Kings

The Ducks won game 4 last night and so are up 3-1 over the Senators; they could win the Cup on Wednesday. Wow.

Strange to think it’s been four years since their battle with the Devils in the finals. That year (2003) it was New Jersey taking two games at home, then the Ducks returning the favor, and back and forth till the Devils won Game 7 on their ice. Just like then, I’m divided about the Ducks winning.

As a Kings fan, I’d sure rather the Ducks wouldn’t win the Cup first, and with what I like to refer to as my Canadian-American heritage ;) I wouldn’t mind seeing the Sens win.

At the same time, how cool would it be for a California team to win?

Strange to think about Kings hockey starting again whilst ramping up for the baseball playoffs, but here we are. And it looks like new GM Dean Lombardi has pulled off another good trade for the near and farther future, swapping players with the Carolina Hurricanes.

NHL.com: “Kings land Johnson for pair”

Unable to get defenseman Jack Johnson’s signature on an entry-level contract after several overtures, the Carolina Hurricanes decided to go in a different direction Friday afternoon with their star-in-waiting.

Johnson, who is about to embark on his sophomore season with the University of Michigan hockey program, was the centerpiece of a four-player trade consummated with the Los Angeles Kings. Carolina sent Johnson, the third-overall selection in the 2005 Entry Draft, and veteran defenseman Oleg Tverdovsky to the Kings in exchange for young defenseman Tim Gleason and veteran forward Eric Belanger.

Allan Muir over at SI.com seems to think the Kings robbed the Hurricanes blind: “Blue chip for peanuts”

A few months back, Carolina’s Jim Rutherford earned accolades as the NHL’s Executive of the Year. This morning, he did his best to help Los Angeles GM Dean Lombardi follow in his footsteps.

Truth be told, the Kings aren’t likely to reap the benefits this season of the deal that brought them promising defenseman Jack Johnson and veteran Oleg Tverdovsky for Tim Gleason and Eric Belanger. But, in time, this one has the potential to go down as a legacy maker. We’re talking Cam Neely and Glen Wesley for Barry Pederson territory here.

Later, he says Johnson has the potential to be a dominant D-man in the mold of Rob Blake. Not too shabby.

The Kings season starts October 6th in Anaheim. Game on!

At last, star status for Kings’ Miller

Understandably, Bob Miller wasn’t really sure how he was supposed to react a couple years ago when he was told that he’d been selected to have a Hollywood Walk of Fame star cementing his legacy on Hollywood Boulevard.

“The first thing I did was go down there to see how many of the names on that sidewalk I recognized,” the Kings’ Hockey Hall of Fame play-by-play man said. “And there were a lot of ‘em that I had no idea who they were.”

Bob’s star will be at 6763 Hollywood Blvd. We’ve been blessed here in Southern California with the best of the best broadcasters.

• Vin Scully, Dodgers — 6675 Hollywood Blvd.
• Chick Hearn, Lakers — 6755 Hollywood Blvd.

So this was anticipated yet still a surprise. Not a “Holy Mother of God, I just soiled myself!” surprise — more a, “Huh. Weird.” surprise. Rob Blake returns to the Kings.

With the Kings, Blake was a four-time all-star who helped the team to the 1993 Stanley Cup finals, and won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s top defenceman in 1998. He was the team’s captain from 1996-2001 and one of its most popular players.

Blake was a target for fan hostility whenever he returned to play at Staples Center, but he hopes all will be forgiven.

“I hope it’s a warm reception,” he said. “I think things will be put behind us.”

We’ll see about that.

Read the rest of this article at blogging.la…

NBA championship just ending. World Cup in full effect. NHL Draft today with some great youthful direction by the new LA Kings leadership between picks and trades. Very soon, the Tour de France takes over the month of July. And all the while, the Dodgers are plugging away amid an optimistic struggle. And I hear tell there’s an American football league starting training camps.

My brain may well explode. :)