy's brother Brady was drafted by the Kings and is still team property. Jordy injured his shoulder in December, however he's been playing much better in 2010. (Read the MayorsManor interview with Andy Murray, where he talks about his sons, by clicking here).

Current Kings defenseman Davis Drewiske played four years for the Badgers, winning an NCAA Championship in 2006 (beating Peter Harold and his Boston College teammates).

David Backes of the St. Louis Blues (their 2nd round pick back at the '03 draft) is a former Maverick. He's also getting ready to play for Team USA in the Olympics.

This game can be seen on the NHL Network starting at 6pm PST (channel 215 on DirecTV)

Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks at Ohio State Buckeyes (NCAA)

Although this game does not feature any players from the NHL's mid-term draft rankings, the Buckeyes are ranked #25 in the country entering action tonight.

Ohio State alum Ryan Kesler, a former first-round draft pick of the Vancouver Canucks, will play a big role for Team USA at the Olympics starting next week.

David Steckel - the Kings first round pick in the 2001 draft (and now with the Capitals) - also went to Ohio State.

The Big Ten Channel (DirecTV channel 610) will broadcast this game beginning at 4pm PST.

For the full list of draft-eligible skaters and goaltenders ranked by the NHL's Central Scouting division click here.

Read. Watch. Enjoy.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119

Midweek Musings

Brief update as we hit the midpoint of the week:

* Monday was Thomas Hickey's 21st birthday. He remains the top rated Kings prospect, according to HockeysFuture.com. The former captain of Team Canada at the World Juniors is currently recouping from a shoulder injury sustained in late November. Speculation has him possibly returning in late March / early April. To read more about Hickey's skills and leadership, check out this NHL.com article that was posted last summer.

* Two of the other Kings top prospects - both recent number one draft picks by LA - Colten 'Mr. Nasty' Teubert (Regina Pats) and Brayden Schenn (Brandon Wheat Kings) faced off last night in WHL action. On Tuesday night the Wheat Kings beat the Pats for the fourth time this season, the final score was 6-2. Neither player scored.

* Today is Dallas Stars forward Mike Ribeiro's birthday. He just returned from a pretty bad injury. How long he'll remain in a Stars uniform seems to be the big question. Rumors are circulating throughout Dallas that he and/or Steve Ott are about to be traded. (You may recall, in an article here I speculated on Ott's fit with the Kings).

* Received an odd email the other day from a follower on Twitter. They alerted me to a post (or should I say tweet) from @POVJoe that read "Tomorrows game plan..Kings game in Anaheim with 8 Ice Girls. Im taking 8 of them to the game to watch the kings cook the ducks. Pics to cum" Oh boy - sounds exactly like the type of PR the Kings don't need. To date, nothing has surfaced.

* Added a link near the top left corner of the page called INTERVIEWS. In case you've missed any of our interviews with guys like Robitaille, Roenick, Modano, Blake, etc. you can quickly access them through the new Interview page.

* Reminder - Thursday night is the first of three upcoming bobblehead nights. To see pictures of the other two bobbles click here. For those wondering why Simmonds was selected to go first, a Kings email this week included the following "This Thursday...the first 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a Wayne Simmonds bobblehead. Also, as part of Black History Night, Willie O'Ree, the first black player in the NHL, will take part in the ceremonial puck drop."

* Pictures of Jonathan Quick's TEAM USA mask for the Olympics have been posted HERE and HERE.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119

Kings prospect named WHL Player of the Week

Martin Jones, a Kings goaltending prospect playing junior hockey for the Calgary Hitmen, was named the WHL player of the week.

You may remember hearing his name last month when he played for Team Canada at the World Junior Championships - along side other Kings prospects Colten Teubert, Brayden Schenn and Brandon Kozun.

The 19 year old goalie is finishing up his fourth year with the Hitmen. After not being drafted by any NHL team the Kings signed him to a free agent contract in the summer of 2008.

Highlights from the WHL press release:

Jones posted a 3-0-0-0 record this past week with one shut-out, stopping 89 of 91 shots faced for a 0.670 goals-against average and a remarkable 0.978 save percentage.

On Wednesday, February 3rd, the Hitmen were at the Credit Union i-plex in Swift Current to face the Broncos. Jones stopped 23 of 24 shots faced as the Hitmen doubled up the Broncos 2-1. The next night, Thursday, February 4th, the Hitmen were in Medicine Hat to take on the Tigers. Jones stopped 33 of 34 shots, including 15 saves in the third period, to help lead the Hitmen to a 4-1 victory. He was also named the games 1st Star. Back at the Saddledome on Saturday, February 6th, the Hitmen hosted the Tigers for the back end of their home-and-home series. Jones stopped all 33 shots faced and was named the games 1st Star as the Hitmen shut-out the Tigers 2-0.

With Jones picking up three wins this past week and eight victories in his last 10 games, which include four shut-out performances, he now sits 4th among WHL goaltenders with 24 wins on the season. His goals-against average also ranks him 4th in the WHL at 2.54.

Assuming top goaltending prospect Jonathan Bernier is with the Kings in LA next season, all other goalies in the system would likely get a bump up to the next level as well. Jeff Zatkoff, currently backing up Bernier in Manchester, would probably assume the starting job there for the 2010-11 campaign. Allowing Jones to become Z's back-up or possibly end up in Ontario as the starter for the Reign.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Different teams elicit different feelings and emotions from fans and players alike. When the schedule comes out every July we all have a handful of teams we rush to circle. Some teams you secretly cheer for when the Kings aren't playing, some you love to hate and some you actually do hate. Call it the 'amp-factor' - as in how amped you get for that particular game.

Anaheim is an obvious one, given the geography of the rivalry.

Ditto for San Jose. Although Phoenix is about the same distance from LA, yet any sort of rivalry between the Coyotes-Kings pales in comparison to the Sharks-Kings. And it's always been that way, so go figure. Perhaps that's remnants of the Dodgers-Giants or SoCal-NoCal thing.

Other teams come and go, largely based upon how they've done in recent years. There was a time when the Rangers coming to town was one of THE games. It hasn't been that way in a long, long time.

The Av's were a big game six or seven years ago, not as much the last two or three.

I remember the Blackhawks being big games back at the Forum, not so much at Staples.

Edmonton and Calgary - well, I'm not sure anything will ever match the raw emotion of the games with those two teams from about 1990-1993.

Nashville, Columbus, Atlanta, etc. - I'd probably get more amped to see the Kings play the Barnes&Noble All Stars.

Which brings us to Detroit.

After play on the ice - which has to be the number one criteria - two other things usually help shape my feelings about a team and my 'amp' level for playing them (in no particular order)...

One, how do the fans of that team represent their club? I'm all for some good smack talk. However, I have little tolerance for 'rude for the sake of being rude' and/or unintelligent verbal attacks. If you have something original, you get major props from me. If you just say dumb things like "How many Stanley Cups do you have?" - well, you pretty much need to go back to kindergarten son because you don't have the chops to fight your way out of a paper bag on a rainy day. You're mouth is bringing a knife to a gun fight.

Which somewhat dovetails into my second criteria - how the team's players interact with me in the tunnel at Staples Center plays a major role in my amp-factor. If they 'get it' and can 'give it' in return, mucho respect.

Based on the above, the Detroit Red Wings have long been a game I circle on the calendar. It's too easy to respect them just because they've been good. I'm looking for something more.

I've been fortunate enough to see the Kings play on the road in nearly every NHL city (and some cities that don't even have teams anymore, like Winnipeg). Much to my surprise, Detroit was one of my favorite road games. The fans there were absolutely some of the best - nothing like the Motor City fans who show up to Staples Center. The fans in Detroit were constantly coming up to me (and the others in my group) wanting to talk hockey, swap stories, give us tips on what to do in the city, etc. It was amazing. Total class acts - every single person we came into contact with. Class.

Sidebar - the highlight of that trip - well, there were two...first, the Kings were being dominated by Detroit and entered the third period down 3-1...LA came back to score four unanswered goals on Chris Osgood to win the game 5-3 (and yes, even after that happened the fans were still cool to us as we left the building)...

The second highlight that night was with about two minutes left in the game Chris Chelios (somebody I've had numerous verbal exchanges with through the years) is sitting on the bench...and for reasons I still don't understand, he inexplicably turns around and starts looking at people in the crowd...when his eyes pass my seat he quickly snaps his head back (like you would see in a movie), doing a double take...

In less than a second you can see the look on his face as he realizes he recognizes his old nemesis, even though the setting is wrong - we're in Detroit, not LA...he smiles, then chuckles...and before I can even say anything, stands up and hands me his stick...in 20 years I've never seen a player give his stick away while the game is still going on...best part about it though - I'm wearing my Kings jersey (of course) and I'm surrounded by an entire section of red and white clad Wings fans...all of their jaws hit the floor...priceless!

Back to my criteria - interactions with the players. So many heated games between the Kings-Wings over the last 10 years have provided numerous opportunities to have some good...um, discussions...with Wings players as they pass between the tunnel and bench at Staples. Many have been classy - that list doesn't include Federov and Krupp, but we'll save that story for a different day.

Saturday afternoon provided one of the funnier interactions. Osgood has been heckled for years by Kings fans - and fans around the league, even including those in Detroit.

He was backing up Howard yesterday, so there was at least a possibility of some conversation. I started with the easy stuff. You know, asking him to get me a beer since he wasn't doing anything else. He says "I would, but I'd drink it before I made it back - and I'm not allowed to drink in uniform." So I ask for a pizza because I'm hungry. He lets me know he'll "need some money for the food" because he doesn't "run errands for free." Let me reiterate, it's all light weight stuff at this point, nothing serious.

Next thing you know we're talking stats, he's offering me an update on Cheli's play in the AHL this year (apparently he knew I'd care), etc. Then, during a stoppage in play, when nobody else was really listening, he started asking me about the Kings play of late. He was asking genuine questions, showing real interest in how they've been playing recently and if this team is for real.

It was the strangest conversation.

Then on the drive home I started laughing and wondered -was it really that strange? The Red Wings were just about to fall out of my top tier of teams to get hyped about. Let's face it, they're on the way down and probably wont be winning their division again anytime soon due to the rise of the Blackhawks. Yet, here was Osgood - without knowing it - giving me a pseudo subliminal reminder of one of the reasons I respect them so much. Some of their guys get it.

Respect. It goes both ways.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119

Stacked Deck?

In less than two hours the Kings will hit the ice at Staples Center to face their old nemesis, the Detroit Red Wings. While LA seems to be making a habit of exercising old demons this season - including finally solving the Red Wings in Detroit a few weeks ago - the task at hand today could prove to be too daunting. The deck may just be stacked against them:

Game Time? The dreaded 1pm start. Not exactly this team's favorite. Yes, they've been playing better lately in the daytime tilts - dare I even mentioned they've won the last two 1:00 starts at home - but, still...

Does this jersey look good on me? Yes, the dreaded fashion police are back. We better check to see which jersey the team will wear today. Hmmm, a brief review of their third jersey schedule shows that today IS NOT on the agenda. Oh no, no black magic today. The Kings will have to somehow summon strength from their 'regular' jersey. Not exactly what you'd hope on a day when the Kings need all the help they can get...

Do the Kings have nine lives? They can't keep winning forever can they? This stretch has obviously been impressive, but can they push it to nine in a row? In the NHL, even for the best teams, streaks longer than five games are very difficult to pull off. So, the bigger question is can they win their 9th in a row against a veteran team desperately trying to stay in the playoff race?

The deck may be stacked against the Kings today. However, Terry Murray will surely be shuffling that deck as best he can to find another deuce.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119

Draft Watch - Tonight on TV

The Kings may be off, but tonight Fox Sports brings you another WHL game via DirecTV.

And among the many things we've learned since Dean Lombardi arrived in town...he loves him some WHL guys. Guys like Thomas Hickey (Dean's first round pick at the 2007 draft), Oscar Moller, Colten Teubert (first round pick in '08) and Brayden Schenn (first round in '09) all came from the Western Canadian Junior League.

Seattle Thunderbirds at Portland Winterhawks (WHL)
This game definitely has '2010 NHL Draft' stamped all over it.

Goaltender Calvin Pickard of Seattle is the number one ranked North American goalie by the NHL's Central Scouting Bureau.

Plus, Nino-mania will be center stage again when Swiss superstar-to-be Nino Nierderreiter (RW) is on the ice for the Winterhawks. He leads a loaded Portland team that features five kids ranked in the top 100 - Nino (ranked #14), center Ryan Johansen (#16), defenseman Troy Rutkowski (#43), left wing Bradley Ross (#69) and defenseman Taylor Aronson (#90).

If you're unfamiliar with Nino, he recently had a strong World Juniors - adding to his already growing reputation. Then, in last month's CHL Skills Competition (at the CHL Prospects Game, basically a showcase event for the NHL Draft), the soon to be first rounder had the highlight goal of the skills event - click here to see the video.

The game can be seen on FoxSports Northwest (channel 687 on DirecTV) beginning at 7:30pm PST tonight.

Read. Watch. Enjoy.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119

Lombardi on Kovalchuk

From the PowerPlay on NHL Radio a few hours ago:

Johnathan Davis, our good buddy at Sporting America says to us that he had a chance to sit down with Dean Lombardi recently and asked him why Kovalchuk did not end up as a member of the Los Angeles Kings and was he frustrated in his efforts, was he ever close to a deal? Johnathan heard from Dean Lombardi that he was never close to a deal. In fact, he had only one conversation with Don Waddell.

He told Waddell that if the price were to come down, he should give Dean a call. Lombardi was not prepared to trade any of his top nine forwards or any of his top 6 blueliners as Lombardi said "The locker room has come together." These guys have developed a great bond amongst one another. They truly want to play for each other and the idea of having to break that up, as far as that goes, outweighed what Kovalchuk would bring to the team.

Dean Being Dean

IN DEAN WE TRUST

It's been said that sometimes the best trades are the ones you don't make. Today was the case for the LA Kings. Lombardi was unwilling to pony up the four or five players it took to get Kovalchuk from Atlanta.

Good. You can argue all day long about the greatness of Kovi and how many goals he scores. Yet, the fact remains, that was WAY too steep of a price for a rental. Let Dean tweak things at the margins this season.

The LA Kings aren't just fine. They'll be more than fine for NOT doing the deal with Atlanta.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119

see previous article about who the Kings may target by clicking here

Kings-Ducks: The Last Time it Mattered This Much

It was 1993. December 2nd to be exact. The Kings were crashing hard, coming down from their high of going to the Stanley Cup Finals just seven months earlier. Now they were near the bottom of the Western Conference and riding a six game losing streak.

Staring them in the face was their worst nightmare - an expansion team. The Disney owned Mighty Ducks of Anaheim were in their inaugural season, which may not sound like much of a threat to the incumbent. However, the Kings - long struggling to carve out their niche in a city known for paying more attention to the Dodgers and Lakers - now faced a new worry. A second NHL team in SoCal.

And so it began. A rivalry of sorts. With both teams tied in the standings at 20 points apiece, it was time for the first ever Kings-Ducks game.

Adding concern and worry for even the most die hard Kings fan was the fact that coach Barry Melrose was starting Rick Knickle in goal, not Kelly Hrudey or Robb Stauber (the two guys that carried the team through the '93 playoffs). No, he was going with a guy that was playing for the San Diego Gulls the season prior. If you've never heard of Knickle or the Gulls, that tells you all you need to know.

Things only got worse when at the 10:13 mark of the first period the Mighty Ducks scored their first ever goal against the Kings. Peter Douris - who? - scored a power play goal to put the Ducks up 1-0. What it the world was going on?

How they were even on the power play is a mathematical marvel. Certainly it was a penalty filled period - one that resulted in the Mighty Ducks being short handed seven different times. On one of those power plays Luc Robitaille was able to score, tying up the game. It was at that precise moment you could hear the entire building exhale...briefly.

The second period wasn't nearly as exciting. The Kings were dominating the shot clock 33-10 after 40 minutes, but the game remained tied 1-1. Fans throughout the Fabulous Forum were on pins and needles as they headed to the concession stands and underground bathrooms for the second intermission.

Then Jari Kurri took over. He scored two goals in the first half of the third period, providing the Kings a little breathing room. His second came at 10:16. While the Kings were now up 3-1, that was a lot of time on the clock to kill.

Duck fans watching at home - they wouldn't dare go to the Forum back then, they weren't as obnoxious as they are now - probably thought there was plenty of time left for a Mighty comeback. Eventually, their confidence would increase. With just a few minutes left on the clock Robitaille went to the box for charging. Ducks coach Ron Wilson capitalized on the situation by pulling goalie Guy Hebert to give his team a two man advantage.

Shaun Van Allen scored for the Ducks and the hearts of 16,005 Kings fans in attendance nearly stopped pumping. We had a serious problem on our hands.

Wilson kept Hebert on the bench and the Ducks continued to pepper Knickle. Tick, tick, tick - time seemed to move so slowly. The final 82 seconds finally elapsed and the Kings had won the game 3-2.

You never get a second chance to make a first impression. On that night the Kings let it be known, this was their town. "We had to win, let's be honest." said Kings captain Wayne Gretzky.

Well to be honest, the Ducks would eventually wrestle away bragging rights in the rivalry - making their own run to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2007 (note: in a cost cutting move the NHL canceled the Finals, thus no winner was ever crowned that year...trust me, what you think happened didn't happen...believe me...it's just your mind playing tricks on you).

Further truth - the rivalry has never really lived up to the hype. Sure, many of the games through the years have had some heat. Yet, the old adage is that a rivalry isn't really a rivalry until two teams meet in the playoffs. Unfortunately, it hasn't happened.

That said, let's be clear about something...tonight's game is the most meaningful Kings-Ducks game since that initial contest. The Kings have been slowly ascending the ranks of the Western Conference this season and are currently riding a seven game winning streak. The Ducks have also been playing better of late, climbing back into the playoff race themselves.

The Kings won the first meeting of the season 4-3 in Anaheim. They also won the rematch a few weeks ago in LA, a dominant 4-0 victory.

While the Ducks might need this game more for the standings in the West, the Kings need this more for their psyche. They need to show themselves and their fans that this is THEIR town!

The next time a Kings-Ducks game will mean this much is when the teams meet in the playoffs someday.

Until then, tonight's the night. Time for the dominance to begin.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/MayorNHL

www.facebook.com/MayorsManor

Guys and Dolls - the hockey edition

Avery. In many circles that's a name synonymous with office supplies. In the hockey world though, it's those five letters that might just represent the most controversial word you can speak.

People from coast to coast - and on both sides of the U.S./Canadian border - have strong opinions whenever his name his mentioned.

Sean Avery. Just saying his name is enough to get the blood pressure rising for some.

Yet, the truth is, he's a complex person to try and explain - let alone understand.

His time in LA was filled with things like him doing push-ups after scoring a goal, standing up for his teammates when others wouldn't, being called a cancer in the locker room, drawing unnecessary and untimely penalties - just to name a few. Yet, his former coach Andy Murray recently said "Sure, he's a real character. But he's become a pretty darn good hockey player for the Rangers." And guys like Luc Robitaille refer to him as "my little puppy."

He was so unpredictable, some fans began asking 'What Would Avery Do?' next. The Kings ultimately answered the question by trading him to the Rangers in February 2007. He was packing his bags for the Big Apple. The perfect stage for a media whore like Avery.

While in New York he was such a pest in the playoffs versus New Jersey one year - pushing the limits of what's within the confines of the rule book -the NHL issued an 'update' (with what is now referred to as the "Avery rule").

A big money contract in Dallas took some of the league by surprise. Grumblings from within the team seemed to begin almost before the ink was dry on the deal. Sure enough, a few sloppy seconds later he was run out of town. Banished. Nearly for good.

He went to the minors - doing his time after doing the crime. Then, breaking the myth of 'you can never go back home', he returned to the one place he seems to be the most comfortable...with the New York Rangers.

Off the ice his life isn't filled with any less drama. He's been romantically linked with Elisha Cuthbert (now with Dion Phaneuf of the Leafs), Rachel Hunter (later with Jarret Stoll), Mary-Kate Olsen, Lake Bell (from TV's Boston Legal), Hilary Rhoda (formerly with Jets QB Mark Sanchez) and 51 year old Kelly Klein (ex-wife of fashion designer Calvin Klein).

Such exploits have even led to the rumor that he's the subject of pop superstar Justin Timberlake's "What Goes Around" song. Couldn't tell 'ya, never heard it.

However, to truly try and understand this strange, sometimes divisive, sometimes exciting, part-time fashionista, part-time hockey player of a man you MUST watch this video:



He likes to play with dolls and purses?

What?

Regardless of your opinion on Avery, tonight will be another be a battle for the Kings when they take on his New York Rangers.

After wrestling with Bears and slaying Devils over the weekend, now the real circus comes to town.

The puck drops at 7:30. Enjoy!

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119