L.A.’s run to Finals motivates Gulutzan

Glen Gulutzan has seen this style of hockey from Darryl Sutter before, seen the stingy defense and hard forechecking, seen it enough not to be surprised the Los Angeles Kings advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals as the No. 8 seed out of the Western Conference.

The Kings are proof that while making the NHL playoffs can be an absolute grind for those teams chasing a final berth, magical things can happen once your place in the field is secure.

It is one Gulutzan's team almost lived to see.

He knows the Kings well, having played them six times in his rookie season as head coach of the Dallas Stars. His team was ninth in a conference playoff race that invites eight teams, losing its final five games to finish six points behind L.A.

"They're a hard-working team," Gulutzan said of the Kings. "What I learned more than anything this first year is that the league has more parity than I ever imagined. It's a matter of inches for those who make the playoffs and some who don't. If you can get in and have all your guys playing their best, you can do what L.A. has done."

The Kings opened their quest for a championship on Wednesday night at New Jersey, winning 2-1 in overtime. Gulutzan has no rooting interest in the series but wouldn't be heartbroken if the Kings were the ones eventually skating around while holding the Cup aloft.

He became head coach and general manager of the Wranglers in May 2003 and within months had come to terms with Sutter, then coach and general manager of the Calgary Flames, to make Las Vegas a minor league affiliate of the franchise. He wouldn't mind Sutter getting a ring.

Gulutzan didn't watch any of the Kelly Cup games between Las Vegas and Florida this month but kept in touch with Wranglers coach Ryan Mougenel throughout the series, won by the Everblades in five games. Gulutzan also led the Wranglers to such a moment in 2007-08, losing to Cincinnati. He's chasing a different Cup now, one L.A. has every opportunity to seize.

The Kings were a mess in late December, a team with a fat payroll and even heavier expectations underachieving in the 11th spot of the playoff race and going nowhere fast. Then they hired Sutter out of retirement and whatever chemistry was lacking suddenly emerged.

"We noticed right away that they forechecked a lot harder under Darryl," Gulutzan said. "It's true he allowed them to open things up some offensively, but they kept that defensive intensity that L.A. had been known for. We didn't notice a ton of concrete changes, but they played very hard for him."

Gulutzan can't help but watch the Kings and think of his own team and what might have been, one whose struggles over the last few weeks of the regular season cost it the chance to potentially make a similar run.

He wants next season to begin now.

He isn't big on long summers.

His team's ownership situation having finally been stabilized, Gulutzan believes the Stars could produce their own magic within a few years. His resume lists winning records in eight of nine seasons as a head coach, including five of six with the Wranglers. He has this knack for figuring things out quickly and creating success.

Gulutzan was difficult to track down Tuesday because he spent the day at a function with Cowboys coach Jason Garrett, with the man whose team dominates headlines and Web hits and any media (social or otherwise) from one end of Texas to the next.

And that's not such a bad thing for a hockey coach in Dallas.

Gulutzan was one of the best coaches to ever make Las Vegas home and I'm convinced he will also win big at hockey's highest level, but it isn't the worst thing to begin an NHL coaching career in a city where football is king, queen, prince, princess and every subject the metroplex can fit.

The pressure to immediately win big would have been more intense elsewhere. It would have been outrageous in Canada.

"No question about it," Gulutzan said. "We are all in the shadow of the Cowboys here. That will never change. There is no way around that. But I also think we can get back to the playoffs soon. I grew a lot as a coach between my second and third years in Las Vegas and expect the same to eventually happen here.

"The future is good. Everything is in place. Ownership. The ability to spend money. A good, young roster with the chance to add some experience. If I could start it up again tomorrow, I would."

Watching how the Kings have run through the playoffs will do that to a guy.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday on "Gridlock," ESPN 1100 and 98.9 FM. Follow him on Twitter: @edgraney.