In their latest NHL roundtable, Times staffers size up where the Kings and Ducks are at and where they're headed in 2022 amid the COVID outbreak.
It has been nearly 10 years since Jack Jablonski was paralyzed during a high school hockey game, but his spirit for life remains unbroken.I think that’s very fair to say, but I agree with Helene, it’s so hard to predict where these teams might end up because of all the protocols, postponed games, injuries and other factors.Yes, as Helene has pointed out, the pandemic has thrown a wrench into this season again. Unless it calms down, both teams are going to be tested with depth.
Stone: Not to be a downer, but we can’t ignore elephant in the locker room: COVID. Logistical nightmare, for sure, especially with the unique Canada issue. Is there a concern, too, about the quality of play deteriorating, at least in the short term? It’s always flawed to compare sports, but I watched that New Orleans-Miami “Monday Night Football” game and the COVID impact was so obvious. Is there a danger of this in the NHL?Absolutely. We’ve seen that on a widespread basis in the NBA.
You have to remember, this is a league that is perfectly fine with using emergency goalies who, although we love their back stories, have no business playing in the NHL. It absolutely impacts quality of play. And a reminder here that even AHL games are being postponed at this point.I’m not sure if we’ll see that in the NHL since the league is shutting down entire teams if there’s an outbreak among a handful players.
Stone: How about that Bruce Boudreau? Maybe the Kings can find some of that magic our old Southland friend has conjured in the last three weeks?I tweeted it after he got hired: Death, taxes and NHL teams having a great honeymoon with Bruce Boudreau.Darryl Sutter, circa 2011-12? I don’t think the Canucks march to the Cup, but it’s fun to see teams turn it around and respond positively to a major change.
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