I won’t try to sugarcoat it. Going 1-6-1 in the preseason is bad. Here are three reasons to panic:
- Some of the “new look” Kings lines are struggling to gel. Kovalchuk/Carter/Kempe seems like a good idea in theory, but in practice: meh. Kovalchuk was the big move of the off-season, and while he’s showed off his puck handling skills more than a few times, he hasn’t been able to make a dent in the scoresheet. Sweet dangles are fun to watch, but ultimately meaningless if he’s not scoring goals. Adapting to new linemates, a smaller ice surface, and a return to a country long left behind can all be challenging, but Kovalchuk is going to need to put the pieces of his puzzle together sooner rather than later.