When the Los Angeles Kings edged the Phoenix Coyotes 2-1 on Thursday night to take a 3-0 series lead, it was the sixth time in 12 postseason games that they had held their opponents to one goal or less. The Coyotes were able to get only 19 shots through to goalie Jonathan Quick, and they had another 11 blocked, a remarkable ratio even against a team that has flexed its defensive muscle all season.
The Kings have not sat back at all in these playoffs, instead relying on waves of barreling, forechecking forwards that force disproportionate action in the offensive zone. It’s an evolution of the defensive play they exhibited in the regular season, when their blueliners led the way to a second-place finish in hits and several games against Phoenix and Dallas — two other top-five teams in the hitting category — turned into physical, emotional affairs.
"You know what, they're pressuring really hard, especially in our own end." Phoenix forward Gilbert Brule said Friday. "The wingers, we're having a hard time getting the puck out. You know, they're pinching all the time. They're having their centermen back them up, their third guy high all the time. It's tough to get past them."
The Kings' penalty kill has been superb, with 29 consecutive kills and 45 of 48. They haven’t allowed a power-play goal since the first round, outscoring their opponents 4-3 while shorthanded. Penalty killing and goaltending are often key ingredients that aid a team’s road effort, and Los Angeles has won seven straight away from Staples Center in the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs.
It seems that every shift Drew Doughty, Willie Mitchell, Dustin Brown and Anze Kopitar take while shorthanded, they are getting shots and opportunities in the offensive end, often outchancing their opponents. More intelligent minutes continue to be provided by Mike Richards (three career playoff shorthanded goals), Trevor Lewis and Jeff Carter on the kill.
On one side of the coin is the depiction of Los Angeles’ offensive gains, leaping from a 2.29 goals per game average in the regular season to 3.08 in the playoffs. On the other side is that consistent, Terry Murray-instilled and Sutter-reinforced complete adherence to responsibility in their own end of the ice. The Kings have shaved more than 0.6 goals per game off their regular-season goals-against average.
While virtually every forward on the roster is responsible defensively — including Jeff Carter, whose underrated two-way play was on display Tuesday — this playoff run also has clearly highlighted the strides Drew Doughty has made defensively in a season in which he had a little growing up to do.
"Everyone forgets how young he is, the expectations he had on him," Willie Mitchell said of Doughty, a plus-10 in the playoffs who averages more than 25:30 of ice time. "Signed himself up a nice deal, but with that comes expectations, and it’s the first time with expectations. Before, he’d never had those. It’s a first-time experience dealing with those. . . . He’s a happy-go-lucky guy, but he really cares and he’s really proud. And I think early on, he was trying to do everything and everything, and felt like he had to do so much more than just be who he is, which is a guy who’s super passionate about hockey, loves the game, loves competition, and (is) a super-talented player."
Along with Dan Girardi and perhaps one or two of his New York Rangers teammates, Doughty has more than any other defenseman used the playoffs as an example of how effective he can be in his own half of the ice. Two years ago, his signature moments were reflected in power-play howitzers from the blue line. In May 2012, it’s his one-on-one, shoulder-to-chest takedown of Shane Doan that reflects his diverse talents being put to use in the most effective way.
As good as many of the numbers have been for Los Angeles, their power play has struggled as badly this postseason. Mired in a 3-for-52 slump since Game 3 against Vancouver, they were unable to sustain much offensive-zone time on the man advantage in Thursday’s win and experienced difficulty advancing the puck up the ice against the Coyotes’ effective penalty kill.
Of course, the Boston Bruins were 5 for 61 on the power play before they erupted for five goals in the Stanley Cup Finals against Vancouver last June.
With Quick in net, this is a team that has proven itself capable of eking out narrow wins, a valuable trait to have should they defeat Phoenix and earn the franchise’s second Stanley Cup Finals berth. The Kings are 5-1 in the playoffs when tied or trailing entering the third period.
"Quickie is great," Matt Greene told Rich Hammond of LA Kings Insider. "That’s another thing that calms everybody down back there, is when you have a guy play pretty well. With Quickie in net, that always helps.
"Guys are used to it. Guys have been in these tight, tight games."
