The latter portion of this week marks the anniversary of an event in Los Angeles Kings history that can legitimately be rated higher than even the ice-shattering acquisition of Wayne Gretzky.
Thursday, Dec. 20 marked exactly one year since Darryl Sutter was summoned to fill the coaching vacancy left by Terry Murray and interim coach John Stevens. Friday marks one year since Sutter started drawing up the drills in practice and Saturday will be the 366th day (this being a leap year) since his debut behind the bench.
The move L.A. management made in late 2011 soon amounted to the NHL’s top on-ice story of 2012.
For those who have been on an Antarctic expedition for the last 12 months, Sutter proceeded to brew a variety pack of historic milestones.
He went 25-13-11 in the regular season and 16-4 in the playoffs for a cumulative 69-game record of 41-17-11. The initially struggling Kings barely earned the last available Stanley Cup tournament passport, but proved they belonged by becoming the first eighth-seeded squad to win the title, the franchise’s first in its 45 years of existence.
As indebted as the Kings ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Al Daniel
L.A. Kings: Darryl Sutter’s Tenure as Head Coach Reaches the One-Year Mark
December 21st, 2012 by Al Daniel Leave a reply »
Advertisement