SPORTS
April 25, 2014 | Lisa Dillman
Justin Williams reached back and delivered some of his Game 7 playoff magic for the Kings in Game 4. For the Kings, it might as well have been Game 7. Justin Time. Or should that be Just In Time? With the Kings facing playoff elimination against the San Jose Sharks on Thursday night, Williams, who had been without a point in the first three games, scored twice in the Kings' 6-3 victory over the Sharks in Game 4 at Staples Center. San Jose leads the best-of-seven Western Conference quarterfinal series, three games to one. Game 5 will be on Saturday in San Jose.
SPORTS
April 25, 2014 | Helene Elliott
Sometimes, coaches make lineup decisions based on a gut feeling. When those decisions backfire, their gut feelings can become spasms of tension, anxiety, and early-playoff-exit regrets. Ducks Coach Bruce Boudreau, fighting a reputation of being unable to lead talented teams in Washington and Anaheim deep into postseason play, made several decisions Friday that proved pivotal in the 6-2 victory that gave the Ducks a 3-2 lead over the Dallas Stars in the teams' opening-round playoff series.
SPORTS
April 24, 2014 | Helene Elliott
Their big guys played big, the leaders led by fearless example, and the Kings, on the brink of going home for the summer, got the result they so urgently needed, a 6-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Thursday at Staples Center that extended their season by at least one more game. "We're alive," said winger Marian Gaborik, who played a huge part in resuscitating them by scoring their first and fifth goals. Justin Williams scored twice in a three-goal spree in the second period, and rookie Tyler Toffoli chipped in with the kind of skillful goal the Kings need from him in the short- and long-term future.
SPORTS
April 24, 2014 | By Lisa Dillman
The band is getting back together. Well, at least two-thirds of it. Based on line rushes at Thursday's morning skate at Staples Center, it appears as though Kings captain Dustin Brown and center Anze Kopitar will be reunited for Game 4 against the Sharks on Tuesday night. They were a fixture, along with winger Justin Williams, during the Kings' run to the Stanley Cup in 2012, and a frequent partnership during many of their years with the Kings. There is a slight wrinkle, however, as Marian Gaborik was with them on Thursday morning.
SPORTS
April 23, 2014 | By Eric Pincus
Lakers guards Nick Young and Jordan Farmar are enjoying the off-season, making appearances at a Kings game at Staples Center on Tuesday and taking in a Dodgers game Wednesday. Young and Farmar grew up in Los Angeles -- Young played for Cleveland High School in Reseda while Farmar went to Taft in Woodland Hills. Both joined the Lakers last summer. Farmar, originally drafted in 2006 with the 26th overall pick by the team, was in his second stint after playing overseas in Turkey.
SPORTS
April 22, 2014 | By Lisa Dillman
He happens to be the kind of hard-working, energetic player coaches like and trust, so it is not entirely surprising that forward Colin Fraser was recalled by the Kings on Tuesday. The timing was slightly surprising, though, coming on the eve of Game 3 of the playoffs against the San Jose Sharks. Fraser had been sent down to the Kings' American Hockey League affiliate in Manchester, N.H., on Feb. 9, and it seemed like he might never get the call to come back. “There's always the hope you get called up,” Fraser said after Tuesday's morning skate at Staples Center.