Speculation: Another year of this Bluc **** (The 2024-25 season thread)

Lt Dan

F*** your ice cream!
Sep 13, 2018
12,111
20,575
Bayou La Batre
youtu.be
Luc has got to go. The luck has run out years ago.
Any positive feelings that I once had for Luc the player have been erased by Luc the "executive"


I used to have this poster in my room in my teens
1729697983793.png



Now, I want him to fall for a Nigerian e-mail scam
 

Raccoon Jesus

We were right there
Oct 30, 2008
63,429
66,372
I.E.
After the first road trip, more or less exactly where we expected them to be

3-2-2, last wild card in the west
23rd ranked PP, 26th ranked PK
5th overall in shot attempt percentages, 3rd overall in xGF%, 8th in scoring chances for %
27th in all situations goaltending
20th in all situations shooting %
And aside from Anaheim, lose to all teams above 16th, beat all teams below 16th--continuation of last years

Observations:
-Generally solid at 5v5--but stats don't capture catastrophic breakdowns. This team is the Muzzin-Martinez pairing of teams--98% of the time they're solid systematically but the breakdowns are huge and don't get sorted out. They're also not getting bailed out by goalies.
-TERRIBLE special teams;
-Goaltending is awful--but like above, getting no help. The volume of chances trends the Kings' way, but the support for chances against is nonexistent;
-shooting skill is awful. Big guns need to get going. Kempe, Fiala in particular have been trash; Byfield hasn't been right since the injury (getting kind of sick of saying that though); Kopitar is old.
-Some players haven't even started the season yet. If anyone sees Trevor Moore doing anything but getting blown up and Phil Danault doing anything but tie his skates let me know.
-Bless the d-men, they're all slotted wrong by at least one position. But will ANYONE step up? Not one above-the-head performance from the bunch.
-The 'tough to play against' 'uncomfortable' stuff was bullshit. It's like Jeannot neutered himself after the Zub hit; the tough guys are trying to play hockey and sucking at everything instead of just hockey.
-Play Akil. There's no shortage of guys who could use a night off to watch, especially with all the travel and strange start times.
-Glad to see Turcotte-Laf-Foegele having some success. Not just for Turcotte's sake, but those guys are all basically prototypical 3rd liners and watching them cruise night after night through hard has been an early pleasure and should be a good example for others (ie they aren't just FIala having some success dangling two guys).

in summary--I don't hate Hiller. he's trying to make chicken soup out of chicken shit. The play vs. results is just a team that's not good enough to break thru on either end--they're not going to win with a "B" game with the lack of scoring talent and lack of net talent on the D side. They can generate and suppress chances at a top tier rate, but they can't pop one in or keep one out. That's a talent/construction issue, not a coaching issue.

edit: lol goalies pls

1729699366155.png
 

chris kontos

Registered User
Feb 28, 2023
4,087
2,656
im glad i have nhl center ice tv so i have a choice whether or not to watch the boys. in watching and comparing other teams play against what the kings are doing the difference is striking. even at this early point in the season.
just cant wait for the la bergevins to be unveiled.
oh yeah, im told we move ahead through tradition. that is the dumbest f***ing marketing slogan or really one of the dumbest f***ing english language statements ever. what does "we move ahead through tradition" even mean?
i dont think the adults in the room at aeg are paying attention to this idiocy that passes as mgmt of a modern nhl franchise.
 
Last edited:

bland

Registered User
Jul 1, 2004
7,948
12,167
The Danault line called in with a severe case of apathy last night.

Byfield looks like he thought he was ready to come in and explode but forgot just how hard it is.

Kopitar has made some terrific individual plays, but his shift by shift influence on a game has faded badly over the past two years.

Clarke has to get the growing pains out of the way. Shame they couldn't have done this last year.
 

killermiller

Kings Fan
Feb 7, 2008
353
516
Winnipeg, Manitoba
After the first road trip, more or less exactly where we expected them to be

3-2-2, last wild card in the west
23rd ranked PP, 26th ranked PK
5th overall in shot attempt percentages, 3rd overall in xGF%, 8th in scoring chances for %
27th in all situations goaltending
20th in all situations shooting %
And aside from Anaheim, lose to all teams above 16th, beat all teams below 16th--continuation of last years

Observations:
-Generally solid at 5v5--but stats don't capture catastrophic breakdowns. This team is the Muzzin-Martinez pairing of teams--98% of the time they're solid systematically but the breakdowns are huge and don't get sorted out. They're also not getting bailed out by goalies.
-TERRIBLE special teams;
-Goaltending is awful--but like above, getting no help. The volume of chances trends the Kings' way, but the support for chances against is nonexistent;
-shooting skill is awful. Big guns need to get going. Kempe, Fiala in particular have been trash; Byfield hasn't been right since the injury (getting kind of sick of saying that though); Kopitar is old.
-Some players haven't even started the season yet. If anyone sees Trevor Moore doing anything but getting blown up and Phil Danault doing anything but tie his skates let me know.
-Bless the d-men, they're all slotted wrong by at least one position. But will ANYONE step up? Not one above-the-head performance from the bunch.
-The 'tough to play against' 'uncomfortable' stuff was bullshit. It's like Jeannot neutered himself after the Zub hit; the tough guys are trying to play hockey and sucking at everything instead of just hockey.
-Play Akil. There's no shortage of guys who could use a night off to watch, especially with all the travel and strange start times.
-Glad to see Turcotte-Laf-Foegele having some success. Not just for Turcotte's sake, but those guys are all basically prototypical 3rd liners and watching them cruise night after night through hard has been an early pleasure and should be a good example for others (ie they aren't just FIala having some success dangling two guys).

in summary--I don't hate Hiller. he's trying to make chicken soup out of chicken shit. The play vs. results is just a team that's not good enough to break thru on either end--they're not going to win with a "B" game with the lack of scoring talent and lack of net talent on the D side. They can generate and suppress chances at a top tier rate, but they can't pop one in or keep one out. That's a talent/construction issue, not a coaching issue.

edit: lol goalies pls

View attachment 920518
Agreed with most of the points, one thing I will put out there is that Kuemper looked good in his first two games and then the Ottawa game was a blowout that he should have been pulled after the 4th or 5th goal. I'm thinking it's not a coincidence that he went on IR right after that one, was probably playing a good chunk of that game through an injury, cause he didn't look anywhere near as sharp or fast as the first two games.

Rittich has looked okay to shaky, but I have no faith in Copley to be any better.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Raccoon Jesus

tbrown33

Registered User
Jun 22, 2019
1,148
2,034
im glad i have nhl center ice tv so i have a choice whether or not to watch the boys. in watching and comparing other teams play against what the kings are doing the difference is striking. even at this early point in the season.
just cant wait for the la bergevins to be unveiled.
oh yeah, im told we move ahead through tradition. that is the dumbest f***ing marketing slogan or really one of the dumbest f***ing english language statements ever. what does "we move ahead through tradition" even mean?
i dont think the adults in the room at aeg are paying attention to this idiocy that passes as mgmt of a modern nhl franchise.
The Kings have a lonnnnnnnng history of godawful marketing slogans. It's kind of their thing. In fact we should arrange some sort of power ranking of all the shitty slogans through the years.
 

johnjm22

Pseudo Intellectual
Aug 2, 2005
20,997
17,920
dbeckem1.jpg


During the summer I asked AEG what the direction of the team is. This was Dan's response.

We're now a day away from the home opener. I don't recall any specific plan being "communicated to the fans and media".

Maybe I missed it? Can someone tell me?
 

Sol

Smile
Jun 30, 2017
24,506
20,636
As easy as it is to shit on Byfield, I think anyone genuinely pissed off at him needs to re-evaluate his situation. He finally played center with good line mates only to be stripped of that responsibility in less than a handful of games. Confidence for a young player is fickle and when his entire career so far is to be Kopitars puck retriever then I don’t know how anyone can expect this kid to be confident.

You start the entire offseason hearing “it’s your time to shine, and you’re gonna be a center. This is where you have to really show us what you got” then 4 games in “alright you’re back on your tricycle with Kopitar”


If I’m Byfield I’d be pissed too because that old gas bag is gone in a year or two while my entire career trajectory hangs in the balance. Let’s be real here, does anyone think that Kopitar is playing for success or for money? He got paid for another 2 years to make fat stacks of cash on a shit team while Byfield is trying to make a name for himself. I’m sure he appreciates Kopitars temporary handholding but it should have only been temporary.
 
Last edited:

Sol

Smile
Jun 30, 2017
24,506
20,636
After the first road trip, more or less exactly where we expected them to be

3-2-2, last wild card in the west
23rd ranked PP, 26th ranked PK
5th overall in shot attempt percentages, 3rd overall in xGF%, 8th in scoring chances for %
27th in all situations goaltending
20th in all situations shooting %
And aside from Anaheim, lose to all teams above 16th, beat all teams below 16th--continuation of last years

Observations:
-Generally solid at 5v5--but stats don't capture catastrophic breakdowns. This team is the Muzzin-Martinez pairing of teams--98% of the time they're solid systematically but the breakdowns are huge and don't get sorted out. They're also not getting bailed out by goalies.
-TERRIBLE special teams;
-Goaltending is awful--but like above, getting no help. The volume of chances trends the Kings' way, but the support for chances against is nonexistent;
-shooting skill is awful. Big guns need to get going. Kempe, Fiala in particular have been trash; Byfield hasn't been right since the injury (getting kind of sick of saying that though); Kopitar is old.
-Some players haven't even started the season yet. If anyone sees Trevor Moore doing anything but getting blown up and Phil Danault doing anything but tie his skates let me know.
-Bless the d-men, they're all slotted wrong by at least one position. But will ANYONE step up? Not one above-the-head performance from the bunch.
-The 'tough to play against' 'uncomfortable' stuff was bullshit. It's like Jeannot neutered himself after the Zub hit; the tough guys are trying to play hockey and sucking at everything instead of just hockey.
-Play Akil. There's no shortage of guys who could use a night off to watch, especially with all the travel and strange start times.
-Glad to see Turcotte-Laf-Foegele having some success. Not just for Turcotte's sake, but those guys are all basically prototypical 3rd liners and watching them cruise night after night through hard has been an early pleasure and should be a good example for others (ie they aren't just FIala having some success dangling two guys).

in summary--I don't hate Hiller. he's trying to make chicken soup out of chicken shit. The play vs. results is just a team that's not good enough to break thru on either end--they're not going to win with a "B" game with the lack of scoring talent and lack of net talent on the D side. They can generate and suppress chances at a top tier rate, but they can't pop one in or keep one out. That's a talent/construction issue, not a coaching issue.

edit: lol goalies pls

View attachment 920518
Respectfully RJ you tend to be softer on coaches in the beginning.

While the team isn’t that good, the Kings are failing in every department which is a clear sign of failure in coaching. There are historically teams that have poor talent but good coaching helps them be competitive. Kings suck and so does Hiller. He’s not helping at all.
 

BaileyFan

Registered User
Jun 14, 2023
696
1,416
I mean this is par for the course for this team, picked up right where we left off last year. So far they’ve beaten the teams they’re supposed to beat and lost to the teams they’re supposed to lose to with the exception of the Ottawa game which was a shitshow from both sides and they still ended up with a point. Doughty being out hasn’t made a huge difference in the standings but will likely be the excuse Luc uses to get him and Blakey fat extensions next year. As terrible as they look against real contenders, this is really just your run of the mill black hole team. Always has been.
 

tbrown33

Registered User
Jun 22, 2019
1,148
2,034
dbeckem1.jpg


During the summer I asked AEG what the direction of the team is. This was Dan's response.

We're now a day away from the home opener. I don't recall any specific plan being "communicated to the fans and media".

Maybe I missed it? Can someone tell me?
They are still communicating internally about how to communicate externally. Much like their prospect development philosophy, it's an unnecessarily long process that will likely never come to fruition.
 

King'sPawn

Enjoy the chaos
Jul 1, 2003
22,921
23,482
dbeckem1.jpg


During the summer I asked AEG what the direction of the team is. This was Dan's response.

We're now a day away from the home opener. I don't recall any specific plan being "communicated to the fans and media".

Maybe I missed it? Can someone tell me?
They apparently can't communicate well enough with their media team about streaming preseason games.
 

kingsholygrail

11-7-3 We're back. It's over.
Sponsor
Dec 21, 2006
82,849
17,405
Derpifornia
As easy as it is to shit on Byfield, I think anyone genuinely pissed off at him needs to re-evaluate his situation. He finally played center with good line mates only to be stripped of that responsibility in less than a handful of games. Confidence for a young player is fickle and when his entire career so far is to be Kopitars puck retriever then I don’t know how anyone can expect this kid to be confident.

You start the entire offseason hearing “it’s your time to shine, and you’re gonna be a center. This is where you have to really show us what you got” then 4 games in “alright you’re back on your tricycle with Kopitar”


If I’m Byfield I’d be pissed too because that old gas bag is gone in a year or two while my entire career trajectory hangs in the balance. Let’s be real here, does anyone think that Kopitar is playing for success or for money? He got paid for another 2 years to make fat stacks of cash on a shit team while Byfield is trying to make a name for himself. I’m sure he appreciates Kopitars temporary handholding but it should have only been temporary.
If this is enough to completely derail him, I think he should be moved for assets before other GMs realize he's a headcase.
 

Sol

Smile
Jun 30, 2017
24,506
20,636
If this is enough to completely derail him, I think he should be moved for assets before other GMs realize he's a headcase.
Lets be reality,

how many times has he played a prominent center role on this team? If this had more than twice then yeah i'd agree he's a head case.
 

fivehole32

Kicking rebounds to the slot
Jan 11, 2015
482
621
im glad i have nhl center ice tv so i have a choice whether or not to watch the boys. in watching and comparing other teams play against what the kings are doing the difference is striking. even at this early point in the season.
just cant wait for the la bergevins to be unveiled.
oh yeah, im told we move ahead through tradition. that is the dumbest f***ing marketing slogan or really one of the dumbest f***ing english language statements ever. what does "we move ahead through tradition" even mean?
i dont think the adults in the room at aeg are paying attention to this idiocy that passes as mgmt of a modern nhl franchise.

This team has been hard to watch for the few games I have been able to watch start to finish. Last night I actually started doing things around the house and just listen to the broadcast it was so brutal. Guys are coasting, roster has holes and no one is stepping up. Its extremely frustrating.


I think the NHL lays out some marketing templates for the teams departments to experiment with or use entirely because I remember about 15 years ago. The "We are the Kings" slogan was also used by the Canucks and the Stars if I remember correctly.
 

kingsholygrail

11-7-3 We're back. It's over.
Sponsor
Dec 21, 2006
82,849
17,405
Derpifornia
Lets be reality,

how many times has he played a prominent center role on this team? If this had more than twice then yeah i'd agree he's a head case.
I don't think he's a center anymore, honestly. He's shown success as a winger. Should keep him there and find a Kopitar replacement elsewhere.
 

chris kontos

Registered User
Feb 28, 2023
4,087
2,656
This team has been hard to watch for the few games I have been able to watch start to finish. Last night I actually started doing things around the house and just listen to the broadcast it was so brutal. Guys are coasting, roster has holes and no one is stepping up. Its extremely frustrating.


I think the NHL lays out some marketing templates for the teams departments to experiment with or use entirely because I remember about 15 years ago. The "We are the Kings" slogan was also used by the Canucks and the Stars if I remember correctly.
while i admire your productivity during the game, if its the leauge coming up with these slogans they are alot worse than i think they are

I don't think he's a center anymore, honestly. He's shown success as a winger. Should keep him there and find a Kopitar replacement elsewhere.
Play the GD kids and send kopitar and dooty packing. Until that happens were screwed
 
  • Like
Reactions: fivehole32

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad