Red Wings' Mike Babcock explains Doughty's scoring woes

Greetings from Detroit, where snowflakes are swirling but not much snow is sticking on the ground.

The Red Wings held an optional morning skate at Joe Louis Arena before Saturday’s game against the Kings and only a few players took advantage of the ice time. Afterward, Detroit Coach Mike Babcock, who coached Kings defenseman Drew Doughty on the triumphant Canadian Olympic team at Vancouver, had an interesting take on Doughty’s low production this season.

Babcock admires Doughty and once said the young defenseman was “touched by God.” But Babcock said he’s not surprised that Doughty has only two goals and nine points in 26 games this season.

“Well, if I didn’t know he wasn’t at training camp — wasn’t he not at training camp — that would surprise me. But this league’s too good not to be ready to go when everybody else is ready to go,” Babcock said, referring to Doughty having missed most of the preseason while negotiating a new contract.

“Whether you’re a player here that got hurt and didn’t play in training camp, and you wonder why 15 games in you got no stats, all you’ve got to do is look around the league. It’s not by accident. Players are too good. They’re too ready. They come in early. It’s a short training camp but they’re there two weeks in advance skating 10 times just to be ready to start training camp and you can do that on your own, but you’re not as good by yourself. That’s the facts.”

Kings beat Columbus, 2-1, end five-game losing streak

It took a veritable offensive explosion, but the Kings ended their five-game losing streak Thursday and got a win for interim Coach John Stevens when they scored twice in the third period and clawed out a 2-1 victory over the Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena.

Davis Drewiske, with a point shot at 4:33 of the third period, and Dustin Brown, with the deflection of a shot by Drew Doughty at 8:12, provided enough offense for the Kings to edge the Blue Jackets, who rank 30th in the NHL.

Jeff Carter’s deflection of a bouncing puck at 16:43 of the second period had given Columbus a 1-0 lead, but Drewiske matched that at 4:33 of the third period with his first goal since Oct. 6, 2009. The Blue Jackets complained that Brown had interfered with goalie Curtis Sanford, and replays showed that Brown appeared to have elbowed the goalie with his left arm, but the goal stood.

The goal ended a scoring drought of 130 minutes and 35 seconds for the Kings, who still have not scored more than two goals in any of their last 10 games.

Goaltender Jonathan Quick stopped 24 shots for the Kings, who continue this trip Saturday at Detroit and Monday at Toronto. Darryl Sutter, presumed to be their next coach, is not expected to meet them on the trip but is expected to take over next Tuesday.

The Kings are 1-1 under Stevens, who replaced Terry Murray on Monday. Stevens is expected to return to his duties as an assistant coach when Sutter takes over.

Center Mike Richards (head injury) is scheduled to join the team in Detroit, but it's unclear if he will play in either of the last two games of the trip.

Check back later for more coverage at www.latimes.com/sports

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-- Helene Elliott, reporting from Columbus, Ohio

Photo: Kings defenseman Drew Doughty controls the puck while being chased by Columbus forwards Derek MacKenzie, left, and Jared Boll, right, during the Kings' 2-1 victory Thursday. Credit: Russell LaBounty / U.S. Presswire

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.”

'Jolly Rancher' Darryl Sutter praised by former players

The Kings’ dismissal of Terry Murray has been big news around the NHL but has stirred quite a fuss in Calgary, home of Murray’s expected successor, Darryl Sutter.

Flames players had some interesting comments about Sutter, their former coach and general manager, in the Calgary Herald and the Calgary Sun. The consensus: the man doesn’t sugar-coat anything and drove them hard but players appreciated his honesty.

He can't arrive soon enough for the Kings, who on Tuesday lost their fifth straight game, a 3-0 defeat at Boston. They've scored only six goals in those five losses and have been shut out three times this season.

Sutter remains the Kings’ only candidate for the coaching job but some minor details are delaying the final details of his hiring. The Kings had to get permission from the Flames to talk to him and that was granted without complication.

It’s not clear if the deal with Sutter will be final in time for him to coach the Kings in their next game, Thursday at Columbus. Assistant coach John Stevens was put in charge on an interim basis for Tuesday’s loss at Boston, in which the performance and outcome were the same as they were under Murray's guidance. The trip continues Saturday at Detroit and Monday at Toronto.

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

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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--Helene Elliott

Photo: Kings Coach Terry Murray earlier this season. Credit: Ina Fassbender / Reuters.

 

Kings lose fourth consecutive game: Changes coming?

We posed this question when the Ducks slid into a freefall, and now it seems more than appropriate with the punchless Kings doing the same thing.

Who stays and who goes?

A night of nostalgia ended in boos by the Staples Center fans on Saturday night as Dallas beat the Kings, 2-1. The frustration and anger was visible in the dressing room, which not a surprise if you consider the Kings have lost four in a row, scoring an underwhelming six goals in that stretch.

A major player trade was expected from the Ducks and they ended up switching coaches, firing Randy Carlyle and replacing him with Bruce Boudreau. Do the Kings run the same play with Terry Murray?  Or do they end up making a rare major mid-season trade?

King captain Dustin Brown was asked if he thought individuals were anticipating a shakeup, in terms of a player move.

“It’s hard to say. I’ve never been on a team that’s good, that’s gone through this,” Brown said. “That’s probably the biggest difference for me. We have a good team in here. We’re capable of doing everything we need to with the people we have in here.

"I don’t think guys consciously think about that. Maybe it’s in the back of some guys' heads.”

His school of thought was that there was not enough desperation, using that word several times.

"Right now, we don't have enough guys having that desperation that we need," Brown said.

He addressed the absence of injured center Mike Richards.

“He’s a big part of our team," Brown said. "At the same time, I think we’re a good enough team. We did it last year without Kopi (Anze Kopitar). He’s our best player. We did it for 12 games and playoffs and we played pretty well. Right now, we’ve got to be more desperate. We’re not desperate enough right now."

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Photo: Kings defenseman Jack Johnson pursues Stars right wing Radek Dvorak in the first period Saturday night at Staples Center. Credit: Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press

Kings update: Mike Richards progressing; Ethan Moreau waived

There was a small measure of progress regarding Kings center Mike Richards, who has been out with a head injury since Dec. 1. He skated after the team’s practice on Friday for about eight minutes.

Richards met with a team doctor Thursday, and was permitted to move forward with his recovery program, according to Kings Coach Terry Murray. He is out with a suspected concussion even though the Kings have not used that terminology.  

 “The only thing I can say about him is that he's been given the green light to do more,” Murray said, following practice in El Segundo. “He’s on the ice today. He rode the bike harder today ... the off-ice workouts.

 “Once you get through that part, the positive was seeing him going out on the ice. That’s a positive to me. Clearly, now the indication is that everything was good on the off-ice workout. So that’s the next step.”

Teammate and defenseman Willie Mitchell is all too familiar with the issues Richards has been facing, having been sidelined for a significant period because of post-concussion symptoms when he was with the Canucks. Richards has missed three games.

“I don’t talk to him [Richards] too much about it,” Mitchell said. “If everyone is asking him, ‘How are you doing? How are you doing? How are you doing?’ He’s going to be in a stressful state. He’s not going to get healthy.

“I kind of leave him be. I talked to him once about my experience and just said, ‘Be smart. Take your time. Don’t sit there and push it, right?’ Because you are seeing it with guys all around the league, guys that push it, there are recurrences to it.

“And first and foremost is his health. If he doesn’t have his health, he’s not going to be good to me, as a teammate or to the L.A. Kings. I don’t want to see any of my peers going through what he’s doing. I don’t wish that upon anyone. I’ve been there; it’s not fun. You worry about your life, your quality of life going on forward.”

With Mitchell coming off injured reserve, the Kings waived forward Ethan Moreau. Moreau, who was signed as a free agent in August, had four points in 28 games.

 “We have to create an opening for [Mitchell] and had to make a hard decision,” Murray said.

“I needed a little bit more from him. He’s a great veteran guy. Look, he’s been a captain. ... He’s a high character guy. I think his leadership in the locker room, in a quiet way, was very effective. And he gave us everything he could.”

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Photo: Kings center Mike Richards takes a shot against against Florida last week. Credit: Jeff Gross / Getty Images

Kings after deadline: Terry Murray talks about 'dangerous play'

There was more than a flash of concern when the Kings' Anze Kopitar went down for a couple of minutes, via a nasty hit delivered from Minnesota's Kyle Brodziak in the second period on Thursday night.

Brodziak received a five-minute major for boarding and automatic game misconduct. Kopitar finally left the ice under his own power, hunched over, and would return fairly quickly, on the subsequent power play.

Kings Coach Terry Murray had some blunt observations on the play after the Wild beat the Kings, 4-2.

"I was worried about that one," he said. "That's a very dangerous play. You get cross-checked into the boards like that, I've seen too many players blow their knees, break their legs in those situations. I was very concerned about that one."

In fact, King defenseman Alec Martinez was injured when he was taken hard into the boards (by Warren Peters) in the last game against Minnesota at Staples Center on Nov. 12. Although Martinez later returned in that game and scored, he has been out of the lineup since then because of an upper-body injury.

Murray termed the intent behind those type of hits a lack of "respect," speaking in a broader sense.

"You know what, I watch games around the league, and it's a concern that it happens as often as it does. I don't get it. I don't get the attitude, the mentality of the players today. The lack of respect and the jeopardy they're putting their fellow [players] in. In my generation, that never happened."

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Photo: Kings center Anze Kopitar warms up prior to the Kings' 4-2 loss Thursday to the Minnesota Wild. Credit: Kirby Lee / U.S. Presswire

Anze Kopitar weighs in on Kings' frustrations

Twenty-seven games into the NHL season, it was time to take the Kings' temperature about such burning issues as a fading offense and home difficulties.

Staples Center has not provided a major advantage. The Kings are 8-7-1 at home and 5-3-3 on the road.

"I think that it's some kind of pressure that we feel toward playing at home and toward our fans," said center Anze Kopitar, the Kings' leading scorer, on Wednesday after practice in El Segundo. "You want to do so well at home. And everybody knows how the homestands are important in trying to get points.

"But I almost feel too much. It shouldn't be an excuse. Bottom line, you have to do it. You have to get points."

That has become difficult of late, and Kopitar spoke about the recent mood among the players.

"I'd be lying if I wouldn't say there's no frustration in the room," he said. "Everybody would like to score more goals. Just frustrated where we are right now. I don't think that's the case if you look at the standings ... still in playoff position.

"And I don't think lately we've come close to playing our best hockey. We're still in good shape. But we've got to turn it around. It's been very frustrating. Sometimes for the guys it's almost better if you lose 5-4 than 2-1 and 1-0. Because you get the sense you did something out on the ice."

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Photo: Anze Kopitar. Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea / U.S. Presswire

Ducks make personnel moves, praise realignment plan

Some news and notes from the Ducks’ morning skate in preparation for Tuesday’s game against the Kings at Honda Center:

--The Ducks made a few personnel moves, activating goaltender Dan Ellis (groin) and winger George Parros (eye surgery) and sending goalie Jeff Deslauriers back to Syracuse of the American Hockey League. In addition, they called up center Nick Bonino from Syracuse and lost forward Ben Maxwell on waivers to Winnipeg.

Coach Bruce Boudreau, still seeking his first win since replacing Randy Carlyle last Thursday, said Parros would be a game-time decision. He also said Bonino wouldn’t play against the Kings, who won the teams’ first two meetings this season.

--Boudreau said he’s still getting up to speed and learning about his players. He held a long meeting after the skate Tuesday but said it was game-specific and geared toward the Kings.

“We are still catching up. [Monday] was sort of catching up and learning what we’re trying to get done here,” he said. “Today is all about L.A. and how to try to beat them.”

--Among the players Boudreau said he was learning about is winger Matt Beleskey, who’s expected to play on a line with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry.

“When you’re in the East you don’t hear about Matt Beleskey and you don’t hear too much about Andrew Cogliano, even though he’s a Toronto boy and played in Edmonton, where you pretty well hear hockey 24/7,” said Boudreau, who previously coached the Washington Capitals.

“But you don’t hear about those guys and [Maxime] Macenauer, I didn’t know at all who he was until I got here. It’s intriguing to see what they can and can’t do, and that takes a little bit of time.”

--Winger Bobby Ryan said he liked the realignment plan that was approved Monday by the NHL's Board of Governors, a reconfiguration that will divide teams among four conferences — two with eight teams and two with seven teams — and will change the playoff format. He said the new alignment should reduce the travel for many teams, a problem in the West.

“We’re obviously a team that has some tough, challenging road trips. I’m all for it,” he said. “It should be interesting. Maybe a shakeup is just what we need.

“I do like the fact that you get to play every team in a home-and-home series. I think that’s important to establish rivalries and to keep those things fresh in people’s minds. Sometimes games go forgotten when it’s been so long between two teams playing.”

Boudreau also said he likes the new setup.

“I think it will create great rivalries and it makes it an awful lot easier for the teams in the West to play in the same time zone,” he said.

"Same thing with the Central and the Eastern teams. It’s going to be really tough to make the playoffs, but it’s not a walk in the park. This is what sports is all about. I think they did a great job.”

Check back later for coverage of the Kings-Ducks game at www.latimes.com/sports

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NHL Governors approve realignment to four conferences

The NHL’s Board of Governors on Monday approved a major realignment that will divide the 30 teams into four conferences and ensure every team will play each other at least twice a season.

Under the current division-driven setup teams in the West and East often went years between visits, preventing fans from seeing favorites and hindering the league’s promotional efforts. Commissioner Gary Bettman used his considerable influence to persuade some reluctant governors of Eastern Conference teams to agree to extra travel for the greater benefit of the league.

The NHL Players’ Assn. must offer its input into the plan before it can go into effect. That's expected to happen before next season, though it might be delayed until 2013-14.

As recommended, the top four teams from each of the four still-unnamed conferences will qualify for the playoffs. The first two rounds of the playoffs will be contested within each conference, with the No. 1 team playing the No. 4 team and the winners then facing each other. The four conference champions would then play each other and the winners would advance to the Stanley Cup final.

“We like the fact that every team on the East Coast will come to L.A.,” said Luc Robitaille, the Kings’ president of business operations and their representative at the governors' meetings in Pebble Beach.

“We think it’s a great thing for our fans and a great thing for us.”

A spokesman for the Ducks said they also voted in favor of the plan.

The realignment, the first major change for the league since it went to six divisions for the 1998-99 season, will abolish those divisions in favor of four conferences. The proposed new conferences are:

• Kings, Ducks, San Jose, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Colorado and Phoenix.

• Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, Minnesota, Nashville, Columbus, Winnipeg and Dallas.

• Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Boston, Buffalo, Florida and Tampa Bay.

• Philadelphia, New York Rangers, New York Islanders, New Jersey, Washington and Carolina.

In the seven-team conferences, teams would play each other six times, three home and three away. In the eight-team conferences, teams would play each other five or six times a season on a rotating basis.

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Photo: In the new conference alignments, Teemu Selanne (left) and the Ducks will still be a primary rival of Brad Richardson and the Kings. Credit: Jake Roth / US Presswire