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Kings are exceeding expectations one-third of the way through season |
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Through 27 games, the Los Angeles Kings sit fourth in the Western Conference in points percentage, with a 16-8-3 record.
The early part of their season was a little mixed, with the team able to get some results despite inconsistencies. But ever since a blowout loss to the San Jose Sharks in late November, the Kings have hit their stride, currently riding a five-game win streak. The stretch has seen them pick up wins against some of the Western Conference’s top teams, defeating the Winnipeg Jets, Dallas Stars and most recently, the Minnesota Wild.
Currently holding the second spot in the Pacific Division, the Kings have had more success one-third of the way through the season than anticipated. Their offseason couldn’t be praised, and it was difficult to feel any better about their team on paper this season. To recap their offseason moves:
Notable subtractions
- Pierre-Luc Dubois
- Viktor Arvidsson
- Matt Roy
- Cam Talbot
- Blake Lizotte
- Carl Grundstrom
Notable additions
- Darcy Kuemper
- Warren Foegele
- Joel Edmundson
- Tanner Jeannot
- Kyle Burroughs
Simply put, the Kings weren’t really set up well to take a step forward this season. To do so, they were going to need to rely a lot on some of their young talent to make more of an impact.
Up front, Alex Laferriere has surpassed all possible expectations early on, ranking second on the Kings in goals. Nobody could’ve anticipated him taking this large of a step, and considering that some other forwards who should be consistent producers started slow, Laferriere has played a key role for Los Angeles. Alex Turcotte has also been a pleasant surprise, with eight points.
On the blue line, the team was going to need to count on Brandt Clarke and Jordan Spence, even before Drew Doughty’s injury. Clarke has been a standout thus far, with 16 points already, and showing the signs of becoming a legitimate top defenseman.
Then in terms of the offseason additions, Warren Foegele and Joel Edmundson have been pretty much what you would’ve expected. Edmundson in particular has been a good partner for Clarke. Darcy Kuemper missed action, but was good in his return yesterday and previously showed signs that he can stabilize the net a little bit. The only one who’s really been underwhelming is Tanner Jeannot, at least based on what Los Angeles gave up to get him.
So in terms of the young talent and the offseason additions, they’ve generally done their part. What’s maybe more surprising is that despite the success, some of the team’s core pieces didn’t start as strong as you would’ve hoped.
Of course, Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe have led the way, while Trevor Moore has gotten hot after a slow start. Meanwhile, Mikey Anderson and Vladislav Gavrikov have really been counted on to stabilize the blue line.
But Kevin Fiala hasn’t met expectations, unable to produce consistently and often getting himself into avoidable penalty trouble. Meanwhile, Quinton Byfield has just three goals and 11 points to show for, in what seemed like it could’ve been a breakout year for him. With two of the team’s top-six forwards not really performing as well as you would’ve hoped, it’s a blow to the team’s offense. Meanwhile Jordan Spence hasn't taken the step we though he would, despite a great opportunity to do so.
So realistically, for a team coming off a pretty mediocre offseason who’s without their best defenseman, and has dealt with inconsistencies from some of their top forwards, the Kings find themselves in a pretty alright spot. They've hit their stride as of late, even though we’ll still have to see if this play is sustainable. But to get the results they have with some factors playing against them, Los Angeles’ first third of the season has been a success, compared to expectations.
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On another note: I mentioned this in my most recent article covering the New York Islanders, but I wanted to provide an update on my writing status at HockeyBuzz.
For anyone following, I haven’t posted an article covering the Kings here in over a month. To recap what I mentioned in the Islanders article:
Unfortunately, regular writing for the website has become less realistic for me, and while there have been stretches over the time in which I’ve been writing here where I’ve had to take time off from posting, I’ve tried as best as possible to get back to regular articles during the season when I’m able to.
Going forward though, I wanted to let readers know that my writing schedule is likely to be inconsistent for the foreseeable future. I’ve let site ownership know of my plan going forward, in the case they want to add a second Kings writer, who can post more frequently for readers. I won’t be releasing game recap articles, and while I’ll still be popping in for what are likely to be bi-weekly posts, and to cover any major news, that’s likely to be the extent of my role here going forward.
I began covering the Kings at HockeyBuzz in April 2020, so to anyone who’s read any of the articles I’ve posted in that time, I’d like to say thank you, and express my appreciation for the support.
Los Angeles Kings Blogger • 
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