Prospect Info: 5th Overall Pick, Alex Turcotte, C, USNTDP UPDATED: Signs 3 Year ELC 3/11/20

[Reclamation Project]

Yea theres also a thread laf for turcotte on the main board. Its never kings fans making the threads wanting to trade the players but fans that dont watch the kings or reign regularly and love to spout nonsense. The main board really seems like its younger kids that love to bicker. No problem with it its just opinions not based in reality most of the time.

Very true, someone creates this outlandish proposal and then when Kings fans say no thanks we're good, they get triggered. We don't care.

 

[regulate]

Being on the 2nd PP unit certainly hurts Turcotte's production, and is perpetual injury history is concerning (as it was to many scouts at the draft). That being said, playing mostly on the 2nd line he has 18 pts in 26 games, but the most impressive stat this year is he leads the Reign in +/- despite his lower production at +18. They want him to develop as the 2 way forward they drafted him to be, and although we were hoping for a little quicker pace, the bottom line is he is still 20 years old (although he turns 21 this week), so there is a long road ahead. He'll never be a great goal scorer, those will come from up close, but he's a smart talented kid with vision that can play a solid game. He has top six skill, it's just a matter of time and staying healthy.

 

[kingsfan28]

For every Zegras and Seider, there is a Turcotte?

I hope he works out though, he is a king and i am rooting for him.

You could insert any number of top picks who took 3-4 years to become regular players who excelled. Like I said, what's the hurry? Zegras for example has played much more hockey than Turcotte because he's been healthy and there were spots available when he was called up . He got 24 games in his first pro year , then this year took over one of the many spots that were open on the Duck roster. I see him moving to the wing at some point and being really good.

 

[cyclones22]

In Ontario, Turcotte has 18 points in 26 games is leading the team with a +18 and shooting 17% while playing on the second line. He and other young players should by all rights be playing 1st line and 1st PP minutes but thanks to Tynan, Frk and JAD (and Tkachev before he got benched into oblivion) being on the roster, those vets are garnering those minutes. But by no means is Turcotte having a bad year in the AHL. That's ridiculous just by watching him play a few games. He's a play maker and line driver.

Just like on the big club, it's time to thank those vets for their service at the end of the season and allow the kids to grow even more. Look it up, almost ALL of the kids in Ontario are playing well given the deployment and roles they've been given. JAD, Gabe, Turcotte, Madden, Fagemo, Grans, Spence etc. It honestly seems safer for them to be on the big club rather than Ontario because of the amount of cheap shots that happen in the AHL are ridiculous. Reign players have been injured this season due to intent to injure plays.

Edit: I got sidetracked before posting this and see that regulate basically posted the same thing!

 

[kingsfan]

Proposal: - Chychrun for Vilardi, Turcotte, and a 1st

Is this the thread you are referencing? I normally don't read the sideshow main board, but I saw this on the side panel. Wow, even more terrible than I could imagine. These people are so delusional it's incredible.

Byfield? No, get lost.

Vilardi is a salvage player? Please, hasn't even played a full season across 3 years. He's over a PPG in the AHL and looks great. He's 22, not 32.

I get the Vilardi love around here, I was beyond stoked we got him at 11th when I had him as a possible top three talent in the draft. But when you look at his career since the draft he's had back issues that cost him about 18 months, has had one full season in the NHL that was ok but not above average and now has found himself demoted to the minors after it was his spot on the team to lose. I'm not saying he won't pan out but how many players have that type of career directory and reach the potential Vilardi is supposed to have? If a prospect on another team had the same past four years Gabe has had, what would we peg his value at and likelihood of panning out at? I think if another team was offering us a Vilardi type, we'd be looking at it as a salvage situation as well.

 

[kingsfan28]

Zero chance they thought of him as a 3C when they drafted him. They may have thought that was his floor to go along with good intangibles but they weren't trying to fill the 3C box at 5OA.

They didn't expect 2OA and simply couldn't pass on Byfield even though he is a center. I definitely believe they were/are concerned about Turcotte's ceiling after two development years that didn't go as planned...Danault probably doesn't happen if Turcotte is a stud.

A huge part of his game is his tenacity and they've got to be concerned about his durability since he is continually nicked up and sometimes it is from the most innocuous plays. Maybe that goes away as he gets stronger but, man, you shouldn't be getting hurt at 20 years old from just falling down on a face off.

By comparision, not many thought Kempe anything less than a 2nd line center. He's now the top winger on the top line. Nobody saw that. If Turcotte doesn't end up at center, he could be a damn fine winger too. Valardi-Byfield-Turcotte would be a hell of a line if they reach their potential .

 

[kingsfan28]

Very true, someone creates this outlandish proposal and then when Kings fans say no thanks we're good, they get triggered. We don't care.

I had to keep myself from telling more than a few guys to pound sand with their crazy ideas. And they say we overvalue players.

 

[BigKing]

By comparision, not many thought Kempe anything less than a 2nd line center. He's now the top winger on the top line. Nobody saw that. If Turcotte doesn't end up at center, he could be a damn fine winger too. Valardi-Byfield-Turcotte would be a hell of a line if they reach their potential .

Sure, but they weren't drafting a potential winger at 5OA: they thought they were drafting a center.

RE: Kempe, you meant that he was thought of as nothing more than a 2C as in 2C was his ceiling? That's a guy that was thought of a probable high-end 3C maybe a 2C. I love how he's playing this season on wing as it was obvious he shouldn't be a C at the NHL level. He also popped in 17 goals and then never hit that again for a couple of seasons so I'm going to chill on expecting this current version of Kempe to be the norm moving forward even if I hope that is the case.

 

[cyclones22]

By comparision, not many thought Kempe anything less than a 2nd line center. He's now the top winger on the top line. Nobody saw that. If Turcotte doesn't end up at center, he could be a damn fine winger too. Valardi-Byfield-Turcotte would be a hell of a line if they reach their potential .

Both Vilardi and Turcotte make passes that nobody on the Kings even think to make. Both have excellent vision and are good passers. The only question mark about Turcotte's skill is his shot. And that's something that can improve with time and added strength. Yet he shot 10% last season and is at 17% this season. Hell, almost universally everyone thought Danault's shot was garbage. Yet here he is at 12.5% and has reached a career high in goals after 48 games.

As for Vilardi, his biggest problem last season was being paired with wingers who weren't possession players. That accentuated his weaknesses. Gabe's lack of speed and his responsibility to be in the F3 position as a center meant that he was always late entering the zone and by the time he did, the wingers had already lost possession. It's why he played much better at the end of the season because he had Iaffalo and Moore on his wings at varying points and they could actually hold onto the puck. But now that he's on the wing, he doesn't have to skate from deep in the Kings d-zone anymore on breakouts and now he can utilize his passing and his completely underrated shot to score goals.

Gabe's long-term future is likely at the wing because of his skating, but Turcotte can break in at the wing then eventually move back to center once Kopi ages out. IIRC Claude Giroux started on the wing in Philadelphia as well before moving full time to center.

 

[kingsfan28]

Sure, but they weren't drafting a potential winger at 5OA: they thought they were drafting a center.

RE: Kempe, you meant that he was thought of as nothing more than a 2C as in 2C was his ceiling? That's a guy that was thought of a probable high-end 3C maybe a 2C. I love how he's playing this season on wing as it was obvious he shouldn't be a C at the NHL level. He also popped in 17 goals and then never hit that again for a couple of seasons so I'm going to chill on expecting this current version of Kempe to be the norm moving forward even if I hope that is the case.

Oh yeah, for sure they weren't. Then they got a legit #2 center and pushed the spots down one. Who knows, one day Turcotte could replace #2/#3 center or even go to the wing at times. His day will come.

 

[Schmooley]

Sure, but they weren't drafting a potential winger at 5OA: they thought they were drafting a center.

RE: Kempe, you meant that he was thought of as nothing more than a 2C as in 2C was his ceiling? That's a guy that was thought of a probable high-end 3C maybe a 2C. I love how he's playing this season on wing as it was obvious he shouldn't be a C at the NHL level. He also popped in 17 goals and then never hit that again for a couple of seasons so I'm going to chill on expecting this current version of Kempe to be the norm moving forward even if I hope that is the case.

I think kempes 17 goal season mainly came from centering toffoli and pearson when carter went down. Then he was put with the revolving door that included wagner, lizotte, amadio, luff etc…
Putting rookies that have high end potential with good players pays off and should be a priority. Instead were watching young players get put in less ideal situations right now and then think they suck at the nhl level when there is not really any rookie that has made a good impression with little ice time, zero pp time, and a pet rock or two as linemates.

 

[LAKings88]

Zero chance they thought of him as a 3C when they drafted him. They may have thought that was his floor to go along with good intangibles but they weren't trying to fill the 3C box at 5OA.

They didn't expect 2OA and simply couldn't pass on Byfield even though he is a center. I definitely believe they were/are concerned about Turcotte's ceiling after two development years that didn't go as planned...Danault probably doesn't happen if Turcotte is a stud.

A huge part of his game is his tenacity and they've got to be concerned about his durability since he is continually nicked up and sometimes it is from the most innocuous plays. Maybe that goes away as he gets stronger but, man, you shouldn't be getting hurt at 20 years old from just falling down on a face off.

Fox said so on @All The Kings Men. In the same breath mentioned Fagemo as a possible greater producer for LA. Turcotte will be a solid player but that pick is now rough in that deep draft.

 

[BigKing]

Fox said so on @All The Kings Men. In the same breath mentioned Fagemo as a possible greater producer for LA. Turcotte will be a solid player but that pick is now rough in that deep draft.

He's saying 3C now: if he meant that's what they always thought then Blake is a moron or Foxy is running the spin zone. While the former could be true, it is definitely the latter. Just the definition of "company man" doing some damage control on a prospect that they were so hyped on that FSW was promoting Wisconsin games.

I know @All The Kings Men posts on here so my following comment isn't a knock on him whatsoever but teams have always used the media to craft a narrative. DL did it all the time when LAKI started, most notably with souring the fan base on Cammalleri. A lot of the commentary on this very board began with someone typing "Hammond said". Now we have a lot of "Mayor said x, y and z".

So my point here is that the Kings are toning down the Turcotte expectations and have seemed to quit the Vilardi business (although Hoven still seems high on the latter). I fully expect that Turcotte is being dangled as the high-end prospect Blake would like to use to improve the team in other areas. There is zero chance they keep all these centers. You start having Fox say Turcotte is a future 3C in the NHL and your fan base doesn't get too upset when he gets traded.

 

[LAKings88]

He's saying 3C now: if he meant that's what they always thought then Blake is a moron or Foxy is running the spin zone. While the former could be true, it is definitely the latter. Just the definition of "company man" doing some damage control on a prospect that they were so hyped on that FSW was promoting Wisconsin games.

I know @All The Kings Men posts on here so my following comment isn't a knock on him whatsoever but teams have always used the media to craft a narrative. DL did it all the time when LAKI started, most notably with souring the fan base on Cammalleri. A lot of the commentary on this very board began with someone typing "Hammond said". Now we have a lot of "Mayor said x, y and z".

So my point here is that the Kings are toning down the Turcotte expectations and have seemed to quit the Vilardi business (although Hoven still seems high on the latter). I fully expect that Turcotte is being dangled as the high-end prospect Blake would like to use to improve the team in other areas. There is zero chance they keep all these centers. You start having Fox say Turcotte is a future 3C in the NHL and your fan base doesn't get too upset when he gets traded.

I think that can happen but I don’t think it’s damage control. Sounds like they knew they were getting a Stoll 2.0. Scott Wheeler says he was high on him his draft year but now sees him as a top 9 that can fill in on the second line. More of a facilitator that can play some PP.

 

[SettlementRichie10]

I said about a year ago that statistically only one of Byfield, Turcotte, and Vilardi will become a game breaker. Unfortunately that’s looking like a best case scenario for us at this point.

The key to overcoming that is hitting big on draftees like Kaliyev, Fagemo, etc.

A long time ago Moller and Purcell were the forwards of the future. Worth remembering.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I said about a year ago that statistically only one of Byfield, Turcotte, and Vilardi will become a game breaker. Unfortunately that’s looking like a best case scenario for us at this point.

The key to overcoming that is hitting big on draftees like Kaliyev, Fagemo, etc.

A long time ago Moller and Purcell were the forwards of the future. Worth remembering.

Come on. You're comparing #2, #5, #11 overall to #52 and a UDFA.

More than a little over the top.

 

[cyclones22]

This is the second time I've seen Moller's name thrown out as a cautionary tale when talking about expectations for our current crop lmao. Ridiculous.

 

[BigKing]

I think that can happen but I don’t think it’s damage control. Sounds like they knew they were getting a Stoll 2.0. Scott Wheeler says he was high on him his draft year but now sees him as a top 9 that can fill in on the second line. More of a facilitator that can play some PP.

They may have thought the worst-case was a Stoll-type player but they weren't taking him at 5OA hoping that's what he'd turn out to be. I like Stoll but it would have to be one of the worst drafts ever if he went 5th OA in a redraft. As for Wheeler, he's lowering his expectations based on his development since being drafted. It's not a good thing that people are tossing out 3rd line in connection with him. This isn't me calling him a bust or anything: it's just not good for a 5OA to be tabbed as a 3rd liner in his D + 3 year.

I said about a year ago that statistically only one of Byfield, Turcotte, and Vilardi will become a game breaker. Unfortunately that’s looking like a best case scenario for us at this point.

The key to overcoming that is hitting big on draftees like Kaliyev, Fagemo, etc.

A long time ago Moller and Purcell were the forwards of the future. Worth remembering.

Which is what I've been saying as everyone wanted to crown Blake for "magically" taking the prospect pool from shit to potential gold: there wasn't any magic to it. You lose on purpose, draft high and then also give away legit NHL players for more prospects and good picks. Just drafting entirely based off of Central Scouting's list for five drafts with the amount of picks he's had would lead to a highly ranked prospect pool. It's still too early to say he knocked it out of the park since the shine has been coming off his first three 1st round picks. You're right about the later picks though: Blake looks real nice with that Anderson pick and Faber is shaping up to look like a real good pick as well. Byfield and/or Clarke have to be elite though for this all to work. You can shit the bed on a Hickey or Teubert when you get a Doughty and are already sitting on a Kopitar.

Come on. You're comparing #2, #5, #11 overall to #52 and a UDFA.

More than a little over the top.

Well, Moller did very well in his D + 2 year in LA and then always did well in Manchester. We were all super hyped on him. Purcell was out there crushing Manchester and sitting in DL's LW1 box or whatever on his whiteboard.

I get your point but if it is about draft position, then the aforementioned Hickey and Teubert fit the bill. Or we go back to Tukonen taken around where Vilardi was. I mean, there are so many busts that we can all name that were taken Top 10 and even Top 5. SR10 isn't even talking about non-busts: he's talking game breakers. We're not going to get in to what that exactly means but we can all probably agree that--whatever your definition of game breaker is--it's going to be hard to get two-out-of-three from 2/5/11. I mean, this is why Byfield is so key since he is the prize of the tank, the Doughty pick for Blake. DL drafted 5OA the year after Doughty and then never saw the Top 10 again. Blake is on the same path at this point.

I'm not throwing dirt on Turcotte or Vilardi but "game breakers" usually would have shown themselves by now. Blake is going to get to a point where he's going to be less scared of giving up potential and more scared that he isn't going to get enough return on the draft capital spent. He's got to be getting close to one in the hand is worth two in the bush.

 

[funky]

Just have Turcotte bunk, practice and play with Danault. He may not end up being a ppg center or a menace like Richards but he could be a Danault clone

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Which is what I've been saying as everyone wanted to crown Blake for "magically" taking the prospect pool from shit to potential gold: there wasn't any magic to it. You lose on purpose, draft high and then also give away legit NHL players for more prospects and good picks. Just drafting entirely based off of Central Scouting's list for five drafts with the amount of picks he's had would lead to a highly ranked prospect pool. It's still too early to say he knocked it out of the park since the shine has been coming off his first three 1st round picks. You're right about the later picks though: Blake looks real nice with that Anderson pick and Faber is shaping up to look like a real good pick as well. Byfield and/or Clarke have to be elite though for this all to work. You can shit the bed on a Hickey or Teubert when you get a Doughty and are already sitting on a Kopitar.

Well, Moller did very well in his D + 2 year in LA and then always did well in Manchester. We were all super hyped on him. Purcell was out there crushing Manchester and sitting in DL's LW1 box or whatever on his whiteboard.

I get your point but if it is about draft position, then the aforementioned Hickey and Teubert fit the bill. Or we go back to Tukonen taken around where Vilardi was. I mean, there are so many busts that we can all name that were taken Top 10 and even Top 5. SR10 isn't even talking about non-busts: he's talking game breakers. We're not going to get in to what that exactly means but we can all probably agree that--whatever your definition of game breaker is--it's going to be hard to get two-out-of-three from 2/5/11. I mean, this is why Byfield is so key since he is the prize of the tank, the Doughty pick for Blake. DL drafted 5OA the year after Doughty and then never saw the Top 10 again. Blake is on the same path at this point.

I'm not throwing dirt on Turcotte or Vilardi but "game breakers" usually would have shown themselves by now. Blake is going to get to a point where he's going to be less scared of giving up potential and more scared that he isn't going to get enough return on the draft capital spent. He's got to be getting close to one in the hand is worth two in the bush.

I'm just saying the comparison is bunk. All three of Byfield, Turcotte, Vilardi are NHLers. Right now. Plain and simple. Being held down due to roster circumstance doesn't reduce their actual ability. They're high-floor enough that they will be in the league as productive players for a decade or more. The question is their ultimate ceiling. I agree that is debateable, and whether they become gamebreakers or not is absolutely up in the air, but equating those guys to Purcell/Moller is incomprehensible and just designed to be crap-slinging.

I'm as critical as anyone on Blake et. al. on that point--the high end guys have to be hits whether its drafting or development, and god knows I've sat here and gotten shit all year for blasting their deployment--but I think given circumstance like covid and injury as well as roster circumstance these guys get a little more rope before pulling the plug on their ceilings, ESPECIALLY given each one of them were projects to a certain degree, and especially because none have been given a chance with significant time in a significant role in the NHL, which others have been given whether they 'earned it' or not (not that I give a shit that's just the common retort).

Frankly this just smells like jealousy of other shiny toys producing early in sheltered roles.

Like, do we really feel Vilardi couldn't be putting up 40-50 points like the other forwards he's often crapped on for? Necas, Norris, Thomas.

Do we really feel Turcotte couldn't be putting up Cozens, Podkolzin #s of near 40 pts + intangibles (that are exceedingly clear)?

Do we really feel Byfield...like why even bother here? Look what other players in his class are doing. People were lamenting Raymond lately too, like the f***? Do you remember how he looked when we played the Wings? They only times his name was called was when he was getting pasted to the boards by our rooks.

In other words, these guys are right on pace with the rest of their classes AT WORST but being compared basically only to whoever has emerged early--which is basically the polar opposite of what's going to happen to ours by default with their injuries and our roster. Getting pretty sick of this context being completely vacated. MIGHT our guys bust or top out? Sure, I'm willing to accept that possibility. I'm not willing to accept that what we see now is what we get, especially given none of them have been given a significant chance or opportunity to show out like any else folks are jealous of.

like oh no Zegras is putting up excellent points in an extremely sheltered role, Necas/Thomas are putting up 40 points in big minutes on elite teams, and...Byfield's peers are putting up 30-40 points on other basement teams....which has NO BEARING on our guys' development. Be f***ing patient.

Tyler Myers was rookie of the year...guess we should regret that Doughty pick. better go tell a few guys about Pietrangelo and Karlsson, too.

IF ANYTHING--Moller is a cautionary tale of the opposite, not getting stupidly overhyped on a guy who produces early in a sheltered role to the extent that you completely overlook all his warts while other players slow-cooking overtake him by year 3-4.

 

[kingsfan28]

I said about a year ago that statistically only one of Byfield, Turcotte, and Vilardi will become a game breaker. Unfortunately that’s looking like a best case scenario for us at this point.

The key to overcoming that is hitting big on draftees like Kaliyev, Fagemo, etc.

A long time ago Moller and Purcell were the forwards of the future. Worth remembering.

While they were the forwards of the future [ in title only], neither had the skill our young center have.

 

[kingsfan28]

I'm just saying the comparison is bunk. All three of Byfield, Turcotte, Vilardi are NHLers. Right now. Plain and simple. Being held down due to roster circumstance doesn't reduce their actual ability. They're high-floor enough that they will be in the league as productive players for a decade or more. The question is their ultimate ceiling. I agree that is debateable, and whether they become gamebreakers or not is absolutely up in the air, but equating those guys to Purcell/Moller is incomprehensible and just designed to be crap-slinging.

I'm as critical as anyone on Blake et. al. on that point--the high end guys have to be hits whether its drafting or development, and god knows I've sat here and gotten shit all year for blasting their deployment--but I think given circumstance like covid and injury as well as roster circumstance these guys get a little more rope before pulling the plug on their ceilings, ESPECIALLY given each one of them were projects to a certain degree, and especially because none have been given a chance with significant time in a significant role in the NHL, which others have been given whether they 'earned it' or not (not that I give a shit that's just the common retort).

Frankly this just smells like jealousy of other shiny toys producing early in sheltered roles.

Like, do we really feel Vilardi couldn't be putting up 40-50 points like the other forwards he's often crapped on for? Necas, Norris, Thomas.

Do we really feel Turcotte couldn't be putting up Cozens, Podkolzin #s of near 40 pts + intangibles (that are exceedingly clear)?

Do we really feel Byfield...like why even bother here? Look what other players in his class are doing. People were lamenting Raymond lately too, like the f***? Do you remember how he looked when we played the Wings? They only times his name was called was when he was getting pasted to the boards by our rooks.

In other words, these guys are right on pace with the rest of their classes AT WORST but being compared basically only to whoever has emerged early--which is basically the polar opposite of what's going to happen to ours by default with their injuries and our roster. Getting pretty sick of this context being completely vacated. MIGHT our guys bust or top out? Sure, I'm willing to accept that possibility. I'm not willing to accept that what we see now is what we get, especially given none of them have been given a significant chance or opportunity to show out like any else folks are jealous of.

like oh no Zegras is putting up excellent points in an extremely sheltered role, Necas/Thomas are putting up 40 points in big minutes on elite teams, and...Byfield's peers are putting up 30-40 points on other basement teams....which has NO BEARING on our guys' development. Be f***ing patient.

Tyler Myers was rookie of the year...guess we should regret that Doughty pick. better go tell a few guys about Pietrangelo and Karlsson, too.

IF ANYTHING--Moller is a cautionary tale of the opposite, not getting stupidly overhyped on a guy who produces early in a sheltered role to the extent that you completely overlook all his warts while other players slow-cooking overtake him by year 3-4.

I'm glad you brought up Zegras and his sheltered role. He's never out there in the most critical situations preventing the other team from scoring or killing penalties. He a very good offensive threat, but his 5/5 play isn't good at all. 41 pct FO isn't gonna get it done.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I'm glad you brought up Zegras and his sheltered role. He's never out there in the most critical situations preventing the other team from scoring or killing penalties. He a very good offensive threat, but his 5/5 play isn't good at all. 41 pct FO isn't gonna get it done.

I hesitated to bang on Zegras because he's everyone's favorite and I DO Think he'll get there sooner rather than later, if anything I think that part of his game was underrated at other levels. And you can only play the minutes you're given so if anything it's a criticism of coaching/development rather than TZ. That being said, he's an example of deployment making you look better/putting you in a position to succeed rather than pretty much the exact opposite ('3rd line' on the Kings with black holes and liabilities).

 

[cyclones22]

I hesitated to bang on Zegras because he's everyone's favorite and I DO Think he'll get there sooner rather than later, if anything I think that part of his game was underrated at other levels. And you can only play the minutes you're given so if anything it's a criticism of coaching/development rather than TZ. That being said, he's an example of deployment making you look better/putting you in a position to succeed rather than pretty much the exact opposite ('3rd line' on the Kings with black holes and liabilities).

It's the same with Stutzle. Both of these guys are the worst +/- players on their teams with very favorable deployment and sheltering. And that's fine. They're kids who are supposed to be elite offensive players. The point is that the Kings would never allow that to happen here. The counter argument will be well, they're defensive liabilities and not responsible in their own zone.

The Kings bellwether on this break them in as grinder philosophy is going to be Arty. If he doesn't turn out to be the scorer we think he will become, will it be because Arty's shot didn't translate to the NHL or because the Kings spent too much time beating the offense out of him? TMc lately has been talking top 6 for Arty next season, let's see if he's telling the truth or just blowing smoke. If he really gives Arty a long look in a scoring role and not demote him and go back to his old standbys. At least Arty has competent linemates, unlike whoever has spent time on the misfit line. And let's face it, the ONLY reason why they call that line the 3rd line on broadcasts is because Brown (and AA) are on it and it sounds better not to call Brown a 4th liner now.

 

[All The Kings Men]

I know @All The Kings Men posts on here so my following comment isn't a knock on him whatsoever but teams have always used the media to craft a narrative. DL did it all the time when LAKI started, most notably with souring the fan base on Cammalleri. A lot of the commentary on this very board began with someone typing "Hammond said". Now we have a lot of "Mayor said x, y and z".

So my point here is that the Kings are toning down the Turcotte expectations and have seemed to quit the Vilardi business (although Hoven still seems high on the latter). I fully expect that Turcotte is being dangled as the high-end prospect Blake would like to use to improve the team in other areas. There is zero chance they keep all these centers. You start having Fox say Turcotte is a future 3C in the NHL and your fan base doesn't get too upset when he gets traded.

While I can't say that the organization doesn't do a LITTLE narrative crafting...

I can honestly say that Fox wasn't fed any questions about Turcotte and to the best of my knowledge his comment about him on that episode wasn't scripted or motivated by anybody.

Having said that... I think his quote is somewhat taken out of context and has sort of taken on a life of his own. The whole lot of us that watch the team and comment on it FOR the team sit around and talk a lot of stuff and nonsense and we don't always agree and we're all frequently wrong.

Mayor gets some info hand fed to him but some of it is total speculation. Same with all of us. There's been stuff that I've known about and couldn't say and there's been stuff that catches me completely off guard.

None of that is helpful I suppose but just saying I don't think in this particular case the organization is trying to craft any narrative by slowly dripping out little comments like that. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.