Jewels from the Crown: for Los Angeles Kings fans

With the Kings in a vicious struggle for one of the available Western Conference playoff spots, the return of Jeff Carter and consecutive wins over Vegas have provided a huge boost. We're thinking bigger than the playoffs, though. We're thinking of a future led by Jack Campbell, who now has a .979 save percentage as a Los Angeles King. We're dreaming of Dion Phaneuf scoring 12 power play goals in the playoffs. We're hoping that Torrey Mitchell and Nate Thompson combine into a two-headed penalty-killing, faceoff-winning, low-scoring juggernaut that gets signed to a seven-year contract worth a total of $7 million. We're envisioning a third line of Tobias Rieder, Adrian Kempe, and Trevor Lewis skating all over opponents. (Actually, that one might be possible once Lewis is back.) The trade deadline has worked out all right so far, and Eric and Sarah are here to talk about how things look for the Kings down the stretch.

Tonight’s Jewelcast should be... let’s say... cautiously pessimistic.

I know that’s a weird way to get you to listen, but instead of the fire and brimstone that would have been aired during a seven-game losing streak, we’re only going to be mostly annoyed. We’re not sure how many of us will be talking, and not sure how much we’re going to talk about the good (Trevor, Jake, Jeff) versus the bad (Tyler, Tanner, Losing), but we’ll be talking about the Los Angeles Kings. We promise that no matter where the tangents go, we still think the Kings can make the playoffs... you know, if enough things go right. Tune in at 6:30 PM Pacific.

EXPECTED TOPICS: The Kings Finally Won A Game, The Kopitar-Doughty-Quick Trio, Second-Line Strugglers, It’s A-Me Amadio, Trevor Lewis Can’t Lose, Derek!, Jake!, Deadline Priorities, Around the Pacific, Jeff Carter Lives

We are 42 games into the 2017-18 season, and the Los Angeles Kings are taking a week off. Good timing, as we have a lot to say and some time to say it! Tonight, Sarah, James, and Eric break down how the Kings have managed to carry their decent form through a tough part of the schedule, and whether they'll be able to avoid their annual winter slump. Can LA continue to get contributions from their old guard of Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, and Marian Gaborik? Are Jonathan Quick and Darcy Kuemper who we think they are? Will Tyler Toffoli actually hit 40 goals? Plus, the defensemen are rather... diverse... in their performances as of late. We will hand out some midseason honors and project the rest of the season in tonight's Jewelcast!

Our last podcast was just six days ago, but it took place in an uncertain time. Adrian Kempe had picked up a hat trick and the Kings had won five of six, but Jeff Carter had been injured and there were still some issues with certain Kings. Since then, LA has put together another three wins in four games, including a couple of dramatic wins and a victory in Montreal which wasn't well-represented by the final score. Even so, LA has handled this road trip exactly as the fans hoped they would, and they've put themselves in a great position as October winds down.

Eric, Sarah, and James (the other one this time!) are talking Quick, Kempe, Kopitar, Brown, Toffoli, Muzzin, Martinez, Doughty, and more in a rare postgame Jewelcast. We might even argue about all the defensemen again! Join us for sixty minutes of happy victory talk.

Six games in, everything had gone about as well for the Los Angeles Kings as it possibly could have. However, one major injury suddenly has fans feeling a fair bit of panic, especially as the Kings hit the road for the next couple weeks. Will LA be able to take the best shot of six home teams without last season’s leading scorer?

Even if LA doesn’t stay undefeated in regulation, there’s plenty of good news to discuss from the first chunk of the season. Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown are productive, Adrian Kempe and Michael Cammalleri came to life, the defensemen and goalies have been solid from top to bottom, and the Kings are fun to watch under new head coach John Stevens. Eric, James L., and Robyn will discuss the Kings’ 5-0-1 start from every angle, talk about a whirlwind 48 hours, and make at least one plea for Jeff Carter’s well-being.

We're only ten days out from the 2017-18 NHL season, and it really snuck up on us! Fortunately, the Los Angeles Kings have kept our attention with a new coach, a trip to China to beat the Canucks, plenty of preseason intrigue, and the same old guys doing some different things.

With the preseason ongoing, we're calling this our first official Jewelcast of THIS season. We're also going to try having four of us on at once, which should lead to all of us agreeing on everything. (OK, that's unlikely.) James, Sarah, Robyn, and Eric of Jewels from the Crown will discuss the two preseason games in China and the one with the leftovers in Anaheim, as well as the position battles at defenseman, goaltender, and down the wings. Plus, are the additions of John Stevens and Mike Cammalleri making us more or less optimistic for the season ahead? We've also written about a bunch of prospects in the last month, and some might even make the team, so we'll chat about those dudes.

Tune in at 6:30 PM Pacific until... whenever we feel like stopping.

The Los Angeles Kings have been creatures of habit for quite some time now. Call it an organizational philosophy. But so far, the offseason has changed all of that.

Some of it was by necessity. LA was always going to lose a player to Las Vegas. Tanner Pearson and Tyler Toffoli were always getting new contracts. A top-five prospect dropped into LA's lap at #11 in the draft. Matt Greene appears to potentially be done playing hockey. And either Darryl Sutter or Dean Lombardi was probably going to take the fall for three straight disappointing seasons.

Some of it was by choice, though! BOTH Sutter and Lombardi departed, and the Kings handed the reins to an assistant coach and a first-time GM. The Kings left themselves more cap freedom heading into July 1 than anyone predicted. The new play-by-play announcer is younger than half the roster. And LA's second-round draft pick broke the mold... not just because he's under six feet (whoa!), but because his unique story of being raised by two women has given the organization an equally unique opportunity.

Not everything has changed, though; LA still has Dustin Brown and Marian Gaborik, still loves NCAA defensemen and OHL dudes, and will probably still skate Andy Andreoff, Jordan Nolan, and Kyle Clifford together at some point next season!

Eric and Sarah are here to talk about what's gone down over the past couple months. Join us!

Ah, yes, the Kings and the Ducks. A rivalry as old as time itself.

(CORRECTION: A rivalry that's 24 years old.)

Last year, the Ducks continued their regular season dominance of the Pacific Division by nipping the Kings at the finish line, by one point. Odds are, it isn't going to be that close this year between the two; while the Ducks are five points out of the division lead, the Kings are fifteen out, and fighting just to make the playoffs. Eric (from Jewels from the Crown) and CJ (from Anaheim Calling) will discuss the last matchup and the next matchup between LA and Anaheim, as well as trade deadline buzz, the season-long slumps of Anze Kopitar and Corey Perry, goaltending, and the rest of the Pacific race.

We now find ourselves about two-thirds of the way through the NHL season, and as usual, the Kings are hanging on the edge of the playoff picture. That means there's both good and bad to talk about, but thanks to a recent five-game winning streak, we'll spend most of our time on the good! Eric and Derek talk about the glory of 3-on-3 overtime, Jeff Carter, and Peter Budaj, and speculate on which Eastern teams are the biggest threats and on whether the Kings' blueline will stay intact into next season. Oh, and Tyler Toffoli is back. That's good too.

What a game. (At least, we assume it was good, but we wrote this description early.) We're more than halfway through the season and five matchups with last year's conference champions, so we should now have at least a LITTLE bit of insight regarding the Kings and the Pacific Division. Find out what Eric from Jewels from the Crown and Jake from Fear the Fin actually know as they review the season so far, preview the All-Star Game in Los Angeles, and let their minds wander.