I write this blog entry with a full stomach as just moments ago I ate lunch on the Kings’ charter flight to Dallas…Sirloin steak and au gratin potatoes. Traveling with an NHL team is about as good as it gets.
Three games into the season and things are starting to develop for this team. Anze Kopitar has picked up his game where he left it last season – he’s a dynamic player that genuinely loves to play the game and he’s only 20-years-old. Michael Cammalleri, a former member of the Manchester Monarchs circa 2002-05, is also off to a great start as the 25-year-old ranks among the league leaders with four goals.
It will be interesting to see how this team gets out of the gates in October after opening the season with a pair of games at the O2 arena in London. Yes, that’s a long way to go for two games…but the opportunity to bond as a young club could really pay off for this team that has nine players who are 25-years-old or younger on its roster.
Charter flights are just like riding the bus only more comfortable. Just like on the bus, the players with the most seniority get first dibs on the back seats. The older guys are also the ones who bring poker chips onto the airplane, and they’re always looking to take a young rookie’s meal money for the trip.
As you move up the airplane from the back, you first find the support staff and then in the front of them, you find the coaching staff and the front office management team.
While in the air, it really varies as to what the players, coaches, front office and support staff do to pass the time. The broadcasters that travel with us usually spend the time studying the next opponent of the Kings (which happens to be Dallas on this trip). As mentioned earlier, several players pass the time with a game of poker and others read, watch movies on their laptops or listen to music.
Once we land, we’ll board a bus and make our way to the hotel. We’re scheduled to arrive in Dallas at 6 p.m. local time on Tuesday, with our game against the Stars scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. local time start on Wednesday.
Once they’re checked into the hotel, the players will look for a good place to eat dinner, and then they’ll go back to the hotel and rest easy for the remaining portion of the evening. When they wake up the next morning, they’ll prepare themselves for the game that night by having a nice (and big) healthy breakfast. Next they’ll board a bus to head to the arena for a pre-game skate.
As you can clearly see, when the Kings travel, it IS a business trip. Everything the team does is geared toward beating Dallas on Wednesday night. Hopefully that will be the case.
We’re about ready to touchdown in Dallas so I’ll say goodbye for now. To follow the Kings (and the progress of several former Manchester Monarchs) visit the official website of the Kings, www.LAKings.com.
Until next time, remember this simple axiom: Wherever you go, there you are.
MK
Hey Mike,
I thought you were a vegetarian, at least the last time I checked back in Rockford.
Charlie George
Posted by: Charlie George | October 14, 2007 at 11:36 PM
Great post Mike. Glad I just came back from lunch, else I would be hungry. Could you fill us in on the goaltending situation in L.A. as this seems to be an area that L.A. really needs to get control of?
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