Game 52: Kings 4, Islanders 3 (shootout)

The Kings' have found an identity, that of Road Warriors. And no, I'm not talking the Mel Gibson post-apocolyptic version. I'm talking about the face-painted, spiked shoulder-padded pro wrestlers who have laid to waste all their opponents on this road trip.

AFro-Man, Alexander Frolov, tied up the game in third and continues to flourish on the line with Kopitar the Barbarian and Stone Cold Pat O'Sullivan. The Rabid Wolverine, Jack MF Johnson, scored the only goal in the shootout to clinch the Kings' fourth victory, helping L.A. match their season-high for consecutive wins. Drew "Rowdy" Doughty continues to lead the team in ice time, continuing to wow Eastern Conference announcers with his mature play.  And in goal, John "The Rock" Quick, continued to be a steadying force under pressure from a desperate Islanders team, who have now lost three in a row. And don't forget about the contributions of "Downtown" Dustin Brown, "Mean" Matt Greene, and Michel "Father of Apollo, god of Mount Olympus, don't #@*% with me or I'll shove a lightning bolt up your ass!" Handzus.

Although a little sluggish Tuesday night, the team has been seemingly clicking on all cylinders, like a well-oiled tag team. And the attack of the league's youngest team is unrelenting, they just keep coming. The only problem is the Kings have  five- and six-game road trips looming on the horizon. Will they be able to maintain that same level of consistant play and sneak past some teams into the playoffs? Only time will tell...

A first tonight: Jack Johnson and Drew Doughty shared a shift for the first time in their young but hopefully long careers with the Kings, when . Johnson told FSN: " It was great. I think he and I play really well together and I enjoy playing with him. I think there's a lot of chemistry to be there in the future. Right now, we're both really happy with our partners, but we're thinking that sometime down the line, we'd definitely love to play with each other." Makes you wonder if Jack's going to send Drew a folded piece of paper one day with the words "Do you want to be my linemate? Check here for Yes (and I'll let you live). Check here for no (and I'll beat your ass, rookie.)"

• AP: Surging Kings make it 4-for-5 on Eastern swing

“It’s good that we came back a couple of times during the game and in the shootout,” Kings captain Dustin Brown said. “These games are huge for us. We can’t, and didn’t take the Islanders lightly, because a few years ago, we were the Islanders in L.A.”

• Yahoo: Team report

The Kings had to battle with more than just the Islanders, and the general fatigue of a long road trip, Tuesday. As many as seven players were experiencing mild to moderate flu-like symptoms, although not serious enough to keep anyone out of the game. Drew Doughty played through illness Saturday, and several of his teammates experienced symptoms Sunday, enough for coach Terry Murray to keep the entire team off the ice.

They said it

“This is what we needed and this is what we’re starting to expect coming into games. We’ve got great goaltending. We’ve got pretty balanced scoring coming up, and the Kings come into games now expecting to win.”—Kings defenseman Jack Johnson

Looking through purple-hued goggles

• A Queen Among Kings: JMFJ

So this has been the second game where Jack Johnson has taken the 3rd attempt in the shootout. The first time was in his first game back from his injury a couple of weeks ago. I wondered what the hell Terry Murray was doing then, and tonight I threw my hands in the air when I saw the lineup flash on the TV screen whilst wondering where in the heck Anze Kopitar has been in the shootout. But Jonathan Quick (who was looking quite mortal tonight) made all three saves and Jack MF Johnson sealed the game with a nifty deck to the right and swinging the puck the other way.

• The Royal Half: 4 in a Row

I consider myself a pretty serious hockey fan. I've been following the Kings for 20 years, played the game for the same amount of time, I'm in 2 fantasy hockey leagues (first place in one of them!)... but I had no freakin' idea who some of those guys skating for the New York Islanders were tonight. Hillen? Gervais? Okposo? Bailey? Luckily, I played NHL '94 so I knew who Bill Guerin and Doug Weight were. I've always secretly liked the Islanders organization and I really hope to make it to a game at the Nassau Coliseum before they are forced the shut the place down. But tonight I discovered why I love the Islanders so much... they have a retirement banner for Billy Joel!

From the other side of the ice: the New York view

• New York Post: Oh shoot, Islanders fall

• Newsday: Competitive Islanders still lose to Kings, 4-3

Danis kept them in with two big saves in the final minute, including one after referee Kerry Fraser put the goal back on its moorings just before Danis stopped a blast by Johnson. "I asked the ref if he was allowed to put the net back," Danis said. "He said he's been around so long, he can do what he wants."

Editor's note: This first blog provides me with the first-ever example the Kings have truly arrived:
• Off The Post: Isles Lose In Shoot Out to Kings

Tonight's shootout loss was a hard fought defeat to the Los Angeles Kings, a team that the Isles should hope to reflect one day. The Kings have a nucleus of young skaters ranging from Kopitar, Frolov, and O'Sullivan to Doughty and Johnson. For the past few seasons they have sat at the bottom of the Western Conference standings, frustrating themselves and their fan base. Now they are on the cusp of a playoff berth, just two points away from the 8th placed Columbus Blue Jackets.

• NYI Point Blank: Kings 4, Isles 3 SO

Both teams really played a spirited game for the first two periods, and it seemed like both lost their legs a bit in the third, more so the Islanders than the Kings.

• Notes From Forever1940: Stat Trick: Los Angeles 4, Isles 3 (shootout)

The Kings are now 4-0-1 in their last five games on Long Island.  The Isles haven't beaten LA at home since a 1-0 win on October 27, 1998.  Tommy Salo had the shutout; Joe Sacco had the game's only goal.

• The Drive For Five: Isles fall to Kings in shootout

• Lighthouse Hockey: Islanders drop bonus point to Kings

Power numbers

• TSN.ca: Highest yet at 13th!

The Kings have won six of seven behind the quality goaltending of rookie Jonathan Quick and a return to expected production levels from first-liners Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown.

• The Hockey News: Kings of the castle at 17th.

The Kings have more than enough hope for the future; what they need now is a playoff berth to accentuate the learning curve of the young players already driving the team.

• ESPN: Up three to 19

• Yahoo: Up to 18

The longer the team stays in contention the more the young players learn about how to win down the stretch, and that’s the biggest thing the Kings will take from this season – along with another season of development for their young, future stars. When it comes to the deadline, it’s not so much selling as it is making only the moves that benefit for the future, which is coming quickly.

• SI: Up two to 20

They pulled within three points of eighth spot in the West with impressive road wins over the Sens, Caps and Devils. Jonathan Quick was full value as the league's First Star for the week, stopping 95 of 100 shots, including 20 in the third period alone to preserve a 5-4 win in Washington.

Peeping the dailies