Mikael Samuelsson managed a rare feat on Friday night, chasing two goalies from Vancouver's 7-2 win in Game 5 of its playoff series against Los Angeles.
Samuelsson's first goal - the Canucks' fourth of the game - got Jonathan Quick pulled. Erik Ersberg came on in relief and allowed two goals on four shots, getting the hook after just 13 minutes when Samuelsson notched his second of the night and Quick was put back in the game.
Kings head coach Terry Murray is not too concerned about his starting goalie, saying one of the things he likes best about Quick is his "mental toughness ... he can move past bad games and get over it."
Samuelsson leads all playoff scorers with seven goals.
Funny, how?
The game ended with a pair of scraps that had been a long time coming. First, Shane O'Brien and Wayne Simmonds dropped the gloves, followed very shortly after by Rick Rypien and Rich Clune.
O'Brien and Simmonds have been chirping at each other since Game 1. After the fight, O'Brien gestured to the crowd, putting his arms in the air to signal No. 1. When asked about the fight after the game, Murray said, "You mean O'Brien acting like a clown?"
The coach later elaborated: "You don't need to rub it in afterwards by skating around raising your arms in the air like the clown O'Brien is."
Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault was also asked about O'Brien's antics, and with a half-smile said "I don't care."
Constant refrain
The Kings scored their first goal of the game on the power play, making it 10 power-play goals in five playoff games. L.A. finished the game 1-for-5 on the man advantage as the Canucks were able to shut them down after their first opportunity, even killing off a 5-on-3 in the second period.
Vigneault was impressed with what he saw from the penalty kill, saying "You just have to stay mentally strong and fight through it ... Washington was the best team in the league on the power play this year and they're 1-for-25 ... Call it hockey gods or puck luck, whatever it is, our guys battled through and it's behind us."
Welcome back, Alberts
Vancouver defenceman Andrew Alberts was back in the lineup after a two game stint in the doghouse. Alberts racked up 23 minutes in penalties in the first two games of the series, but played Friday because of an injury to Nolan Baumgartner in Game 4.
Alberts kept it simple, playing just over 15 minutes. He was a plus-2 in the game and even picked up an assist on a late goal by Steve Bernier.
When Vigneault announced Alberts would be going back in, he said he expected the fans to embrace him, and they did. After Alberts let a puck get past him at the blue-line, a few boos were heard, but they were soon drowned out by a rousing chant of "Let's go Alberts!"
Vigneault said Alberts surely "appreciated the fans cheering his name. That's probably the first time in his career."
King of the circle
You can't score if you don't have possession of the puck, and Henrik Sedin did everything he could to make sure the Kings didn't get it on his watch. Sedin was 19-4 in the face-off circle Friday night.
Samuelsson's first goal - the Canucks' fourth of the game - got Jonathan Quick pulled. Erik Ersberg came on in relief and allowed two goals on four shots, getting the hook after just 13 minutes when Samuelsson notched his second of the night and Quick was put back in the game.
Kings head coach Terry Murray is not too concerned about his starting goalie, saying one of the things he likes best about Quick is his "mental toughness ... he can move past bad games and get over it."
Samuelsson leads all playoff scorers with seven goals.
Funny, how?
The game ended with a pair of scraps that had been a long time coming. First, Shane O'Brien and Wayne Simmonds dropped the gloves, followed very shortly after by Rick Rypien and Rich Clune.
O'Brien and Simmonds have been chirping at each other since Game 1. After the fight, O'Brien gestured to the crowd, putting his arms in the air to signal No. 1. When asked about the fight after the game, Murray said, "You mean O'Brien acting like a clown?"
The coach later elaborated: "You don't need to rub it in afterwards by skating around raising your arms in the air like the clown O'Brien is."
Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault was also asked about O'Brien's antics, and with a half-smile said "I don't care."
Constant refrain
The Kings scored their first goal of the game on the power play, making it 10 power-play goals in five playoff games. L.A. finished the game 1-for-5 on the man advantage as the Canucks were able to shut them down after their first opportunity, even killing off a 5-on-3 in the second period.
Vigneault was impressed with what he saw from the penalty kill, saying "You just have to stay mentally strong and fight through it ... Washington was the best team in the league on the power play this year and they're 1-for-25 ... Call it hockey gods or puck luck, whatever it is, our guys battled through and it's behind us."
Welcome back, Alberts
Vancouver defenceman Andrew Alberts was back in the lineup after a two game stint in the doghouse. Alberts racked up 23 minutes in penalties in the first two games of the series, but played Friday because of an injury to Nolan Baumgartner in Game 4.
Alberts kept it simple, playing just over 15 minutes. He was a plus-2 in the game and even picked up an assist on a late goal by Steve Bernier.
When Vigneault announced Alberts would be going back in, he said he expected the fans to embrace him, and they did. After Alberts let a puck get past him at the blue-line, a few boos were heard, but they were soon drowned out by a rousing chant of "Let's go Alberts!"
Vigneault said Alberts surely "appreciated the fans cheering his name. That's probably the first time in his career."
King of the circle
You can't score if you don't have possession of the puck, and Henrik Sedin did everything he could to make sure the Kings didn't get it on his watch. Sedin was 19-4 in the face-off circle Friday night.
