Well, as we're advancing toward the semi-finals of the playoffs, I will be reviewing the seasons of teams as they're eliminated from the playoffs. Obviously, the last team reviewed will be the one that wins the Cup.
Now the second team to be eliminated from the Western Conference Quarterfinals: The Los Angeles Kings.
Season expectations: The team hadn't made the playoffs since 2002 and people were starting to wonder if the Kings would ever leave rebuild mode. However, there were plenty of reasons to suspect things were heading in a better direction. Anze Kopitar was showing great strides in his development and the team brought in Ryan Smyth to provide grit, leadership, and playmaking ability. Jon Quick looked impressive during his 2008-09 audition and looked poised to take over the starting role, even if for the time being considering Jonathan Bernier is waiting in the minors. Would the team be able to play better than the other talented teams in their division?
My prediction: I predicted the team would have ended up last in the Pacific Division and thirteenth overall in the Western Conference. In hindsight, I think my jealousy as a Coyotes fan blinded my better decision making as far as my assessment of them.
The truth: The team finished third in the division and sixth in the conference. They were eliminated in six games to the third-seed Vancouver Canucks.
What went right?: Scoring was the team's forte, as Kopitar acquired 81 points and seven players total acquired better than 40 points. While there were many impressive campaigns amongst LA forwards this season, Wayne Simmonds stood out by scoring 40 points, defending to a team best +22, and acquiring 116 penalty minutes along the way (though he may do better to acquire more fighting majors than minor penalties.) Drew Doughty had an outstanding season on the blueline; one which has rightfully earned him a Norris Trophy nomination for best defenseman while Jack Johnson became a stud power play quarterback to help propel the team's offense fromt he blueline. Quick did establish himself as the goaltending workhorse, appearing in 72 games and posting a 39-24-7 record along the way. Erik Ersberg went off to a shakey start but was able to right the ship, finishing the season with a 2.40 goals against and a respectable .906 save percentage.
What went wrong?: Quick's workload during the regular season was too much for him to deal with come playoff time, where he posted a 3.50 GAA and a .884 save percentage for the series against Vancouver. L.A.'s offense was stifled, as the leading scorers of the series were Doughty and Johnson... two defensemen. L.A.'s defense couldn't keep the Canucks contained as Simmonds was the only plus player in the series with a +1. In the end, Vancouver used their overall completeness to defeat the Kings in six games.
So what's next?: The team has just under $45M toward the cap for next season without a whole lot of players to acquire. They may try to enter the Kovalchuk sweepstakes but might just be better off signing complementary parts to what's emerging to be a solid and competitive squad. The big question for next season is what's going to happen when Bernier comes to camp and whether the results will be a boom or a bust to the team.
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