Dustin Brown, more like Charlie Brown.
After 14 games and nearly 50 shots on goal, Brown finally scored his first goal of the year in Tuesday’s 3-2 loss to the Coyotes. It looked like a potential turning point for the Kings captain, who finally seemed to be clicking with linemates Anze Kopitar and Tanner Pearson -- until head coach Darryl Sutter came in and dumped a bunch of water on it.
On whether it was good to see Dustin Brown score:
“Hopefully he remembers how he did it. He’s got to play a power game. I’m not sure that was a part of his game tonight. The goal didn’t mean anything at the end.”
To be fair, 1) Brown’s game-opening goal really didn’t mean much in the end, and 2) The Brown-Kopitar-Pearson line was ineffective after a strong first period, registering just two shots on goal over the final 40 minutes.
It should also be noted that Sutter called out Brown last week.
“He hasn’t played very well lately,” the head coach said, per the L.A. Times. “He gets the opportunity to play with a special player [Anze Kopitar] and he’s got to perform. We’re getting into regular-season performances, based not just this year but over the last couple of seasons.
“[He] needs to be a better player.”
If there’s a silver lining in any of this, it’s that Sutter’s harping on Brown seems to be working in some capacity. The captain is currently riding a three-game point streak -- his first point streak of the year -- and Tuesday’s 16:35 of ice time was his highest total for the month of November.