To Catch a Predator

Los Angeles vs Nashville

Ugh. I can't stand Paul Kariya. I hated him with the Ducks, I hated him with the Avs, and I hate him with the Predators. And not because he always has had a knack for scoring against the Kings. It's because he's the whiniest, cry-babyest, biggest diver in the league. Period. Exclamation mark! End of story! With a cherry on top. If Frolov is the Constantine Maroulis of hockey and Anze Kopitar is the Bo Bice of hockey, then Paul Kariya is the Clay Aiken of hockey. Sure, he may be talented, but there's something that's not quite right, and I can't put my finger on it. And I'll always remember him getting knocked out in the Stanley Cup finals against New Jersey. Dude was laid like a salmon in the supermarket seafood section - just laying on the ice with a creepy glazed eye looking straight up. Then he had the nerve to say in an interview afterwards that "Uh, no... I wasn't knocked out." Kariya couldn't even answer an honest question without diving. Jerk.

Well, Kariya and his Nashville Predators were in town last night and handed the Kings yet another loss. The Preds are actually a pretty good team built from speed and youth (wouldn't that then make them Child Predators?), and the Kings don't seem to have an answer for that. Not on a consistent basis, anyhow. But I do have to say that Cloutier played well. Yes, I'll say it again... Cloutier did not completely suck. He has elevated his game to mediocre, and now that just makes it more obvious that there are many others on the team that suck.

I'm really getting tired of typing the word "suck".

• Final Score: Kings 1, Predators 4