Former NHL referee Kerry Fraser hasn't been forgiven for missed call

Today is a big day in hockey history—especially for fans of the Kings and the Toronto Maple Leafs.

It was on this day in 1993 that the Kings benefited from a missed high stick by Wayne Gretzky against Doug Gilmour in Game 6 of the conference finals against the Toronto Maple Leafs and went on to win that game and the series in Toronto. The Kings advanced to what remains their only appearance in the Stanley Cup final in their history and lost to Montreal in five games.

Some Toronto fans still haven’t forgiven the Game 6 referee, Kerry Fraser, for his mistake in not calling a penalty on Gretzky. Fraser addresses it well in the column he writes for Canada’s TSN.ca, and it's frightening to read about what he and his family endured as a result of that non-call.

Apparently his mea culpa isn’t enough for some folks. Read the comments if you have a few minutes and you’ll see that some Maple Leaf fans still haven’t let this go after all these years.

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--Helene Elliott

Photo: Referee Kenny Fraser in 1986. Credit: Joe Patronite / Getty Images

What was the Kings' 'Miracle on Manchester'? Way better than the Sharks' comeback, that's what. [Video]

So much is being said about the Sharks' comeback against the Kings on Tuesday night to win Game 3 of their playoff series in overtime. Comparisons are being drawn to the "Miracle on Manchester," Game 3 of the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs on April 10, 1982.

Nothing comes close to that comeback, not even the Sharks' victory Tuesday night in which they were down 3-0 after the first period and rallied in the second period to take the game to overtime, tied at 5-5. Neither the Kings nor the Sharks managed to score in the third period.

That 1982 game was, oh, so different. The Kings trailed the Wayne-Gretzky-led Edmonton Oilers 5-0 after two periods. Imagine being down 5-0 to the powerful Oilers with only one period left to play -- not two. Against Gretzky no less!

Yet the Kings went on to win in overtime, 6-5. Rookie Darryl Evans (now the color analyst on the Kings' radio broadcasts) had the winning goal. And they did it against All-Star goalie Grant Fuhr, who is now in the Hockey Hall of Fame. The Kings goaltender was Mario Lessard. And not even Jerry Buss, who then owned the Kings, thought his team would be making history. He left in the third period when the score was 5-1. Center Steve Bozek, another Kings rookie, tied the score with five seconds left in regulation.

This game remains the greatest playoff comeback in the history of the NHL. Nothing comes close and the Kings went on to win the best-of-five series.

So maybe the Sharks need to pay a little more respect to NHL history and not equate what happened Tuesday night at Staples Center with what happened 29 years ago at the Forum. It isn't even close.

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-- Debbie Goffa

Stanley Cup playoffs: Ducks still have ducats left for first two games

While Anaheim officials try to lure the Maloofs, Ducks fans have been a bit aloof.

The Maloof family, owners of the NBA’s Sacramento Kings, are considering relocating to Anaheim. Ducks fans aren't a selling point at the moment. The team has not sold out its first two games of its Stanley Cup playoff series against the Nashville Predators, which starts tonight.

The belief that the Ducks would open on the road may have slowed sales. Team officials said sales picked up on Monday, after the series was announced. But the Ducks had only five sellouts this season, three in games against the Kings.

“Our staff has done an excellent job in the last 96 hours,” said Tim Ryan, the team's chief operating officer. “We are currently at 95% capacity, and depending on our walk-up this evening, we have a legitimate shot at a sellout.”

Part of that sellout will be freebies. A radio station handed out a pair of tickets to the first 100 cars with a Ducks sticker in the Honda Center parking lot Wednesday morning.

But who were those fans loyal to? It was a country western radio station and the Ducks do play Nashville.

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--Chris Foster

Photo: Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks set for a face off at Honda Center on April 8, 2011 in Anaheim, CA. The Ducks won 2-1 to clinch a berth in the playoffs. Credit: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

Kings looking to Ducks for help; Justin Williams returns to the ice

The Kings found themselves in an unaccustomed position Sunday: rooting for the Ducks.

A victory by the Ducks over the Dallas Stars on Sunday in regulation would clinch a playoff berth for the Kings and the Ducks -- as well as for the Phoenix Coyotes.

“Go Ducks,” defenseman Jack Johnson said after the Kings practiced in El Segundo and prepared for their flight to San Jose for Monday’s game against the Sharks.

The Kings and Ducks have never made the playoffs in the same season, so it’s odd that they could change that bit of history on the same day. The Ducks missed the playoffs last season while the Kings qualified for the first time since 2002.

After a six-game, first-round elimination at the hands of the Vancouver Canucks last spring the Kings entered this season with high expectations. They experienced some extremes in successes and slumps and lost the production and creativity of forwards Justin Williams and Anze Kopitar in the last two weeks, but they’re fourth in the ultra-competitive Western Conference and might earn home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

“Definitely our No. 1 goal coming into the season was making the playoffs. Surpassing what we did last year and getting further and deeper and, hopefully, winning is all we want,” center Jarret Stoll said. “That hasn’t changed.

“It’s been a lot of hard work. It’s been a long year. There’s been lots of ups and downs. There’s been a couple big downs, a couple big ups.”

Scott Niedermayer: Congratulations to the Chicago Blackhawks for winning the Stanley Cup

Four-time Stanley Cup winner Scott Niedermayer of the Ducks shares his unique perspective and thoughts with The Times' readers during the Stanley Cup finals. Here he reviews Chicago's Cup-clinching victory.

I’d like to thank the L.A. Times for giving me the opportunity to share my thoughts on a great Stanley Cup Final. I hope you enjoyed it!

Game 6 certainly didn’t disappoint…to win the Stanley Cup in overtime is a feeling unlike any other. When a goal is a scored in overtime, all of a sudden, your season is over. You’ve won the Stanley Cup. In overtime, your focus is still on hockey and what your job is. But when that goal goes in, it’s a pretty special moment. It reminded me a lot of when Jason Arnott scored in OT in Dallas, 10 years ago today (6/10/00, NJ’s Cup-clinching Game 6) on a nice pass from Patrick Elias. You just erupt. Everybody’s over at the bench and the party is on!

I think I saw (Patrick) Kane’s goal like everyone else. You saw that it went in and you said, ‘yeah, it went in, but where is it? What happened?’ A lot of people weren’t reacting the way you’d expect after a goal like that. I think everyone was second guessing themselves a little bit. It was interesting, but it was good to have a nice hard-fought game. Philly tying the game up late made it very entertaining to watch.
Going into that overtime, it seemed that Philly had the momentum. They scored the late goal to tie it up which is always a huge lift for any team. They could have won that game…and in Game 7, I’m sure they would have taken their chances with a best-of-one in Chicago. It’s tough – the amount of effort that they put in is equal to what Chicago did – every practice, every road trip, every hotel room, but they came away short. It’s a pretty empty feeling when you’re standing there, watching the other team lift the Cup. I’ve experienced that once as well – losing in the Stanley Cup Final in a Game 7 (to Colorado in 2001). It’s a pretty disappointing feeling for the next few weeks. But I think Philly can use these emotions as extra motivation next year to try and get back there.

On the other side, Chicago has some great times ahead. The amount of effort, energy, commitment, sacrifice…all that it takes to win the Stanley Cup, and then to actually realize that is amazing. You don’t have a lot of energy after you win, but it doesn’t really matter. You go out, celebrate and have a blast. You’ve been with your teammates for a long time competing together. A lot of these guys have been together for years. To reach a goal like that is a pretty special bond between everyone. They’re going to have a great time together, a lot of great memories from the playoffs and from these next few weeks.

I thought Jonathan Toews had a great playoffs overall and was deserving of the Conn Smythe. There’s probably some talk in this series that he maybe didn’t play quite as well, but that’s the way it goes for any player throughout the playoffs. You need other guys to step up and contribute and Chicago had other guys do it in this round for sure. He had a great playoffs through the whole two months. He’s a great player…he’s a hard working guy, he knows what it takes, he plays for the team and does all the right things.

Congratulations to both teams on great seasons. Chicago deserved the Stanley Cup, they have a great hockey club and they earned it over the last few months for sure.

-- Scott Niedermayer

Photos: The Chicago Blackhawks celebrate winning the Stanley Cup. Credit: All Bello, Getty Images.

Blackhawks, Flyers keep getting big television ratings

Overnight ratings for Game 5 of the NHL's Stanley Cup finals between the Chicago Blackhawks and Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday translated into 5.85 million viewers and a 3.3/6 rating. That's the best showing for a nonovertime Stanley Cup finals game since 2002, when the Carolina Hurricanes and Detroit Red Wings drew 6.85 million. Game 5 between Detroit and the Pittsburgh Penguins last year drew 4.45 million viewers. The highest-rated Stanley Cup finals game in recent years was a triple-overtime matchup between Detroit and Pittsburgh in 2008 that drew 6.25 million viewers.

-- Diane Pucin

Photo: Brent Sopel (5) and Niklas Hjalmarsson (4) of the Chicago Blackhawks handle the puck behind the net of teammate Antti Niemi in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup finals. Credit: Andre Ringuette / Getty Images.

Scott Niedermayer: One win from the Stanley Cup is a feeling unlike any other

Four-time Stanley Cup winner Scott Niedermayer of the Ducks shares his unique perspective and thoughts with The Times' readers during the Stanley Cup finals. Here he reviews Chicago's Game 5 victory over Philadelphia.

One win away from the Stanley Cup, but now comes the biggest challenge for Chicago. I’ve been lucky  enough to be in their position a few times, one win from a championship.  It’s a feeling unlike any other. You’re tremendously excited, and it’s very hard to control your emotions. I don’t think I’ve ever slept being in that position – I usually have a nap before every game, and I don’t think I’ve managed even two minutes of sleep before a game when you know you can clinch a Stanley Cup. They’re in an exciting position and it’s pretty important that they do their best to focus on what they did last game where they probably played their best game of the series.

I’m sure the leaders in the Chicago locker room will  just tell the team to "keep doing what we’ve been doing, focus on what we’ve been trying to do throughout the whole playoffs." I don’t know how much those words really get through, though, because it’s really exciting to be a hockey player and be that close to winning the Stanley Cup. You do your best though … of course you’re going to have your nerves and a bit of excitement before the game starts. But if you settle down quickly, you’re going to have your best chance of winning the Stanley Cup that night.

Another high-scoring game on Sunday. The game, the way it’s played now, it’s very unpredictable. Momentum changes numerous times each period. It’s tough to defend. The defenders aren’t allowed to do a lot of things to slow things down anymore. The offensive guys can control the puck in the offensive zone and they’ve all seem to be doing that.

Dustin Byfuglien really came alive last night. He’s performed so well for Chicago at different times during the playoffs. Then he’s had times where he’s been quiet. So, for him to step up in a big game like this and have the type of game he did was probably a big reason why the Hawks won. He seemed to be playing with a lot more intensity and with a big guy like that, he’s hard to stop.

Chris Pronger didn’t have his best game, but I’m sure he’ll be able to rebound. He’s played many big games and even a great player like him has had some bad ones. He knows how to regroup and refocus … he’s very good at it. I’m pretty confident he’s going to play a strong game on Wednesday.

Michael Leighton had a tough night too, but I think he can regain his confidence. It’s not going to be easy though. Chicago is going to want to finish it off in Philly. On the other hand, Philly has had success back at their rink, so they’ll get back in there and feel good about what they can do, as individuals and as a team. Hopefully they can, I’d like to see a Game 7!

--Scott Niedermayer

Photo: Chicago's Dustin Byfuglien and Philadelphia's Chris Pronger battle for position during the second period in Game 5 on Sunday. Jeff Haynes / Reuters

Flyers' Laperriere surprised by one aspect of Stanley Cup Final

Among the many attractions of writing about hockey is that so many of the players are good guys and so few are jerks. Most players are accommodating and some truly are terrific people that you’re glad you got to know.

Ian Laperriere, the scrappy Flyers forward and former King, is one of the nicest and most honest and unaffected guys you’ll meet in any sport. He made his NHL debut in the 1993-94 season with St. Louis and has gone on to play more than 1,000 games for the Rangers, Kings (where he spent parts of nine seasons), Avalanche and Flyers.

Until this season he never got close to playing in the Stanley Cup finals.

Being here, he said after the Flyers skated at the United Center Sunday morning in advance of Game 5 against the Blackhawks, has been an eye-opener -- but not for the reason you’d think.

“This is crazy,” he said, gesturing at the clusters of reporters interviewing players in the Flyers’ locker room.

“This is surreal. Like I’ve never seen anything like it. But it makes sense. There’s two teams left and everybody goes to the same spot. But until you see it you don’t really realize.”

The games themselves have not been surprising.

“On the ice the intensity is all I expected,” he said. “You try to enjoy it but you don’t until the end. You just go day by day.

“They say embrace it, enjoy, but you’ve got work to do. We only have five days left no matter. Hopefully looking back I’m going to have a huge smile on my face.”

Top NHL draft prospects Seguin and Hall looking forward to California dreaming

It has become a tradition for the NHL to bring the top prospects for the annual entry draft to the Stanley Cup Final to meet players and the media, and the five youngsters ranked first through fifth by the Central Scouting Bureau got to meet the Flyers and Blackhawks after the teams finished their morning skates Friday at the Wachovia Center.

They were scheduled to attend Game 4 of the Final Friday night, a memorable experience. But they’re in for an even bigger thrill when the draft is held June 25-26 at Staples Center. The occasion will be the first visit to California for No. 1-ranked Tyler Seguin of the Ontario Hockey League’s Plymouth Whalers and No. 2-ranked Taylor Hall of the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires, and they’re looking forward to it.

“I’ve heard it’s beautiful,” said Seguin, a center who shared the league scoring title with Hall at 106 points each. “It’s going to be an exciting day for my family and I. Just one step closer to the dream.”

Hall, a left wing, said he plans to be in the area for four days and will take batting practice with the Dodgers one day. “That’s going to be an awesome experience,” he said.

Edmonton has the No. 1 pick, with Boston scheduled to draft second because it got Toronto’s pick in the Phil Kessel trade. The Kings will choose 19th. The Ducks will choose 12th and either 29th or 30th, depending on the outcome of the Cup Final.

They acquired the Flyers’ first-round pick in the Chris Pronger trade last summer and that will be No. 29 if the Flyers lose to the Blackhawks and No. 30 if the Flyers rally to win the Cup.

Seguin and Hall are considered very close in talent level and potential. Seguin said even though they play different positions, their drive makes them more similar. “We’re both very competitive, passionate guys and we both want to be the best,” he said. “We both pushed each other all year long, whether it’s for the point race, which we tied in, or the rivalry between both our teams.”

Having Hall push him helped, Seguin said. “I think it was just a little extra. Even though we’d be up 5-1 I’d go out there and try to work my hardest. Maybe in the back of my mind it’s "Hey, you want to win the scoring race,” Seguin said.

“Obviously you want to be the best. Goal No. 1, I wanted to get No. 1 in the scoring race so that was a bit more for a drive.”

Hall compared his style to that of New Jersey winger Zach Parise. “He’s a feisty winger. He’s got that down-low-to-the-ground skating style and he’s a great player,” Hall said. He also said that while it would be an honor to be chosen first, he’s not hung up on that designation -- and that he spoke to Blackhawks winger Patrick Kane about Kane’s experiences before being chosen No. 1 in 2007.

“There were a few guys vying for the No. 1 pick when he was there,” Hall said, “and he said it really doesn’t matter in your NHL career. Either way you’re going to have an NHL career and it’s what you make of it there. So I think it would be an honor to go No. 1 and be included with those guys there but if not, I’m not going to be too depressed.”

Before Kane was drafted he was a guest at the 2007 Cup finals and was in Anaheim for the Ducks’ 1-0 victory over Ottawa in Game 2. “It was a really tight-checking game, so it was pretty cool,” he said. “The place was on fire.... We got to go see California and different things and meet a lot of high-end people at this level.”

More later from the Stanley Cup finals at www.latimes.com/sports

-- Helene Elliott, in Philadelphia

Stanley Cup Final Game 4, the morning skate

The Philadelphia Flyers, who made the playoffs by winning a shootout on the last day of the regular season and rebounded from an 0-3 deficit in the second round against Boston, are accustomed to playing — and winning — must-win games.

That could work in their favor tonight, when they try to win their second successive home game and tie their Stanley Cup Final series against the Chicago Blackhawks at two games each.

But the Blackhawks, who lost to the Flyers in overtime Wednesday in Game 3, have not lost two games in a row in the playoffs this spring. So an argument can be made that they’re well-prepared to bounce back tonight and put themselves in position to win the Cup in Chicago Sunday in Game 5.

That’s why they play the games, eh?

Flyers Coach Peter Laviolette, asked why his team seems so loose, said after the morning skate Friday that his team has no reason to feel tense because the pressure sits on the shoulders of the Blackhawks. He left out the minor detail about Chicago still leading the series two games to one.

“We're in a position where the pressure for us … it's almost like we're on borrowed time,” Laviolette said. “Like I said before, at Christmastime we were 29th in the league.  It comes down to the last game of the season.

“We are just a resilient group.  We keep pushing.  The pressure, I think, is more for teams that are expected to win, as the Blackhawks are, and everybody picked them before the series.  We don't concede anything.  We feel like we've got a confident group that's capable of winning hockey games.

“But I don't know if we feel the pressure as much.  We're trying to keep it light.  We're trying to have a whole bunch of fun.”

Not everyone picked the Blackhawks, but why let the facts get in the way of a good ploy?

Anyway, the Blackhawks  weren’t buying. Asked if Laviolette was playing mind games, Patrick Kane nodded yes.

“I’m sure it is,” the Blackhawks' winger said. “We don’t feel any pressure. We feel that we’re in the driver’s seat up, 2-1. We’re in a great position. We win this one and we can go back home and hopefully do some special things in front of our crowd.”

Kane scored his first goal of the Final on Wednesday, converting a breakaway. He’s hoping that will get him going.

“Anytime you can score and put some points on the board it helps your overall confidence,” he said. “Overall I thought I had a pretty good game. I thought I was headed in the right direction. Right now the biggest thing is building off that and try to get more opportunities and try to create even more.”

The Blackhawks might have one lineup change. Forward Andrew Ladd, who missed the first three games because of an unspecified injury, is a game-time decision, Coach Joel Quenneville said. If he’s back, it’s likely that Adam Burish would be scratched. 

Laviolette wouldn’t say if he plans to make any lineup changes.

More later at www.latimes.com/sports, including some comments from Taylor Hall and Tyler Seguin, projected to be the first and second picks at the NHL entry draft June 25 at Staples Center.

-- Helene Elliott in Philadelphia

Scott Niedermayer: More aggressive play led to Philadelphia's win in Game 3 of Stanley Cup finals

Four-time Stanley Cup winner Scott Niedermayer of the Ducks shares his unique perspective and thoughts with The Times' readers during the Stanley Cup finals. Here he reviews the Philadelphia Flyers' 4-3 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 3.

Another close, competitive, hard-fought game. This has been a great series to watch with all the games going down to the last minute. It seemed to me that Philadelphia was more aggressive. They finished more checks, they had an extra jump in their step, they were moving the puck better, they were putting the puck on net and had guys crashing the net more than Chicago did. I think they got rewarded for doing all of those things.

Getting that tying goal 20 seconds after falling behind was a huge thing for Philly. They seemed to carry the momentum after that. They had most of the opportunities after that and then getting the win in overtime. So, to be able to answer a goal like that very quickly was a huge help for them.

For Philly to get two power-play goals and to hold Chicago to none, that’s a huge advantage. Chicago is going to need a power-play goal here at some point to win the series and get their power play going. It seemed to me that Chicago’s power play last night was very much around the outside. They weren’t trying to direct the puck to the net or get people in the middle of the ice as much as they need to. So maybe that’s something they can try to do a better job at.

In the third, I think Philly just had that extra jump in their step. They seemed to be the team that was instigating a lot of things. They were the aggressive team trying to get the puck to the net. When you do that, you’re going to get shots and opportunities. It’s a big reason why they won the game.