I think the biggest issue with the Kings isn't that they're mentally weak or fragile, but are more susceptible to highs and lows based on their confidence.
I know people HATE bringing up previous regimes, but Sutter was very good at gauging the pulse and focus of the team. A lot of it was player driven, as well, like Richards, Mitchell, Williams, etc. Even when the team was down, they were often very good at plugging along with their game.
It's part of the reason why the lack of timeouts with McLellan is often infuriating; first, second, or third period, the Kings either score goals in droves or they allow goals in droves. They take shots en masse or are hemmed into their zone.
It's one of the dangers of running an "offensive" system, or a run-and-gun game. Focusing on generating offense depends on a team having confidence that the shot will go in or create a scoring chance. Once you lose confidence, the players take that extra second waiting for the perfect shot. When things don't go your way, you become more reactive than proactive, which leads to momentum swings.
I'm not saying the Kings are the only team experiencing this. Quite the opposite. Every team goes through this. But this is why you need to have a coach who knows how to read the bench and read the room, and knows the proper ways to motivate and refocus the players. And frankly, it's one of the best qualities of Brind'Amour. He has a very workman-like approach to the game, which he demands from his players. It's why their approach to the game didn't really change much even though they were down.
This loss stings for many reasons. For one, there's a long break between this game and the next. However, it also juxtaposed the two coaches in their approach.
