Two back-to-back extracurricular losses to their Cali-rival San Jose Sharks (in which they wasted two-goal leads in each game) squandered any momentum they could have mustered as they dragged their season-worn blades into the playoffs with absolutely no opportunity to start a series on home ice. To call the regular season a disappointment would be a tragically gross understatement. How do you approach the playoffs after such a psychologically challenging year?
“We’ve done it before and we’ll do it again,” responded Kings head coach Darryl Sutter, addressing the Kings’ opening round matchup with the Presidents' Trophy-winning Vancouver Canucks. "Once they announced the Coyotes' [division-clinching] game, it seemed the team was satisfied with just being in the playoffs. Now it is my responsibility to make sure they're not satisfied anymore."
Whatever Sutter’s miracle cocktail is on the Kings, it’s working. His team stormed through the first two rounds of the playoffs, dispatching the top two-seeded teams in their conference in a grand total of nine games. They’ve jumped to 3-0 leads in every series, and so far have only lost one game in the entire postseason.
But should this dramatic uprising come as a surprise to anyone?
The Kings have tremendous depth both offensively and defensively. They have six former 30-goal scorers, a tight-checking defensive unit (led by a former Norris Trophy candidate) and an impossibly talented netminder who is currently in Vezina contention as best goalie in the league. They have a won...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Kings
