For some reason, Los Angeles is not an easy place to be a goalie.

Just ask Dan Cloutier. Or Jason Labarbera. Jean-Sebastien Aubin and Mathieu Garon would agree. A Roman Cechmanek sighting, anyone?

You can understand why Kings fans are quick to anoint incoming goalies as the next one. Yutaka Fukufuji's time lasted, well, about a half-hour.

That mix of hopefulness and a fatalist approach might lead to the franchise's latest goaltending hope -- Erik Ersberg.

If you haven't heard of Ersberg, you aren't alone. Following two seasons in the Swedish Elite League, Ersberg started the year with the Kings' AHL affiliate in Manchester, N.H. He posted a pedestrian 2.92 goals against average and an .897 save percentage in 30 appearances with a mediocre Monarchs squad.

So you can see why what happened next was unexpected.

Sure, it has only been four games, but Ersberg has posted a 1.68 goals against and .952 save percentage since being called up to Los Angeles because of an injury to Jason LaBarbera. His most recent performance was an impressive 2-0 shutout against Ottawa Thursday night at Staples Center.

And it was not a routine shutout. Facing the high-powered Senators, Ersberg faced 40 shots en route to his first NHL win.

In the process, Ersberg has shown the tools necessary to be an NHL goalie. H stands just 5'11", but his quickness renders that point largely moot. His rebound control has been remarkable -- Kings' captain Rob Blake referred to him as a sponge, while others have referred to him as velcro.

His lateral movement has been excellent, while he has shown a great amount of confidence between the pipes. Ersberg's smallish stature leads him to play deeper in the net than many larger goalies, but it has proven to be anything but a problem so far.

Sure, there's a chance Ersberg will be the latest goalie to disappear from Los Angeles as quickly as he arrived. Yet something feels different with Ersberg. Technically, he is solid in almost every way. He is confident. And despite being a newcomer to North America, he is experienced from high-level competition in Sweden.

Saturday afteroon, the Montreal Canadiens return to Staples Center for the first time in years. Ersberg turns 26 that day, and will likely start against one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference.

In a strange sort of season, Ersberg gives Kings fans yet another reason for hope. While the defense has been porous at times and the goaltending has been average, the young forwards continue to progress. Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, Patrick O'Sullivan, Alexander Frolov, and Michael Cammalleri give the Kings a group of young forwards envied by most NHL teams.

Jonathan Bernier has been hailed as the future superstar between the pipes, but some feel he is still a year or two away. If Ersberg can even bridge the gap, the Kings go into next season with a lot of promise.

We've heard it before, no question. The next Kings goalie has arrived.

Los Angeles hopes this time, that really is the case.

Hockey fans like to think tradition is important in our sport. While other sports such as basketball and football cater to the flavor of the day, hockey is built on decades of tradition.

We have our own terminologies, many of which have come under assault in recent years. The traditional hockey term of dressing rooms has been replaced by the unoriginal term locker rooms. Center ice has been replaced by the neutral zone. Two-on-ones and three-on-twos have been replaced by the generic term odd-man rushes. And perhaps worst of all, the boards are starting to become known as the wall, especially in non-traditional markets.

It is enough to make a hockey fan scream.

However, if a hockey fan screams and nobody can hear it over the too-loud arena music, does the scream really exist?

Over-the-top game presentation has long been a trademark of the National Basketball Association, and while critics have praised the league for their marketing, NBA ratings and interest are a fraction of what they were a decade ago.

Sadly, this type of game presentation is creeping into our game, and fans must voice their opinion to stop the spread.

Last weekend should have been one of the greatest moments in recent Chicago Blackhawks history. The team is playing well behind rookie sensations Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, and Sunday’s game against Detroit launched a new era of home games being televised on local television.

Yet the big story came in the area of game presentation. Longtime organist Frank Pelico was largely absent from the weekend’s games, his duties being limited to the national anthem and post-game proceedings.

Anyone over the age of 25 who grew up as a hockey fan associates the organ with Chicago hockey. While the pipe organ did not make its way from Chicago Stadium to the United Center, organ music stayed a big part of the Blackhawks. While other teams shunned organ music for recorded music, the Hawks stayed traditional.

Ironically, now that many teams are featuring more organ music than they have in recent years, Pelico finds himself watching games as a spectator. Hawks fans are understandably outraged, flooding message boards, blogs, and the front office with complaints.

Southern California’s two NHL franchises demonstrate the radical differences between various arenas when it comes to game presentation. While the Los Angeles Kings take a traditional approach to game presentation, the Anaheim Ducks feature a nightclub atmosphere – something most people outgrow before they reach 30.

The Kings start with a great introduction on their 2400-inch ICE TV, also known as an on-ice projector. The accompanying music by Hans Zimmer and Linkin Park – played at reasonable volumes – provide the perfect accompaniment to the visuals.

Once the game starts, the game presentation stays top-notch. Organist Dieter Ruehle, who was the organist at the last two Olympics, leads the crowd in traditional yells such as “Go Kings Go.” He does a great job of mixing classics like Kalinka or Hava Nagila with modern adaptations of bands such as U2 or Green Day. Ruehle maintains at least a 50/50 ratio of organ music to recorded music, and both are played at reasonable levels.

Thirty miles southeast at Honda Center, the assault on the senses is impossible to avoid. The introduction music is played way beyond the capabilities of the sound system, making the music painfully loud and virtually impossible to understand. While this is happening, a couple of dozen spotlights move in a fast, haphazard manner across the ice, creating a sense of motion sickness.

Sadly, the presentation gets no better once the game begins. While the music stays too loud and the organist adds too many Disneyland-esque drum rolls in most songs, the spotlights return far too frequently. When the spotlights are thankfully reduced, several migrane-inducing strobe lights are used in conjunction with the music at most whistles. The result is an atmosphere that resembles a WWE event or a teen-oriented nightclub, but certainly not a hockey game.

As someone who has spent most of his life in traditional hockey environments, there is no question which arena is more appealing. And the California market is more savvy than the Ducks seem to give it credit. Many, if not most, hockey fans in the region are transplants from traditional markets. If I had a dollar for every time one of these transplants told me they will not go to Ducks games because of the distracting game presentation, I might have enough money to buy the team and change the game presentation myself.

While no other NHL arena – certainly not the United Center – approaches the distraction level of the Honda Center, the loss of another hockey tradition in the sake of modernization would be a travesty.

Rocky Wirtz has done many things right since assuming leadership in Chicago. He would be wise to do one more thing right – bring back Pelico.

Many observers seem surprised the Los Angeles Kings find themselves one point ahead of cross town rival Anaheim in late October - with one game in hand yet.

It should not be a surprise, and do not look for the trend to reverse any time soon.

The Kings feature a wealth of young talent up front, including Anze Kopitar, Michael Cammalleri, Dustin Brown, and Alexander Frolov. The defense is solid with a good mix of veterans, youngsters, and blueliners in their prime.

The only question coming into the season was goaltending, and Jason LaBarbera seems poised to step up as the starter.

After a 1-5-0 start, the Kings have won four of five games, and arguably outplayed Calgary in the lone loss. For the first time in several years, Kings fans have reason to be truly optimistic. Barring injuries, there is no reason this team will not make the playoffs.

It is a different story 30 miles to the southeast. The wheels are coming off in Anaheim, and the Ducks already face an uphill battle to make the playoffs, never mind repeat as Stanley Cup Champions.

With a 4-7-1 record after 12 games, Anaheim likely needs 87 points over their final 70 games to grab a playoff spot. In other words, a 42-25-3 record would get the job done, but there is no indication that will happen.

Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne look more retired by the day, and without them, Anaheim is full of holes. Sure, injuries have taken their toll, but there is no reason to believe that will change.

Defenseman Mathieu Schneider is entering the twilight of his career, and injuries have bedeviled him the past couple of years. Still, his injury history pales in comparison to the team's other key free agent signing.

Todd Bertuzzi has struggled with back injuries the past couple of seasons, and he is currently out of the lineup with a concussion. Earlier this year, Bertuzzi told the media he is finding injuries he never knew he had.

Not exactly what you want to hear from a $4 million per year player.

Ryan Getzlaf is currently out of the lineup with an upper body injury, leaving Anaheim with a second line of Mark Mowers, Drew Miller, and Petteri Wirtanen.

To top it off, the Ducks are running their big horses as if it was game seven of the Stanley Cup Finals. Francois Beauchemin and Chris Pronger lead the league in ice time, each averaging about a half hour per game.

With the key players logging so much ice time this early in the year, the potential for more injuries is very real.

Meanwhile, things keep looking up at Staples Center. Cammalleri leads the league with 10 goals, two more than any other player.

Kopitar continues his progression as one of the league's young superstars. A top-notch playmaker, he also possesses a sniper's hands and is one of the squad's best defensive forwards.

Brown is among the league leaders in hits and provides the perfect complement to Kopitar and Cammalleri on a top line that is arguably as good as any in the league.

The reviews on free-agent signings Ladislav Nagy, Kyle Calder, Michael Handzus, Tom Preissing, and Brad Stuart have been mixed, but all have looked stronger in recent games. Nagy had a breakout game Tuesday against Nashville, while Handzus responded with a solid effort after being demoted to the fourth line Tuesday against Dallas.

In fact, that fourth line of Handzus, John Zeiler, and Raitis Ivanans played a nearly perfect fourth line game against Dallas. Each player ate up more than 10 minutes of ice time and the unit created significant sustained pressure in the offensive zone.

With four lines clicking and six solid defensemen, the Kings are for real. LaBarbera is looking more comfortable between the pipes, and Los Angeles fans are optimistic.

At the moment, it is hard to find optimism in Anaheim. The team cut off season ticket sales at 15,000, but there are thousands of empty seats many nights. Fans arrive late and leave early -- one estimate put less than 5,000 fans left in their seats with three minutes remaining in a recent 3-1 Ducks win. Prime seats posted below face value are going unsold on the team's online ticket exchange.

It may be early to press the panic button, but with a couple of more losses, the Ducks find themselves facing must-win games as early as November.

In downtown Los Angeles, however, the opening of the L.A. Live development adjacent to Staples Center is not the only cause for optimism in the area.

With or without Anze Kopitar, the Los Angeles Kings are playing some entertaining hockey.

Yes, those Los Angeles Kings. The team that has spent much of the season battling for last place in the Western Conference has been downright entertaining since Christmas.

And while they are not in the playoff race, their 5-4-7 since the start of February is not exactly embarrassing. Consider for the past several games, they have been playing without the services of Calder Trophy candidate Anze Kopitar, who continues to struggle with a nagging back ailment.

Since veteran goalie Sean Burke arrived on the scene, the Kings have been receiving solid goaltending from Burke and Mathieu Garon. Scoring goals has not been the problem, as Los Angeles has tallied a respectable 192 goals this season. The difference now is Garon and Burke are keeping them out of the net, something the squad struggled with through the first half of the season.

With forwards like Kopitar, Alexander Frolov, and Michael Cammalleri, Los Angeles will have plenty of firepower next season. If Patrick O'Sullivan improves on an often-shaky rookie season and develops as many expect, the Kings could be an offensive juggernaut within a couple of years.

Indications are highly touted blueliner Jack Johnson will leave the University of Michigan prior to next season in order to join the Kings. If Johnson signs ings and general manager Dean Lombardi can find a couple of solid free agents -- preferably one forward and one defenseman -- Los Angeles could become next year's Pittsburgh.

It's a Dogs' life

Okay, so the team is known as the Long Beach Ice Dogs. Still, it does not mean canines are big fans of the California ECHL franchise.

In any case, fans will be allowed to bring their dogs to Saturday's Ice Dogs game against Alaska. Teams such as the Utah Grizzlies and the now-defunct San Diego Gulls have tried this in the past, but generally, the negative feedback far outweighs positive feedback.

Thankfully, the teams typically limit the dogs to a certain part of the arena -- three sections in this case -- but there is a myriad of problems. Those with allergies will struggle, and since dander can last for several months, those seats could be off-limits for some time.

As any dog owner knows, it is not uncommon for dogs to start barking when they are around other dogs. Put a few dozen -- or few hundred -- dogs in one place, and it could be noisy. Not the type of noise that adds to a game, but the type of noise that distracts fans. That is, unless the dogs truly are fans and know when to bark. Considering this will be the first game for many dogs (if not all of them), that is unlikely.

What if a dog bites a fan at the game? In a lawsuit-happy world, this one seems a lot more legitimate than many other lawsuits. After all, a dog is not a normal or expected hazard at a hockey game.

The Ice Dogs struggle to draw large crowds, but this is not the way to improve attendance. Only two-legged fans count in the attendance numbers anyway.

Exclusively Showing Poker Network?

There is some discussion that ESPN actually carried some hockey highlights last week. Apparently, the Chris Simon incident got some airtime on the Exclusively Showing Poker Network.

Yawn.

Why does anyone care what ESPN thinks anyway? They have ignored hockey for years, and the coverage is next to nothing since the NHL broke off talks with the network and wisely bolted for Versus (then known as OLN).

Then again, maybe things have changed. Like many hockey fans, I have not watched ESPN in months, other than overseeing a bit of coverage in a bar.

To the folks at ESPN -- if you decide to cover hockey again, take out an ad in The Hockey News or on XM Home Ice 204. Until then, millions of hockey fans will not be watching.

It's Hockey Night in Canada. Why is it Hockey Morning in the United States?

On the topic of television -- is anyone watching NBC games that start at 9:30 in the morning on the west coast? Are hockey fans even awake that early after a long Saturday night of watching hockey?

NBC's game times continue to be the reason for low ratings. Hockey is a night game, not an afternoon game. And when games start at noon or earlier, forget about getting decent ratings. We are not NFL fans, we are not conditioned to drinking our morning coffee while watching the game, and we do not care to adapt.

The ramifications carry over beyond the day of the game as well. In several cases, a team playing early Sunday also was forced to play early Saturday in order to avoid a Saturday night-Sunday morning schedule situation. Even the teams that are not on NBC are getting a bad deal in this situation.

To top it off, hockey players are finely tuned machines and creatures of habit. The difference between a normal 7 to 8 pm start and the early afternoon start can play a major factor in the outcome. Several NHLers, including Anaheim's Teemu Selanne, have expressed their disdain for afternoon games, noting the games are often less intense and entertaining.

Hockey is a night sport. Looking at the prime time lineup of most major American networks, it is mindboggling they cannot fit in the NHL into an evening schedule. Forget so-called reality television which is nothing other than average people (in other words, not highly-paid actors) playing roles in a pre-determined outcome. The NHL, and sports in general, is true reality television.

And above all, it is a game meant to be played in the evening. Hopefully the NHL and NBC keep this in mind come playoff time.