I watched the final game of the Stanley Cup final series between New York Rangers and the LA Kings this morning with Ashton and Nancy. We didn't watch the whole thing as it does go for a long time (especially when it goes into a second overtime period) but we did get to see Dustin Brown raise the Cup for the second time in three years. Goes to show how hockey has progressed in California, and how it has infiltrated this household.
The Kings got there by playing the maximum twenty one games in the first three series (against San Jose, Anaheim and Chicago), notably coming back from 3 games down in the first against the sharks. Jonathan Quick, although a little inconsistent, came through on all the big games.
My own view on the Kings has shifted over the past years. In 2012 they struck me as a fairly dull team that relied over much on a brilliant young goal tender and ground their opponents down to win their games in an unexciting way. That view didn't change much through the shortened lock out season, and even the start of the season just finished. However, they evolved (or perhaps, showed their evolution more obviously) as the season unfurled itself and they began to display that there was more to them than the defensive brand that their scorelines tended to show (high possession, low scoring). Now, I'd say they're quite entertaining to watch, play a hard but skilled game, and aren't afraid to push both axes as far as they can. Without the ill-faith that goes with Boston...
How did my picks go from before the first round? I didn't pick ANY of the Western Conference first round winners and so couldn't pick the cup winner at all. In the East, I did ping the Canadiens and the Rangers to go far, but only mentioned the Rangers as my favourite to win the conference. So I'll take that as a contested pass. If I'd known it would be Rangers v Kings in the finals, I would have picked Kings on form as I interpreted it at the time.
Enough of me, however. Well done LA Kings!
No comments:
Post a Comment