Welcome to the Hockey Phanatic website

 Your daily commentary on the Los Angeles Kings, Anaheim Ducks and issues that involve the National Hockey League.

Sorry that my blog has been down. I had a major crash and have yet to be able to get the site back up to full speed.

 A great Game 7 OT victory!

January 22, 2015- The Kings are in their mid-season doldrums. Once they really have a goal and something to play for they will find their game. The goal will be to make the playoffs. They are not a full season team. They are built for the playoffs. Now that they are out of a playoff position they will start to get their game together.  

June 3rd, 2014- The pundits are saying that the Kings-Blackhawks was one of the best series ever played in the history of the NHL. Being a very biased and partisan LA Kings fan, I had a critical eye on how they played. The Kings had trouble with the Hawks two man forecheck. They had trouble moving the puck out of their zone. Jonathan Quick gave up some soft goals. The usually reliable Trevor Lewis made some poor defensive decisions that led to Hawk goals and a virtual benching in Game 7. Matt Greene is slow and gave the Hawks to much room on the rush.

And after all is said and done the Kings did enough to eliminate the Hawks and go to the Finals. The Kings did something they are not known for-score goals. The Hawks made them change their game because of all the fast starts they had. When you fall behind you have to throw out your defensive game and try and get back in it. The Kings have shown us something we didn't know they had, an offensive game. We know that individually they had people with offensive talent but they always stuck to the Sutter system which stifles that talent. It is fun to see the Kings round into an all around team that both can play great defense and score when needed. It was evident in this roller coaster series. Down in Game 1, up when they were up 3-1, down again when the series was tied and in the pits early in Game 7. And then the euphoria of an overtime Game 7 win. They only thing better will be when they hold up the Cup at the end of the Finals.

April 21st, 2014- Last night's 7-2 loss to San Jose shows that if the Kings can't correct the costly mistakes thay have made in the first two games this will be a quick series. The neutral zone turnovers, bad line changes, not getting shots through which combined with the speed of San Jose showed some of the Kings weaknesses. The Sharks scored three goals off the rush. With their speed they were able to make the Kings back off and open up the passing lanes for those cross-ice one timers. When you allow fourth liners Mike Brown and Raffi Torres to run around, agitate, run your goalie and score important goals and have no answer to them you are in trouble. The Kings need to put a fourth line out there that can straighten those two out.

Matt Greene was out there for four of the Shark goals. You really can't blame him on one since the King defenseman he replaced made a bad decision to change when the puck wasn't cleared deep enough. This seems to be a problem all year with the Kings. The defenseman farthest from the bench has to make 100% sure the puck is deep enough to change; otherwise he has to stay out there to cover the long pass in transition. On two of the goals it seemed Greene went out of his way to make a big hit but that put him out of position and gave the Sharks room to make a play and score. It's hard to blame him. He is the seventh defenseman and has been a healthy scratch. He wants to make a difference. He will next year with a new team.

April 3rd, 2014-The Kings meet San Jose in the first round. I went to the game on April 3rd in San Jose. I've heard that the Shark Tank was the loudest in the league. Not the night I was there. Even the music wasn't loud. I've been to Staples Center and you couldn't talk to the person next to you. In San Jose I was able to carry on a normal conversation with my wife. Don't believe the hype.

January 22nd, 2014- Heard Luc Robitaille this morning say the NHL won't let what happened in Detroit happen again. The NHL could have let it not happen if the war room in Toronto made a simple phone call to the scorer's table when it happened. Does every scenario have to be in writing for someone to make a decision? When does common sense and using the brains God gave you come into play? Everyone but the four people that mattered knew the puck was out of play. Who would've complained if Toronto called and said " Yeah, it was out of play." Does Detroit want to win like that? If the Red Wings get into the playoffs by a point they have the NHL to thank for that.

December 5th-Still here. I need to rebuild this site. If you know someone email me at phanatic@hockeyphanatic.com. 

October 8th, 2013-Kings are off to their typical slow start. Some idiot blogger gas already suggested Sutter be fired! Jonathan Quick made the mistake of his career that I'm sure we will see for years. I'm not surprised though. Usually the puck is on his stick when it blows up.

May 17th 2013-Great comeback win last night. Ranks right up there in the Top 5. Nothing beats Miracle on Manchester or Adam Deadmarsh's OT winner to eliminate Detroit but it is right there in that company.

After the game did you hear that clown Vic the Brick asking Darryl Sutter those two stupid questions? Vic is a Laker schill who goes around town dressed in a flowing purple and gold robe and a ridiculous purple and gold crown. If he had a uterus he'd be popping out Kobe's baby. He works for a station that broadcast the Lakers for 30 plus years but lost them a few years back to KSPN. Now these two stations try to out-Laker each other at the expense of most other sports. When I do scan by these stations it is invariably Lakers talk. I don't stay long. This morning, still talking NBA even though both Lakers and Clippers are out. 

Anyway, Vic (in his dramatic east coast accent) asks Darryl if the Kings were inspired by Kopi's blood on the ice. Darryl pointed out that the Sharks scored after that. Then he asks if the Kings were inspired when Kopi came back. Darryl answered, "He was rested". That got a laugh from the rest of the reporters. Fact of the matter is the Kings played a great third period, San Jose took two penalties because of the pressure and the Kings capitalized. They weren't looking to someone for "inspiration".

KLAC, next game send a reporter who actually knows the game. Not some drama queen who got lost on the way to Kobe's house.

May 1st- Jonathan Quick has many great skills as an NHL goaltender. The Kings would not have won the Stanley Cup without him. However, last night exposed the one major flaw in his game. He cannot handle the puck. That was not the first time he has fumble with the puck and it cost the Kings a goal and a game. One example a few years back against Minnesota the Kings lost 2-1 and both Minny goals came as a direct result of Quick's mishandling of the puck. Now the Kings have someone in their employ who, probably next to Martin Brodeur, was the best puckhandling goalie to ever play. Has Ron Hextall ever taken the ice and given Quick a few pointers about playing the puck? I cringe every time the puck is on Quick's stick. He needs to either ring the puck around the boards, or preferably, set the puck up for his defensemen and get back in his net. The less the puck is on his stick the better.   

April 15th- Edmonton did every other team in the league a favor today. They kept the old boy's network alive. They fired Steve Tambellini and hired Craig MacTavish as the new GM. The same MacTavish who coached the team 8 years, missed the playoffs 5 of those years and got lucky one year by getting to the Cup Finals. He lived off that for two years longer than he should have.

I don't understand how owners like Darryl Katz, who made billions in business, could be so stupid when running a hockey team. Kevin Lowe can't run a donut shop, and he's proven he can't run a hockey team. Seven years in a row now out of the playoffs. And he still calls the shots and hires all his own Oiler friends and cronies to help him run the team into the ground. The Oilers will never get better until Lowe is gone. I'm not an Oiler fan, but I hate to see incompetence rewarded. We can count on three more years of the Oilers not being competitive until Katz wises up and cleans house. 

Bachelorette.com is offering 10% Off First Order Items with the Coupon Code: Welcome.

Follow the Phanatic on TwitterFollow @Hockey_Phanatic