I am repeating what I have said before: Mike Richards' ongoing struggles were caused by having natural LWs he's comfy with getting traded away. Remember Simon Gagné? Dan Carcillo? Yes, they're natural LWs Kings management traded away. Even a Penguins fan left a comment on NHL.com, suggesting to bring back Simon Gagné, which I've been saying.
That's the very reason why I keep on saying that King-Kopitar-Carter line is backfiring, because the top scorers are over-concentrated on just one line. How many games had already passed, using that line? This is the most recent one.
If the L.A. Kings front office isn't bringing back Simon Gagné, then expect this team to choke its way out of playoff contention, let alone winning it all.
Dean Lombardi better be considerate to chemistry, especially when gambled on that just to acquire Simon, Mike, and the Jeff Carter trade; and no, if you want to see spoiled fans, just look at the Blackhawks fanbase. As a strong believer of chemistry, the last time I saw a dynasty in other sports were the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Lakers. As much as I hate to admit this, that's what happening right now with the Blackhawks.
Even both within and outside of the hockey community, a lot of people are still dismissing the 2012 Stanley Cup title as a Deus Ex Machina; as a hometown fan, I take offense to that.
You know why I'm this passionate about the L.A. Kings? It's because since as a then-little boy prior to arriving here in America, they're the 1st-ever Los Angeles team I ever heard of and symbolically showed me that L.A. is my place to be (long personal story; I'll only bore you with the details).