Vigo Sutter Comments on Kings v. Senators (Game 4) - October 9, 2013

Hermano here.

The only thing that makes up for blowing a three goal lead is a ROW.  Actually, that's the second best thing.  The best thing that makes up for blowing a three goal lead is the sound of 18,118 panties hitting the floor when Jeff Carter scored his second of the night for the OT win. 

The Kings came out firing and made the Senators pay for sloppy play and bad turnovers, especially that super sweet breakout pass that went right to a streaking Dustin Brown, ready to atone for his ridiculous goalie interference penalty.  Typically, I've usually seen Brown shoot those shots wide right (for another sweet breakout pass) or right into the goalie's chest.  But every once in a while, he'll rip a shot like he did, a far post snipe, and I'll suddenly say "Oh, so that's why he's in the NHL."

But forget about the game.  Analyzing this game will only make me more depressed as to why we're not scoring goals on every shift and, more frighteningly, why we're giving up so many goals. 

So instead, let's talk about an old joke made by The Royal Half that somehow popped right back into my brain after reading the post-game quotes. 

With that, I'd like to introduce a new feature here on Waving Back at Gretzky.  When I can (which, unfortunately, won't be as much as I'd like), I'm going to pull the best quote from our fearless coach and pair it with how I think he viewed his players' performance.  Let's see what Vigo Sutter had to say:

[Bear with me as I continue to attempt designing a logo for this site]

Many thanks to Congress for this prolonged government shutdown so I can start learning how to use photoshop.  My friends are all about to be in big trouble.


Much love till my next post.  Go Kings Go!

Hermano

01/19/12: Sutter v. Sutter

IT'S ROUND 2 OF SUTTER V. SUTTER!

CAN YOU FEEL THE INTENSITY*?

I CAN'T WAIT TO HEAR ABOUT THIS MATCH-UP ALL GAME LONG!

WHO DO YOU THINK WILL WIN?

I PICK SUTTER!

*guess what, Canada and Fox Sports?  No one gives a shit about this stupid coaching "rivalry" or "match-up" or whatever the hell you call it.  Could you tell how confused the players were whenever they were asked whether this coaching match-up was talked about in the locker room?  Why the hell would the players care?  The only thing they should be worrying about is figuring out how to score more than 2 goals! Why are you focusing on the coaches when there are more important things to talk about, like Penner Pancakes?  Oh wait, that's not important AT ALL and by the way it's old news!  Why the EFF are you also still fixated on that too?  As I told my husband during the game against the Oilers: "The Penner Pancakes story is still big news in Canada because it's Canada and they don't have anything else to talk about."  Sheesh, Canada is the worst.  Just the worst.

The LA Kings Are Rolling Four Lines

When the rumors were swirling around the interwebs in early December that Darryl Sutter would be the new head coach of the Los Angeles Kings, I didn't really know what to think other than I didn't think Terry Murray should be fired.  I read a bunch of articles and blog posts about the type of coach Darryl Sutter had been in the past and, while at least one hockey analyst thought it was a good hiring by Dean Lombardi, most did not think Sutter was the appropriate coach to replace Murray.  The word I kept reading and hearing over and over to describe Sutter was "intense" and he was commonly described as emphasizing a defense-first mindset among his players, which is exactly the type of coach Terry Murray was.  The best descriptive piece I read about Sutter was by Mike Chen, a long-time San Jose Sharks fan and former full-time, now occasional hockey blogger at SB Nation. The part that struck me the most was this paragraph:

At the same time, Sutter's Sharks regularly rolled four lines regardless of situation. After all, the team was built in his image, and they would work-work-work regardless of the score. That mentality proved to be a blessing and a curse, and while it brought success to the Craven-Matteau days, it regressed a roster with greater talent. A perfect in-game example of this was Game 6 of the 2001's first-round series against St. Louis. Down by one goal and facing elimination, Sutter failed to stack his lineup with his scoring forwards. Instead, he had his fourth line out here during the critical moment, and while guys like Mark Smith and Todd Harvey were fine in their roles, it seemed completely nonsensical to have them on the ice when the entire season was on the line.

Mike Chen's description of Sutter's 'roll four lines' coaching style is exactly what we're seeing with the LA Kings. So far, it's been working.  However, I have minor-to-major heart palpitations when I see the 4th line on the ice with 5 minutes left in a tight game where the Kings are holding onto the lead, or when someone like Colin Fraser is on the penalty kill, or, the 4th line is on the power play, but the Kings have yet to lose in regulation under Sutter.  He's definitely instilling a cohesive team mentality, but I wonder if he will break from this coaching style when the Kings are fighting for every point down the stretch to clinch a playoff spot or are trying to come back or maintain a lead in a playoff game.  You want your best players on the ice in key moments, right?  I wonder how long this strategy will last.

Kings at Chicago: Someone Get Jack Johnson's Dad to Dance

The players' fathers are joining the team on this road trip.  During the last game Patrick O'Neal interview Willie Mitchell's father.  I was really, really hoping he would interview Jack Johnson's father, but it never happened.  Although The Royal Half did post a screenshot of Jack's dad photobombing the interview. Let's all hope that at some point during this road trip, Jack Johnson's dad treats hockey fans to one more dance:

I imagine Jack's dad is one cool dude.  The type of father, like Homer Simpson, who instilled the most important life lesson:

"Son, being popular is the most important thing in the whole world."

I'm not sure where I'm going with this, but I sure do hope Jack's father dances because it'll make watching the Kings lose to the Blackhawks a whole lot easier to take.  I mean, seriously, does anyone remember the last time the LA Kings beat the Chicago Blackhawks?  At least Sutter will be there to give all the guys hugs after the loss:

(AP Photo)

C'mon, look at that!!

He's such a close talker and such a touchy feely guy....

Do they not get the news in  Red Deer?

Does he not realize this is just a wee bit awkward?