Speculation: 2021-22 LA Kings News, Rumors, Roster discussion part IV Playoffs? I Danault

[KINGS17]

How would you like to be a Sharks fan right now? Your best player is a locker room distraction, has a gambling problem, is being investigated by the league for betting on his own sport, has declared bankruptcy and just turned 30. Your captain is 32 and signed for SIX more years at $8mm. your top three defensemen are 31, 34 and 36 and signed for four+ years at $26.5mm taking up 1/3 of your salary cap- two of them have NMC clauses. You have one of the oldest rosters in the league, are right up against the cap and you have 49 out of 50 contracts used up. Your starting goalie has played for 5 teams previosuly, and you just bought out another goalie with a $1.6mm+ cap hit for the next six seasons. On top of that you are missing your 2nd round pick next year and have no extra selections. It will take them the better part of a decade to dig out from this mess.

Meh cancer, just a mere distraction.

 

[bmr]

Vilardi

No chance - expect to see Vilardi bounce back this year. He's a difference maker and loves the sport. It's a tough road for him getting over his back issues and understanding the rigors of an NHL season. The addition of Danault will help him settle into a more effective role as 3C right now.

 

[bmr]

Helge "Minus Forever" Grans. Book it.

Completely agree. No offense to Grans, but I was never sold on this pick. How many of the 'high ceiling' guys actually work out? I don't have any issues drafting guys like Toffoli or Clarke because of perceived skating issues. They have skill in their game that you just can't teach. To me, Grans doesn't do anything that makes me say wow. Guess he can prove us wrong this year.

 

[Reclamation Project]

How would you like to be a Sharks fan right now? Your best player is a locker room distraction, has a gambling problem, is being investigated by the league for betting on his own sport, has declared bankruptcy and just turned 30. Your captain is 32 and signed for SIX more years at $8mm. your top three defensemen are 31, 34 and 36 and signed for four+ years at $26.5mm taking up 1/3 of your salary cap- two of them have NMC clauses. You have one of the oldest rosters in the league, are right up against the cap and you have 49 out of 50 contracts used up. Your starting goalie has played for 5 teams previosuly, and you just bought out another goalie with a $1.6mm+ cap hit for the next six seasons. On top of that you are missing your 2nd round pick next year and have no extra selections. It will take them the better part of a decade to dig out from this mess.

Hockey gods still getting payback for...

 

[YP44]

No chance - expect to see Vilardi bounce back this year. He's a difference maker and loves the sport. It's a tough road for him getting over his back issues and understanding the rigors of an NHL season. The addition of Danault will help him settle into a more effective role as 3C right now.

hope so

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I mean, Grans was on the 1PP in the SHL at 17. He's impressing someone. I guess we can officially call this guy the slept on prospect.

 

[FSL KINGS]

No chance - expect to see Vilardi bounce back this year. He's a difference maker and loves the sport. It's a tough road for him getting over his back issues and understanding the rigors of an NHL season. The addition of Danault will help him settle into a more effective role as 3C right now.

I like Vilardi. Believe him & Kupari are the righties in the system for center. The issue is that management is high on both Byfield & Turcotte. Also Vilardi was reluctant to working on faceoffs until he noticed Byfield was already better.

So if Blake finds a good LD & has to give up a big piece in the trade, my guess is Vilardi. Vilardi playing center has more value to some team than wing in LA.

 

[Piston]

Things getting even worse in Sharkland Evander Kane's relationship with Sharks teammates and the organization may be irreparable – The Athletic. The Kings have a damn good shot of making the playoffs this year. We should finish 3rd in the Pacific.

 

[DAkings20]

I feel f***ing old man

 

[Johnny Utah]

Looking thru the Kings and Reign on capfriendly just a few thoughts - we are soft.

There are no tough D men on the current big club or the Reign. The only tough forward prospect is Helenius and he’s not even on Capfriendly because he is not signed. Kings need to find a way to add some grit somewhere in the system. They traded Hults and Imama. Both were tough.

When Austin Strand is your biggest and toughest D prospect - you have issues.

 

[Gjwrams]

Looking thru the Kings and Reign on capfriendly just a few thoughts - we are soft.

There are no tough D men on the current big club or the Reign. The only tough forward prospect is Helenius and he’s not even on Capfriendly because he is not signed. Kings need to find a way to add some grit somewhere in the system. They traded Hults and Imama. Both were tough.

When Austin Strand is your biggest and toughest D prospect - you have issues.

This team can’t bring the puck up the ice or put the puck in the net and have drafted accordingly to fix that. We can worry about a “bully” when we can score.

 

[Johnny Utah]

True. Just keep drafting centers then!

 

[tbrown33]

Old enough to remember drafting Teubert

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Old enough to remember drafting Teubert

The Kings definitely need to draft more players like him, and Joey Ryan. Y'know, tough guys who had long and successful careers... in the minors.

 

[Gjwrams]

True. Just keep drafting centers then!

I’m sure that is Rob’s plan and he’ll do it just to spite you.

 

[Schrute farms]

I do agree we are very soft. But that's also a bit of the new NHL -- if you are older (like me), it does take a bit to fully wrap your brain around that and be less concerned about this issue.

Regardless, I'd much prefer to draft and have too much skill (scoring, puck movement) on the team than power/grit/size. It's much easier to trade for the latter than the former. Plus, as mentioned, the whole is going soft...it's just the nature of where we are at sports-wise in 2021 and player safety (for better or worse).

 

[Gjwrams]

I agree it’s a balance, but this “we are too soft” argument with a bunch of kids is pointless, especially when this team can’t score. Doesn’t matter how ‘’tough” you are, if you are losing 2-1. Let’s fix that part first, then we can go get our cliffords and Matt Greene’s.

 

[The Lukeman]

Who was Tampa's tough guy? Pat Maroon?

 

[BringTheReign]

Who was Tampa's tough guy? Pat Maroon?

It was by committee there. Kucherov plays like a prick, same with Hedman, the entire Goodrow-Gourde-Coleman line were always in scrums and running defenders through the boards on the forecheck, then they had Colton and Maroon on the 4th line.

I think people here are forgetting Lemieux too. Unless it's Wilson or Reaves, that's all you need nowadays. I think the team mentality is more important; the Lightning didn't used to have that, but they developed it.

 

[BigKing]

Who was Tampa's tough guy? Pat Maroon?

They didn't win shit until they went out and got Maroon, Goodrow and Coleman. The "easy to find toughness later" type of players that cost Tampa Bay a 1st round pick each time for the latter two players.

It isn't about having a tough guy but rather having a tough team. The issue with this team's toughness isn't the lack of an enforcer but rather the fact that most of the players have an aversion to finishing checks and going to the hard areas of the ice.

 

[Jason Squirties]

Exactly, who gives a shit about out and out individual toughness anymore? It's team mindset more than anything that this team lacks. Hard to play against, stick up for each other, mix it up after the whistle every now and then, acting like you care more than anything would be a nice change. Instead they just look like the lifeless office scrubs leading a 9-5 with the occasional Doughty yapping at the refs or one of the other players and not doing anything with it.

 

[crassbonanza]

I do agree we are very soft. But that's also a bit of the new NHL -- if you are older (like me), it does take a bit to fully wrap your brain around that and be less concerned about this issue.

Regardless, I'd much prefer to draft and have too much skill (scoring, puck movement) on the team than power/grit/size. It's much easier to trade for the latter than the former. Plus, as mentioned, the whole is going soft...it's just the nature of where we are at sports-wise in 2021 and player safety (for better or worse).

I disagree that the new NHL is about being soft, go back and look at the cup winners over the past half decade and you will find plenty of grit/toughness. The bolts realized that they needed a bit more grit after getting swept by the BJ's and went out to grab guys like Goodrow, Coleman and Maroon. Their star players are also not shy about being tough. Hedman, Kucherov, Sergachev will all throw some shots back. The Blues were most definitely a tough, gritty team and were coached by Berube. The Caps iced Tom Wilson on the top line and Ovechkin loves to throw hits. The Penguins maybe are a half way decent example, but Malkin is pretty crazy and the Penguins had 2 of the best players in the league.

The other issue is that people also love to say that trading for grit/toughness that can play is much easier and I honestly believe it is the opposite. Tough guys who can keep up are one of the highest premiums in the league right now due to their scarcity and importance. Foligno was traded for a 1st and two 4ths, Goodrow went for a 1st, Coleman was traded for a 1st+Foote, etc. Compare that to a guy like Tomas Tatar who was just a year removed from a near PPG season and had put up 30 in 50 last year. He was available well past the opening of free agency and ended up signing a 2 year deal for just 4.5 million.

 

[bland]

Toughness is just the sexier term used to describe perseverance, the act of showing enough pride in your game, your team, and your teammates to push through difficult times and thrive.

Last year's team had very little of that despite dressing a premier face puncher. There was no pride in this team and it showed when young players were railed with no response, when one goal deficits turned quickly into three goal deficits, when players alligator armed their board work.

What we want to support is a team that perservers without wilting, and that shows that they will take enough pride in themselves to show up to the grind instead of avoiding it. You can accomplish a lot if everyone has a common spirit and pulls in the same direction even if they don't have the talent to compete with the best teams yet.

That will be the first sign that the rebuild is yielding positive results at the NHL level, even if they still suffer in the standings. You have to have that first.

 

[BigKing]

Toughness is just the sexier term used to describe perseverance, the act of showing enough pride in your game, your team, and your teammates to push through difficult times and thrive.

Last year's team had very little of that despite dressing a premier face puncher. There was no pride in this team and it showed when young players were railed with no response, when one goal deficits turned quickly into three goal deficits, when players alligator armed their board work.

What we want to support is a team that perservers without wilting, and that shows that they will take enough pride in themselves to show up to the grind instead of avoiding it. You can accomplish a lot if everyone has a common spirit and pulls in the same direction even if they don't have the talent to compete with the best teams yet.

That will be the first sign that the rebuild is yielding positive results at the NHL level, even if they still suffer in the standings. You have to have that first.

The "response" to the Fiala and Stephenson hits was pathetic and has been an ongoing theme for quite some time. Winning teams don't just take shit like that but winning teams also care about one another.

 

[DoktorJeep]

I doubt opposing teams are worried about having to push the Kings around in order to come away with 2 points any given night. They’re just fine with playing hockey and winning because their players are better. And I’m sure Coach Todd would prefer to keep games close and not take penalties, given the 80%PK and 21/31 GA rank his teams have produced.