Confirmed with Link: Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kuapri, Gabe Vilardi + 2024 2nd round pick to Winnipeg for Pierre-Luc Dubois

[Lt Dan]

We can do this in the Habs form, not the Kings. But I will say this, I’m no basher or troll. I pointed out why I think we shouldn’t acquire, and apparently management agreed because they held their ground. You seem to confused bashing with educating a fanboy looking threw rose colored glasses. You fell in love with an idea that was never realistic. If the Habs boards are so toxic, you should avoid them. This is an English discussion board and most people aren’t interested in your pro French propaganda. Give it up already.

Sad.
But not a good kind of sad like Marley and Me.
Sad like Bud Lite.

 

[kingsfan28]

Turcotte is definitely going to get a look this year and will have his chance. Best case scenario is he beats out Lizotte and builds up from there.

That would be a pleasent surprise. I just want the kid to get a healthy shot and get a full year in. Hopefully he's like a lot of guys who start their careers with a bunch of injuries, then get by them and go on and have a good career.

 

[Lt Dan]

That would be a pleasent surprise. I just want the kid to get a healthy shot and get a full year in. Hopefully he's like a lot of guys who start their careers with a bunch of injuries, then get by them and go on and have a good career.

Like Vilardi!
I know. Too soon....

 

[kingsfan28]

Just got off work; I miss anything today?

Taylor Swift got a new boyfriend and we traded Valardi,Iafallo, Kupari and an 2nd for PLD. Hell of a day!

 

[KingsHockey24]

Plans for Zack MacEwen?

 

[Schrute farms]

I’ve said it elsewhere but yeah I’m fully on the PLD bandwagon at this point.

Everyone here needs to stop pretending that Blake ever had any clue or intention to rebuild. This team was always going to fail a rebuild under Blake and Luc. Slowly cultivating a new core and culture around Byfield, Vilardi, and co. was never in the cards because Blake is bad at his job. Period.

At least now they’re full mask off and wheeling and dealing prospects like Pokemon cards.

f*** it. Let them.

I’m all out of f***s to give with the Blake regime. Let him ride this fiery train straight to hell. We’ll get a proper rebuild after it crashes, and we’ll have fun along the way.

I'll be there on Thursday. I'm giving myself the rest of today to be bummed about Blake's butchering of this rebuild and organization. Tomorrow, i wake up and let that go -- looking forward to the new season. But today

It just sucks because we had an opportunity to truly rebuild and build a monster. But they fast forwarded everything 2-3 years early in order to get 1st round exits. Sure, it's a better product on ice and more exciting. But i was willing to suffer for another couple years in order to have a LT sustained roster and farm system that could truly contend annually for SCups for many years. But ok, two years later and here we are. I'll enjoy and then hopefully i get a TRUE rebuild at the latter half of the 2020s.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

What does it matter where the 25 and 24 year old guys were drafted? Talking about mortgaging the future when you are trading 2 forwards who are similar age and also trading a 23 and 30 year old is a bit hyperbolic, right?

Going into next year with 36 year old Kopitar and 30 year old Danault with as many minutes that they have logged was not going to result in winning a championship. Do I think the Kings are closer? Yes, because the only way they were winning a cup was when they either developed or traded for a better center than Danault. Danault is in a great spot now for the Kings, as a 2C he wasn’t the answer as a 3C he’s elite.

I don’t think they are contenders but they have at least solved the C issue, which was a big one. We can all disagree on Byfield and his long-term potential but they don’t trust him as a C going into a year where they are clearly going for it.

Look at the C’s in the Pacific, you think we are getting through with 36 year old Kopitar, Danault, Lizotte and Kupari?

Now when we see EDM again next season we can match Danault up with McDavid and still have 2 offensively capable centers.

Kopitar and Danault seeing less minutes than the previous 2 years is one aspect of this trade that is overlooked.

That wasn't really the point at all

The point was here we are chasing a top 6 C while the defense and goaltending are still in shambles so to hang the mission accomplished banner when we still have a forward and pieces likely outgoing is premature, people are talking as if our forward depth is greater than yesterday and I'm not sold given we're going to lose likely three experienced wings from last year in total (Vilardi Iafallo and whoever outgoes for salary for goalie/D), and I don't trust Blake to replace them with kids. In short, 'solving' the C issue while creating other issues and not solving the other existing issues isn't exactly a solution.

And re: the boldfaced...yeah we've said that for years too, I'll believe it when I see it.

But hey, if PLD shows up serious and learns how to win a faceoff vs. a 5 year old, yes, we're better down the middle than yesterday. Too bad everything else around that will be a tire fire.

 

[bland]

Everything is rosey if you don't think about it.

This is the worst GM in Kings history. Nobody has ever spent so damn much to accomplish so very little.

But sure, enjoy the new toy that you wouldn't have needed to blow the entire budget on if you had the patience to put the ones you already had together correctly.

 

[Schrute farms]

Let’s start by saying I hate the trade but a big part of that was emotional because I was a huge fan of Vilardi since day 1 and he was finally getting going. I’m also not convince PLD is the right guy, it will ultimately depend on his attitude and how dialled in he is. When he’s good he‘s a top end 2C with a little upside. If he can improve in the dot I’d be much happier.

I don’t care about AI as we needed to move salary. I liked Kupari but its not the end of the world… I am more irritated at the 2nd Rd pick.

This trade can go either way because it ultimately depends on who ends up the best player… time will tell.

——————

We can debate the strategy before this off season but I said a few weeks ago that given where we are Blake had to get aggressive. He’s doing that. I’d rather see bold moves than just tinkering at the edges. When you are buying you inevitably over pay a little, which we have (the 2nd).

Some salary still needs to be moved to get a goaltender and someone fitting the Kassian profile. I doubt any D comes in as I suspect 3LD is Björnfot‘s to lose.

If this doesn’t pay off it’ll be Blake’s job and it’ll all get quickly blown up. In some respects it becomes win/win as we either become a contender or we start again. I’m ok with either.

A couple of other thoughts… Laferriere is an interesting option at wing in camp, as is Pinelli. Thomas if fit is a real wild card as he as looking good when he got injured and was showing a willingness to get physical and fight (I know he’s a massive longshot… maybe a late season option). Then there is Turcotte got whom it’s all about health, so we certainly have options to fill holes at wing.

I‘m not ready to judge all this completely until he’s done making moves. There is more to come.

Ditto -- well said Statto.

 

[kovacro]

Everything is rosey if you don't think about it.

This is the worst GM in Kings history. Nobody has ever spent so damn much to accomplish so very little.

But sure, enjoy the new toy that you wouldn't have needed to blow the entire budget on if you had the patience to put the ones you already had together correctly.

Sam McMaster would disagree.

 

[AKAY47]

I gave it 12 hours to calm down and give this trade further thought… I hate it even more. I can’t believe this is the hill Blake was willing to die on.

Losing Vilardi hurts the most. We finally started to see the potential last season. Sure, he has a history of injuries and management may have been scared to commit long term but it felt like he was starting to come into his own.

The part that hurts the MOST is the extension. 8 fricken years, 8.5M. Like come on. Dude has never scored 30 goals, character issues, not good defensively. This is the guy?! Cmon… I feel like this will really be the move that gets Blake eventually fired. McLellan is gone next summer once the kings get bounced in the first round again. Not to mention there’s still a HUGE gap in goaltending. How do they fix that with 2M cap space? Oh, yea, Arvidsson or Moore will likely get dealt now too. What a mess!

 

[bland]

Sam McMaster would disagree.

No he wouldn't.

And you shouldn't either. McMaster had to deal with the end of the McNall era and its roster clear out. Blake has had nothing but smooth sailing to work with, yet still manages to trade one dollar for three quarters at every turn.

 

[KingsHockey24]

Guys - we lost a 2nd line RW'er that can't stay healthy, a 3rd line LW'er that's almost 30, and a 4C with no offensive upside.

Calm yourselves.

 

[kingskring]

Guys - we lost a 2nd line RW'er that can't stay healthy, a 3rd line LW'er that's almost 30, and a 4C with no offensive upside.

Calm yourselves.

Good luck with that... thats like telling a dog not to bark at strangers.... that will never happen on this board...

 

[No Name The Nameless]

Lol hindsight 20/20

Not hindsight for me. I was playing that trumpet way before the draft. Back when everyone was saying he wouldn’t be a goal scorer in the NHL and that he was capped on potential already.

I’d be happy is Byfield ever scores half as many goals as Stutzle scored as a rookie.

 

[kovacro]

No he wouldn't.

And you shouldn't either. McMaster had to deal with the end of the McNall era and its roster clear out. Blake has had nothing but smooth sailing to work with, yet still manages to trade one dollar for three quarters at every turn.

Nah, I disagree, McMaster was the worst and followed closely by George McGuire.

You can certainly call out the drafting record but Blake has made some good trades and I think this one will work out in the end.

 

[Lt Dan]

Good luck with that... thats like telling a dog not to bark at strangers.... that will never happen on this board...

So you are pretty much saying that I should buy a shitload of shock collars for people on this board

 

[kingskring]

So you are pretty much saying that I should buy a shitload of shock collars for people on this board

Whatever floats your boat lol... Im not here to kinkshame people

 

[KingsFan7824]

But i was willing to suffer for another couple years in order to have a LT sustained roster and farm system that could truly contend annually for SCups for many years.

No guarantee your suffering has that payoff.

No indication of any sort of rebuild until the Muzzin trade. Which happened when Kopitar was 31 with 5 years left, and Doughty 29 with 8 years left. A true rebuild is not started when you have players with those contracts. Well then trade them. If the franchise is willing to eat 50% and get nothing back, sure. They weren't, gave zero indication of it, so that's that.

The "rebuild" was pretty clearly done in the service of getting back to where they were in the summer of 2018, which was trying to compete with the old Cup guys. Be it with the young guys help, or turning them into more experienced players. Whether they're 1st rd fodder or not, that seems to be what they wanted to do. Even if it's just a corporate recouping of some of the money they wasted on all the contracts handed out after the first Cup win, that's the road they chose.

Expect more of this until Doughty is even older, but possibly easier to deal when his last gasp for another Cup in LA inevitably fails and he wants out in the last 1 or 2 playoffs of his career.

Then, as you said, a real rebuild can take place, as they'll have no Cup legacy to hold onto. All 4 guys that couldn't actually lead the team anywhere, which DL always knew, will be gone. Fiala, Kempe, Dubois, none of those guys will have their numbers retired, no names engraved on the Cup as Kings, so they'll be gone. Or linger here angrily during a real tank, whatever.

 

[bland]

Guys - we lost a 2nd line RW'er that can't stay healthy, a 3rd line LW'er that's almost 30, and a 4C with no offensive upside.

Calm yourselves.

Pull your head out of wherever its stuck.

This was one of the dumbest trades you will ever see. The Kings just traded away the depth that made them moderately successful in favor of a ridiculously expensive player (who is only marginally better than what they already had) in a redundant position that would be completely unnecessary if they had taken just the smallest amount of time to properly develop one of the SIX they had just drafted in the recent first rounds.

They slow-boiled those kids in favor of being competitive now, only to completely bungle that too by mismanaging their cap to the point where obvious holes cannot be filled.

This team is no closer to contending now than when they had Faber, Grans, Petersen, Walker, Durzi, Vilardi, Kupari, Iafallo and a first round pick two years ago. Now they are cap stretched, thin on the wing, empty in net, have no wingers capable of holding leads, and have to rely on three kids on defense whose NHL development has been neglected in favor of those very guys they just booted. And they didn't win shit, did they?

If you can't see that, congratulations on the bliss you must be experiencing.

 

[chris kontos]

watching the kings management operate in an objective way is like watching a slow motion train wreck. it would be funny in a morbid sort of way if i hadn't been a fan for such a long period.
i continue to hope for the best.

 

[Kurrilino]

Everything is rosey if you don't think about it.

This is the worst GM in Kings history. Nobody has ever spent so damn much to accomplish so very little.

But sure, enjoy the new toy that you wouldn't have needed to blow the entire budget on if you had the patience to put the ones you already had together correctly.

I can't believe i went from Blake supporter to just want him gone.

He started with great patience and long term targets to panic mode within 1 year or so.
Now we still don't have a competing team but gave the pieces away that could be one after the Oldies are gone.

We went from best prospect pool in the league to empty shelves at lightning speed
without any kind of improvement.

Vilardi alone is a better player than PLD, giving up Kupari and a 2nd as well is close to treason.
But what can you expect from someone who betrayed the Kings before

 

[Master Yoda]

No he wouldn't.

And you shouldn't either. McMaster had to deal with the end of the McNall era and its roster clear out. Blake has had nothing but smooth sailing to work with, yet still manages to trade one dollar for three quarters at every turn.

I think a more proper description would be trading 5 quarters for a dollar bill.

 

[Herby]

Nah, I disagree, McMaster was the worst and followed closely by George McGuire.

You can certainly call out the drafting record but Blake has made some good trades and I think this one will work out in the end.

I agree, he’s not the worst of all time (yet) but it’s more than calling out a draft record. When you have back to back top 5 center picks and neither one is playing center entering years 4 and 5 and one of them has yet to record a point in the NHL it’s a fireable offense.

The only thing similar I can think of for back to back years was the Oilers with Yakupov and Murray, but the Oilers didn’t end their rebuild right after.

Trading a bunch of 1st round picks and high end prospects for mostly older players because of the failures at the draft table is not some kind of big win. Any team in theory could trade picks or prospects like Faber for solid veterans, most don’t thought because the vast majority of cup winners were built a certain way, a way the Kings abandoned.

If the Kings don’t win anything in the next 1-3 years Blake will have set the franchise back massively with all the picks and youth he traded, the one saving grace is Fiala, Kempe and PLD will all still be young enough where they can recoup some of the draft capital.

 

[kingskring]

This thread is in essence