Life In Hockeywood: L.A. Kings Blog • Podcast • Video

The Hockeywood Insider: Midsummer Night Terrors

2010-07-28T14:57:00Z

It's almost the end of July... what are we doing here? Summer usually means spending time down by the pool, sipping suicide Slurpees while catching the latest and greatest summer blockbuster down at the local multiplex. Long days, short nights and farmer tans. Granted, it's been a long time, but Jesse and I decided to grace the airwaves OUTDOORS to touch on the whole Ilya Kovalchuk situation. After all, the Kings ALMOST signed a key piece to leap ahead in the Western Conference a few lightyears. Instead, the team's efforts were rebuffed by a player who decided to sign the largest deal in NHL history. Too bad the deal was denied by the league. Yeah, good times. So, to help make sense of the whole situation, we turn to a consummate professional, L.A. Times columnist Helene (Not Helen) Elliott. Helene breaks it down from the front lines, and talks about a wide variety of subjects, from the Kings newest acquisition, Alexei Ponikarovski, to how reporting has been forever altered by Twitter. It's an interesting discussion and we tahnk Helene for taking time out of her vacation to talk with us. It's the Hockeywood Insider: slathered with enough SPF 500 we could walk on the face of the Sun and not get burned. ...

King Kovalchuk Watch 2010: Inconceivable! Ilya's a Devil!

2010-07-24T20:09:00Z

By request, a transcript of the video inside...

An open letter to Kings fans

2010-07-19T17:19:00Z

King Kovalchuk Watch 2010: Ilya's Smirking Revenge

2010-07-16T22:35:00Z

...

King Kovalchuk Watch 2010: As the Ilya Turns...

2010-07-08T00:49:00Z

King Kovalchuk Watch 2010: A Watched Pot...

2010-07-02T23:19:00Z

Old time hockey? Kings draft Derek Forbort

2010-06-26T01:21:00Z

On the first night of the 2010 NHL Draft, the Los Angeles Kings bucked expectations (well, at least my expectations) and traded up with Florida to snag Derek Forbort, a 6-foot-4 defenseman from the USA Hockey National Team Development Program.

And for all the stories about the players coming out of Southern California (Emerson Etem and Beau Bennett), Dean Lombardi decided to grab what many draftniks say was the "best player available."

According to his official draft card, Forbort has committed to the University of North Dakota for next season, and the Kings should be able to let him simmer for a few seasons. He's projected by scouts as being a two-way defenseman.

But don't take my word for it...

The Hockey News tweeted: "L.A. trades 19th, 59th picks to FLA for 15th, take D-man D. Forbort. Kings could have league's best blueline in 5 years."

The L.A. Times' Helene Elliott tweeted "kings trade 19th and 59th picks to Florida for 15th pick and take 6-5 defenseman Derek Forbort of US under-18 team. Staples crowd approves."

TSN's Daniel Tolensky tweeted this observation: "Kings have 5 d-men under 23 drafted top 15 - Doughty (2), Johnson (3), Hickey (4), Teubert (13), Forbort (15) + Voinov (32 in 08)."

Overall, the Kings made a safe and smart selection, bolstering their blueline for years to come. And as everyone knows, depth on defense is key for building a winner. Hats off the Dean Lombardi for another draft day drama that was better received than the 2007 NHL Draft.

How classy was the decision to have Forbort rock the throwback? Remember, the Kings will be wearing the same jersey next season when they play Vancouver. Apparently, it was Deano's idea.

* Sticktap to Connie Kim of Jewels From the Crown for her quick video work of Forbort's first interview as a King!

More videos on the jump...

E3's first look at NHL 11 featuring Drew Doughty!

2010-06-16T06:00:00Z

This came across my computer screen late Tuesday night while I was at work, and I almost had to excuse myself. With new features, such as a new faceoff engine (which I covered earlier), new dekes (!) and the addition of broken sticks (!!) This game looks quite impressive.

The Kings' young defenseman Drew Doughty gets a lot of love in the video, first appearing taking a pass from Rob Scuderi, then deftly playing the puck without a stick, then he's spotted kicking the puck to Wayne Simmonds before heading to the bench to grab a new stick, which I gather is another new feature, since you can break your stick in this game.

Looks like Daddy is getting TWO hockey games this fall.

The Hockeywood Insider: The Kings Are So Money

2010-06-15T20:02:00Z

The Chicago Blackhawks have hoisted the Stanley Cup, and the off-season is officially underway. But before we start focusing what the Kings are going to do to build off their playoff experience, we're going to take a final look at the 2010 Stanley Cup champions, the Chicago Blackhawks.

And to do that, we bring in a former Chicagoian and former Blackhawk fan Matt "Money" Smith, from the great radio station 570 KLAC here in Los Angeles. We talk to Money about the state of the NHL, his prized hockey trophies from McDonalds, and how he once wrote a letter to then-owner Bill Wirtz, resigning as a Blackhawks fan. We also get his take on former 'Hawk Jeremy Roenick's teary-eyed reaction to the team hoisting the Cup, what Gary Bettman sucks and where the NHL should go after a successful Olympics and Stanley Cup playoffs.

It's an engaging discussion that many Kings fans will enjoy. We enjoyed it so much that time got away from us, and we had to cut away before we could promote Money's book, The Great Book of Los Angeles Sports Lists, which is available right now at Amazon.com. Why is this book a must? Well, in the book, Money and fellow broadcaster Steve Hartman break down the top 10 fan bases in L.A., and guess who they tabbed as No. 1? That's right... Kings fans. At least we got that going for us, which is nice.

It's going to be a long summer, so be sure to head onto iTunes and download the full season of the Hockeywood Insider. Sure, some of the conversations may seem dated now, but what are you going in the meantime? Baseball broadcasts?

Click here for the podcast

EA putting on the foil, bringing NHL Slap Shot video game to the Wii

2010-06-09T17:10:00Z

With the Stanley Cup coming to a close, Kings fans now face two options to get their fill of puck: watched their backlog of TIVO'ed games from the previous season, or pop in a hockey video game.

It just so happens that Electronic Arts' latest version of their NHL franchise, NHL 10, was able to improve on its predecessor, NHL 09. Whether or not it will eventually join the Hockeywood Video Game Hall of Fame remains to be seen. But there's definitely potential there to certainly be considered one day.

I view it like this: Drew Doughty has the potential to be one of those once-in-a-generation players that graces the league, but I'd like to see his career play out before we erect a statue. It's the same thing with the EA franchise. NHL 09 was so widely agreed upon as the one of best hockey games ever, it's amazing to me that they improved the game. But they did.

And here's the best part about hockey being over: used copies of both NHL 09 and NHL 10 are widely available to pick up cheap. So in case you haven't picked up a copy yet (guilty as charged. Hey, I don't have a next-gen console yet. I'm still rocking my PS2), now's the time to strike.

EA Sports is hardly sitting on their laurels, as they are currently working on a new game that just might blow both of these games out of the water. And best of all, it's releasing a game that's exclusive to a current system I do have, the Wii (Hey, I got kids.).

NHL Slapshot is coming to stores in September, and is EA's first Wii-exclusive game. Turns out, EA has smelled blood in the water and wants a bigger piece of the pie (I was going to write Pii as a joke, but realized it would be pronounced 'pee,' so I passed.)

EA's main competitor, Take-Two Studios, announced it was taking a season off to "evaluate" their sports portfolio. Bad decision, because EA announced NHL Slap Shot for the Wii. But in my opinion, the actual game is second to the peripheral that will accompany the game: a Wii hockey stick.

What Wayne Simmonds has been doing in the offseason

2010-05-28T00:53:00Z

...

Drew Doughty on NHL Live radio

2010-05-27T17:45:00Z

...

The Hockeywood Insider: Lost in the Finals

2010-05-26T17:19:00Z

The Stanley Cups Finals teams have been set! It'll be the Chicago Blackhawks (insert raucous applause) against the Philadelphia Flyers (insert lustful booing).

Jesse and I talk all things Finals, then turn it around and discuss how it relates to the Kings. We discuss such riveting topics as these: Since the Blackhawks and Kings are built similarly, can L.A. make it to the Finals if they add a high-priced sniper (i.e. Kovalchuk) like Chicago did (Hossa). Which is greater: Kopitar/Brown or Kane/Toews?

Since Michael Leighton basically carried the Flyers past the Canadiens with his three shutouts in the Eastern Finals, do goaltenders get enough credit for their contributions on the ice or is it just overblown malarkey? (I don't think I have ever used the work 'malarkey' in a sentence. Now I've done it twice.) And we discuss whether we think some pressure has been applied to Dean Lombardi to make a splash this off-season to take it to the next level, like the Blackhawks did.

Then, we shift gears as we often do and talk about the series finale of Lost. Doc is an unabashed Lostie, and he laments over the ending and how he can't believe they attempted to wrap it up in a neat, little bow. Myself knowing nothing about the show, other than there is a Smoke Monster floating around the island, sits in stunned silence, and tries to draw comparisons to other TV/movie finales.

Don't forget, you can subscribe on iTunes, so you can get the podcast before anyone else does. It's the Hockeywood Insider, slowing grinding to a halt before the summer approaches.

Click here to download the podcast...

L.A. Kings 2010 playoff recap

2010-05-26T00:34:00Z

brought to you by the L.A. Kings, here's a look back at the Kings playoff run this season. A job well done by my friend Aaron and the rest of KingsVision! ...

Summer project: Hockeywood Hall of Fame

2010-05-25T06:10:00Z

So for the last four years, I've been blogging about the Kings during the regular season. It's been a draining experience, and by the time the summer comes around, I have no problem taking the time off to focus on other things, like life. But this summer, I've decided I'm going to do something new based on a conversation my podcast partner Jesse and I had on a podcast earlier this season. We were talking about retired numbers, and Jesse suggested there should be a way to honor players without retiring their number. After all, the retiring of a number is a permanent thing, and that there should be a way to give credit where credit is due. Therefore, I'm going to create a Hockeywood Hall of Fame and induct my first class of members. This will allow me to give props to the players I think fall off many fans' radars, because they aren't sexy enough, or their names aren't Vachon, Dionne, Taylor, Gretzky or Robitaille. These players are deserving of recognition for their contributions to the Kings' franchise. And by turning the spotlight on them, it will enhance the history of the L.A. Kings that prove that there is indeed a culture of winning here in the City of Angels. So stay tuned. I'll be rolling out my first selections after the Stanley Cup has been raised. And before you ask, Blackhawks in six. ...

All hail the Birthday Kings!

2010-05-18T18:38:00Z

One of my favorite things to do when I was a kid was to open the newspaper on my birthday and see which people shared my birthday, which is May 18th . And I was always greeted with names like director Frank Capra, singer Perry Como and Pope John Paul II. Admittedly, not the sexiest of names, but it is what it is.

As it turns out, the newspaper routinely left out a bunch of names, mostly because they weren't "big enough" names in the world of news. They are, however, some decent names in the world of sports. In baseball, there was Babe Adams, Reggie Jackson and Brooks Robinson. Basketball players Sam Vincent, Donyell Marshall and Ron Mercer are all Tauruses. Race car driver Dario Franchitti, quarterback Vince Young and professional wrestler James William Reiher were also born on the 18th. (What, you do recognize Reiher's name? Perhaps you know him better as Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka.)

But the craziest thing that I have learned with the advent of the Interwebz is the discovery that I also share a birthday with four former Kings. (Actually five, but I'll touch on that in a moment.) Jay Wells (1959), Jari Kurri (1960), Jim Fox (1960) and Marty McSorley (1963) were all born on the 18th. Wells and Fox played together in L.A. from 1981 through 1988, while Kurri and McSorley donned the black and silver from 1991 to 1996.

The fifth player I eluded to was Oleg Tverdovsky, who had four assists in 26 games in the forgettable 2006 season. The only thing memorable about Tverdovsky's arrival in L.A. was he accompanied current Kings defenseman Jack Johnson in the trade with the Carolina Hurricanes. (A Jack Johnson also shares a May 18th birthday with all these Kings players, although it's singer Jack Johnson.)

Since there's only 366 dates in a year, people are going to share birthdays. But I'm not entirely sure if there's a date that has more athletes that have played for a particular team. I'm sure there might be, but I'm not going to research it. In fact, the only thing I'm going to do right now is help myself to another serving of cake.

Happy Birthday Jay Wells (51), Jari Kurri and Jimmy Fox (50) and Marty McSorley (47)!

Click inside for a birthday video...

The Hockeywood Insider: Round Three... FIGHT!

2010-05-18T12:47:00Z

The third round is underway, and talk about a wild two weeks. And we break it down like only the Hockeywood Insider can. Which isn't very good.

But do you know who is good? The Manchester Monarchs, who are playing the Hersey Bears for the Calder Cup. Also good are the Braden Wheat Kings, who I have renamed in honor of their best player, Kings prospect Brayden Schenn. Also good is the Calgary Hitmen, who are led by Kings goaltending prospect Martin Jones ans prospect winger Brandon Kozun. We touch on all the minor league playoff scenarios.

I also point out why May 18th is an important day in Kings history. Here's a hint: what do Marty McSorley, Jim Fox, Jari Kurri and myself all have in common? Tune in to find out.

It's the Hockeywood Insider, Member FDIC.

Click here to listen to the podcast.

Hockeywood meets Dodgertown July 9!

2010-05-11T22:22:00Z

Before you even start with me... yes, I'm going to talk about baseball. Yes, I understand this is a Kings blog, and this is somewhat related. And no, I'm not getting paid for this. On Friday, July 9th, the Dodgers are inviting Kings fans to come out to Chavez Ravine to watch the Boys in Blue take on the Chicago Cubs. I was recently asked by some smart aleck if there were any Kings fans now that they made the playoffs. I quickly kicked this person in the shin, followed by an elbow to the mouth. As they stood there bleeding, I simply said, "Yeah." When the swelling subsided on the person's bottom lip, they proceeded to tell me what their opinion of Kings fans were, which they said "Cubs Fans on ice." Needless to say, I unleashed a spear to the crotch followed with a knee-on-knee hit. Granted, there are some similarities between Cubs fans and every other fan base of beleaguered teams in all professional sports. And the Kings certainly fall withing the "beleaguered" aspect. But there's a slight difference... Hockey > baseball. Nonetheless, there's nothing better than enjoying some libations and breaking bread with fellow Kings fans. We did so earlier this season, when we held the Border Skirmish Olympic watch party to watch the men's American team beat the eventual Gold Medal-winning Canadian team. It was an awesome night, and a return visit was in the works... for Round Two of the playoffs. Doh. But no matter... the Dodgers are going to give Kings fans a reason to get together and party in the summer. I'm currently working with the Dodgers on getting a band of rowdy hockey fans together and go to the game. Right now, $37 gets you in the park and this unique Kings black t-shirt, in addition to a themed menu, which has yet to be unveiled. Here's my guess for the menu: a hot link sandwich with Dustin Brown mustard, a Handz'burger with fries, Jack Johnson in the Box tacos, Slovenian spare ribs, Simmonds smashed potatoes and Fronion rings, For dessert? Greene tea Mochi and Drew Doughnuts. To drink? Drewiske brewiskes and Chocolate Quik, naturally. Mostly, I just want to see if I can get the Dodgers to change their "Think Blue" sign off in left field to a "Hockeywood" sign. That... would be awesome. I've got some spare plywood in the backyard. ...

The Hockeywood Insider: Round Two Recap (sort of)

2010-05-11T05:58:00Z

The second round of the NHL playoffs are nearly over, but that didn't stop us from recording our recap of the second round, even though the Kings aren't playing. But the Manchester Monarchs are!

The 'Narchs are currently battling the Hersey Bears in the Eastern Conference of the AHL, and should advance to the Calder Cup series with ease. We talk Monarchs hockey (!), as well as all the Kings' players that have Manchester in the position they are in.

But we also talk Kings hockey, and I pose the question to Jesse: do the Kings need to acquire Ilya Kovalchuk? We also discuss the makeup of the squad coming off their first-round departure, and wax moronic about all sorts of things.

It's the Hockeywood Insider, brought to you by the Letters "M" and the number "7" and half a box of Bottle Caps candies. (The root beer ones rock.)
Click here for the podcast

Johnson named El Capitan de los Estadios Unidos on Cinco de Mayo

2010-05-05T23:59:00Z

It was announced on Cinco de Mayo that Kings defenseman Jack Johnson was not only going to be representing USA Hockey at this weekend's World Championships, he will be carrying a heavy burden, that of the Captain's C.

As first reported by the USA Hockey website, Johnson was named Captain of the U.S. Men's national team, continuing the evolution of the Kings' young defender.

Despite only being 23, Johnson has represented the United States seven times since 2004. He played for the silver medal-winning U.S. team in the most recent Olympics.

But in the last World Championships last summer, Johnson led the team in scoring and gave fans a glimpse of what was to come from the Rabid Wolverine in the 2009-10 season.

Logging a lot of minutes on the Los Angeles blueline, Johnson enjoyed his best season to date of his young career. Eight goals and 28 assists in the regular season, plus he was tied for the most points (7 with the other defensive phenom Drew Doughty) in the Kings' playoff series against the Vancouver Canucks.

While it's exciting to see another King rise to a leadership position for USA Hockey (Dustin Brown was an alternate captain for the 2010 Olympic team), it's doubly so to see Johnson accept the mantle.

Johnson came into the league highly touted as TNBT (The Next Big Thing). He was drafted by the Hurricanes, but shunned them to play another year at Michigan as BMOC (Big Man On Campus).

I guess it was enough of a turnoff for Carolina to trade him as far West as possible. So they shipped him off to Los Angeles, a team that had been mired in mediocrity for years. I'm sure they thought they were screwing him by doing so. But not today.

Check out the jump for a cool Jack video!