It is now double-digit games in a row that the Los Angeles Kings (10-5-4) and head coach Jim Hiller have gotten at least one point in the standings in the West and in the Pacific Division in road games this regular season, after defeating the Ottawa Senators (9-6-4) 1-0 in Ontario on Saturday evening (Nov. 15).
Jim Hiller and the Los Angeles Kings start out this four-game road trip in the East this week with four straight wins, including three north of the border in Canada
This team has consistently found a way to win games in difficult situations on the road early this regular season in the West. Last night, goalie Anton Forsberg held down the fort in the crease and was very calm and collected to get the Kings over the hump against his former team in Ottawa vs. the Senators this weekend.
Yesterday evening was the final game north of the border in Canada on this six-game road trip in the Eastern Conference for Hiller and the Kings this weekend.
Hiller gave his takeaways and reactions to the media after the Kings' narrow 1-0 shutout win over the Senators as part of this six-game road trip in the East on Saturday evening.
The Kings and Hiller have continued building on their longest road winning streak of this regular season this fall, with the four games the team has won to start this road trip in the East. Hiller and the Kings now have a season-best six-game road winning streak, dating back to the 3-1 regulation win on the road over the Chicago Blackhawks in late October on Oct. 26.
Here's a look at everything Hiller said to the media postgame following the Kings' 1-0 shutout win over the Senators on the road in Ottawa on Nov. 15.
Jim Hiller
On Drew Doughty's status
"We’ll probably have an update tomorrow, but not much to share right now.
He made a great play at the end of it, because they had somebody back door. He’s a warrior. We’ve talked about him a lot, and that’s just another example of it."
On the Kings pushing through a tough game to find a way vs. Ottawa
"Well, I don’t think I would call it a B game. I would call it the fact that Ottawa played really well. I think what we saw was Ottawa played tonight, probably similar to the way we typically try to play, and frustrate and try to win puck battles and stay above you. I thought both teams, there wasn’t a lot of room, a lot of chances either way, so I was really proud of our guys to get through that. It’s good for us to know that we can be that frustrating to play against, too, when we do it right like that. So, credit to Ottawa, they made it really hard."
On the play of Anton Forsberg in net in the shutout vs. Ottawa yesterday
"He was really good; that was probably his best game of the year. I’m sure that was a good time to save it for him, coming back here, he’s got a lot of friends here. Of course, fans appreciated the job he did. We really needed him tonight. You look at the shots and you saw there wasn’t a lot, but four or five were really important and he got them."
On how Joel Edmundson helped the Kings seal the win late in the game
"When you’re protecting a lead, Eddy’s one of the guys you want on the ice for sure. 6-4, 6-5, 215 pounds, they take up a lot of space. They threw some pucks at the net, he’s in there, cross checking guys in front of the net, clearing out bodies, winning puck races into the corner. When it gets in the trenches, that time of the game, those are the players that can really excel and he’s one of them."
On how the team performed while having to play with five defensemen vs. Ottawa
"It’s easier to do when you’re in the thick of a game, because adrenaline’s pumping and you want to get out there. Sometimes it’s harder if it happens really early, because nobody’s in the flow of the game, but at that point, we’re in a battle. We knew we were in a battle. When your name is called, you get out there and step up."
More on Anton Forsberg in his return to Ottawa yesterday vs. the Senators
"I saw him talking to a lot of the players today. He's a well-respected teammate on their team, and now he's one of ours. You always hope that for a guy to have a good showing coming back against your old team."