As the Kings embark on a road trip that includes five games on the east coast over the next 10 days, it gives us a moment to look back at what we’ve seen from the team over the first month of the regular season.
On the heels of their last road trip, which included wins in four of five contests and nine of a possible 10 points, the Kings had an opportunity to “get going,” so to speak, after a slow start to their home schedule. Unfortunately, they were unable to continue the success from the road, securing only one win from the four matchups with a record of 1-2-1 while they were outscored 13-9.
It seemed that while there was progress in some areas, notably the number of penalties being taken (none in the game vs. NJ) and the penalty kill’s success rate, which was 7-for-7 over the last three games combined, the offense hasn’t been able to break through.
Put simply, the Kings haven’t scored enough this season to cover up for their defensive numbers, which have regressed.
The good news is that 15 games is still a small size; there’s plenty of time for the team to turn things around and get back to where they were at the end of last season, when they finished with 105 points in the standings. But to do that, they’ll need to both score at a higher rate and find a way to keep their opponents down at the other end of the ice.
Last season’s team averaged 3.04 goals per game, 14th in the league, and allowed just 2.48 per contest, which was second-best. Comparatively, this year they’re behind the pace on both sides of the puck, scoring 2.73 goals per game while allowing 3.07.
The Kings have higher expectations than their current .533 points percentage, which, projected out through a full season, would be about 88 points. In an extremely competitive Western Conference, that’s probably not enough to qualify for the postseason.
After last night’s 5-2 loss to Florida, Head Coach Jim Hiller focused on his team’s missed opportunities when speaking with the media. He felt that they had the looks to score more, but they couldn’t find a way to get the puck across the goal line. Conversely, the Panthers were able to take advantage of mistakes and capitalized when chances presented themselves.
There’s definitely something to Hiller’s comments there. Despite ranking 24th in the league offensively, the Kings have the seventh-most shots on goal per night, coming in at just under 30 per game (29.4). Generating shots isn’t going to automatically make you successful, though. The location from which the chances come is also a factor.
“If you want to score goals, you’ve got to go to the front of the net,” Hiller said. “And if you haven’t scored enough, I would argue it’s because you haven’t been there enough. To get those breakdowns, mistakes, it’s hard to score on the outside, you’ll get some, but you’re not going to get a lot.”
Hiller was asked a total of seven questions after last night’s game. And in six of his answers, he referred to either getting to the front of the net or not taking advantage of opportunities. It’s a simple message, and one he’s not deviating from.
The Kings have only scored four or more goals in three of their 15 games this season. One of those was the second night of the year, a month ago in Vegas, when they managed to overcome a deficit and win in a shootout.
But they’ll need an offensive breakout sooner than later, not only to start making up ground in the standings, but to have many of the individuals that haven’t produced relax and start to play a looser style, which is what Hiller has wanted to see more of when they have the puck.
“Sometimes it’s little mistakes that lead to goals against,” echoed Mikey Anderson after Thursday’s loss. “You play high-level teams, which we think we are, and know we are, and that can be the difference. You don’t need much to put it in.”
When asked if he felt the team needed to generate more offensive chances to achieve their goal, Anderson said that there’s always room for improvement and they’ll take all the offense they can get, but he didn’t feel that the looks weren’t coming.
“That’s the way it goes though, sometimes they fall, sometimes they don’t,” said Anderson. “Right now it seems like maybe they’re not going our way a fair amount more than they are, but it’s trying to stick with it, stay positive and keep building.”
Anderson’s not someone who’s counted on for a ton of offense; he’s speaking on behalf of the group as a leader. Trevor Moore, on the other hand, who also spoke to the media on Thursday, is one of the snake-bitten attackers who has been part of a line with Phillip Danault that’s struggled to convert.
Moore has three goals this season, while Danault has yet to find the back of the net, and their linemates, whether it be Warren Foegele (one goal), who is currently sidelined with an injury, or currently Andrei Kuzmenko (three goals), haven’t been able to increase the production.
“I think we’ve probably got to get to the dirty areas a bit more,” Moore said. “Give our defense a chance to shoot through a screen and then just bearing down. We’ve had chances, but we just have to put them in.”
Moore pointed at the work Corey Perry has done, scoring six goals in just nine games by going to the net-front, something he’s done well over the entirety of his long NHL career. Multiple players have mentioned they feel Perry’s been a big help in that department since he entered the lineup, but still, it’s easier said than done.
“We can’t panic,” Moore said. “We’d like to score more, I’d like to score more, it’s just not happening right now. But we like what we’ve seen in a lot of areas of our game. We don’t want to get away from those and keep building.”
There’s no doubt that the chances have been there for the Kings. When those opportunities come about, the best teams are the ones that make it count where it matters, on the scoreboard. That’s a simple concept that isn’t lost on Hiller.
“The game is a game of mistakes,” Hiller said. “And right now, when we’re making a mistake, they’re taking pretty good advantage of it. They made a few mistakes tonight, too. They took some penalties tonight, too. We just are not taking advantage of those opportunities in those times.”
As the Kings set their sights on their next opponent in Pittsburgh, a team they fell to at home last month, they’re hoping for more of the road success they’ve been able to achieve this year, having started with a 5-1-2 record from eight away games this season.
More coverage of practice tomorrow in Pittsburgh and the upcoming game against the Penguins will be coming soon from Zach Dooley as he rejoins the team on the road! And later tonight, we’ll have postgame coverage of the Ontario Reign, who battle the San Diego Gulls in America’s Finest City this evening.