Kings vs. Ducks: Freeway Faceoff rivalry to be renewed Wednesday
If it wasn't a rivalry before, it is now.
The Los Angeles Kings had been adamant about saying the annual Freeway Faceoff series against the Anaheim Ducks had been more of a rivalry in the stands than on the ice. It's not a true rivalry until you play them in the playoffs, they insisted.
But a heated seven-game series in the Western Conference Semifinals changed it all.
"We beat them in the playoffs last year and I'm sure that they weren't too happy that we did so they'll probably want a little bit of revenge," Kings defenseman Drew Doughty said. "We've got to step up to the plate and beat them."
There's been several changes to the Anaheim roster, but it's still a similar team to the one they faced last May. The biggest difference is in the addition of centers Ryan Kesler and Nate Thompson, and the retirement of center Saku Koivu and winger Teemu Selanne.
"(Kesler and Selanne) kind of replace each other in a way," Doughty said. "They're not the same player but we've seen a lot of Kesler and he kind of takes Teemu's spot in a way. He puts pucks in the net, he's definitely better defensively than Teemu but at the same time, he's not as good of a scorer as Teemu was."
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No stranger to Kesler, the Kings are expecting him to fill the role of Corey Perry as the pesky one on the ice, as Perry is still out with a virus.
"He comes in that spot and I think he fits in real well with that team," Doughty said. "I think he's a good two-way hockey player, a guy we saw a lot in Vancouver. He kind of does the same things that Perry does after the whistle and tries to get under your skin. We know what he's all about and we're ready for him."
Between the addition of Kesler and the development of the young blue liners, head coach Darryl Sutter feels the Ducks have evolved in a similar fashion to the Kings.
"I think the kids on the back end have got a year under their belt," Sutter said. "They've got the three guys who are real top defensemen, (Sami) Vatanen and (Hampus) Lindholm and (Cam) Fowler. Three top guys on the back. It's like the growth of our young defensemen. We talked about it before with Doughty, (Slava) Voynov, (Alec) Martinez, (Jake) Muzzin, same thing. That's the biggest impact it has in our game."
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The Kings made one addition themselves this week, adding Jamie McBain to their depleted blue line. The four-year veteran who last played with Buffalo, McBain had a pro tryout last week with the Kings' AHL affiliate and was signed after playing five games for the Manchester Monarchs, as soon as the cap space for a minimum salary was cleared.
McBain doesn't have much time to adjust, but he doesn't have much of a choice. The Kings will play two games against the Western Conference's best team, one at the Honda Center and one the Staples Center, with much-needed Pacific Division points on the line.
"Yeah, there's a lot to go over with him. It's way different coming to this conference. The pace of play is way different," Sutter said. "He hasn't played on a good team. Big difference. Good kid, good skill set, the next part is the game."
