A return to the postseason is the Kings’ goal
The rest of the hockey world might disagree, but the Kings have a clear objective entering a pandemic-shortened 2021 NHL season. Get back to the playoffs. “It’s realistic to think about playoffs for sure,” captain Anze Kopitar said.
Defenseman Drew Doughty concurred: “I don’t see why we can’t.”
It might be an ambitious target for a team coming off back- to- back bottom- two finishes in the Western Conference, but after stockpiling young talent and resetting the roster, the Kings think the present might f inally be intersecting with their promising future.
With opening night 10 days away, here are f ive things the Kings need to do to return to relevancy and position themselves for a playoff push in 2021:
Shake off the rust
Fitness wasn’t much of a concern during the Kings’ camp- opening scrimmage on Thursday. A nine- plusmonth layoff had given players time to relax, recover and rebuild stamina. Coach Todd McLellan said several players set personal records in physical testing. Doughty explained this offseason was the first time in years he was able to “actually lift weights for real, get heavy, get stronger.”
“In the past, it was all maintenance stuff,” Doughty added. “So yeah, it was a blessing in disguise.”
The Kings’ real challenge during this two- week camp will be re- immersing themselves in the up- tempo and aggressive- forechecking system McLellan and his staff began implementing last season — a growth process that saw the Kings win their f inal seven games, largely behind improved goaltending and defense, before the schedule was suspended by the COVID- 19 pandemic. “It’s really not rocket science,” Kopitar said. “We have to start where we left off.”
To compete for one of the four playoff spots in a newlook eight- team West division — the NHL temporarily realigned into four geographic divisions this year, with teams playing their entire 56- game schedules against opponents from their own region — the Kings can’t afford to get off to slow start as they did a year ago.
“As much as we talk about ‘ reestablishing,’ we’re going to need growth at some point too,” McLellan said.
Score more goals
Despite ranking third in the NHL in shots on goal and shot differential last season, the Kings’ 2.53 goals per game was the second- fewest in the league. Part of the problem was execution, with too many grade- A chances missed. Part of it was quality, with the team too often settling for low- percentage attempts far from the net. And part of it was special teams, with the Kings converting just 17.1% of their power plays.
The roster hasn’t been significantly altered from last season. Former 30- goal scorer Andreas Athanasiou, who signed a one- year, $ 1.2million contract with the team last week, and Lias Andersson, the seventh pick in the 2017 draft who was acquired in a 2020 draft day trade with the New York Rangers, were the most notable offensive additions to a team that had only two players ( Kopitar and Alex Iafallo) exceed the 35- point plateau in 2019- 20.
“We’re not talking about adding 50 or 60 goals, which is unrealistic to our lineup,” McLellan said. “But if we can add 10 or 15 even and cut the goals against down a little bit, all of a sudden we’re in the mix.”
Balance goaltending
The Kings’ biggest strength seems to be in net, where veteran Jonathan Quick and the up- and- coming Cal Petersen will probably split time.
Quick, who turns 35 on Jan. 21, overcame a poor start last season to post a .921 save percentage and 2.39 goals against average over his final 22 games.
Petersen, a 26- year- old who will be embarking on his first full NHL campaign, has been sharp in his brief callups with the Kings over the last two seasons, collecting a .923 save percentage and 2.62 goals against average in his first 19 career games.
The Kings also signed Troy Grosenick and J- F Berube to contracts this season, with NHL teams required to keep three goalies between their active roster and taxi squad at all times.
“I think it’s getting harder and harder for a single goalie to run the table,” McLellan said, adding: “I think you’re going to need two, maybe even three goaltenders at some point during the year.”
Integrate new pieces
Two- time Stanley Cup champion Olli Maatta, a 26year- old left- handed defenseman the Kings acquired in an October trade with the Chicago Blackhawks, will play next to Doughty on the team’s top blue- line pairing.
“Our games are very similar,” said Doughty. “I think we’re going to be something special together.”
The Kings will have to decide which prospects crack their opening night roster. Among players 22 or younger, forward Gabriel Vilardi looks like the only lock. Andersson, Samuel Fagemo, Jaret Anderson- Dolan, Akil Thomas, Rasmus Kupari, Matt Luff and Carl Grundstrom could all be in contention for a forward spot; Mikey Anderson, Kale Clague and Tobias Bjornfot ( who played in the World Junior Championship) could compete for a position among the defensemen.
Adapt to schedule
Not only will teams play all of their games against division opponents but most games have been scheduled in mini two- game series played within two- or threeday spans.
“Division games were always huge, and now this puts even more emphasis,” Kopitar said.
Doughty, in particular, was excited about the matchups the new schedule creates.
“I play better when I have an emotional attachment to the game,” Doughty said. “… It makes you get up just a little more.”