Kings Take Game 1 with 4-2 Win
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Even a week off couldn’t cool the red-hot Los Angeles Kings. They’re three wins away from the Stanley Cup Final.
The Kings came out strong with a relentless forecheck that continued throughout the game. They fired 48 shots on net and got goals from Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown and two from Dwight King along with 25 saves from goalie Jonathan Quick to beat the Phoenix Coyotes in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, 4-2, at Jobing.com Arena on Sunday night.
Los Angeles is now 9-1 in the playoffs and has won six games in a row on the road. The Kings will go for No. 7 in Game 2 Tuesday (9 p.m. ET, NBCSN, TSN, RDS).
“You know the Coyotes have won both games at home prior series, right?” Kings coach Darryl Sutter asked rhetorically, citing that the Coyotes were victories in Game 1 against Chicago and again against Nashville at Jobing.com Arena. “It was really important we had a good start. It wasn’t so much scoring or any of that stuff. Just make sure we match their start.
“We were able to overcome a rare bad goal against us, have the resiliency to stay with it.”
Sutter is correct, the Kings did have to rebound after Quick was beat on a 98-foot slap shot by Derek Morris 13:26 into the first period. Morris wound up and fired from directly in front of the red line and the puck skimmed off the ice and sailed over Quick’s outstretched right pad to tie the game at 1-1.
Los Angeles had a 17-4 advantage in shots on goal after 20 minutes, but the game was locked in a tie.
“It skipped off the ice, took a weird hop, and nothing you can do about it,” Quick said. “You just reset and get ready for the next shot, that’s all it is.”
Quick’s teammates knew it was a tough one for their goalie to give up, but it only made them want to play that much harder for him.
“I think we just felt we have to get a couple for Quickie,” Kopitar said. “He was bailing us out all season and a few times in the playoffs, too. I don’t think anybody was concerned or worried about it; we just kind of looked at each other and said maybe we should win this one for him.”
They did, thanks to their captain. Brown gave the Kings their 3-2 lead with 17:49 left in the third period.
Brown, who now has seven goals in 10 playoff games, was sprung on a semi-breakaway by defenseman Slava Voynov. He made a fantastic pass from out of the defensive zone to catch Brown in the neutral zone. He skated into the right circle and put a wrist shot past Mike Smith on the blocker side.
“That was a great pass by Slava,” Kings defenseman Drew Doughty said. “I think everyone knows he has that vision offensively to do those kinds of things. Right away he saw Brownie before he even got the puck, and from there he made a great pass and Brownie finished it off from there.”
Sutter said Brown has become a playoff hockey player in this postseason. He also had an assist on Kopitar’s goal 3:53 into the first period and now has 13 points in the playoffs.
“He’d like to have the penalty back in the first period,” Sutter said, referring to Brown’s interference minor behind the play with 18.3 seconds left in the first period. “He certainly covered his butt good by scoring the game-winner.”
The Kings dominated most of the night with a constant, aggressive forecheck that had the Coyotes hemmed in their own zone. They also continued to play with perfection on the penalty kill, which was 5-for-5 and allowed only four shots on goal. Los Angeles has killed off 24 straight power plays dating back to Game 5 against Vancouver.
“We weren’t close in that game,” Coyotes coach Dave Tippett said. “We got beat in every facet of the game.
“I felt our execution was so poor. The execution and will to get things done is going to have to improve greatly if we’re going to have a chance in this series.”
About the only player Tippett couldn’t be angry with was Smith, who never let the Kings take a two-goal lead before Kings’ empty-net goal with 48 seconds left. He made 44 saves.
The Kings beat Smith on a backhanded shot by Kopitar from the high slot in the first period, a King shot off a rebound created on a 2-on-1 rush with Mike Richards in the second, and on Brown’s wrist shot from the right circle off a semi-breakaway in the third.
“He’s not going to save every one, eventually a few will get by him and that’s what happened tonight,” Doughty said. “It just shows you the more shots you get on net the more he’s going to let in.”
Phoenix has been outshot in 10 of its 12 playoff games and has given up 45 or more shots three times. It is 1-2 in those games.
“As the playoffs go on, the bar gets higher and higher,” Tippett said. “You have some players that can rise with the bar and we didn’t have enough guys rise with the bar tonight.”
However, despite getting outshot 34-18 through two periods, the Coyotes still managed to head into the dressing room tied 2-2 after 40 minutes. Morris’ blast from the red line beat Quick in the first period and Mikkel Boedker cashed in on his fourth goal of the playoffs with 1:55 left in the second period as the Coyotes came back from a pair of one-goal deficits in each period.
“We started to generate some stuff in the second period a little better,” Coyotes center Antoine Vermette said.
Los Angeles, though, was relentless again in the third and got some big saves from Quick late to preserve the one-goal lead before King’s empty-netter.
“Right before the game Darryl made sure to tell us the first five minutes are so important, we need to be the fastest team, the hardest working team, we want them not to want to play us,” Doughty said. “I thought we did a good job of that.”
Follow Dan Rosen on Twitter: @drosennhl
Kings’ Brown Scores Another Game-Winning Goal
GLENDALE, Ariz. — As soon as he heard the question being asked in the direction of teammate Jarret Stoll, Kings captain Dustin Brown looked down and started adjusting his cuff links and playing with the sleeves on his dress shirt. It was almost as if Brown was embarrassed that the conversation was again about him after a playoff game.
He should be used to it by now.
Brown scored the winning goal Sunday night for the second straight game and third time in the playoffs. He now has seven goals and six assists in 10 playoff games. His team is 9-1 and three wins away from reaching the Stanley Cup Final after beating Phoenix, 4-2, in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final at Jobing.com Arena.
Brown had only seven points in his previous 12 playoff games over the last two years, but he’s been a huge difference maker this spring.
“He’s an all right player, yeah,” Stoll said with sarcasm dripping everywhere as Brown fidgeted around in the seat next to him. “He’s doing it all for us; both ends of the rink, too. Not just offensively — which is nice — but coming back defensively, being physical, leading by example.”
Brown’s goal 2:11 into the third period was the difference Sunday. He got open in the neutral zone and received a brilliant pass out of the defensive zone by Slava Voynov that sent him in on a semi-breakaway. Brown finished it off by rifling a blocker-side wrist shot past Phoenix goalie Mike Smith from the right circle.
“It was a good play by Brownie,” Voynov said. “He had open ice and I saw him.”
Brown also made the play to create the Kings’ first goal 3:53 into the game. He got the puck deep into the left circle before dropping it back to Anze Kopitar, who took it into the high slot and used his backhand to roof a shot past Smith on the glove side.
Kopitar, who has been teammates with Brown for six seasons in Los Angeles, said the captain has never played any better than he is in this postseason.
“He realizes that we need him to play like that in order to be successful and right now he’s clicking on the ice, making plays,” Kopitar said. “He’s scoring the big goals and that’s what good captains and good leaders do.”
Drew Doughty, a teammate of Brown’s for the last four years since being the No. 2 pick in the 2008 NHL Draft, agreed with Kopitar.
“He’s been unbelievable,” Doughty said. “He’s taking the body, sacrificing the body, blocking shots; he’s doing every little thing on the ice and that’s why he’s getting credited with all these points. He’s doing all the little things right and when you do that and play good defensive hockey, good things are going to come to you offensively.”
Brown did have a minor hiccup late the first period when he was called for interfering with Phoenix defenseman Michal Rozsival well behind the play. The Kings killed off the penalty that bled into the second period, but coach Darryl Sutter said he knows Brown wanted to take the play back.
He couldn’t, but he since the Kings killed off the penalty and Brown scored the winning goal all was forgiven.
“The playoffs have been something for him that he’s taken the next step,” Sutter said. “That’s the key to it. Right now he’s a playoff-type player because the game, it’s the way you have to play at playoff times. You think about the intensity, the controlled emotion.”
Brown has it all going for him now. He probably should get used to the spotlight.
“He doesn’t say all the rah-rah stuff sometimes,” Stoll said with Brown finally looking ahead, his cuff links in order, “but he definitely speaks on the ice.”
Follow Dan Rosen on Twitter: @drosennhl
Dustin Brown Post Game Interview
Dustin Brown gives the Kings a 2-1 lead. 5/6/12
4th Period Article – Dustin Brown
Download the article by clicking here.
Dustin Brown – Mason & Ireland Interview
LA Kings winger Dustin Brown calls Mason & Ireland to talk about the 1st round playoff series against the Vancouver Canucks. Brown says goalie Jonathan Quick is the MVP of the team. Also, Brown talks about the bandwagon celebrity fans showing up at the games lately.
Ryan Garbutt An Unconventional Prospect
“Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.” –Herb Brooks (attributed)
Twenty-six year-old Dallas Stars forward Ryan Garbutt is an unconventional prospect, if even he can be called a prospect. His path to the NHL took him through one Junior league, one college league, and four minor pro leagues. He has a habit of joining a team as an unknown on the fourth line and working his way up to the top six with an extraordinary work ethic combined with an underappreciated skill set. He has shown again and again that, as much as he’s able to accomplish with bottom six minutes, he can be a team leader with top six minutes.
Speaking to the press this week, Dallas Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk said, ”Who would have thought, a year ago, that Ryan Garbutt would be a player we’d be talking about in our lineup?”
Fair enough, since his arrival in Dallas in mid-February came with plenty of local silence, as most in Dallas had never heard of him. The silence didn’t last long. It’s a familiar motif in the career of Ryan Garbutt.
Garbutt’s Long and Winding Road to the NHL
As a teenager, Garbutt spent three years playing for the Vincent Massey Trojans of the Winnipeg High School Hockey League (WHSHL). In his third and final year he led the team in scoring and was named team MVP.
WHSHL → MJHL
Out of high school, Garbutt joined the Winnipeg South Blues of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL). In his second season he was named the league MVP after leading the league in goals (47) and power play goals (20) and placing second in points (81) in 63 games. Somehow, Garbutt managed these point totals despite spending about ten percent of the season in the penalty box (303 PIM).
MJHL → ECAC
Undrafted, Garbutt attended Brown University in Rhode Island. His collegiate hockey career was unremarkable, posting 29-29-58 in 116 games and graduating with a degree in sociology. Twice he was named to the ECAC Hockey All-Academic Team.
ECAC → CHL
In the fall of 2009 Garbutt was cut from try-out camp with the AHL’s Manitoba Moose. They recommended he try out with the Corpus Christi IceRays of the Central Hockey League. There, Garbutt landed his first pro hockey contract and a spot on their fourth line. By season’s end he was on the top line; his 22-28-50 good for sixth and his +24 good for first on the team. He was runner-up as CHL Rookie of the Year and was named to the CHL All-Rookie team. His 204 PIM meanwhile—one more minute than he earned in four years at Brown—was good enough for eighth overall.
“I’ll never have another Garbutt.” -Coach Brent Hughes.
CHL → ECHL
In the fall of 2010, as the IceRays bolted for the North American Hockey League, Garbutt’s connections got him a spot at the Atlanta Thrashers’ prospect development camp. After a tryout with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves, he was reassigned to their ECHL affiliate, the Gwinnett Gladiators. Ten games in, Garbutt had 17 points (10, 7).
“I knew he wasn’t going to be here very long.” -Coach Jeff Pyle.
ECHL → AHL
Pyle was right. Garbutt made his AHL debut on 10 November 2011. The Wolves already boasted several talented forwards, including Jason Krog, Nigel Dawes, Jared Ross and Spencer Machacek. Garbutt took up the role of third and fourth line grinder but still scored 19-18-37 in 65 games and led the team with a +27. By way of comparison, Krog was a -18.
“He adds a different dimension as far as work ethic.” -Coach Don Lever.
When he became available on July 1, 2011, the Dallas Stars inked him to a one-year two-way contract. Reassigned at camp to Dallas’ AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars, Garbutt would be reunited with Coach Pyle when he was hired two weeks later.
In 50 games, he produced 16-17-33 to go with 96 PIM. His hat trick on 8 February 2012 against the Milwaukee Admirals was the first regular season home hat trick by a Texas Star in franchise history. Joe Nieuwendyk also happened to be in attendence.
AHL → NHL
Around the same time, Stars forward Jamie Benn went down with a cut to his leg. Many expected Dallas to call up rookie goal scoring sensation Matt Fraser; instead on 17 February they recalled Ryan Garbutt, baffling the fans in Dallas. Garbutt made his NHL debut the following night in Pheonix.
His impact was immediate. An aggressive forecheck, hockey smarts, powerful skating, and pure tenacity caught the attention of not only Coach Gulutzan and Joe Nieuwendyk, but also that of the fans, who ordinarily would hardly notice a fourth line call-up.
In his third NHL game, on Montreal ice and with his father in the stands, Garbutt notched his first career NHL goal. The goal showcases his power as a skater, and his basic hockey sense in knowing to go to the net.
Garbutt added an assist and another goal before the Stars’ season ended.
What Now?
His agent, Scott Norton, calls him a “classic example of a late bloomer who has improved consistently and gotten better at each level he has played.” While there are no sure things at the NHL level, few come with as much consistent, hard-won evidence as Garbutt. Currently an RFA on a one-year, two-way deal, I expect Garbutt will be offered a multi-year one-way NHL contract this summer, and I would go so far as to say he will finish the season as a top six forward. Betting against him generally proves to be a bad idea.
He is highly coachable and he adapts to make the most of whatever minutes he’s given. Seeing plenty of time on the PK with the Texas Stars, he had as many short-handed assists (4, second only to Hershey’s Keith Aucoin) as he did power play goals, and on a team with no players with a plus-rating and many in double digits, Garbutt’s -2 rating tied him for tops on the team.
At the beginning of this season, with Brad Richards gone and no owner in place, rookie Dallas Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said he simply wanted the Stars to be hard to play against. #PeskyStars started trending on Twitter.
Ryan Garbutt is hard to play against; more than that, he’s unpleasant to play against. Ask anyone who has. He brings as much energy to his last shift as he brought to his first. He has a scoring touch – most notably a deadly wrist shot – that has yet to be appreciated at the NHL level. He doesn’t play nice; he’ll drop the gloves when necessary, he doesn’t phone ahead before going into the corners, and he plays the kind of physical and aggressive game that speaks to Gordie Howe’s belief that “If you play a little rough, you get respect. And with respect you get just a little bit more space out there.”
Returning to the quotation attributed to Coach Brooks, Ryan Garbutt has a work ethic to outwork anyone. He just happens to have the talent too.
References:
Lile, Josh. “Ryan Garbutt and the Value of Inexperience.” Defending Big D @ SBNation
Ryan Garbutt at the Internet Hockey Database
Brown University player profile: Ryan Garbutt
Kings: Dustin Brown Making Canucks Black and Blue
LOS ANGELES — On a night when neither team seemed willing to give an inch, Dustin Brown made a special delivery to the Vancouver Canucks.
The team captain and longest-tenured member of the Los Angeles Kings laid out the star player for Vancouver with one of his biggest hits of the season, then threw a wrench in the Canucks’ postseason hopes with a third-period goal that stood up as the game winner Sunday night in the 1-0 victory at Staples Center.
With the win, the Kings took a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series, their first such advantage in franchise history. Game 4 is Wednesday night back at Staples Center.
“He’s scoring some huge goals for us, and at the same time he’s playing well defensively and making those big hits, and that’s what we need from our captain,” defenseman Drew Doughty said of Brown. “He’s leading us on and off the ice. Scoring big goals like that is going to take us a long way.”
Brown has four goals in the series, including two short-handers in the 4-2 victory Friday night in Vancouver.
“Tonight was probably one of the best games he has played in a long time,” said Anze Kopitar, who quickly caught himself. “I guess the one in Vancouver was not too bad, either.”
After the Kings scrambled just to keep the puck out of their net during the first period, getting outshot, 11-5, Brown changed the tone early in the second when he crushed Vancouver’s leading point scorer, Henrik Sedin, who was standing in front of his bench battling Kopitar for the puck. He never saw Brown coming.
“He’s a hard player, an elusive player to hit and one of their top players,” Brown said of Sedin. “I just got a chance to finish my check and I did. … They reacted like any team would when one of their better players gets hit like that.”
Sedin laid on the ice trying to catch his breath and briefly went to the dressing room, but after the game said it was a “clean hit.”
Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault agreed. Somewhat.
“I didn’t like the position Henrik was in, but other than that it was a good hit,” he said.
Following the blow, Alex Burrows and Kevin Bieksa went after Brown to retaliate. Brown lost his balance and fell to the ice, but Kopitar stepped in and ended up dropping the gloves for the first time in his career and fighting Burrows.
“There was two guys on Brownie and I wanted to make sure he didn’t get outnumbered,” Kopitar said.
Burrows and Kopitar went to the box for five minutes, plus Bieksa was given two additional minutes for roughing Brown. Though the Kings were unable to capitalize on the man advantage, the hit by Brown did fluster the Canucks into committing two more minor penalties during the period. That slowly deflated their momentum.
“That was one of the better hits I’ve seen in a long time,” Doughty said. “It definitely gave us some momentum, to show that our leadership is showing the way to go, and we all just have to follow that.”
The teams continued trading chances until a wrist shot from Justin Williams was saved by Vancouver goalie Cory Schneider, but an unmarked Brown was able to stuff the rebound high into the net with 13:30 remaining in the game.
“He was huge again tonight,” Kings coach Darryl Sutter said of Brown. “That’s why he’s our captain.”
