Are the Kings in for a Stanley Cup Hangover After Opening-Night Rout vs. Sharks?

You can ask all kinds of questions following the Los Angeles Kings' 4-0 loss to the San Jose Sharks on opening night of NHL action Wednesday.

The most common might be, "How long is this Stanley Cup hangover going to last?"

It's a fair question and a familiar situation. When the Kings won their last Stanley Cup in 2012, they began the following campaign with a nearly identical lineup to the one that earned them the title.

They started their defense at home, hopes as high as the banner they raised to the rafters.

Then the Chicago Blackhawks spoiled their celebration. The Kings limped away with a 5-2 loss. They'd go on to drop their first three games of the season, lose seven of their first 10 and sit tied for last in the Western Conference standings at that point.

Things changed quickly. They went on to win 11 of their next 14 to climb to the third-highest point total in the West a month later. They were close to a return to the Cup Final, losing out to the Blackhawks in the Western Conference Final.



Despite an even more awful start to the 2014-15 season, you should expect a similar long-term outcome for the Kings.

On Wednesday night they looked sloppy, slow, tired and nothing like a defending Stanley Cup champion. They took bad penalties, made worse decisions and deserved to be shut out.

But other questions you might ask yourself before writing them off in a bid to repeat include:

Is this just the Kings being the regular-season Kings? Are the Sharks back to being the regular-season Sharks? Following a soul-crushing opening-round loss to the Kings last spring when the Sharks—always impressive in the regular season—coughed up a 3-0 series lead and choked their way to four straight losses to their state rival, the boys from San Jose were looking forward to crashing the party at the Staples Center Wednesday night.

NHL.com's Dan...

About the Author