GDT: 2024-25 season game 42 LA kings vs Vancouver Canucks @7:00pm 1/16/25

[BigKing]

Counterpoint: Anze has 4 points in the last 10 games - Turcotte has 6 and Kempe has 10.

This is Kempe's team now. He IS the driver. I don't know that you HAVE to keep that line together.

I agree that Kempe is the straw that stirs the drink of this team. Mentioned in the Kopitar thread on the main board that playing with this version of Kempe is a tremendous help for him and that this version of Kempe is arguably the best winger he has played with.

I thought Turcotte actually looked better earlier this year with Foegle and Laferriere.

Its great to see a very productive game, but that line has looked disjointed and ineffective quite often of late. There have been many nights when Turcotte looks too deferential up top, I thought he looked terrific as a more confident, assertive center.

Would be great if he actually winds up playing center.

 

[Schrute farms]

As much as some other posters here did write off Turc, I actually think the Kings organization wrote him off even moreso than the anti-Turc folks here. He should have been up and given more opportunities long before now. Heck, if Arty didn't get stuck in the doghouse or PLD was still around, then Turc might never have had a chance this year to prove himself worthy. He'd be stuck down in Ontario playing a grinders game/minutes/utilization.

 

[bland]

As much as some other posters here did write off Turc, I actually think the Kings organization wrote him off even moreso than the anti-Turc folks here. He should have been up and given more opportunities long before now. Heck, if Arty didn't get stuck in the doghouse or PLD was still around, then Turc might never have had a chance this year to prove himself worthy. He'd be stuck down in Ontario playing a grinders game/minutes/utilization.

I suspect the delay in Turcotte's arrival had more to do with an inability to put on muscle weight even more than the concussions.

 

[Sol]

I think the reason anyone had doubt in Turcotte wasn’t due to his ability. He kept getting killed out there. And he does have a habit of not being able to take hits well. He’s doing good but he’s likely one chunky hit away from heaven yet again unfortunately

 

[Axl Rhoadz]

As much as some other posters here did write off Turc, I actually think the Kings organization wrote him off even moreso than the anti-Turc folks here. He should have been up and given more opportunities long before now. Heck, if Arty didn't get stuck in the doghouse or PLD was still around, then Turc might never have had a chance this year to prove himself worthy. He'd be stuck down in Ontario playing a grinders game/minutes/utilization.

You must have forgotten that Turcotte was like 150lbs wet before this season. They were trying to keep him alive.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I suspect the delay in Turcotte's arrival had more to do with an inability to put on muscle weight even more than the concussions.

Some guys just dont' develop adult strenght until later...following his social feeds the guy was putting in WORK over the summer, mad workouts. But he reminded me of me graduating high school...playing three sports i couldn't put on weight. I was drinking weight gainer and eating fast food at 3am and was stuck at 155.

Then I discovered beer in college and the pendulum swung the other way and i'm stuck at 200!

But he has a pretty slight frame for a pro athlete, that's a problem for a guy that wants to play like him...much like Mike Richards.

 

[AbsentMojo]

You must have forgotten that Turcotte was like 150lbs wet before this season. They were trying to keep him alive.

The AHL is pretty much the last place you'd want to put him to keep him alive.. no?

 

[Trash Panda]

Some guys just dont' develop adult strenght until later...following his social feeds the guy was putting in WORK over the summer, mad workouts. But he reminded me of me graduating high school...playing three sports i couldn't put on weight. I was drinking weight gainer and eating fast food at 3am and was stuck at 155.

Then I discovered beer in college and the pendulum swung the other way and i'm stuck at 200!

But he has a pretty slight frame for a pro athlete, that's a problem for a guy that wants to play like him...much like Mike Richards.

Turcotte doesn’t play near as angry & aggressively as Richards, and that’s not slight to him, but he does find similar areas of the ice regularly as Richards did.

Turcotte is also very good at making those little touches in the hard areas of the ice much like Richards, but he does it with a lot more thought. I really see a lot of Justin Williams in his game; just consistently good touches on the puck, coupled with a great motor.

Also, Richards would find a way to murder someone two weight classes above him, and I just don’t see that kind of anger in Turcotte. Possibly to benefit his longevity.

 

[johnjm22]

Counterpoint: Anze has 4 points in the last 10 games - Turcotte has 6 and Kempe has 10.

This is Kempe's team now. He IS the driver. I don't know that you HAVE to keep that line together.

Byfield has 7 points in his last 10 games. I guess he's our best center now.

 

[bland]

Turcotte doesn’t play near as angry & aggressively as Richards, and that’s not slight to him, but he does find similar areas of the ice regularly as Richards did.

Turcotte is also very good at making those little touches in the hard areas of the ice much like Richards, but he does it with a lot more thought. I really see a lot of Justin Williams in his game; just consistently good touches on the puck, coupled with a great motor.

Also, Richards would find a way to murder someone two weight classes above him, and I just don’t see that kind of anger in Turcotte. Possibly to benefit his longevity.

The cool thing is we are just seeing him emerge. He still looks genuinely surprised when he scores sometimes. When he has confidence and feels secure I think we will see a player that is more similar to (a less sturdy) Ryan O'Reilly. No special skill to point at, just doing the right thing over and over, but with Turcotte its at full pace. He is productive in transition now, not as much off deep possession which is partly why I think Anze's numbers have suffered of late.

High speed, logical interconnectivity that funnels pucks to the net. That's the phrase I have used since his draft year. Station to station up the ice until a chance is created. It doesn't always result in points, but it owns territory and manufactures positive momentum that benefits the next shift.

Byfield has 7 points in his last 10 games. I guess he's our best center now.

Over that stretch? Yeah, undoubtedly.