Speculation: 2021-21 LA Kings News, Rumors, Roster discussion part V

[Fishhead]

Right now, the Kings are statistically a top 5 defense.

The Doughty injury may turn out to be a godsend. Guys like Anderson and Bjornfot have proven to themselves that they don't need to defer to anyone, and can make plays on their own. Once he returns, toss Maatta and put Edler with Drew. Keep the 2nd pair, put Roy with Clague and that's pretty damn balanced. Each line is dependable with offensive threats - Doughty and Clague, and both Bjornfot and Anderson have been jumping in to a greater degree.

 

[Papa Mocha 15]

Right now, the Kings are statistically a top 5 defense.

The Doughty injury may turn out to be a godsend. Guys like Anderson and Bjornfot have proven to themselves that they don't need to defer to anyone, and can make plays on their own. Once he returns, toss Maatta and put Edler with Drew. Keep the 2nd pair, put Roy with Clague and that's pretty damn balanced. Each line is dependable with offensive threats - Doughty and Clague, and both Bjornfot and Anderson have been jumping in to a greater degree.

I was thinking the same thing. Having key players off can force the younger core to start stretching themselves. Hopefully when DD comes back, they don't just sit back and wait for him to do something. Take control of the game yourselves and all of the sudden this team can look nasty to play against. It is all about how mature and assertive they are going to be out there.

 

[cyclones22]

It seems like Anderson / Bjornfot has better chemistry than Doughty / Anderson and Roy / Bjornfot.

 

[LAKings88]

I feel like Maata has been decent lately. He still is just a filler but haven’t felt the need to whip on him.

 

[lumbergh]

Quirky stats 14 games into the season:

Brendan Lemieux has played 85 minutes and not been on the ice for a single goal against (vs. 3 goals for)
Rasmus Kupari, despite ugly possession numbers, is tied for second to Lemieux in even strength GF% on the team. He's only been on the ice for 1 goal against at even strength.

Your top pairing on D (for cyclone22) of Anderson & Bjornfot have an even strength goals for % of 67% and 73% respectively.
Kale Clague is not the defensive sieve we thought he'd be. 99 minutes at even strength, only 1 goal against. Also second on the team (behind an inactive Doughty) in points/60.

 

[bmr]

Quirky stats 14 games into the season:

Brendan Lemieux has played 85 minutes and not been on the ice for a single goal against (vs. 3 goals for)
Rasmus Kupari, despite ugly possession numbers, is tied for second to Lemieux in even strength GF% on the team. He's only been on the ice for 1 goal against at even strength.

Your top pairing on D (for cyclone22) of Anderson & Bjornfot have an even strength goals for % of 67% and 73% respectively.
Kale Clague is not the defensive sieve we thought he'd be. 99 minutes at even strength, only 1 goal against. Also second on the team (behind an inactive Doughty) in points/60.

This post is a perfect example why you need to have balance to make a team successful. Lemieux is exactly the type of guy we need on this team and fills his role perfectly. Kupari is still learning how to be a pro at the NHL level, but I like what he brings to the table.

I really hope Todd leaves Anderson & Bjornfot together once Drew comes back. They look great together. I know a lot of people on this board are still thinking we jettison Clague at some point, but I kind of like him on this team. He is great at skating/moving the puck and that should pay more dividends on the PP. Once Arvidsson gets back, that should round out the top line and present some interesting possibilities for the 3rd line. Even though Moore scored the other night, he still hasn't looked the same as last year. I've never been the biggest Lizotte fan, but you gotta appreciate his tenacity and drive during the game.

 

[Reaper45]

How about what an absolute great addition Edler has been? Old man Blueline is such a stabilizing presence for the kids.

 

[TruKingFan]

Elder might actually be the best partner for Drew when he comes back.

Edler-DD
Anderson-Toby
Clague-Roy
Maata

Insert Clague with DD on the PP.

 

[Reaper45]

Don’t look now but Clague has 11 points in 29 games.

 

[driller1]

Elder might actually be the best partner for Drew when he comes back.

Elder-DD
Anderson-Toby
Clague-Roy
Maata

Insert Clague with DD on the PP.

I don't think Edler (or Elder as you have him listed) can play the mins Doughty (or Anderson) is slated.

Last night-

Anderson 22:31
Bjornfot 22:46
Roy 21:23
Edler 19:18

I think if you want to keep Edler upright for a 82 game season, he can't go much past 19 mins/game.

 

[Lt Dan]

Don’t look now but Clague has 11 points in 29 games.

So underrated

I hope he sticks this time. He deserves to play over Maatadios

 

[bmr]

Don’t look now but Clague has 11 points in 29 games.

Clague has never had a problem putting points on the board. I think the big issue for him has been rounding out the defensive side of his game so he is not branded as a minus machine like he was in Ontario from 2018-2020. He has definitely turned the corner - hope he keeps it up.

 

[YP44]

Elder might actually be the best partner for Drew when he comes back.

Elder-DD
Anderson-Toby
Clague-Roy
Maata

Insert Clague with DD on the PP.

Looks good to me. At some point I think Edler will go down with Injury. When that happens I would go

Toby-DD
Anderson-Roy
Clague - Maata

Alot of lefties there though

 

[Lt Dan]

How about what an absolute great addition Edler has been? Old man Blueline is such a stabilizing presence for the kids.

He reminds me of Sean OD's role when he came back in 2008, minus the toughness

 

[bmr]

Mikey is a team leading +8 and Bjornfot isn't too far behind at +6. Future looks bright with Clarke waiting in the wings.

 

[KINGS17]

Don’t look now but Clague has 11 points in 29 games.

I was feeling bloated, so I drank some Kale Clague last night and feel much better this morning.

 

[BigKing]

Said it in another thread before last night's game but your defense looks a lot better if your goalies are playing well and if your forwards can actually spend time going towards the other team's net v. being hemmed in the D zone. It also helps when you add an elite shutdown center to your lineup.

They've been much better with breaking out of the zone v. just flipping it off the glass and hoping someone will catch it which seemed to be Todd's system last season. Perhaps it wasn't his system but just that he didn't have the right players to make the system work.

We're flying high right now but this team lost six straight before this streak. Always peaks and valleys in an 82 game season but this one might have more of them as the young guys continue to get more minutes, the quality of competition increases and the grind of the season takes hold. Regardless, great goaltending will cover a lot of flaws and the Kings have been getting it during this winning streak. They hadn't won a game when giving up 30 or more shots against until this streak and have now done it four times. One of those is a SO win and another in OT with the Kings giving up 34/35/34 in the last three games.

As much as we want to say the defense is playing really well, the game results are going to turn the other way pretty quick if they don't tighten up. Quick isn't going to maintain sub 2 GAA and a .935 save percentage. Really fun watching him have success right now though.

 

[YP44]

Said it in another thread before last night's game but your defense looks a lot better if your goalies are playing well and if your forwards can actually spend time going towards the other team's net v. being hemmed in the D zone. It also helps when you add an elite shutdown center to your lineup.

They've been much better with breaking out of the zone v. just flipping it off the glass and hoping someone will catch it which seemed to be Todd's system last season. Perhaps it wasn't his system but just that he didn't have the right players to make the system work.

We're flying high right now but this team lost six straight before this streak. Always peaks and valleys in an 82 game season but this one might have more of them as the young guys continue to get more minutes, the quality of competition increases and the grind of the season takes hold. Regardless, great goaltending will cover a lot of flaws and the Kings have been getting it during this winning streak. They hadn't won a game when giving up 30 or more shots against until this streak and have now done it four times. One of those is a SO win and another in OT with the Kings giving up 34/35/34 in the last three games.

As much as we want to say the defense is playing really well, the game results are going to turn the other way pretty quick if they don't tighten up. Quick isn't going to maintain sub 2 GAA and a .935 save percentage. Really fun watching him have success right now though.

I'm like a mini-wheats commercial:
The Pessimist in me says most of the games during this 7 game stretch were against teams LA should have no problem beating
The optimist in me says, ya but they still had to win the games, and the kings have struggled in the past to beat the teams they should

 

[BigKing]

I'm like a mini-wheats commercial:
The Pessimist in me says most of the games during this 7 game stretch were against teams LA should have no problem beating
The optimist in me says, ya but they still had to win the games, and the kings have struggled in the past to beat the teams they should

The things is that the Kings are a team that other fanbases look at and say "we should have no problem beating these guys".

With where they've been the last three seasons, any win is a good win. While there haven't been a ton of juggernauts during this win streak, it has also been accomplished without Doughty which is something that can't be forgotten. No matter how you get it, you like seeing a team with a lot of youth--especially on the blueline--go 3-out-4 at worst on a Canadian road trip.

I just think goalie is like a QB in football: if you don't have a good one, you're most likely not going anywhere. The Kings played like garbage to close out last season but Petersen was arguably worse than what was in front of him the last 15 games or so. This year, he and Quick are combining for a .923/2.34 v. a .904/2.87 last season. That adds up over a full season, especially when coupled with the current team goals for per game of 2.79 v. 2.54. That figure isn't mind-blowing but the current goals against per game of 2.54 is a big step forward from last season's 3.02.

They paced for ~72 points over 82 games last season. They are on a ~99 point pace right now. Let's most likely cool our jets on that projection but those differences in goaltending and goals against from last year should put them somewhere in the 80s as far as points go for the season. The optimist could say that this will be something closer to the 2009 to 2010 season jump when they went from 79 points to 101. Anything could happen with above-replacement-level goaltending: especially if these guys hold the fort down until Doughty is back and possibly Byfield.

 

[Mats26]

Just some thoughts...
Kopi is still our 1C, but he is still carrying his linemates.

Can an argument be made that Iafallo - Danault - xxx is our first line right now? What if we move Arvy on that line.

Iafallo - Danault - Arvy
If this is our 2nd line then we must have one heck of a first line.

 

[apocalypse]

I would plug aa into the danault line instead of iafallo and see how it does. It it excels, trade iafallo, if not keep it how it is. I don't think iafallo is a top 6 forward.

 

[Martyros]

Don’t look now but Clague has 11 points in 29 games.

I don't think anyone doubted him putting up points. We had/are hoped/hoping he can round out his game just a bit so he isn't a liability in the back end.

 

[YP44]

Just some thoughts...
Kopi is still our 1C, but he is still carrying his linemates.

Can an argument be made that Iafallo - Danault - xxx is our first line right now? What if we move Arvy on that line.

Iafallo - Danault - Arvy
If this is our 2nd line then we must have one heck of a first line.

I want to keep Kopitar and Arvidson together once he can come back

 

[kings11]

I want to keep Kopitar and Arvidson together once he can come back

Yeah and remove Brownie.. I love Brown but he’s become Kopi’s 20 ton anchor..
maybe Vilardi on Kopi’s wing? I’d love Byfield there but that might be too much to soon

 

[kings11]

Arvidsson-Kopitar-Vilardi
Iafallo-Danault-Byfield
Andersson-Kupari-Athanasiou
Lemeiux-A.Dolan-Moore

Edler-Doughty
Bjornfot-Anderson
Clague-Roy