It’s becoming very tough to watch the Kings play hockey right now. Every question mark that Kings fans had coming into this season for this team has not only come true, but it’s become a big disaster.
Defensive lapses and poor starts at the beginning of each game have turned the Kings’ early-season optimism into a nightmare. Things need to change quickly on this team if Los Angeles wants to be an average team at least, but it’s hard to see that happen with how Ken Holland built this team and how Jim Hiller is coaching it.
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Collapse of Kings Home-Ice Defense
Just look back to last season, whenever an opponent would come to Crypto.com, it was the toughest building to play in the NHL for the visiting teams. The Kings held their opponents to just four or fewer goals on home ice all year, and helped opponents to fewer than two goals per game on average.
The team had an identity last season on defense and was disciplined and structured, the kind of foundation that allowed them to grind out wins even when their offense wasn’t clicking.
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Now, fast forward to this season, and the defense has completely evaporated. Injuries to players could be blamed, but what’s the excuse for the Kings allowing four goals or more in all three games at home?
The penalty kill is collapsing, and the goaltenders are left out to dry, not living up to the hype from last season, specifically their two goaltenders, Darcy Kuemper and Anton Forsberg, ranking 53rd and 54th in the lowest goals saved above expected.
What was once the best defense and goaltending unit has turned into a freeway, with opponents easily scoring freely and capitalizing on power play chances.
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The numbers tell everything you need to know, as Los Angeles ranks near the bottom of the league in goals against per game (4) at home and (3.67) on the road. The worst part is that they’ve looked worse at home, being outshot and outworked in almost every statistical category.
Game-by-Game Frustration
The latest loss in overtime to the Canes was the latest sign. Los Angeles gave up two quick goals at home in the opening minutes, both poor defensive reads and a slow offensive start.
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A few games before against the Wild, it was the same story. Even though some of the stats in these games point out the Kings leading the spreadsheet, the eye test tells you Los Angeles makes too many mistakes, defensive lapses, and not enough stops when they matter.
The problem is not only effort early in games, but it’s also early penalties, slow starts, and not playing their best for a full game. The Kings decide when they want to start playing, and it’s already too late to mount a comeback.
There’s still a lot of time to turn it around, but if the Kings don’t discover the defense somewhat from last year, this season could slip away before Thanksgiving. Home ice used to be their greatest strength; now it’s one of their worst habits that are played on that ice.
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