NHL: Drew Doughty's goal should not have counted

 

The NHL is investigating whether human error or a glitch in the clock system at Staples Center was responsible for prolonging the Kings’ game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday long enough for Kings defenseman Drew Doughty to score the decisive goal in a 3-2 victory.

Colin Campbell, the league’s senior vice president of hockey operations, said Thursday he believes the Blue Jackets were wronged because the clock was paused with 1.8 seconds left in the third period and Doughty’s goal with .4 of a second left should not have been allowed. “In our opinion it was one full second,” Campbell said of the stoppage.

The decision won’t make much difference to 30th-ranked Columbus but could prove crucial for the Kings, who are battling for a playoff spot.

In determining playoff seedings when teams are tied, wins gained in a shootout are subtracted from each team’s win total and the greater win total gets the better seeding. Had Doughty’s goal been disallowed the game might have gone to the tiebreaker, potentially reducing the Kings’ wins in regulation and overtime.

The pause was not immediately seen by officials in the NHL’s Toronto situation room, where every goal is reviewed. Campbell said the initial concern in Toronto was to determine if the puck had crossed the goal line before time expired according to the clock burned into the corner of the footage they saw. Not until later did they back up the frame-by-frame footage to the moment the clock stopped. Seeing that hesitation with 1.8 seconds left persuaded him Columbus had gotten a bad deal.

“When you look at it, regulation was over when L.A. scored so yes they did,” Campbell said in a phone conversation. “They didn’t have the opportunity to get a point for a tie game. They didn’t get a point from the tie game, which they would have got and they weren’t afforded the opportunity to go for an extra point in overtime or a shootout.”

 Campbell said the league had  contacted the clock’s manufacturer, Daktronics, to determine if the clock was at fault and will send technicians to Staples Center to examine the clock and the system. Campbell also said the NHL will send a representative to Los Angeles to meet with the off-ice officials, who are employed by the league. That crew includes the person designated the game timekeeper Wednesday—whom Campbell would not identify—as well as the official scorer, penalty timekeeper and others.

Although Campbell said he believed there had been other problems with the Staples Center clock involving basketball games, Staples Center spokesman Michael Roth said he was unaware of such difficulties.

Columbus General Manager Scott Howson posted a blog on the team’s web site criticizing the process that allowed the goal to stand and emphasizing how important the extra point for the win could be for the Kings, but that blog was later removed.

Campbell said investigating the incident is crucial to maintaining trust and credibility in Los Angeles and every other arena in which NHL games are played.

"We have to peruse two areas,” Campbell said. “There’s a human element, where a fellow’s operating the clock. And was there a human mistake here? So was there human error in this case? Is he watching the play? Did he think there was a high stick?  Did he think there was a hand pass and he accidentally stopped it and started it? Or was there an error in the Daktronics clock?

“We’ve talked to the Daks people. We’ve also asked them if it’s humanly possible to stop the clock and start it just one second.”

Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi said via email that the clock was correct and no extra time had been added.

“Those clocks are sophisticated instruments that calculate time by measuring electrical charges called coulombs,” he said. “Given the rapidity and volume of electrons that move through the measuring device the calibrator must adjust at certain points which was the delay you see. The delay is just recalibrating for the clock moving too quickly during the 10 – 10ths of a second before the delay.

“This insures that the actual playing time during a period is exactly 20 minutes. That is not an opinion. That is science. Amazing device quite frankly."

Campbell discounted Lombardi’s comment. “I read it and it sounded interesting,” Campbell said.

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--Helene Elliott

 

Dean Lombardi's explanation on clock controversy

Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi said there is a scientific explanation for the apparent hesitation by the scoreboard clock at Staples Center on Wednesday night that preceded the last-second goal by Drew Doughty in the Kings' 3-2 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Times colleague Lisa Dillman asked Lombardi to respond to comments on the goal made by Blue Jackets General Manager Scott Howson. Here's Lombardi's email reply:

"Those clocks are sophisticated instruments that calculate time by measuring electrical charges called coulombs – given the rapidity and volume of electrons that move through the measuring device the calibrator must adjust at certain points which was the delay you see. The delay is just recalibrating for the clock moving too quickly during the 10–10ths of a second before the delay. This insures that the actual playing time during a period is exactly 20 minutes.

"That is not an opinion -– that is science -– amazing device quite frankly."

-- Helene Elliott and Lisa Dillman

Photo: Dean Lombardi. Credit: Andrew D. Bernstein / Getty Images.

Kings GM Dean Lombardi says he's sorry for slamming Oilers

Either hell has frozen over or Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi was afraid for his safety during the team's upcoming trip to Edmonton, but he offered an apology Thursday for the incendiary comments he made after he acquired an injured Colin Fraser for Ryan Smyth in a trade with the Oilers.

Trying to grant Smyth's trade request, Lombardi initially agreed to take Gilbert Brule for Smyth but backed off because of concerns over Brule's fitness. He then agreed to take Fraser, who eventually needed foot surgery and didn't make his Kings debut until Nov. 10.

The Kings filed a grievance with the NHL contending that the Oilers had misrepresented the extent of Fraser's injury and Lombardi let his temper flare.

“The bottom line for me, I would have rather invested my money with Bernie Madoff than invest in Edmonton’s word,” Lombardi told The Times.

The grievance was settled before a hearing and the Oilers paid an unspecified amount of money toward Fraser’s medical costs. Oiler and NHL executives were unhappy with Lombardi’s outspokenness, and Lombardi told Edmonton Team 1260 radio host Mark Spector on Thursday that frustration over Smyth’s trade request led him to speak without thinking.

Former coach Terry Murray: Kings could be team to reckon with

Former Kings Coach Terry Murray, who was dismissed and replaced by Darryl Sutter last month, granted his first post-firing interview Wednesday.

He didn’t say anything inflammatory or even remotely controversial but acknowledged his disappointment over being let go. He also acknowledged that the power play’s struggles cost the team some games — and perhaps cost him his job. Here’s a link to a transcript that appears on the Kings’ website.

Murray did an excellent job installing a defensive foundation that remains the Kings’ best asset, but he took them as far as he could take them — and that wasn’t as far as General Manager Dean Lombardi thought they could go.

The team was stale offensively and had stalled. And though it isn’t always fair, sometimes players need to hear a new voice and be challenged in different ways. Sutter is allowing players to be more aggressive and pushing a more up-tempo game, and they seem to have responded.

They’re not scoring in great bunches — and might never do that, even if Lombardi makes a big move before the Feb. 27 trade deadline — but they did earn points in each of Sutter’s first eight games behind the bench and are 6-1-3 during his tenure.

One more note on Murray, with thanks to colleague Lisa Dillman: Murray has moved out of his South Bay home but it isn't standing empty. He made it available for rent and Sutter moved in this week.

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Photo: Former Kings coach Terry Murray, center, instructs his players during a game against the Montreal Canadiens on Dec. 3. Credit: Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press

It's a done deal: Darryl Sutter to coach Kings

Darryl Sutter has agreed to become the Kings’ next coach and will take over on Tuesday, a source familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly confirmed to The Times Saturday.

Sutter signed a contract a few days ago but needed to wrap up some family matters and receive the proper immigration clearance. That’s expected to come through on Monday, and he will be introduced at a news conference on Tuesday in Los Angeles.

Sutter signed a multi-year deal, though the exact duration is not known.

The Kings fired Terry Murray Monday and played the last two games under John Stevens, who will coach them Saturday against Detroit at Joe Louis Arena. Stevens is expected to remain on the Kings’ staff under Sutter. However, it’s unclear whether Sutter will bring in another assistant and whether current assistant Jamie Kompon will continue with the team.

Sutter and General Manager Dean Lombardi worked together in San Jose, where Lombardi hired Sutter to coach, and they have remained friends. Sutter was Lombardi’s first choice after Lombardi reluctantly dismissed Murray while the Kings were in the throes of a losing streak that reached five games before the team clawed out a 2-1 victory at Columbus on Thursday.

Sutter is blunt and gruff but has also earned tremendous loyalty from those who have played for him. He led the Calgary Flames to the seventh game of the Stanley Cup finals in 2004 but had far less success as the team’s general manager. He resigned that job nearly a year ago and has spent most of his time running the family ranch in Alberta, Canada.

He will take over a team that is solid defensively but has had difficulty scoring this season. He is known to push players hard but will forgive mistakes if players are intense and passionate, and he has little time for those who don’t give a full effort. His approach should be different from Murray’s teacher/fatherly demeanor, and it could jar the Kings enough to extract the talent Lombardi thinks they have. If not, and if the Kings continue to struggle offensively, Lombardi could be out of a job after the season.

Sutter will be the fourth coach to work under Lombardi. Marc Crawford coached the Kings for two seasons but had no patience with mistake-prone youngsters and was a poor fit. Murray installed a strong defensive foundation but couldn’t take the team to the next level. Stevens, a Murray disciple, is 1-1 and will coach two more games before handing over the reins, staying behind the bench Saturday in Detroit and Monday in Toronto.

-- Helene Elliott in Detroit

Photo: Darryl Sutter in 2005. Credit: Jim McIsaac / Getty Images

Interim Coach John Stevens tries to heal Kings, generate scoring

Interim coach John Stevens will be behind the Kings’ bench Thursday for the second straight game while General Manager Dean Lombardi finishes arrangements to hire a replacement for Terry Murray.

All indications remain that the new coach will be Darryl Sutter and that Sutter will take over next Tuesday. After facing the Blue Jackets, the Kings will play at Detroit on Saturday and at Toronto on Monday before returning home to face the Ducks next Thursday at Staples Center. Apparently, Sutter has some family and farming responsibilities to wrap up in Alberta but he should be able to sort everything out within the next few days.

Lombardi declined to elaborate Thursday while watching the Kings’ morning skate at Nationwide Arena. “I’m working through the process,” he said.

Though it’s odd to take so long before appointing the next coach — and the Kings’ 3-0 loss at Boston Tuesday was more of the same performance that undermined Murray — Lombardi said he has confidence in Stevens’ ability to run things for a while. “I’m not too worried about with Johnny having their respect,” Lombardi said.

Stevens is expected to stay on when Sutter is appointed, though it’s unclear whether Sutter will want to also choose an assistant.

In the meantime, Stevens is running practices, trying to find ways to produce goals and end the Kings’ five-game losing streak. Players, who have been addressed by Lombardi twice in the past few days, acknowledged Thursday that this hasn't been business as usual.

“It’s the first time for me. I’ve never had a coaching change in the middle of a year at any level, I don’t think. It is weird,” defenseman Jack Johnson said.

“It is what it is and you’ve got to deal with it. When the puck drops you’re still playing hockey. The game hasn’t changed. It’s kind of when we’re sitting around the room and we’re thinking about it, it’s weird.”

Johnson also said the team’s last practice was “one of the best practices we’ve ever had.” Stevens said he’s trying to deal more with emotions and the mind-set of the team than with strategy.

“When something of this magnitude happens, if you look at the last four years and where this team has come from and the success they’ve had, to go through emotionally what they have the last few days, it was just about trying to get some reps in and trying to get some energy and focus on getting things done on the ice,” Stevens said.

“Just trying to build some spirit back up after what they’ve been through emotionally in the last couple days.”

Kings fire Coach Terry Murray

The Kings on Monday fired Coach Terry Murray, hoping to jolt the team out of a four-game losing streak and season-long scoring drought and back into playoff position.

General Manager Dean Lombardi flew to Boston on Monday to tell Murray in person. Murray, one win away from 500 in his career, conducted the team’s practice Monday morning at the TD Garden. His Kings record was 139-106-30 and he ranks third all time in wins among the franchise's coaches.

Lombardi was expected to comment during a conference call later Monday.

Assistant coach John Stevens was appointed interim coach. The Kings open a four-game trip Tuesday against the defending Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins.

Murray took over as coach in 2008 and was charged with giving a foundering team a strong defensive foundation. He did that very well, but he was unable to coax consistent scoring out of a team that this season elevated its talent level by trading for Mike Richards and signing winger Simon Gagne as a free agent.

After scoring only six goals in losing their last four games, the Kings rank last in the NHL in goals per game, at 2.24, a disappointing showing given their decision this summer to spend nearly to the salary-cap limit and make a concerted charge at the Stanley Cup.

Stevens might be a candidate for the job on a permanent basis, but his philosophies are similar to Murray’s and so he might not bring about enough change. Lombardi has previously worked with Darryl Sutter, who was let go by the Calgary Flames a year ago, and Sutter is a potential candidate. Sources said the Kings have not requested permission from the Penguins to talk to assistant coach Tony Granato, a popular former King who coached in Colorado but struggled there.

More coverage later at www.latimes.com/sports

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Drew Doughty injured, expected to miss at least seven to 10 days

Kings defenseman Drew Doughty is expected to be out at least seven to 10 days after suffering an undisclosed upper-body injury Saturday, though General Manager Dean Lombardi said via email that the injury was not to the defenseman’s head.

Doughty, who had a concussion early last season, was slammed hard on a rising, open-ice hit by Flyers forward Zac Rinaldo 20 seconds into the Kings’ game at Philadelphia. Doughty appeared dazed when he returned to the bench. According to the time-on-ice charts at the NHL’s website, the 21-year-old defenseman played one more shift before being held out of the game.

While sitting on the bench Doughty appeared to be favoring his shoulder. Lombardi would not say if that was where Doughty was injured but specified that the prized defenseman did not suffer a head injury.

Doughty missed most of training camp as a restricted free agent until signing an eight-year, $56-million contract before the Kings left for their season-opening trip to Europe.

It was not clear whether the league would impose any supplementary discipline against Rinaldo, who had three goals and 331 penalty minutes in 60 games last season with the Flyers’ American Hockey League farm team. Every play is reviewed in the NHL’s "War Room" in Toronto, and fines or suspensions can be imposed by executives of the hockey operations department if they feel sanctions are merited.

The Kings were scheduled to return to Southern California after Saturday's game and practice in El Segundo at noon Sunday. They will play their Staples Center opener on Tuesday against St. Louis.

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Photo: Drew Doughty, right, fights for the puck with Buffalo's Nathan Gerbe on Oct. 8. Credit: Thomas Peter / Reuters

As usual, Anze Kopitar excels in the middle

Through all the negotiations between the Kings and Drew Doughty’s representatives, through the tense moments and final happy moments when Doughty agreed to an eight-year, $56-million deal  Thursday, one person remained above the fray.

That was center Anze Kopitar, who was thrust into the middle of an uncomfortable situation after Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi declared he would not pay Doughty more than the $6.8-million average annual value of Kopitar’s contract, then the highest on the team.

Kopitar became a benchmark in the talks, a role he didn’t want and didn’t enjoy. He also became part of the back story because he used to employ Doughty’s agent, Don Meehan, before switching to another high-powered agent, Pat Brisson.

Meehan seemed determined in these negotiations to get more money for Doughty, his current client, than the amount earned by his former client, Kopitar. To complicate matters even more, Meehan and Lombardi had a history of battles while Lombardi was general manager of the San Jose Sharks.

Kings, Drew Doughty agree on new contract [Updated]

The Kings and defenseman Drew Doughty verbally agreed on a new contract Thursday night, meaning the restricted free agent could join the team in time for its upcoming trip to Germany and Sweden for its final exhibition game and first two regular-season games.

Financial terms were not immediately available. However, after weeks of frustration and stalled negotiations, General Manager Dean Lombardi planned to sweeten the average annual value of the club's offer to exceed $6.8 million, the current team-leading average annual value of Anze Kopitar's contract.

[Updated, 8:30 p.m.: The deal Doughty agreed to is worth $56 million over eight years.]

Although Lombardi had said several times that he would not go above $6.8 million per year for Doughty, the stalemate and Doughty's apparent willingness to accept a long-term deal led Lombardi to bend.

It's not clear how long the deal will be for, but the Kings' last offers to Doughty gave him choices between a seven-year term and an eight-year term.

Doughty, 21, was a finalist for the Norris trophy as the NHL's top defenseman in his second season, 2009-10, but he struggled at times last season after suffering a concussion.

More coverage soon at latimes.com/sports

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More from Tim Leiweke on stalemate with Drew Doughty

Emptying out the digital notebook . . .

I have a few more tidbits from my interview today with Tim Leiweke, the Kings’ biggest fan and the chief executive officer of parent company AEG. I had requested the interview a few days ago and these were Leiweke’s first public comments on the stalled contract negotiations with defenseman Drew Doughty.

I referred to one of Leiweke’s comments in a tweet earlier today but didn’t get the full explanation into my earlier blog report or into the story that will appear in print. Here’s a complete recap, in more than 140 characters.

I asked Leiweke why the Kings don’t just raise their offer and end this dispute if the difference between their proposed $6.8 million average annual salary and Doughty’s demands is $200,000 or $300,000. He repeated that this is an allocation issue, meaning the Kings are willing to spend up to the salary-cap limit but want to leave room to add players at the trade deadline and budget for the future to retain key players. He also said General Manager Dean Lombardi has “the right to budge here,” and that he would support Lombardi’s decision on that.

“But here’s the funny thing that I don’t get in all of this,” Leiweke said. “I look at it and say, boy, there’s a complete miscommunication here. Drew Doughty can step in here tomorrow and from an endorsement standpoint, being a cornerstone and a nucleus of this franchise long term, he can make more money on endorsements than we’re fighting over for whatever he’s asking for and whatever we’ve offered. And the way you protect that is goodwill, being a guy that’s a team player.

“If he burns the bridges with everybody, then he loses that revenue. So what I’m mystified by is, his value to this marketplace is not just his salary, it’s what he’s going to earn being part of a team that has the potential of competing for the Stanley Cup every year now for long term. Instead of fighting over a little bit here and a little bit there, let us save that money to go after the final pieces. He’ll make more on endorsements than he ever would on what we’re fighting over. It makes no sense at all.”

Leiweke repeatedly said the Kings see Doughty as a long-term franchise player and they will not trade him.  Doughty has not signed an offer sheet with another team, probably because those teams are aware the Kings have deep pockets financially.