Tribute All Inclusive Former Kings players thread

[Telos]

The bit that makes me frustrated is the trade for PLD. Bringing Kuemper into it is unfair on him.

The PLD for Kuemper trade was a good deal, but it shouldn’t have been needed. Therefore that does not in any way absolve the trade for PLD, which was a bad one from day one. The pieces I cared about were Vilardi and the 2nd round pick. Weirdly I’m more annoyed about the pick than Vilardi (who I was 100% behind even when his back was screwed). It didn’t need a sweetener. Don’t get me wrong I would not have moved Gabe either, but without the 2nd you could at least ‘argue’ the deal was value.

Agreed, the overall asset management looks even more heinous when laid out over all associated deals, but that is also just the nature of trades in general. It is still bad, but I have more interest and ire in the micro aspects of the deal over the macro. Getting rid of PLD for Keumper is a fantastic win any way you slice it, no matter how PLD or Keumper performs the rest of their careers. Getting out from that contract without retention for another that is cheaper and expires in 3 seasons at a very needed position was a no-brainer for LA.

Everybody needs to take risks and everybody loses trades. The primary issue was that that cap dump was needed and that this management group had literally scouted and wanted PLD for years. There was smoke for many years that BLuc had interest in PLD all throughout Columbus and Winnipeg, even before Marc Bergeron had anything to do with LA. The sheer fact that they watched him for so long and still wanted him and thought he was the missing piece is incredibly damning.

This last season was identical to his play throughout his entire career, there was literally nothing he did differently than when he was with either previous team. To stand there and be like he didn't live up to expectation or underperformed is straight incompetence. I went back and watched older Columbus and Winnipeg games and it is the exact same player doing the exact same things.

Losing Vilardi hurts, would have loved to have kept him, he wasn't perfect and there are definitely some red flags with him. But losing out on the high pick Iafallo would have garnered and having to throw in the 2nd is sort of extra kidney shot that makes the deal so sour. They really wanted him and were willing to blowout Montreal's offer to get him. It should have cost both Blake and Luc their jobs.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Tobias Bjornfot finds himself back on waivers. Another splendid first round selection by the Kings.

 

[Steve Zissou]

It should have cost both Blake and Luc their jobs.

It still should.

Losing Vilardi hurts, would have loved to have kept him.

I watched him last night against the Flames and tried to watch Winnipeg any time they played last year. It also stings because he last year was really turning a corner and you could see his mindset switching like Byfield is starting to do this year.

These type players start to form the 'core' of the team. When you lose one for a player who turned out to be the complete opposite, you really have to question if management knows how to build a core of players like DL did back when he started to acquire players Stoll + Greene and then Justin Williams, etc.

DL knew what types of players were needed to build around - it is 100% transparent now that Blake didn't learn the most important aspects of building a cup contender.

 

[Statto]

Tobias Bjornfot finds himself back on waivers. Another splendid first round selection by the Kings.

The selection was fine, but they should have let him keep developing in Europe.

 

[AbsentMojo]

Kupari scored! 1st goal in 70 games

 

[Herby]

Mike Milbury banter isn't exactly hard-hitting news journalism Replacing Lombardi in favor of Luc was devastating, but I don't see it as black and white that he drugged AEG and pulled the rug out from under Lombardi. He is an idiot to think he could do better and be standing there disagreeing with Lombardi during Dean's downfall, but I don't think he begged, pleaded, and wrestled his way into AEG's graces, he was there and tapped for the position and they gave it to him.

I am all for ousting him, but I just think people are putting too much conspiracy mastermind agency over Luc's ascension. The responsibility for his ascension and role is squarely on AEG. Conversely, Luc is absolutely responsible for his horrid, nepotistic, decisions. He needs to go by any way possible even if it means blasting him into the sun. I am just saying that if I were in charge and he wanted to be the old guy standing rinkside talking about hockey in his day, I am fine with that. I just don't want him deciding anything more than hot dog prices at this point.

It also minimizes just what a disaster the Kings FO was between June 2014 and April 2017, when the changes were made. I'm no fan of these guys, but sometimes the narrative seems to be that everything was going great in LA at the time and Luc and Blake fooled everyone into making changes, but that wasn't the case, the wheels were coming off, mostly due to poor decisions from the FO.

The Mike Richards debacle, how anybody could have watched that season and then feel it wise to commit the money they did to him. In modern cap terms it would be like giving a 5 year $39m deal to a fringe NHL'er. And then to top it off, the ridiculous BS that happened the next summer where the Kings tried to legal loophole their way out of the deal and denying MR $25m in salary was disgraceful, and certainly did not make the Kings look good in the eyes of players or agents.

The Lucic trade still hurts the Kings to this very day, and had it not been made the Kings have no issues down the middle the last decade. Barzal was not going to be the Kopitar replacement as an elite 1C, but he would have been excellent as a 2nd option or a 1A/1B as Kopitar got older.

The Sekera trade failed, ultimately the pick didn't hit like the Lucic one would have, but if you are trading a 1st at the deadline for one of, if not the biggest piece available and then miss the playoffs it's a terrible look and shows that a terrible misjudgment of where the team was occurred.

All the stupid long-term contracts that were given out to older players to minimize the teams cap hits blew up in their face. A lot of these deals were the result of trying to make the Richards money work, but there was no regard for the long-term effects of these deals.

- 4 years for Matt Greene who was 31 going on 57

- 7 years (!!!) for 32 year old Marian Gaborik, who did play amazing those playoffs, but he was 32 with a huge history of injuries. The Kings should have offered 3-4 years at a fair market rate and wished him luck if he was looking for any more term than that.

- The Richards one, already discussed.

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The Ben Bishop trade, I still yet to hear a valid reason why this trade happened. Another trade that hurt the Kings for the next decade.

The Voynov thing, not really hockey related, but much like the Richards attempted legal theft, this was a truly embarrassing moment for the franchise.
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I think it was more than fair for AEG to come to the conclusion that they could no longer allow Lombardi to drive the franchise into the ground and that he was incapable of making difficult decisions on any of the players who contributed to the championship runs. The huge mistake they made was not doing exactly what they did in 2006 and cleaning house and bringing in fresh voices in the FO and behind the bench, instead we got promotions from within and the disastrous results of the last nearing a decade.

And while I don't blame AEG for having the quick fire finger in 2017 (Boston did the same thing with their GM after success), I do wonder why the quick fire finger wasn't present this past summer. I really don't think Blake would have survived this long anywhere else in the league.

 

[AbsentMojo]

Felt like we should resurrect this thread before it falls into obscurity - esp to track the hapless and not forgotten PLD

0g0a -1 in a 4-1 win. On for the only goal against

 

[Sol]

Felt like we should resurrect this thread before it falls into obscurity - esp to track the hapless and not forgotten PLD

0g0a -1 in a 4-1 win. On for the only goal against

I asked caps fan a couple hours ago and they seem to like him.. I don’t get it. Just give it some more time