The Return of Teddy

After 9 games of being a healthy scratch, Teddy Purcell took to the ice in the game Thursday night versus the Buffalo Sabres... one which they won in a shoot out, 4-3. I of course had to take note of Teddy's return after such a long absence (after such a hot start).

The day before the game, Coach Terry was talking about all the good things that Purcell was doing on and off the ice and felt that he deserved to be back in the lineup. It's unfortunate actually that Ted has had such a cold hand. It's not as if he's playing a bad game, which was very evident last night. He played with a tonne of jump and worked very hard at times to make things happen. Even though he again was kept off the score sheet, his work ethic was very clear. It must have been, because he'll continue to be in the lineup tonight as the Kings start their 5 game road trip taking on the Detroit Red Wings.

Speaking of which, let's focus on that for a second. This afterall is a very important game for both teams. As of right now, they sit in 7th and 8th place, LA Detroit respectively, but they are seperated by a mere 1 point. If the Kings win they will jump over Nashville to hold 6th place, but if they lose Detroit will take over 7th spot and the Kings will remain only 1 point ahead of the Calgary flames who are in 9th.

Did I happen to mention that the West is very very tight? Well, the west is very tight. Very. Let's hope that Teddy can get that monkey off his back tonight and help the Kings climb to 6th!


Technorati
LA Kings, Hockey, NHL