SBN Cali blog - Battle of California
Game two of Pittsburgh's west coast road trip brings them to the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Kahleefawnya for yet another late game (for most of us at least).
The 9-4-2 Kings are off to a surprisingly good start - good enough to pin them at fourth in the West and just three points behind San Jose in the Pacific.
And hey, just one game after Sidney Crosby did his best Rob Scuderi impression the Pens now go up against the man, myth and legend himself. Of course, Scuds did find himself in an interesting situation a little over a week ago when he landed a textbook hipcheck on Columbus's Jason Chimera. If you look at the hit for yourself (video link), you'll see that it's not so much a dirty hit as it is just a perfect display of what has always been a hit style surrounded by controversy. Was it low? Did he take out the knees? It doesn't really matter at this point. We all know Scuderi from his years in Pittsburgh and no one would say the guy is a goon. Nonetheless, Chimera would be fine and Scuderi would be fined. No suspension.
Jonathan Quick is the guy you'll see in net for the Kings. He's been in net for all Kings games, except one loss, (quick math: making him 9-3-2) and is 3-0-2 in his last five. This might be worth keeping on file: In LA's two shootouts (SJ on 10/28, Van on 10/29) Quick has yet to come up with a W. Compare that to Fleury and Johnson, each 2-0 in the shootout this season.
Other names you want to keep an eye on: NHL point-leader Anze Kopitar (11g, 13a), Ryan Smith (8g, 9a), Dustin Brown (4g, 9a) and Drew Doughty (3g, 10a).
Last season the Pens beat the Kings 4-1 in the only regular season matchup between the two.
Puck and thread drop at 10:30. Be there.