At first it was Ben Scrivens.
Ben Scrivens who has posted a league leading .947 save percentage and a second overall 1.56 goals against on a 7-2-4 season thus far.
Now it is Martin Jones. Who? Undrafted, free agent signee, 23-year old Martin Jones. Who in four NHL games is undefeated, with two shutouts, and a .974 save percentage. His latest accomplishment, back to back 30+ save efforts against Montreal and Toronto on the road. The calm 6-foot-4 tender has put in four strong performances so far in the NHL, and in all likelihood will see a few more before he inevitably returns to the AHL.
Take a look at Jones career stats here:
It seems as though the Kings and their fans have come a long long way from that fateful moment when Jonathan Quick was removed from the game in Buffalo on November 12th. Be real, everyone's heart sunk into the pit of their stomach at that point and asked, "Well what do we do now?" Fear not though, the King relief tandem of Jones and Scrivens have posted a 10-1-4 record since the departure of the franchise goaltender. They've also put up a fantastic .955 save percentage and 1.28 goals against.
It wasn't long ago that the Kings had very little in the goaltending department. However, in recent years the franchise has developed not one, not two, but what looks like now three legit goaltenders. Is it talent between the pipes? Or a system that allows them to flourish? A little but of both I'd say.
The Kings are also quietly getting one of the best seasons ever from defenseman Drew Doughty, whose name is certainly in the early conversations for the Norris trophy. Tyler Toffoli is continuing to shine in his rookie season and is also likely in early conversations for the Calder Trophy considering his point percentage is highest of any rookie playing right now at .83 PPG (Hertl - .74, Kreider - .68). He is also second only to Hampus Lindholm of Anaheim with a +11 rating among rookies.
As I blogged about earlier in the season, injuries have definitely opened the door for several players to step up and prove their worth in the NHL. For the full blog
check it out right here.
In fact, the Kings are doing historically well right now. After the 3-1 win against Toronto the Kings PR twitter account tweeted out the following:
And also:
It has been a complete team effort for the Kings. While the offense has certainly slowed (Aside from a breakout drubbing of the Montreal Canadiens) and the powerplay has had trouble putting up numbers, it looks very eerily similar to the cup winning team of 2011-12. This team grinds people down, and finds ways to win. One of the strengths of the Kings squad currently is they find different ways to win each night. The offensive breakout against Montreal, a victory while being thoroughly outplayed by Toronto, a shootout against the Ducks, they are all different. However, the results are remaining the same.
It's all just to keep pace though in a wild Western Conference. Even though the Kings are off to their best start in franchise history, they still remain in third place in the Western Conference behind Anaheim and Chicago and second in the division behind their cross town rivals. Call it crazy, but the Kings are only six points, or three wins, out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Meanwhile, out East, a 46 point record would be good enough for a 15 points gap from eight place. So while the Kings are playing some wonderful hockey right now, they will have to continue to do so in a historically strong Western Conference. I don't think it's any question that come playoff time at least a few of the strongest teams will be out golfing even though they deserve to be playing. The disparity between the two conferences right now is absolutely mind boggling.
The big question for the Kings now is what will happen when Quick comes back? The goaltender is slated to skate on Thursday, and after some prep work with Manchester should be good to go by the New Year. How will he fit in? Will the Kings tenacity let up? Or was his departure enough to electroshock them into gear for the rest of the year? How will Jones react to inevitably being sent back down upon his return?
Those things remain to be seen, but what is obvious is that the Kings are white hot. Not even the ice cold winters on the East Coast seem to be chilling them.
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