Pierre-Luc Dubois' first season as a King didn't go according to plan, but Los Angeles' $68-million man is dedicated to flipping the script in his sophomore campaign.

"I'm committed to having a better season," he said during his exit interview Friday. "I'll do anything to be better."

"I know I can do better," he added. "My first year in Winnipeg didn't go well, it was kind of the same thing - a lot of new things, new role, new everything. I didn't panic, I knew what I could do. ... I'm not panicking, I'm not stressed. Is it frustrating? Sure. Is it hard? Yeah. It was eight months or a year ago I was playing how I can play. It's not lost. I gotta get back to it, and that's on me."

The Kings acquired Dubois last summer in a sign-and-trade with the Jets that brought the forward to California on an eight-year extension with an average annual value of $8.5 million. He'll carry the highest cap hit next season among all Kings forwards once captain Anze Kopitar's two-year, $14-million pact kicks in.

Dubois said in July that the move to Los Angeles would give him the chance to "fully be" himself. However, he mustered just 16 goals and 40 points in 82 regular-season contests while averaging just 15:42 minutes of ice time per game, good for the second-lowest total in his career.

He put up one point - a garbage-time goal in Game 1's 7-4 loss - across five outings of the Kings' first-round defeat to the Edmonton Oilers.

Dubois pointed to stability as a factor that he thinks will help him in Year 2. He frequently moved around the lineup this campaign and even spent some time on the fourth line.

"I played on a lot of lines this year," he said. "I think any player, at the end of the day, wants consistency because then you can build some chemistry and you can get things rolling. I think that's not a secret. ... That helps a lot.

"Next year's a new year. We'll see what happens. The only thing I can control is how good of a summer I can have."

The 25-year-old currently doesn't have any trade protection, but his full no-move clause for the 2024-25 campaign kicks in July 1 and lasts until 2028-29, when a modified no-trade clause takes its place.

Dubois said he loves L.A. but was relatively cagey when asked if he had any concerns about his long-term future with the Kings.

"I can't. It's not in my control," he said. "I'm a firm believer in everything happens for a reason. ... I can't sit here and give you any more than that."

Dubois has amassed 145 goals and 342 points in 516 career NHL games, split with the Kings, Jets, and Columbus Blue Jackets.

Columbus selected him third overall at the 2016 NHL Draft.

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Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery posed a challenge to star forward David Pastrnak after Boston's 2-1 Game 6 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night.

"Your best players need to be your best players this time of year," he said postgame. "I think the effort is tremendous, but they need to come through with big-time plays in big-time moments. (Brad Marchand) has done that in the series. Pasta needs to step up."

"He needs to be a dominant player like he used to," the bench boss added, per RDS' Patrick Friolet. "He's doing it in flurries, but not as consistently."

Pastrnak enjoyed an electric regular season, posting 47 goals and 110 points in 82 games. He may earn some down-ballot votes for the Hart Trophy after being named the runner-up for the hardware last campaign.

The sniper hasn't been as strong this spring, registering two goals and four points through six games. He was held off the scoresheet during Boston's back-to-back defeats in Games 5 and 6, though he led the team with eight shots over that span.

The Bruins have been outscored 4-2 with Pastrnak on the ice at five-on-five in the series while dictating just 44.9% of the shots, 46% of the expected goals, and 45.4% of the scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Marchand also hasn't recorded a point in the past two games, but he's racked up three tallies and five helpers and potted the winning goals in Games 3 and 4.

The Bruins held a commanding 3-1 series lead over their Atlantic Division rivals, but Toronto has stormed back to force Game 7, which is scheduled for Saturday in Boston.

Montgomery said he was "pissed off" by his team's 2-1 overtime loss in Game 5, and he was similarly frustrated by Thursday's showing.

"It's unacceptable, our start again," he said. "We've gotta find a way to start on time, and we've just got to be better."

The Bruins have lost their last two opening-round Game 7s, falling to the Carolina Hurricanes in 2022 before being upset by the Florida Panthers last year.

Marchand is feeling ready to buck that recent trend.

"We're here. It's an opportunity. We gotta be grateful for it," he said, per The Fourth Period's Shawn Hutcheon. "These are the moments you dream about as a kid. Game 7. That's where heroes are built and made. I think we have to be excited about the position we're in and make the most of it."

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Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery posed a challenge to star forward David Pastrnak after Boston's 2-1 Game 6 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night.

"Your best players need to be your best players this time of year," he said postgame. "I think the effort is tremendous, but they need to come through with big-time plays in big-time moments. (Brad Marchand) has done that in the series. Pasta needs to step up."

"He needs to be a dominant player like he used to," the bench boss added, per RDS' Patrick Friolet. "He's doing it in flurries, but not as consistently."

Pastrnak enjoyed an electric regular season, posting 47 goals and 110 points in 82 games. He may earn some down-ballot votes for the Hart Trophy after being named the runner-up for the hardware last campaign.

The sniper hasn't been as strong this spring, registering two goals and four points through six games. He was held off the scoresheet during Boston's back-to-back defeats in Games 5 and 6, though he led the team with eight shots over that span.

The Bruins have been outscored 4-2 with Pastrnak on the ice at five-on-five in the series while dictating just 44.9% of the shots, 46% of the expected goals, and 45.4% of the scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Marchand also hasn't recorded a point in the past two games, but he's racked up three tallies and five helpers and potted the winning goals in Games 3 and 4.

The Bruins held a commanding 3-1 series lead over their Atlantic Division rivals, but Toronto has stormed back to force Game 7, which is scheduled for Saturday in Boston.

Montgomery said he was "pissed off" by his team's 2-1 overtime loss in Game 5, and he was similarly frustrated by Thursday's showing.

"It's unacceptable, our start again," he said. "We've gotta find a way to start on time, and we've just got to be better."

The Bruins have lost their last two opening-round Game 7s, falling to the Carolina Hurricanes in 2022 before being upset by the Florida Panthers last year.

Marchand is feeling ready to buck that recent trend.

"We're here. It's an opportunity. We gotta be grateful for it," he said, per The Fourth Period's Shawn Hutcheon. "These are the moments you dream about as a kid. Game 7. That's where heroes are built and made. I think we have to be excited about the position we're in and make the most of it."

Copyright © 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery posed a challenge to star forward David Pastrnak after Boston's 2-1 Game 6 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night.

"Your best players need to be your best players this time of year," he said postgame. "I think the effort is tremendous, but they need to come through with big-time plays in big-time moments. (Brad Marchand) has done that in the series. Pasta needs to step up."

"He needs to be a dominant player like he used to," the bench boss added, per RDS' Patrick Friolet. "He's doing it in flurries, but not as consistently."

Pastrnak enjoyed an electric regular season, posting 47 goals and 110 points in 82 games. He may earn some down-ballot votes for the Hart Trophy after being named the runner-up for the hardware last campaign.

The sniper hasn't been as strong this spring, registering two goals and four points through six games. He was held off the scoresheet during Boston's back-to-back defeats in Games 5 and 6, though he led the team with eight shots over that span.

The Bruins have been outscored 4-2 with Pastrnak on the ice at five-on-five in the series while dictating just 44.9% of the shots, 46% of the expected goals, and 45.4% of the scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Marchand also hasn't recorded a point in the past two games, but he's racked up three tallies and five helpers and potted the winning goals in Games 3 and 4.

The Bruins held a commanding 3-1 series lead over their Atlantic Division rivals, but Toronto has stormed back to force Game 7, which is scheduled for Saturday in Boston.

Montgomery said he was "pissed off" by his team's 2-1 overtime loss in Game 5, and he was similarly frustrated by Thursday's showing.

"It's unacceptable, our start again," he said. "We've gotta find a way to start on time, and we've just got to be better."

The Bruins have lost their last two opening-round Game 7s, falling to the Carolina Hurricanes in 2022 before being upset by the Florida Panthers last year.

Marchand is feeling ready to buck that recent trend.

"We're here. It's an opportunity. We gotta be grateful for it," he said, per The Fourth Period's Shawn Hutcheon. "These are the moments you dream about as a kid. Game 7. That's where heroes are built and made. I think we have to be excited about the position we're in and make the most of it."

Copyright © 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery posed a challenge to star forward David Pastrnak after Boston's 2-1 Game 6 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night.

"Your best players need to be your best players this time of year," he said postgame. "I think the effort is tremendous, but they need to come through with big-time plays in big-time moments. (Brad Marchand) has done that in the series. Pasta needs to step up."

"He needs to be a dominant player like he used to," the bench boss added, per RDS' Patrick Friolet. "He's doing it in flurries, but not as consistently."

Pastrnak enjoyed an electric regular season, posting 47 goals and 110 points in 82 games. He may earn some down-ballot votes for the Hart Trophy after being named the runner-up for the hardware last campaign.

The sniper hasn't been as strong this spring, registering two goals and four points through six games. He was held off the scoresheet during Boston's back-to-back defeats in Games 5 and 6, though he led the team with eight shots over that span.

The Bruins have been outscored 4-2 with Pastrnak on the ice at five-on-five in the series while dictating just 44.9% of the shots, 46% of the expected goals, and 45.4% of the scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Marchand also hasn't recorded a point in the past two games, but he's racked up three tallies and five helpers and potted the winning goals in Games 3 and 4.

The Bruins held a commanding 3-1 series lead over their Atlantic Division rivals, but Toronto has stormed back to force Game 7, which is scheduled for Saturday in Boston.

Montgomery said he was "pissed off" by his team's 2-1 overtime loss in Game 5, and he was similarly frustrated by Thursday's showing.

"It's unacceptable, our start again," he said. "We've gotta find a way to start on time, and we've just got to be better."

The Bruins have lost their last two opening-round Game 7s, falling to the Carolina Hurricanes in 2022 before being upset by the Florida Panthers last year.

Marchand is feeling ready to buck that recent trend.

"We're here. It's an opportunity. We gotta be grateful for it," he said, per The Fourth Period's Shawn Hutcheon. "These are the moments you dream about as a kid. Game 7. That's where heroes are built and made. I think we have to be excited about the position we're in and make the most of it."

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For the third consecutive season, the Edmonton Oilers eliminated the Los Angeles Kings to punch their ticket to the second round of the playoffs.

This time, the Oilers dispatched their Pacific Division rivals in five games. Edmonton took down L.A. in seven contests in 2022 and in six outings in 2023.

Leon Draisaitl was key to Edmonton's 4-3 victory Wednesday night with a two-goal performance, while Zach Hyman scored the eventual winner.

Draisaitl is now up to 36 career playoff goals, tying him with Craig Simpson and Paul Coffey for the sixth-most in franchise history.

"It's fun," the German superstar told Sportsnet's Gene Principe postgame. "I like helping my team win when it matters most. It's always my goal to be a big-time player. For the most part, I think I've done that in my career, but hopefully I can keep it going a little bit."

Edmonton did most of its damage in the second period. Blake Lizotte gave the Kings their first and only lead of the game early on in the frame, but Draisaitl scored back-to-back tallies and Hyman capped off the run of three unanswered goals.

Los Angeles forward Adrian Kempe made things interesting in the final minutes of regulation by drawing his team within one, but that's as close as the Kings would get.

Evander Kane opened the scoring for Edmonton in the first stanza, but Alex Laferriere capitalized on a wild carom in the last minute of the period to enter the intermission tied at 1-1.

Stuart Skinner turned aside 18 of 21 shots to help backstop his team to victory. At the other end of the rink, David Rittich surrendered four goals on 26 shots in his fourth career postseason appearance.

The Kings haven't won a playoff series since 2014.

"They're always extremely hard to play against," Draisaitl said. "They certainly don't make it easy on you. Hats off to that group over there, we've battled with them a lot over the last couple years here. It's a great team over there, but so are we."

Next up for Edmonton is a meeting with the Vancouver Canucks or Nashville Predators. The former leads that series 3-2 with Game 6 scheduled for Friday.

Last spring, the Oilers fell to the Vegas Golden Knights in the second round.

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Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Alex Pietrangelo has taken a costly roughing penalty in back-to-back playoff games, and Bruce Cassidy has had enough.

"Veteran guy should know better," the Golden Knights coach told reporters following Vegas' 3-2 Game 5 loss to the Dallas Stars.

Pietrangelo didn't speak to the media.

After Tyler Seguin received a minor penalty for an illegal check to the head of Golden Knights rearguard Shea Theodore during the second period, Pietrangelo was penalized later in the frame for swatting his hand into the Stars forward's face.

The contest was tied 2-2 at the time, but Jason Robertson scored the eventual game-winner on the ensuing power play.

Pietrangelo was similarly in the box during a crucial moment in Game 4. After the two-time Stanley Cup champion was penalized for roughing Roope Hintz away from the play, the Stars scored on the man advantage for the first of three unanswered goals during their 4-2 victory.

When asked if he found Pietrangelo's recent lack of discipline surprising or disappointing, Cassidy said "both."

"There's controlled aggression out there all over the ice in every series. ... There's a little bit of a learning curve that goes into it," the bench boss explained. "We should know better, but it happens. ... Margins are too thin."

"We have to take care of our discipline," he added. "We just have to. It's that simple."

Pietrangelo earned zero penalty minutes through the first three games of the series. He was assessed just one minor penalty when these two teams met in the conference finals last spring.

The 34-year-old racked up 24 penalty minutes in 64 games during the regular season.

Pietrangelo has been one of the Golden Knights' key penalty killers since he arrived in Sin City back in 2020. He averaged the second-most shorthanded ice time (2:27) on the team during last year's postseason, trailing only Brayden McNabb.

Vegas won the first two games of its first-round series against the Stars, but the Western Conference's top seed stormed back with three straight victories to put the reigning champs on the brink of elimination.

"We'll hang our hats on the fact that we're the defending Stanley Cup champions," Cassidy said. "There's lots of resolve in that room, a lot of winners in that room, a lot of pride in that room."

Game 6 is scheduled for Friday at T-Mobile Arena.

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Quinn Hughes of the Vancouver Canucks, Roman Josi of the Nashville Predators, and Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche are this season's Norris Trophy finalists, the league announced Wednesday.

Members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association vote on the award at the end of each regular season. The Norris Trophy recognizes "the defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position."

A first-time finalist, Hughes is considered the favorite to win the hardware. He led all defensemen with 75 assists and 92 points - including 54 at even strength - in 82 games while leading the Canucks in average ice time (24:41).

The 24-year-old also ranked first among all rearguards in goals above replacement (24.9) and wins above replacement (4.1). Vancouver dictated 57.2% of the shot attempts, 54.8% of the expected goals, and 57.7% of the scoring chances while outscoring opponents 92-55 with Hughes on the ice at five-on-five.

A Canucks player has never won the Norris Trophy or been a finalist for the hardware. Hughes finished ninth on the ballot last campaign and 13th the season before.

The other two finalists have a lot more experience with the honor.

Josi took home the Norris Trophy in 2020 and was the runner-up two years ago. The Predators captain led all blue-liners with 23 goals and ranked third with 85 points while appearing in all 82 contests for the first time since 2018-19. He was also the hottest defenseman down the stretch, pacing his peers with 40 points in 31 games since the All-Star break to help Nashville make the playoffs.

The 33-year-old veteran placed third among rearguards in both GAR (22) and WAR (3.6). The Predators controlled 53.8% of the shot attempts, 55.3% of the expected goals, and 53.6% of the scoring chances while outscoring opponents 82-63 with Josi on the ice at five-on-five. Nashville was outscored 90-86 when he was on the bench.

Makar, meanwhile, is a finalist for the fourth straight year. He won the Norris Trophy in 2022.

The 25-year-old finished second among all blue-liners with 21 goals and 90 points in 77 games and third with 70 takeaways, while his 1.17 point-per-game rate was the highest in the class. He also saw the most average ice time (24:46) of the three finalists.

Colorado dictated 52.9% of the shot attempts, 52.7% of the expected goals, and 55.5% of the scoring chances while outscoring opponents 72-64 with Makar on the ice at five-on-five.

Details surrounding the 2024 NHL Awards have yet to be finalized, but reports indicate the event will be held June 27 in Las Vegas.

(Analytics sources: Natural Stat Trick, Evolving Hockey)

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Chicago Blackhawks phenom Connor Bedard, Minnesota Wild workhorse Brock Faber, and New Jersey Devils blue-liner Luke Hughes are the trio of finalists in contention to take home the Calder Trophy, the league announced Tuesday.

The Calder Trophy is voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association at the end of the regular season. The honor is presented annually "to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition."

The battle for the hardware was largely a two-horse race between Bedard and Faber all season long.

Bedard lived up to the hype as the 2023 first overall pick, leading all rookies with 22 goals, 61 points, and 206 shots in 68 outings while seeing just under 20 minutes of ice time per contest.

The 18-year-old was a key driver of the struggling Blackhawks offense, factoring in on 34% of the team's 178 goals on the campaign. He also had a seven-point lead on Philipp Kurashev for the most on the team, which becomes even more impressive given that Bedard missed 14 games with a fractured jaw.

Bedard posted the best campaign by a teenage rookie in franchise history since Patrick Kane in 2007-08. Artemi Panarin is the latest Blackhawk to win the Calder Trophy after taking it home in 2016, but he was 24 years old at the time.

As a rookie defenseman, Faber's play may not have been as flashy as Bedard's, but he put together a Calder-worthy campaign in his own right. He tied Bedard for the most assists in the rookie class (39) and matched Hughes for the second-most points (47) while appearing in all 82 contests. Faber was also the league's busiest first-year player; he averaged 24:58 minutes of ice time per game, 3:30 minutes more than Hughes in second place.

Those minutes weren't easy, either, as Faber was tasked with handling top opposing players on a nightly basis. The 21-year-old revealed he was playing with broken ribs for the final two months of the season.

Kirill Kaprizov won the Calder Trophy in 2021 and is the last Wild player to do so.

Hughes, meanwhile, showed off his penchant for dynamic, offensive play during his first full NHL season. He led all rookie defensemen with nine goals while admirably pacing the Devils in average ice time (21:28), which was a requirement given the injuries on New Jersey's blue line.

The 20-year-old registered the second-most points by a rookie rearguard in franchise history, trailing only Barry Beck's 60-point campaign in 1977-78 as a member of the Colorado Rockies.

Scott Gomez was the last Devil to win the Calder Trophy in 2000.

Seattle Kraken center Matty Beniers was awarded the hardware last season.

Details surrounding the 2024 NHL Awards have yet to be announced, but reports indicate they'll be held June 27 in Las Vegas.

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The Seattle Kraken fired head coach Dave Hakstol from his post, the team announced Monday.

Hakstol was the first head coach in the franchise's history. He collected a 107-112-27 record, and Seattle made the playoffs once during his three-year tenure.

General manager Ron Francis will immediately begin the search for a replacement.

"I thank Dave for his hard work and dedication to the Kraken franchise. ... These decisions are never easy, but we feel this is a necessary step to help ensure our team continues to improve and evolve," the executive said in a statement. "Dave is a good coach and a terrific person. We wish him and his family all the best."

The Kraken also announced that assistant coach Paul McFarland won't return next campaign.

Seattle signed Hakstol to an extension through the 2025-26 campaign in July. He was a finalist for the Jack Adams Award as the league's top bench boss one year ago but lost to Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery.

The Kraken made the playoffs for the first time in their existence last season following a 40-point improvement from their abysmal inaugural campaign. They knocked out the Colorado Avalanche in the first round before being eliminated by the Dallas Stars in seven games.

However, Seattle regressed across several categories in 2023-24, finishing 17 points outside the playoff cutline.

The Kraken ranked second in the league with a shooting percentage of 11.57% at all strengths last season but placed among the bottom-five teams with a 9.11% clip this campaign, per Natural Stat Trick.

Hakstol is the second Pacific Division coach to lose his job in the span of a week. The last-place San Jose Sharks parted ways with David Quinn on Wednesday.

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