No one thought that they could, but why would they? No eighth seeded team in North American sports history had ever gone on to win a championship. This changed in 2012 when the Los Angeles Kings became the first ever eighth seed to win a championship when they brought Los Angeles its first ever Stanley Cup.
The team had the makings of a dynasty. Behind the emergence of Jonathan Quick, who would make his name as one of the best goalies in the league, the Kings showcased why their team won it all. With dynamic players such as Anze Kopitar, Jeff Carter, Mike Richards, Dustin Brown and Drew Doughty, the Kings finally made hockey relevant in Los Angeles.
Unfortunately 2013 did not continue this Cinderella run, when the Kings lost to the Blackhawks of Chicago four games to one in the Western Conference Finals. Though this loss was a heartbreaker to say the least, the Kings showed that they were for real, not just a one-year fluke.
The 2013-2014 season went well for the Kings, despite playing in the Western Conference, where the Kings finished sixth, finishing with 100 points. This year they weren’t going to be able to make a Cinderella run as the eighth seed, so they decided to do it another way. No team before in the history of the National Hockey League has won three Game Sevens on the road in the playoffs before. The Kings added their name to the record books once again.
The Kings found themselves in a three games to none hole in the first round against the San Jose Sharks in the first round. They were then able to go on an incredible four game win streak to take the series four games to three. Next up was another California team as the Kings went against the Anaheim Ducks. The Kings took out the Western Conference’s number one team, once again winning Game Seven in Anaheim. Finally they found themselves in a rematch of last year’s Western Conference Finals against the Blackhawks.
After going up three games to one, the tables were turned on the Kings, who lost two in a row to tie the series up at three apiece, with the series going back to Chicago. Despite being down by two goals, the Kings rallied back forcing an overtime, before Alec Martinez put away the Stanley Cup clinching goal past Chicago goalie Corey Crawford.
The Kings now find themselves four games away from a second Stanley Cup in three years, with the New York Rangers standing in their way. This is the first time that Los Angeles and New York have gone up against each other in a “big four” championship since 1981 (when the LA Dodgers beat the Yankees four games to two in the World Series). New York isn’t a team to be taken lightly, as they had to defeat Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Montreal on their way to their first Stanley Cup appearance since 1994.
If you were betting on this series however, it is recommended that you put your money on the Kings. The Kings have the home court advantage, which is extremely beneficial, especially seeing how close most of the playoff games this year have gone. It starts with goaltending: Quick, or “JQuick”, is the man you want in goal when the finals are on the line. Quick has shown some inconsistency this postseason, but when push came to shove he was able to hold his end long enough for his team to win. He’s a veteran who has been in this kind of pressure situation before knows how to do it again. The Kings defense, behind Doughty, Martinez, Jake Muzzin and Slaya Voynov, played a key part in a Kings team that led the league with a league leading two goals against per game average.
The offense wasn’t the best this season, averaging 2.4 goals per game, 26th in the league. But Kopitar, Carter, Marian Gaborik and Justin Williams have all had a tremendous playoff push, with each having at least 18 points. As long as the Kings are able to put up the goals, Quick will be able to hold his end in the goal. When July 1st comes around, the only question you will be asking is “What kind of LA Kings Champions 2014 shirt do I want?”
Connor Anthony can be reached at connor.anthony@spartans.ut.edu.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Kings won Game One of the Stanley Cup Finals last night over the Rangers last night in overtime by the score of 3-2. L.A’s Justin Williams scored the game winning goal.