GDT: 2024-25 season game 9 LA Kings vs Utah Hockey Club @1:00pm 10/26/24

[Peter James Bond III]

Playing perfect black hole hockey: beat the bums lose to the contenders.. WC2 or a just miss. Picking > 15th in the draft... Legacy moves us to "right there"

'We Are All Kings'...just self appointed ones in third world banana republics. Not so Royal...or powerful...or feared. Ripe to be dethroned at the slightest of uprisings.
translation: The Kings are weak and at best an 8th seed team. Forwards 9,12,22,24,55 needing much more. DD needed to be back by mid DEC and at 23-24 level....or this team is not getting out of round 1 playoffs, unless some players rising above the norm. (only Turc, Laf and Clarke have done that so far and was not expecting that, so much)

 

[King'sPawn]

It will curb his deference to others tendencies. Why pass to stone hands?

One of the things Byfield hasn't learned yet (possibly delayed from spending multiple seasons in the bottom 6) is zone entry allowing for a better shot.

He's not showing a lot of confidence in his shot, and (from what I remember) he didn't enter at an angle that would have allowed it.

Even if he was by himself, the best he was going to get was a short-side backhand. Trevor Lewis would have been a better option.

 

[Peter James Bond III]

FINAL – Kings 3, Utah 2 – Clarke, Edmundson, Hiller - LA Kings Insider

The LA Kings won their second consecutive game to begin their home schedule on Saturday afternoon at Crypto.com Arena, defeating the Utah Hockey Club by a final score of 3-2. Neither team found the back of the net in the opening period, despite a pair of high-danger chances from Adrian Kempe and...

lakingsinsider.com

"""On if he is losing patience with Kevin Fiala
I’m not going to talk a lot about Kevin. We did get the two points, which was, I think, the most important part of the afternoon. We played extremely hard, checked extremely hard, and I think that’s more important than Kevin right now"""

Honestly, Kevin does not gel with anyone and he may never. He was looking best with Danault and Moore, but they are both not playing their best. He should probably play LW1 and just let him play there...or why not try Byfield Turcotte Fiala and see how that works.

Looking at his contract, (7.875 cap) he is in yr 3 of 7 and his NMC is full and becomes 10 team no trade list, years 5-7. https://puckpedia.com/player/kevin-fiala

If he would add the 10 team list now, for a deal...would consider exploring, if they are not going to live with his shortcomings. I do think the first penalty was a joke and the second one, looked just so so and I couldn't believe his stick broke. Not making excuses, he needs to be more disciplined. If they are going to jerk him around and try to protect him in the lineup...it's not going to work. He needs to play and play with confidence and not worry about making errors. I don't think contenders would want him, but see teams like Ott, Det, TB, Isl, possibly Chi taking a chance on him. Not that he has some of those on his NMC. I still think the Kings could get a good return...but would have to take back at least 6 Mil contract(s)

 

[AbsentMojo]

..

'We Are All Kings'...just self appointed ones in third world banana republics. Not so Royal...or powerful...or feared. Ripe to be dethroned at the slightest of uprisings.
translation: The Kings are weak and at best an 8th seed team. Forwards 9,12,22,24,55 needing much more. DD needed to be back by mid DEC and at 23-24 level....or this team is not getting out of round 1 playoffs, unless some players rising above the norm. (only Turc, Laf and Clarke have done that so far and was not expecting that, so much)

Agree with those 3 standing out - everyone else fairly mediocre. I thought QB would take a step, but he's done this before - sort of disappeared for awhile. maybe he'll be like JT Miller or TNT and not get to point-per-game til he's 26... so doesnt look like anyone can take the team to another level. DD coming back helps the defense but hurts the offense that Clarke is bringing. The problem is that there is only 1 line that clicks (Turcs). 12,24,22 looks sus, and Kopi's line is not close to a #1. Basically there's 1 2nd line, 2 3rd lines and a 4th line... I think the lines as they are now, are the best they can be. So I dont see much hope.. 8th seed is the high bar for this crew and that assumes Kuemper plays well.

 

[Surf Nutz]

FINAL – Kings 3, Utah 2 – Clarke, Edmundson, Hiller - LA Kings Insider

The LA Kings won their second consecutive game to begin their home schedule on Saturday afternoon at Crypto.com Arena, defeating the Utah Hockey Club by a final score of 3-2. Neither team found the back of the net in the opening period, despite a pair of high-danger chances from Adrian Kempe and...

lakingsinsider.com

"""On if he is losing patience with Kevin Fiala
I’m not going to talk a lot about Kevin. We did get the two points, which was, I think, the most important part of the afternoon. We played extremely hard, checked extremely hard, and I think that’s more important than Kevin right now"""

Honestly, Kevin does not gel with anyone and he may never. He was looking best with Danault and Moore, but they are both not playing their best. He should probably play LW1 and just let him play there...or why not try Byfield Turcotte Fiala and see how that works.

Looking at his contract, (7.875 cap) he is in yr 3 of 7 and his NMC is full and becomes 10 team no trade list, years 5-7. https://puckpedia.com/player/kevin-fiala

If he would add the 10 team list now, for a deal...would consider exploring, if they are not going to live with his shortcomings. I do think the first penalty was a joke and the second one, looked just so so and I couldn't believe his stick broke. Not making excuses, he needs to be more disciplined. If they are going to jerk him around and try to protect him in the lineup...it's not going to work. He needs to play and play with confidence and not worry about making errors. I don't think contenders would want him, but see teams like Ott, Det, TB, Isl, possibly Chi taking a chance on him. Not that he has some of those on his NMC. I still think the Kings could get a good return...but would have to take back at least 6 Mil contract(s)

BYf and Fia work well together , that's why the get put together 4 on 4 at times.

Need to find the right 3rd wheel.

 

[FSL KINGS]

Great win! Don't know how long King's can get by on guys like Foegele & Munsond having multiple goals games.

Glad King's got tougher over the summer.

 

[kingsfan28]

Playing lots of shitty teams.

But according to the media, " the brand new franchise" in Utah is really good.

 

[Peter James Bond III]

Lee made a really nice pass to Turcotte and he got a decent shot off. Other than that play, Lee has not been spectacular last 2 games. If they won't scratch Lewis for Akil, then sit Lee and give Akil a chance. I would be a little surprised if they sat Fiala for Akil....but you never know.

 

[BaileyFan]

Playing lots of shitty teams.

Honestly I think the Hockey Club are the first team the Kings have beaten that are actually better than them, though obviously both teams are in the same general mid-tier bracket.

And two of the next three games are against SJ and Chicago.

Kings are going to be 7-3-2 next week and there will be a Mayor article titled “Is Blake the Frontrunner For GM of the Year?”

 

[Omni Owl]

Lee made a really nice pass to Turcotte and he got a decent shot off. Other than that play, Lee has not been spectacular last 2 games. If they won't scratch Lewis for Akil, then sit Lee and give Akil a chance. I would be a little surprised if they sat Fiala for Akil....but you never know.

Was thinking the same thing. It's obvious Lewis is going to stay in the lineup, so Thomas should play in lieu of Lee. He's looked underwhelming so far for a player his size.

Don't even get me started on Fiala, super disappointing so far. Also holy motherf*** were the refs atrocious yesterday, complete double standard officiating. Glad the Kings kept it together despite those dipshits.

 

[Bandit]

Hey I know those Lyrics I just can't put my brain on it

Warren Dan Foegele-berg.

 

[chris kontos]

i dont think the team would be much different with or without fiala. the flaws go much deeper than any one player or line scrambling is going to solve im afraid.
my opinion on fiala is that he should be kept around just for comic relief and the approx 25 goals/season he'll bring. some of his antics on the ice are hilarious and usually not too destructive. bill guerin burned blake so bad in this deal it defies description. maybe worse than the pld deal?

 

[RayMartyniukTotems]

Warren Dan Foegele-berg.

Nice

Lee made a really nice pass to Turcotte and he got a decent shot off. Other than that play, Lee has not been spectacular last 2 games. If they won't scratch Lewis for Akil, then sit Lee and give Akil a chance. I would be a little surprised if they sat Fiala for Akil....but you never know.

Don't see it as LA has always tried most times in vain going leftie leftie and rightie rightie

 

[kingsboy11]

At this rate we're more likely to see Edmundson line up at forward than Akil at this point

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Was thinking the same thing. It's obvious Lewis is going to stay in the lineup, so Thomas should play in lieu of Lee. He's looked underwhelming so far for a player his size.

Don't even get me started on Fiala, super disappointing so far. Also holy motherf*** were the refs atrocious yesterday, complete double standard officiating. Glad the Kings kept it together despite those dipshits.

Yeah I"m not defending FIala because he needs to be much more self aware

but it's like Sutherland was going after him personally, I haven't seen anything like that since a few refs with Lemieux, guys just staring at him with their whistles in their mouths waiting for it

 

[kingsholygrail]

The most uncomfortable 5-2-2 record.

 

[Schmooley]

The most uncomfortable 5-2-2 record.

Yea its like last year before that big losing streak. They were still winning games but we could see collapse coming for a couple weeks prior as their game was falling off and bad habits were creeping in.
Kings also have a new system and new players so once video gets out teams will start to adjust to the 1-2-2.
They just havent looked very good.
But at the same time there is still a good chance for them to clean up their game and take care of business.

 

[Statto]

Yea its like last year before that big losing streak. They were still winning games but we could see collapse coming for a couple weeks prior as their game was falling off and bad habits were creeping in.
Kings also have a new system and new players so once video gets out teams will start to adjust to the 1-2-2.
They just havent looked very good.
But at the same time there is still a good chance for them to clean up their game and take care of business.

There’s a big difference, this time nobody (most importantly Hiller) is pretending that things don’t need to improve. I don’t think teams are that caught out by 1-2-2, it’s not a new thing. Obviously there will be subtle differences but it’s not going to bemuse anyone. Specific things like Clarke on pp1, sure.

The team will improve. The d especially are all playing bigger roles than anticipated, with Clarke and Spence both capable of growing with that. The mix at forward actually seems the more complex puzzle but it is still early although that’s not going to wash for much longer… As you say there is time to clean things up, especially as the record is respectable.

 

[All The Kings Men]

There’s a big difference, this time nobody (most importantly Hiller) is pretending that things don’t need to improve. I don’t think teams are that caught out by 1-2-2, it’s not a new thing. Obviously there will be subtle differences but it’s not going to bemuse anyone. Specific things like Clarke on pp1, sure.

The team will improve. The d especially are all playing bigger roles than anticipated, with Clarke and Spence both capable of growing with that. The mix at forward actually seems the more complex puzzle but it is still early although that’s not going to wash for much longer… As you say there is time to clean things up, especially as the record is respectable.

Yes but...

I think part of the curiosity (I won't say concern) is that the opportunities to "clean things up" have been there as the teams they're beating have all been truly terrible.

The Ducks, Canadiens and Sharks all had multiple opportunities to get pucks on net and failed to just from unforced errors.

It's harder to produce consistent results against tougher competition when you're struggling to produce it againts teams that aren't capable or even inclined towards competition.

 

[Statto]

Yes but...

I think part of the curiosity (I won't say concern) is that the opportunities to "clean things up" have been there as the teams they're beating have all been truly terrible.

The Ducks, Canadiens and Sharks all had multiple opportunities to get pucks on net and failed to just from unforced errors.

It's harder to produce consistent results against tougher competition when you're struggling to produce it againts teams that aren't capable or even inclined towards competition.

I largely agree. Theres also the psychology that tougher teams focus the mind better… that’s when the bigger player should/could/might elevate their games. There will also be a degree to which some of the players are still adjusting to the system. They will all know it logically but some may not quite be reacting as quickly as they ultimately will do.

There will also be the comfort factor that comes with the guys in being in elevated roles. It’s not just Clarke and Spence. Gavrikov and Edmundson have more responsibility also but you could argue it’s even more on Anderson as it’s now ‘his blueline’… he’s the leader of the D-corps. Theres also additional need/expectation/responsibility on the forwards to be better defensively. Losing DD is a psychological pressure as much as a practical one.

As I say, I agree with what you say but there is still meaningful opportunity to improve. If that doesn’t happen it’ll raise character questions for me, which may or may not be fair.

 

[Surf Nutz]

Can't remember the Kings ever winning a game from defensemen only goals.