Game 7 dreams will be realized at Staples Center

With a decisive playoff Game 7 between the Kings and San Jose Sharks just a few hours away and the winner getting a spot in the Western Conference finals, talk after the morning skates Tuesday at Staples Center centered on the drama of the situation and how players had envisioned performing in those big games when they were kids.

The lone dissenter was Kings Coach Darryl Sutter, who said none of the Game 7s he played in or coached had made strong impressions in his memory and that “either you win four games or you lose four games.” He added: “Game 7s are not that big a deal when you look at it. It’s winning the fourth game” that matters.

Most players, however, had a slightly different perspective.

Kings rookie defenseman Jake Muzzin, who has never played in a Game 7 in the NHL, acknowledged he couldn’t wait to get onto the ice at Staples Center, where the Kings have won their last 13 straight games.

“Game 7 in the playoffs is what I guess every little kid grows up wishing, and here we are,” he said. “Let’s go make the most of it. I’m excited for the challenge.”

His dreams about playing in such a huge game were very specific. “I was probably playing for the Leafs and it would be a breakaway goal,” he said, laughing. “Of course, that’s how it is when you’re a little kid and you’re always playing in the driveway or on the pond. It will be a little different tonight, I think.”

Sharks center Scott Gomez will play in his 10^th Game 7 and is 6-3 with four assists in those games. He still gets a thrill out of playing in that situation, though he said it might have made him more nervous earlier in his career.

“It’s like any sport you played as a kid. Every game was Game 7 in the backyard,” he said. “To be in the situation where you’re in one, I think when you’re younger you’ve got so many emotions.”

But Gomez said he can see Sutter’s point that it’s unwise to put so much emphasis on a Game 7 that players abandon their routines or styles. Gomez said the advice he most clearly remembers came from then-New Jersey teammate Bobby Holik, who told him simply not to stink and to do what he normally would do.

“The older guys would definitely harp on us, ‘You’re not going to go out there and score four in the first, so get that our of your head and play your game,’” Gomez said.

“But yeah, it’s Game 7. The hockey world’s on you. All your friends and family. You start to enjoy them as you get older. When you’re younger so many thoughts go through your head.”

In the Game 7 of his daydreams, he was the star. “Of course I scored. Probably had five points that game,” he said. “Double overtime. Single overtime when I got called in for dinner.”

Kings center Jarret Stoll, who hasn’t played since he suffered a concussion as the result of a hit from Sharks winger Raffi Torres in Game 1, took some faceoffs during the morning skate Tuesday but still hasn’t absorbed contact and isn’t ready to play.

Check back later for more coverage.

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