NHL Playoffs: Kings Crowned Stanley Cup Champions

It was a first period seen, heard and felt around the NHL world. Fans of the New Jersey Devils couldn’t be happy with how that opening frame worked out for them. Meanwhile, Los Angeles Kings supporters got the Hollywood ending they had hoped for.

After going up three games to none, many observers expected an easy ride for the Western Conference champions. Then came two epic failures by the Kings to close out the series, leading to talk of a resurgence by the Devils. Game 6 called for a solid effort from the home team if they were to prevent a return trip to the Prudential Center in Newark for Game 7; the Kings responded with a 6-1 victory for their first-ever Stanley Cup championship.

L.A. came out firing in the first, building a 13-4 shot advantage on the Devils; the visitors also had to do more defending, blocking 10 Kings shots. That period will also live on in memory (or in infamy, if you prefer) for the crushing check Devils forward Steve Bernier delivered on Kings defenseman Rob Scuderi which generated a five-minute boarding call, a 10-minute misconduct and an ejection for Bernier.

Most importantly, it led to three power-play goals by the Kings (the first two scored by Dustin Brown) which led to a 3-0 lead after the first period and eventually capped the coronation of the Kings.

No matter how this Game 6 is analyzed, it will always come back to The Hit and the penalty minutes the Devils racked up. They drew blood on at least three different occasions and totaled 47 minutes in the box (including 15 for Bernier and another 12 for Ryan Carter) versus the Kings’ six minutes. L.A. dominated in the faceoff circle, too, winning 34 of 53 puck drops.

The final shot count favored the Kings 24-18. Jeff Carter and Trevor Lewis each scored twice for the victors, while young hotshot Adam Henrique broke up Jonathan Quick’s shutout bid in the second period.

As expected, Kings goaltender Quick captured the Conn Smythe Trophy, emblematic of the top player in the playoffs. He earned it, too: a 16-4 record with a goals-against average under 1.50 and three shutouts is an outstanding performance by any standard.

A post-season filled with incredible turnarounds, amazing contributions and unexpected twists is now completed. Mission 16W is accomplished; congratulations are in order to both the Los Angeles Kings and the New Jersey Devils, who provided hockey fans with an entertaining six games.