Related News
Home » Sports » Ice Hockey
Kings new coach Sutter off to nervy start
Source: Agencies |
December 24, 2011, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THE Los Angeles Kings gave new coach Darryl Sutter a few early scares before delivering him a triumphant welcome with a 3-2 shootout victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday.
In Sutter's first game in charge, the Kings came from a goal down to lead 2-1 and then, after conceding an equalizer late in the third period, inflicted a fourth successive loss on their struggling division rivals.
Kings captain Dustin Brown scored the decisive goal in the shootout to improve his team's record to 16-14-4, but still below the cutoff line for the playoffs in the 15-team Western Conference with the season approaching its midway point.
"Hard-fought game," Sutter told reporters just two days after replacing interim Kings coach John Stevens. "I thought we had a good start, we did a lot of good things.
"I liked the way our forwards played, really good in all three zones. That's what we're trying to do. I think we moved the puck pretty good."
Sutter last coached in the NHL with the Calgary Flames but stepped down from that role in 2006 to focus on being the team's general manager, a position he vacated a year ago. Asked how it felt to be back in charge as a coach, he replied: "I've been pretty focused all day, didn't really think about it. I was thinking more about how you use your players.
"Nothing like game day, I've always said that. Even when I was sitting upstairs, game day was still the best."
The Ducks opened the scoring against the run of play when left wing Niklas Hagman tipped in a shot by Lubomir Visnovsky at 13.55 of the second period.
The Kings responded soon after when center Mike Richards, back in action after missing eight games because of a head injury, deflected a long-range blast by Drew Doughty at 16.17 to record a team-high 12th goal of the season. Roared on by a sellout crowd of 18,118 at the Staples Center, the Kings went 2-1 up midway through the third when Brown scored with a wrist shot off an assist from center Anze Kopitar.
The home team twice came close to adding a third before Visnovsky made it 2-2.
In Sutter's first game in charge, the Kings came from a goal down to lead 2-1 and then, after conceding an equalizer late in the third period, inflicted a fourth successive loss on their struggling division rivals.
Kings captain Dustin Brown scored the decisive goal in the shootout to improve his team's record to 16-14-4, but still below the cutoff line for the playoffs in the 15-team Western Conference with the season approaching its midway point.
"Hard-fought game," Sutter told reporters just two days after replacing interim Kings coach John Stevens. "I thought we had a good start, we did a lot of good things.
"I liked the way our forwards played, really good in all three zones. That's what we're trying to do. I think we moved the puck pretty good."
Sutter last coached in the NHL with the Calgary Flames but stepped down from that role in 2006 to focus on being the team's general manager, a position he vacated a year ago. Asked how it felt to be back in charge as a coach, he replied: "I've been pretty focused all day, didn't really think about it. I was thinking more about how you use your players.
"Nothing like game day, I've always said that. Even when I was sitting upstairs, game day was still the best."
The Ducks opened the scoring against the run of play when left wing Niklas Hagman tipped in a shot by Lubomir Visnovsky at 13.55 of the second period.
The Kings responded soon after when center Mike Richards, back in action after missing eight games because of a head injury, deflected a long-range blast by Drew Doughty at 16.17 to record a team-high 12th goal of the season. Roared on by a sellout crowd of 18,118 at the Staples Center, the Kings went 2-1 up midway through the third when Brown scored with a wrist shot off an assist from center Anze Kopitar.
The home team twice came close to adding a third before Visnovsky made it 2-2.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
