Winter Classic Light

I'm a little late posting this, but Jason LaBarbera is 1-0 in 2009 as the Vancouver Canucks beat the Nashville Predators in one of the NHL games on New Year's Day that you probably didn't hear all that much about.

He's wearing his Kings pants and goalie gear.

Unless Jason goes 32-0 for the remainder of the season, I won't be writing about him all that much. But March 9th and 13th the Kings have a home and home series with Vancouver... and if Roberto Luongo's groin doesn't magically heal... LaBarbera should be in net.

I'm heading to the Flyers game tomorrow night and I can't wait to be back at Staples. It's been 2 1/2 weeks since I've been to a game... the downfalls of the Half Season Ticket Package. Half Season Ticket Holder Buddy is still on the east coast, but he happens to be in a town that can receive the Flyers broadcast, so he'll be watching live on the East Coast. My brother will be taking his place.

Bye Bye Barbera

As reported on Inside the Kings, Los Angeles Kings goaltender Jason LaBarbera has been traded to the Vancouver Canucks for a 7th round draft pick in the 2009 Draft.

LaBarbera burst onto the Kings scene in 2005, winning a club record 5 in a row. And then in mid-November, Jason learned his girlfriend had cancer. He took a leave of absence and in the process, Mathieu Garon took over the starting job. LaBarbera would never be the same player again.

The next season Dean Lombardi traded for and signed the disaster known as Dan Cloutier to a multi-year contract. LaBarbera spent the season in the minors, tearing up the AHL with 39 wins. This should have been the warning sign... Jason LaBarbera excelled in the minors, but couldn't get it together in the pros. The Kings were unable to call him up from Manchester because of the fear of having another team pick him up on waivers. Yes, Kings fans, there was a time where the Kings were in fear of losing Jason LaBarbera.

He was all but handed the #1 job last season and struggled with injuries and a shitty defense in front of him. This season, he was also handed the #1 job by Coach Murray with a much improved defense... and within 2 weeks had lost the job to Erik Ersberg. When Ersberg went down with an injury, LaBarbera lost the position to Jon Quick.

Through it all... with fans cursing his name and screaming for his head (including me and the Half Season Ticket Holder Buddy)... Jason LaBarbera always kept a smile on his bobblehead-esque face. When Ersberg took over this year, Jason was very supportive, especially after a victory. With him gone, I only wonder what the folks over at Let's Go Kings will have to talk about... probably about how bad Denis Gauthier and Peter Harold are.

Sending LaBarbera to the Canucks could be the best thing for him. From Burnaby, British Columbia, Jason always seemed to excel playing in Vancouver against the Canucks. Although, this is most probably a stopgap solution for the Canucks as they have an elite NHL goalie named Roberto Luongo manning the pipes for them... once he gets back from his groin injury. But if they are trading for LaBarbera, maybe Luongo isn't coming back as quickly as thought. Kudos to Vancouver for taking LaBarbera off the Kings hands... it's the least they could do for us taking Dan Cloutier.

Vancouver's Reactions:
Canucks and Beyond
Canuck Addicts

Coast to Coast

2 games, 2 points. 40+ shots each against the 2 best teams in the NHL. Intensity, hitting and some beautiful goals. Even Coach Murray is starting to believe:

"We played so well. I don't think we're capable of playing any better as a team right now.
We come out and we do everything the right way at the start of the game."

Sure, it would have been nice to get 4 points out of the last 2 games... but it would also be great to have a goaltender that the entire crowd didn't flinch each time the puck was sent his way. It used to be "imagine if the team in front of LaBarbera just played better, how good they would be."... Now, it's "imagine if this team wasn't playing so well in front of LaBarbera, how bad he would be." The Kings defense are single handily keeping the Los Angeles Kings in these games against vastly superior teams. And if the Kings have any chance of making it to the playoffs (tied for the 8th spot right now) it's going to be the defense leading them there and not the goaltending. A friend came to visit me in my seats tonight, and since he wasn't rooting for either team... he said he'd hope it would go into a shootout. At least 3 strangers turned to him and said "please don't let it go to a shootout. There is no way we win if it goes to a shootout." This is the difference between LaBarbera and Erik Ersberg.

Kings 2, Rangers 3 (OT)

The New York fans were out in full effect tonight... but not as obnoxious as I thought they would be. It's bad enough to go to a sporting event in LA with NY sports fans in attendance... it's even worse when it's a hockey game. Because NY fans know their hockey.

Now that's an awesome jersey!

I loved seeing Oscar Moller on that first line with Anze Kopitar and Patrick O'Sullivan. Obviously Teddy Purcell did not impress Coach Murray tonight... since he didn't get a shift in the 3rd period. And if you didn't already know how great 19 Year Old Drew Doughty was... early in the 2nd period, he led a rush up the ice. He looked to the open wingers... who happened to be John Zeiler and Raitis Ivanans. He held onto the puck a few seconds more and found a way to get the puck to Moller instead. That is a great player.

If there is a gut check marker for the Kings in this 2008-2009 season, I'd have to say this stretch is it. Games at home against San Jose and the Rangers... followed by back to back games against Buffalo and Detroit. Nothing like a little east coast road trip during Christmas to bond a team together.

I'm headed out of town for the weekend to enjoy all the snow that is being dumped on the greater Los Angeles area... so you'll have to turn elsewhere this weekend for your Kings news. I will be frantically checking my iPhone Friday and Saturday night.

Frustration Nation

Miikka Kiprusoff is a goalie that you start 10 times in a row. Jason LaBarbera... he is not the kind of goalie you start 10 times in a row. Because now this has happened 7 times out of 10:

Kings 2, Visible, Light-Emitting Parts of a Fire, 3

The Kings are firing 30 shots a game at the last 2 All-Star goalies they have faced and don't have a win to show for it. They fought back hard to tie this game and had a great wave of momentum on their side. And then Calgary scores quickly and the game is over.

18 year old Drew Doughty and 19 year old Oscar Moller are the only Kings playing with any confidence. Doughty truly gets better and better each game. But right now, the team is afraid to play in front of LaBarbera. When you don't have confidence in your goalie, you try even harder to make the right plays and in the process, end up causing more harm than good.

I understand what Coach Murray is doing. Over the last 2 years, former coach and now TV broadcaster, Marc Crawford, juggled goalies left and right... falling in love with Dan Cloutier, playing young goalies who weren't ready, pulling goalies during games to send messages. Coach Murray isn't going to make that same mistake. He's going to continue to ride LaBarbera as the #1, not because LaBarbera is the best choice, but because the Kings need stability in net. They can not have the rotating roster of goalies that has plagued the Kings for the last 20 years. All that said... how about giving Erik Ersberg a chance on Tuesday?

Staples Center is empty. You may pay for a seat, but you'll really have your choice as to where you want to sit. This is easily the emptiest I've seen it for games in 7 years.

Things I Learned from Watching the Calgary Flames:
Much like the Canucks, they are not THAT much better than the Kings. Have I mentioned goaltending? Miikka Kiprusoff was amazing. Always in position.

Dion Phaneuf is a beast.

Jerome Iginla was not on his game tonight. I've seen him dominate games before and he was hardly visible... except when Dustin Brown was earning money for charity hitting him.

McHatin'

Quick... which one of these guys scored for the first time tonight?

Oscar Moller

Drew Doughty

McLovin

Kings 3, Abrupt and Rapid Flow of Snow 4

How drunk was McLovin???

Now... imagine if we only had a real goalie? Yes, I realize that the Kings had 2 major defensive breakdowns in front of Jason Labarbera that led to 2 goals, but LaBarbera also let in 1 goal on 4 shots in a first period that the Kings completely dominated. And tonight, they played one of the few teams in the league that are in a worse goaltending situation than the Kings... and they blew it. If fans are truly to believe that this team has turned the corner into a consistent winner, these are the kind of games they need to win... consistently.

But you can't be too angry when you get two nice goals from two of the teams' youngest players. Oscar Moller's first NHL goal showed why Coach Murray gives him plenty of time on the power play. And 18 year old Drew Doughty's first NHL goal showed why he was drafted 2nd overall last year. It wasn't so much the goal itself, it was the confidence he showed waiting at the blueline for his teammates to get onsides first before he went in for the score. A great goal, especially after getting schooled earlier in the game by Ryan Smyth.

And you are officially a team leader when you pick up the puck from the net after a rookie scores their first goal. Anze Kopitar... you are a team leader. A 21 year old picking up an 18 year olds first NHL goal.

The highlight of the night: Oscar Moller describing himself as a "small, shifty player that is offensive" to Patrick O'Neal in between periods.

Things I Learned from Watching the Colorado Avalanche:
Their goaltending is almost as bad as ours.

Joe Sakic is ageless.

Ryan Smyth has a blade with no curve. Thanks Jim Fox!