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Off-Day Watch 1/20: Cal Petersen is a wizard

I’ll have a more fulsome report later on my time in Iowa, watching the Ontario Reign split their two-game series with the Iowa Wild, but right now, I wanted to remind you that Cal Petersen is real good.

Petersen started both games in his home state of Iowa, stopping 32 of 37 shots in a win on Friday, and 28 of 31 for a loss on Saturday. While his season stats are well off of his rookie season all-star campaign from last year, that’s largely a product of the team in front of him.

There were very few times in the two games that I saw where he looked like he was going into desperation mode because of being out of position or being unprepared to make a save. If he saw a puck, he could stop it — and he stopped a few that there was no way he could have actually seen it. At one point, he slid across the open net to get a toe on a puck that he couldn’t possibly have seen coming at him. His athletic saves are familiar to Kings fans — think Jonathan Quick without the anger management issues.

(Has anyone ever seen Cal Petersen get mad? Is it even possible? Please tell me if you’ve seen it.)

Cal Petersen’s time in the NHL may be coming sooner rather than later, if the “trade Jonathan Quick” brigade have their way. If and when he does find himself making the jump as more than just injury relief, fans will be pleased to know just how sharp Petersen continues to look while playing behind a struggling team.

Kings Things

We know you don’t want to relive that game. It’s okay. [Jewels from the Crown]

Sigh. [Mile High Hockey]

Post-game notes and reactions from Willie Desjardins, Anze Kopitar, and Drew Doughty. [Kings Insider]

A look at the Ontario Reign’s 4-2 loss yesterday in Iowa. [Reign Insider]

Elsewhere

What Are The Florida Panthers Hiding:

Liz Knox may not be as much of a household name as some of her CWHL teammates, but she’s on the hunt to win her second Clarkson Cup. [Sporting News]

What exactly is a scoring chance? It’s all in the eyes of the beholder. [The Athletic]

I’ve got a new favorite KHL player:

A chat with Olympian and CWHL All-Star captain Brigitte Lacquette on Calgary’s season so far, having her gear sent to the Hockey Hall of Fame, and the life of a pro women’s hockey player. [The IX Newsletter]

Ranking the best hockey films of all time. [Vice Sports]

Daniel Carcillo on his advocacy for mental health and treatment of traumatic brain injuries. Podcast/audio transcript. [The Athletic]

John Scott has some fun with Blackhawks fans:

Evening Entertainment

New York Islanders: Good, Actually? They’ve taken over the lead in the Metropolitan, despite having a roster of guys that makes you go, “Oh, huh, him. I forgot about him.” (Valtteri Filppula has 10 goals???) They play the Anaheim Ducks today, who have stopped losing games for now. That one kicks off at noon Pacific time and airs on Prime for local fans.

Talking Points