On a day where the Boston Bruins take on the St. Louis Blues in game one of the Stanley Cup Final, I have to admit I am a little depressed. I’m down because John Stevens and Willie Desjardins stole my chance to be a super fan this postseason, cheering our beloved Los Angeles Kings through the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But a trip down memory lane cured all the #FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) from my system.
In 2012, the Kings invented and then mastered the battle cry, “just get into the playoffs and we will do some damage.” The King’s 2012 Stanley Cup lasted two months to the day, and as a fan, these 61 days were the most fantastic ride of our sports lives: Twenty games, sixteen wins, one championship, a Zamboni full of memories. No one believed in this team. The champagne from June 11, 1993, which had literally been on ice since 1993, never tasted so good.
Here’s a little something I wrote in 2012 about this amazing run that was picked up internationally and somehow became the time capsule for the Kings playoff run:
The Los Angeles Kings, competing in their 44th NHL season, captured their first Stanley Cup. The Kings joined the Anaheim Ducks (2007) as the only California-based champions and West Coast winners since NHL clubs exclusively began competing for the Stanley Cup in 1927. The Kings finished the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs at 16-4 (.800), tied for the second-best championship run since all rounds became best-of-seven in 1987. The Kings were the first NHL club to take a 3-0 lead in games in all four series, went 4-0 in overtime and went 10-1 on the road, setting an NHL playoff record for the longest road winning streak in one postseason (10 games). The Kings become the first #8 seed since the conference-based playoff format was introduced in 1993-94 to capture the Stanley Cup. Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jonathan Quick went 16-4 with a 1.41 goals-against average, .946 save percentage.
Many of you watched all twenty games, some of you missed it. But today, we are all Kings as I take you though the CBC Opening Montages from games one, three and six. Then, if you’re so bold, watch all 69 Kings playoff goals, soak in the brilliance of Jonathan Quick, before settling in to the Kings Road to the Stanley Cup.
Buckle up, it’s a wild ride.
CBC HNIC 2012 Stanley Cup Finals Opening Montage/Video (Game 1)
From before Kings/Devils Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals on 05/30/2012; Song is “All These Things That I’ve Done” by The Killers
CBC HNIC 2012 Stanley Cup Finals Opening Montage/Video (Game 3)
From before Devils/Kings Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals on 06/04/2012; Song is “Californication” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers
CBC HNIC 2012 Stanley Cup Finals Opening Montage (Game 6)
From before Devils/Kings Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals on 06/11/2012; Song is “Help I’m Alive” by Metric
THE GOALS
All the 2012 Los Angeles Kings Playoff Goals
69 in all.
Every one glorious.
THE CONN SMYTHE
None of this happens without the Conn Smythe winner, Jonathan Quick. ICYMI, I penned the #EastCoast Bias manifest on why Quick had the 2012 Vezina stolen from him and why you want him in net if you have a must-win game. Read the column and then watch the video in that order.
THE CELEBRATION
Modern Zapruder Style
THE ROAD TO THE STANLEY CUP
“After forty-five years the Kings can wear their crown.” -Nick Nickson