Los Angeles Kings: Jonathan Quick's Start and Expectations for the Season

Running a shutout streak at over 126 minutes, Jonathan Quick has been stellar in goal for Los Angeles this season.

Los Angeles has looked more and more like the contender we expected to see coming into the season, and Quick has played a big part in that, stopping all 55 shots he’s seen in wins against St. Louis and Phoenix.

With a 4-0-1 record on the year, Quick has picked up right where he left off last season, and he continues to give the Kings a chance to win every time he steps in between the pipes.

With a capable puck-stopper behind him in Jonathan Bernier, don’t expect to see Quick appear in more than 60-65 games this season. Although he has proven himself as a workhorse with 72 games played in 2009-10, head coach Terry Murray will want to keep him fresh for the playoff run in April. It’s a trend proven to be successful lately, as none of the last four Stanley Cup champion goaltenders have played more than 62 games in their Cup-winning seasons.

The fastest goalie to 100 wins in Kings history should have a big year behind a team that continues its ascent up the standings. With the new additions to the team—namely Simon Gagne and Mike Richards—off to great starts, along with the continued great play of Anze Kopitar, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t see more of the same as the season progresses.

He brings a certain calmness and confidence to the net that LA hasn’t seen in years. There’s no longer any reason to cringe every time an opposing player skates into LA’s zone with Quick around.

The Kings deploy a stingy defense-first system, and that will play in Quick’s favor. We should see him net 37-40 wins this year and record a goals-against average of no higher than 2.30.