You're probably right at this point.
However, I think their upside might actually still be pretty damn high (whether or not it's likely they live up to that upside is a different story). They need a lot of guys to turn their seasons around - but when we're talking upside, we're talking how good can this team possibly be if everyone (or most everyone) is playing well / pulling their weight. Well, if everyone is playing well and pulling their weight, I think this team could actually be pretty nasty.
"What is different from the previous 3 years?"
- Brandt Clarke
- Clarke is on pace for 65 points right now and hasn't even been playing his best hockey - The Kings haven't seen offense like that from the blue line in DECADES - that's a very big deal
- Alex Turcotte
- Once deemed a bust by 95% of the hockey world, now looking like a strong top 9 player who can drive offense on his own line - that's also huge
- Alex Laferriere
- So many Kings fans were ready to write this guy off as nothing more than a 3rd liner after seeing his 22 year old rookie season... Now he looks like a legit top 6 winger / goal scorer and one of the best players on the team - that is, of course, also huge
- Grit
- This team actually has a tiny bit of a backbone for the first time in years
I'm not saying this is a formidable team RIGHT NOW..... I admitted they've been playing like crap. I'm saying this COULD be a formidable team if a couple players decide to stop playing like absolute dog sh*t. If Byfield decides he wants to show up. If Danault and Moore decide they want to start playing. If Fiala starts playing like we know he can. Obviously yeah maybe those guys won't turn it around and are just having bad years but we know these guys are pretty damn good hockey players - they can and should be much better - if they are, the Kings will be much better off as an extension.
With Doughty back (assuming he'll be back at some point this season based on what we've heard from the Kings), the Kings' defense is instantly pretty damn good especially with Clarke playing like he's been playing. If Byfield and/or a couple other top 6 forwards pull their heads out of their asses and start playing good hockey, that instantly makes this teams' forward group pretty damn good. The goaltending is suspect but we'll see how that goes.
ALL I'M SAYING, is that we've basically seen the worst from this team and they're still 2nd in the division 10 games in. I understand it hasn't been pretty.... But if anything that's more of a reason to be optimistic IMO. Because we know many of these Kings players who are struggling right now are capable of playing MUCH better. And if they do start playing much better, this Kings team starts to look completely different than it does right now. You might feel differently - that's fine. I'm not saying their definitely a contender - I'm just saying this group has a lot more potential than they've shown so far. Mostly because the vets haven't been pulling their weight.
None of what you mentioned addresses the huge problem with this team, the complete and total lack of anything resembling a star player, much less the multiple star players that championship teams have. Last years champion had 3-4 players better than anybody on the Kings.
Clarke has star potential, but due to laughably bad development decisions he only has a limited amount of NHL games, instead of 1-2 seasons worth. Had he been handled by the Kings like he would have been by any other team in the NHL he could be more impactful, but he's probably 1-2 years away from really hitting his peak as a poor man's Karlsson.
Saying someone was a bad pick does not mean one is a bust. Saying Turcotte was not Jonathan Toews does not mean he is a bust. I've been saying for 5 years now that he was going to be another Andrew Copp, sure seems like that was a correct prediction? Andrew Copp can contribute as a good depth piece on a contending team, but he ain't making a middle of the pack team into a contender.
Laff has been awesome, isn't it amazing what happens in situations where the Kings are hands-off with prospect development. You have middle round picks who are kept away from Nelly and Muzz almost immediately stepping into NHL roles out of college (Laff, Faber, Anderson). While the ones that they get as teenagers (Byfield, Turcotte, Kaliyev, Bjornfot, Kupari, Kaliyev) fail to live up to where they were originally projected. Funny how that works out.
But those three aren't changing playoff results from last year without the addition of 1-2 star players, that is what the Kings are missing from contending.
And also, you are mentioning the improvement of certain players but conveniently ignore others that are inevitably going to decline, you mention Danault, he's almost 32 with a ton of miles on his body, it's way more likely this is who he is, he declined each of the past two seasons, why do you think it's not going to continue this season? Doughty is 35 years old and coming off another major injury. Kopitar is 37. These guys are not as good as they were in the previous years. You can't cherry pick natural age progression and ignore age regression. The regression of your 1C, 2C and 1D more than makes up for any progression from the players above. The Kings are probably on the same level in 2025 as they were in the previous 3 years. This is what black hole teams do.
I don’t think we’ve seen the worst of this team yet. They aren’t playing uniquely or unusually below their standards or anything, this is just who they have been since January of this calendar year. They win ugly against the bad teams and they lose ugly against the good teams, with a handful of outliers like last night sprinkled in.
As for the roster’s supposed potential, there are like 25 teams that could make a miracle Cup run if every player magically played the best hockey of his career at the same time for a two month stretch. I don’t doubt that what you’re saying is exactly what the front office is thinking because hope really is a strategy for them though.
2012 was incredible, but people have to realize it was a once in a lifetime run. But you have the President of the team still referencing it 13 years later to justify the current black hole team being a contender.
"Look at 2012, you just have to get in, anything can happen"
Just conveniently forgetting that the 2012 Kings had three Hall of Fame players in their primes, at the three most important positions on an NHL roster.
