Below are the 8 most recent journal entries recorded in kingsgaron's LiveJournal:

Monday, January 29th, 2007
6:55 pm	Team By Team Generated Chances Extending our review yesterday of the top players in the league at generating offensive chances through forced turnovers (Hits & Takeaways), let's take a look at the team-by-team numbers: Team Hits Takeaways Total Montreal Canadiens 69 144 213 Ottawa Senators 99 100 199 Carolina Hurricanes 95 90 185 New York Islanders 98 81 179 Dallas Stars 94 82 176 Washington Capitals 75 88 163 Toronto Maple Leafs 97 60 157 New York Rangers 92 65 157 Edmonton Oilers 60 96 156 Florida Panthers 90 65 155 Atlanta Thrashers 73 73 146 New Jersey Devils 59 83 142 Buffalo Sabres 63 77 140 Anaheim Ducks 70 68 138 Los Angeles Kings 74 64 138 Philadelphia Flyers 60 74 134 Minnesota Wild 58 72 130 Detroit Red Wings 64 66 130 Columbus Blue Jackets 64 58 122 Vancouver Canucks 64 55 119 Nashville Predators 50 68 118 San Jose Sharks 78 39 117 St. Louis Blues 52 64 116 Phoenix Coyotes 67 49 116 Boston Bruins 61 53 114 Calgary Flames 47 61 108 Tampa Bay Lightning 35 72 107 Colorado Avalanche 27 77 104 Pittsburgh Penguins 61 39 100 Chicago Blackhawks 49 40 89 Comparing to last year's figures, we see a few interesting items. Most of the top teams from last year remain at the top of this list (Montreal, Ottawa, the Islanders, etc.) and the same holds true at the bottom as well (Pittsburgh, Chicago, Tampa Bay). The most extreme moves upwards have been made by Florida (28th to 10th), Carolina (20th to 3rd), and Buffalo (26th to 13th). Those teams plummeting downwards include Calgary (5th to 26th), Colorado (8th to 28th), and Philadelphia (6th to 16th). Tags: hits, takeaways, offense (Comment on this)
Thursday, November 2nd, 2006
1:19 pm	Games 6-7: Los Angeles Kings vs Detroit Red Wings 1:3, vs ... Kings clip only one point off non-Pacific leaders at home Craig Conroy misses the net against the sprawled-out Manny Fernandez. (photo courtesy of www.gettyimages.com) Game 6: Kings vs Detroit Red Wings 1:3 LA goal from: Sean Avery DET goals from: Lang (2), Draper. The pros: Reasonably good game by the Kings overall, with some sloppy moments that lead to goals. The cons: Non-existent power play execution (0-for-8). Seems like a lot of shots are taken by the likes of Rob Blake and Lubo Visnovsky, but most of them are either off target or get blocked. Cloutier made his patented mistakes on both Lang goals (angle shot to a near post and no extra effort on the breakaway). Game 7: Kings vs Minnesota Wild 1:2 (OT) LA goal from: Patrick O'Sullivan MIN goals from: Rolston, Gaborik The pros: Potentially the best game this season by the Kings, constant pressure on Fernandez, several good scoring chances. First ever NHL goal by O'Sullivan. Excellent PK, which kept the division leading Wild off the boards. The cons: The Kings could not capitalize on the scoring chances. More movement on the power play, but with no results, though. "The proof is in the pudding," forward Michael Cammalleri said. "No matter how many chances you create, you realize that at some point you have to score. We've done some good things in the last couple games. We've got some point shots through and battled in front of the net, but it's not enough." (Comment on this)
Friday, August 18th, 2006
11:45 am	Kings Acquire Goalie Today, the Los Angeles Kings got a little stronger adding former starting goaltender, Dan Cloutier, from the Canucks for a couple of moderate draft picks. Cloutier, a 30-game winner three times with the Canucks is a strong regular season goaltender who can earn you all sorts of wins, will more than likely prove to be a strong character for the Kings in their run for a Pacific Division title. An injury-riddled season kept Cloutier from the Canucks' crease in 2005/'06, but some solid rehab all year and the summer should make him a healthy candidate for the starting job in LA, in front of Mathieu Garon. He should be a second-round to high third-round pick in any pool still. A small cry from his first-round potential, but there is no reason why he couldn't be there again in the regular season. Technorati Tags NHL Hockey Pool Trades Los Angeles Kings Vancouver Canucks (Comment on this)
Friday, August 11th, 2006
11:05 am	Gauthier heads to LA By Pat Rooney, Special to the Rocky Mountain ... Gauthier heads to LA By Pat Rooney, Special to the Rocky Mountain News July 8, 2006 In 1988, Wayne Gretzky was traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings, a move that broke the hearts of hockey fans in Canada while sparking a new generation of hockey enthusiasts in the previously untapped Southern California region. One of those youngsters who immediately became enamored of the game in general, and the Kings in particular, was Gabe Gauthier, of Buena Park, Calif. After a standout career at the University of Denver, Gauthier is going home. The former Pioneers forward has agreed to terms with the Kings and will fly to Los Angeles today or Sunday to sign a two-year contract. . "It's close to home, which is good for my parents, and I grew up watching the Kings," Gauthier said. . "I grew up watching those teams with Gretzky and Tony Granato and Luc Robitaille. Now I have the opportunity to wear the same uniform they did." . Gauthier, an undrafted free agent, finished his career 16th on DU's all-time scoring list in points, with 155, and ranks second in power-play goals, with 31. He served as the Pioneers' co- captain last season and was a key component of DU's back-to- back national title teams in 2004 and 2005, often displaying a knack for producing in big games. Gauthier scored the Pioneers' only goal in their 1-0 victory against Maine in the 2004 final and registered three goals and three assists in two games at the Northeast Regional in 2005. Gauthier said he also received interest from Boston, Anaheim and the Avalanche before his choices narrowed to the Kings and Bruins. . "It's a huge relief," said Gauthier, who will participate in the Kings' conditioning camp next week. "Now it's done and over with and I couldn't be happier." (Comment on this)
Thursday, August 3rd, 2006
6:03 pm	Ron Hextall Assisstant GM of Kings Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - The Los Angeles Kings have named Ron Hextall as assistant general manager and general manager for their AHL affiliate Manchester Monarchs. "I am honored and extremely excited to be a part of the Los Angeles Kings organization," said Hextall. "I look forward to working closely with Dean Lombardi and the entire Kings staff toward the ultimate goal of bringing a Stanley Cup to Los Angeles. It was a difficult decision considering my history with the Flyers organization, but moving forward with my career I thought it was the best move for myself and my family." He spent the last four seasons as director of pro hockey personnel for the Philadelphia Flyers. Hextall, 42, was a goaltender for the Flyers, New York Islanders and Quebec Nordiques in his 13-year career. He won the Vezina Trophy as the NHL's best netminder and the Conn Smythe Trophy for the Stanley Cup MVP, despite losing to Edmonton in seven games, in his rookie season of 1986-87. He played in 608 regular season contests, compiling a 296-214-69 record with 23 shutouts, a 2.97 goals-against average and an .895 save percentage. In the playoffs, Hextall went 47-43 with a pair of shutouts in 93 games. (Comment on this)
Monday, July 31st, 2006
10:02 pm	Dan Cloutier to the LA Kings. There was much rejoicing in the kingdom as the Canucks managed to find somehow nice enough, the Pavol Demitra-free Los Angeles Kings, to take Dan Cloutier and his $2.55mil contract off of their hands and free up some much needed cap space. A familiar sight... Now, I dislike Cloutier more than I should (not personally, just as a goalie). He's a great fighter and not a bad guy at all, but he's just not a good NHL Goaltender. He gets injured often and at the worst times (we can partially blame Marc Crawford for that), and who can ever forget the Nick Lidstrom goal of doom. The problem is that many people are fooled by the fact that, prior to this season, Cloutier was always able to rack up some nice win totals because the Canucks had a good team in front of him and Cloutier played a lot of games. Look at the disparity between Cloutier's league rank in WINS compared to SAVE PERCENTAGE. 2004: Wins 33 (4th-T), SV% .914 (19th) 2003: Wins 33 (7th-T), SV% .908 (22nd) 2002: Wins 31 (11th), SV% .901 (33rd!) Cloutier never finished in the upper half of starting goaltenders in SV% and always hovered at average or below-average. Overall, Cloutier was the typical replaceable goalie that could have good games now and then, but was never going to carry the Canucks to anything glorious. We're still waiting to hear the full details of the deal, but I'll be happy even if the Canucks get nothing in return. Being able to dump Cloutier's full salary on someone else and have him let in goals against the Canucks is reward enough. (edit: Canucks are getting a second-round selection in 2007 and a conditional selection in 2009 according to TSN.ca. Not a bad return for a salary dump. ) (Comment on this)
Saturday, July 29th, 2006
4:54 pm	EDSBS Roundtable Since I'm one of the few that have to work today and with no real work to do what better time to do another Roundtable, this one from EDSBS. I'll discuss the Lakers signing of Vladimir Radmanovic later in the week. 1. Education. List the region of the country you were born in, what universities you attended and at least one other you would have attended if your alma mater didn’t exist. I was born and raised in Southern California and I attended the University of Michigan. I never really liked the local schools, except UCLA, but I knew I'd live in So Cal for the rest of my life so I wanted to experience something different for college. If Michigan didn't exist I probably would have ended up at North Carolina or Texas. 2. Sports Affiliations. List your top 10 favorite teams in all of sports in decending order. For instance, your alma mater’s football team may be number 1, but perhaps there is a professional team that squeezes in before you get to your alma mater’s lacrosse team. 1a. Michigan Football 1b. Los Angeles Lakers 2. Michigan Basketball 3. Michigan Hockey 4. Los Angeles Dodgers 5. Oakland Raiders 6. North Carolina Basketball 7. UCLA Basketball 8. Los Angeles Kings 9. Whoever is playing Notre Dame, Ohio State, USC, Nebraska or Tennessee 10. Georgia/Texas/UCLA Football 3. Movies. List the movie you’ve watched the most, your favorite sports related movie, the movie you secretly love but don’t like to admit it (possibly a chick flick or b film), and the movie you were (or still are) most looking forward to from this summer’s season. Not really a movie person but the movie I've watched the most would probably be The Mighty Ducks. Growing up I was really big into hockey with Gretzky in LA and watched the movie so much that I ended up memorizing the entire script since I watched it so much. Favorite sports related movie would probably be Rocky IV or Friday Night Lights. Movie I love but don't like to admit: Can't Hardly Wait Movie I was looking forward to: Nacho Libre, and it met my expectations. 4. Music. List your favorite band from middle school, high school, college and today. Also, as with the movies, include the song you secretly love but don’t like to admit. If Nickleback is involved in any of these responses, please give a detailed explanation as to why, god, why. Middle School: Boyz II Men, Hootie and the Blowfish, Bryan Adams High School: Tupac, Gangstarr, Wu-Tang Clan, Brian McKnight College: DJ Quik, Tupac, The Roots, Jay-Z Song I secretly love but don't like to admit: O-Town - "All or Nothing" 5. Books. Favorite book you’ve finished, worst book you’ve finished and the book you really should read but haven’t gotten around to it. Favorite Books: "Holla If Ya Hear Me" a book on Tupac and "Fab Five" Worst Book: anything I had to read for school Book I should read: the GMAT Prep books that are sitting at home 6. Travel. Favorite city you’ve every been to and the one place you still must visit before you shuffle off this mortal coil. Vancouver/Victoria Island, I think that's what it was called, went there a long time ago with my family but it was real nice. Place I must go: Brazil, I second EDSBS's statement. 7. What do you love most about college football in 20 words or less? The connection with my school, the unparalleled highs and lows that no other sport can match. (Comment on this)
Thursday, July 27th, 2006
10:53 am	Tagliabue meets with LA officials Commissioner Paul Tagliabue headed an NFL delegation that met with leaders of the Los Angeles business community Wednesday night, and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa expressed optimism about the return of a professional team to the area. "We're farther along than we have been at any time since professional football left Los Angeles," Villaraigosa told reporters with Tagliabue at his side before the parties had their dinner meeting and reception at Getty House, the mayor's formal residence. Fantasy Football League 2006 The greater Los Angeles area has been without an NFL team since the Raiders left the Los Angeles Coliseum for Oakland and the Rams departed from what is now known as Angel Stadium in Anaheim for St. Louis before the 1995 season. NFL owners decided last month at an owners meeting in Denver to give $5 million each to Los Angeles and Anaheim to explore the amount of support, especially financial, that each community can supply to help build a new stadium. Fantasy Football League The NFL group will meet Thursday for lunch with Anaheim officials. Getting a team back in the area does not appear imminent. No team has been designated, nor has a decision been made whether Los Angeles or Anaheim would get an existing franchise that relocates or an expansion team. Los Angeles officials hope to build an $800 million stadium inside the Coliseum, which would be leased to the league. Anaheim officials have proposed a new football stadium for the parking lot next to Angel Stadium. "This is about creating a partnership," Villaraigosa said of Wednesday night's get-together. "It's incumbent upon us to make a case. On both sides, there's a willingness for a partnership." Tagliabue said there are several pieces that must be put in place for a team to return to Los Angeles, one being a satisfactory agreement with Southern California, one of nation's top college football teams that's played its home games at the Coliseum for 83 years. Fantasy Football USC President Steven B. Sample expressed concerns in a letter to the NFL last month, but was among the guests at Getty House. Tagliabue expressed confidence things could be worked out. A state-of-the-art Coliseum for an NFL team would probably seat less than 70,000, with USC wanting a home that would seat at least 80,000. Tagliabue said other issues involved the costs of a new stadium, how it would be financed and support of the business community. "What we're addressing tonight is one of those pieces," he said, referring to the business community. "We look forward to this partnership becoming a reality. We're determined to get a team here." 2006 Fantasy Football Whether that means Los Angeles, Anaheim or both at some point in time has not been determined. Among those attending the dinner were team owners Michael Bidwill of the Arizona Cardinals, Pat Bowlen of the Denver Broncos, Steve Tisch of the New York Giants and Jed York of the San Francisco 49ers. Among local business leaders attending were billionaires Eli Broad and Ron Burkle, who have both been involved in trying to bring the NFL back to Los Angeles in the past; Peter O'Malley, former owner of the Dodgers; Casey Wasserman, owner of the Los Angeles Avengers of the Arena Football League; Peter Chernin of News Corp.; Tim Leiweke of the Anschutz Entertainment Group, which owns the Los Angeles Kings and several Major League Soccer franchises, and former NFL players Rodney Peete and Danny Villanueva. 2006 Fantasy Football League The NFL was close to returning to the nation's second-largest market in 1999, when league owners approved a resolution to put an expansion team into the area. That plan fell through when two conflicting groups could not agree on a site and financing. The NFL also wanted to get Houston businessman Robert McNair into the league. When he upped his bid to $700 million - some $150 million more than either of the Los Angeles groups offered - for the new team and a new stadium, the league's owners awarded Houston the expansion franchise. The Texans began play in 2002, replacing the Oilers, who had moved to Tennessee and become the Titans. (Comment on this)