





The Los Angeles Kings can smell the blood now.

Brace yourself, Phoenix. It isn't likely to be pretty, not after a 4-0 Coyotes loss Tuesday night that gave the Kings a commanding 2-0 series lead in the Western Conference finals.

They can't wait to eliminate the Coyotes now, especially after the way things got out of control in Game 2. The Coyotes, either recognizing they can't keep up with the Kings or simply frustrated by being so outplayed, lost their composure repeatedly and took far too many needless -- and dangerous --penalties.

"We've had games like that that against us, where every little check is getting finished on you and trust me, it can wear on you mentally and physically," said Kings captain Dustin Brown, who was the target of multiple hits by the Coyotes. "That's been part of our success. Our top-end guys and our role players are all finishing their checks and over the course of a series, it can be frustrating to play."

That was painfully evident late in the second period. The Kings' Jordan Nolan crashed into Coyotes goalie Mike Smith and after the whistle kept jabbing and jawing at an exasperated Smith.

A chain reaction of frustration quickly followed. Captain Shane Doan was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct for boarding Trevor Lewis. Then Smith, tired of Brown clogging the crease, unleashed a hard, one-handed slash to the back of Brown's leg.

It was such a flagrant slash, a Coyotes assistant coach apologized to fellow Los Angeles coaches between periods.

Brown brushed it off, saying, "When you're in front of the net, you're going to get slashed all the time."

But things got progressively more violent in the game, with Coyotes defenseman Derek Morris seemingly purposefully kneeing one Kings player and Phoenix center Martin Hanzal driving Brown into the boards, which resulted in another five-minute boarding major and another game misconduct.

Asked if he expects the Coyotes to be playing short-handed in Game 3 because of any possible suspensions, Brown said, "I have no comment on that."

Brown, whose 14 points in the playoffs makes him a top contender to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as the postseason Most Valuable Player, wouldn't respond to questions about his own health, either.

The Kings, who tied an NHL record with their seventh consecutive playoff road victory, embody the spirit and style of their gritty captain. Games1 and 2 of this series have more than proved that.

"Hey, if they're going to target me, great," Brown said of the Coyotes. "That's part of my role and what I bring to the table. I'll just keep my head down and keep going. If they're coming after me, I like our chanes with 'Kopi' (center Anze Kopitar) and (fellow linemate Justin) Williams. Those are two pretty good players."

So is Brown, who is Los Angeles' version of a young Doan. And to think, Brown was the subject of immense trade rumors not all that long ago. All he did was step up his game immeasurably, put the Kings on his back, and take them to the verge of the Stanley Cup finals.

"That's part of the business, part of being a professional athlete," Brown said of the earlier trade rumors. "I'm still here and I'm pretty sure a lot of people are happy about that. I'm definitely happy about that."

He was happy to see teammate Jeff Carter end up with a hat trick Tuesday night, too.

"That was huge," Brown said. "That's what it's been for us the whole playoffs. We have a lot of guys playing at a pretty high level. We have different guys stepping up at different times. You can go all the way back to the Vancouver series to see that."

Now, the Kings have the Coyotes on the edge of elimination. Brown aims to see the mission gets completed.

"If we're making them frustrated," he said, "we've got to keep it going and take it over the top."