LA KINGS OUTSIDER 2.0

Dustin Penner: L.A.'s Newest Whipping Boy Dustin Penner isn't the devil but he has quickly become the newest whipping boy amongst Los Angeles Kings fans .  His lack of production, intensity, and perceived lack of caring on the ice are just a few of the reasons why the Kings faithful have turned on Dean Lombardi's most recent acquisition.  He joins the likes of Randy Jones, Denis Gauthier, Dan Cloutier, and countless others who have faced the wrath of Kings fans' venom.  But let's take a closer look at who Dustin Penner really is... Penner never played major junior hockey.  He was cut three times by his local junior team.  He nearly gave up on playing hockey and then decided to continue his playing career for a junior college team in North Dakota.  Spotted at an evaluation camp, Penner was offered a scholarship to the University of Maine, where he helped lead the Black Bears to the National Championship Game.  After one year of college, he signed ...

Willie Mitchell More Important To Kings Than Drew Doughty? I could do a recap of the Kings pathetic road trip but Kingscast has that covered .  I could do a recap of the Kings loss to the Hawks but TheRoyalHalf has that covered .  So I'm going to do what I do best: Spin the Rumor Mill. Wow.  Who knew that the Willie Mitchell/Alexei Ponikarovsky loss would affect L.A. more than the loss of Drew Doughty.  (I wonder if Dean Lombardi points to the team's splits at the negotiating table with Drew's agent?...).  Had it not been for Jonathan Quick's miraculous shootout performance in Boston; the Kings could easily be winless in their last seven games (Although, one could say the Kings were robbed in Ottawa, which we were, but moving on...). Coach continues to pull names out of a hat to fill the Kings first-line left wing spot.  Coach has tried seven different players there and no one has stepped up.  Lombardi went shopping in Manchester and the best H...

Is Ponikarovsky The 'Missing Link'? Since the Kings haven't done much of anything this offseason; I'm forced to over-analyze the one player Dean Lombardi did acquire.  While searching for 'Alexei Ponikarovsky' I stumbled across this Puck Prospectus article .  Puck Prospectus thinks very highly of Poni and they've got some obscure statistical analysis to back it up.   CORSI number is the relatively new statistic being discussed in-depth by hockey geeks.  It was actually derived by long-time Buffalo Sabres goaltending coach Jim Corsi . Corsi is a plus/minus stat that measures shots directed at net. For example, if the Edmonton Oilers direct 30 shots at even strength at the Calgary Flames' net in a game, while the Flames direct 45 shots at the Oilers' net, the Oilers have a Corsi of -15 for the game. This team Corsi number is also broken down and applied to individual players. For example, if Sheldon Souray is out on the ice for 10 shots directed ...

Ponikarovsky Is Frolov 2.0: Better Defensively; Not As Good Offensively Just hours after it became official that Alexander Frolov was a New York Ranger; the Kings made their first acquisition of the off-season signing winger Alexei Ponikarovsky to a one-year deal worth $3.2 million. The 30-year old Ukrainian-born Ponikarovsky is almost a mirror-image of Frolov.  Poni, similar to Fro, is as streaky as they come.  He'll show glimpses of world-class talent only to disappear for weeks at a time.  His inconsistent play frustrated Leafs management and fans alike.  The Pittsburgh Penguins outbid a number of teams for Ponikarovsky at last season's trade deadline to lineup with Sidney Crosby only to have Poni disappear and be a healthy scratch during the playoffs. Poni isn't nearly as skilled as Frolov but Poni is a better defensive player.  Poni's 6'4 frame adds size up front and he definitely likes to hit more than Frolov.  He'll help the Kings cycle the puck ...