The Los Angeles Kings are stuck in a serious rut, sitting toward the bottom of the Western Conference after two straight losses, and head coach Peter Laviolette is not sugarcoating a single thing. After Wednesday’s practice, Laviolette flat out said, “What we’re doing isn’t good enough.” It’s a wake-up call after a season marked by frustration for the NHL’s oldest team.
The Brutal Truth After a 3-0 Shutout
Last night’s 3-0 shutout loss to the Nashville Predators brought a lot of issues to the surface, and Laviolette called them out point blank. He highlighted how the problems were widespread, not just one or two things. “We gave up odd man rushes,” he admitted, but quickly added, “last night it spread across quite a few subjects.” The coach didn’t stop there, pointing out, “I thought we were spread out. We turned the puck over in the neutral zone. I don’t think we defended well enough.” This isn’t just a minor tweak; it sounds like a fundamental breakdown. Laviolette made it clear to his team in a meeting: “Unless we clean these things up, it’s not going to get better.”
Accountability vs. Moving On
The Kings are trying to figure out how to shake off these tough losses while also holding themselves accountable. Defenseman Joel Edmundson pushed for the “move on” mentality, saying, “Sometimes things don’t go your way, and it’s easy to beat yourself up. But, you know, [let’s] come in today, have a good practice, good energy, put everything in the past. All we can do is move on to the next game.”
But Laviolette, ever the results-oriented coach, isn’t letting them off that easy. He acknowledged the need to move on, but countered, “I do think that inside of that, there’s got to be some accountability to what it is that we do the night before.” He’s looking at everything, from changing ice time and taking players out of the lineup to one-on-one meetings, team video, and just plain talking to players. While the Kings might be the oldest team in the league and their age is showing in team speed, they’re hoping that veteran experience can pull them through. The impending return of Kevin Fiala could also provide a much needed boost. But for Laviolette, talk is cheap if the wins aren’t there. “Younger player, veteran player, veteran group, it’s not good enough,” he reiterated, “Can’t just keep rolling. We’ve got to move in a different direction here.”
The Kings are back on the ice tomorrow night at 7 p.m. against the New York Islanders. It’s the sixth game of a seven-game homestand, and they desperately need to find some answers.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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