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

[Steve Zissou]

Kings season preview: Hiller impact, improved goaltending keys to success

 

[All The Kings Men]

Kings season preview: Hiller impact, improved goaltending keys to success

nobody does any actual research

 

[johnjm22]

nobody does any actual research

It's NHL.com. What were you expecting?

 

[AbsentMojo]

Kopitar still being the top penalty killer at age 150 is f***ing comical.

Oilers PK shutdown everyone in the playoffs minus McDrai.. LAK is like 2 generations of thinking behind the rest of the league... slow boil the prospects, play the vets til their knee cartilage liquifies while they clean cement off their blades in between periods

 

[kingsfan28]

The channel nobody gets.

You can get it, you just have to upgrade to next level premium on Directv that adds 40.00 to you bill.
Glad I don't use them anymore.

 

[lumbergh]

Ugh, Kaliyev just cannot catch a break. I hope he is back on the ice soon.

I stand corrected. "Break" was exactly the right word.

 

[Reaper45]

I stand corrected. "Break" was exactly the right word.

Lumbergh f***ed him.

 

[King'sPawn]

 

[Schrute farms]

Helenius looks HUGE. He seemed to be going easy on the guy on the fight. Very exciting to have a guy like that on your team.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Was really intrigued by Cole Davis. Hope it's not the last we see of him.

Helenius looks HUGE. He seemed to be going easy on the guy on the fight. Very exciting to have a guy like that on your team.

I dunno man. I'm not trying to be a wet blanket but I don't feel like Helenius is a great fighter. I like that he's unapologetically aggressive, but he is going to get absolutely tooled by NHL heavies. He's also an absolute black hole offensively and not this huge defensive C everyone wants him to be. Theoretically he'd be an ideal 4C but I don't think he's as developed as it's being made out to be unless I'm missing some mammoth improvement in his game.

I think on a roster that will be as offensively starved as ours he stands to be a punching bag. I'm rooting for him, I'm just not seeing an effective NHLer quite yet. But there's no shame in that, he's 21.

Hell this was his headshot last season haha, gotta love that

 

[johnjm22]

Theoretically he'd be an ideal 4C but I don't think he's as developed as it's being made out to be unless I'm missing some mammoth improvement in his game.

Sometimes just 'looking the part' will get you a long ways in this sport. PLD has made 86M off it.

 

[Lt Dan]

Sometimes just 'looking the part' will get you a long ways in this sport. PLD has made 86M off it.

You can't teach size!!!

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Laferriere on PP1

They are TRYING To make me hate him now

This is Dwight King top line big brain stuff

 

[Ollie Weeks]

They just can’t help themselves.

 

[lumbergh]

Laferriere on PP1

They are TRYING To make me hate him now

This is Dwight King top line big brain stuff

1 point in his last 14 regular season games. Let's put him on the top line! And put him on PP1!

Sometimes just 'looking the part' will get you a long ways in this sport.

It's gotten Alex Laferriere a long way.

 

[Schrute farms]

I dunno man. I'm not trying to be a wet blanket but I don't feel like Helenius is a great fighter. I like that he's unapologetically aggressive, but he is going to get absolutely tooled by NHL heavies. He's also an absolute black hole offensively and not this huge defensive C everyone wants him to be. Theoretically he'd be an ideal 4C but I don't think he's as developed as it's being made out to be unless I'm missing some mammoth improvement in his game.

I think on a roster that will be as offensively starved as ours he stands to be a punching bag. I'm rooting for him, I'm just not seeing an effective NHLer quite yet. But there's no shame in that, he's 21.

Hell this was his headshot last season haha, gotta love that

Oh, i was meaning his fighting skills. You can't really tell from that fight. But i think fighting is overrated. I think size is the important thing -- and USING it to your advantage. We have some size, but the guys don't us it (Kopi, Carter in past, QB just learning). I'm hoping, just like his actual hockey skills, that part of his game will develop. Him using the size would be great -- and on the PK as well. I'm not expecting to see him with the big club for another 15-24 months.

 

[Johnny Utah]

Helenius has improved as a fighter each year. Having met him a few times, he is def huge.

He has some offensive skill - I always compared him to Jarrett Stoll, if he was bigger and meaner.

 

[Johnny Utah]

Was a fan of Corbin Vaughan, hope he comes to the next camp.

 

[bland]

Laferriere on PP1

They are TRYING To make me hate him now

This is Dwight King top line big brain stuff

Respectfully, I am a little confused wondering why one would complain about the kids not getting chances in one thread, and simultaneously complaining in this one about a kid actually getting an opportunity in an important spot.

Why are so many of you pigeon-holing Laferriere into a bottom 6 spot based off of his rookie season? This is a quality player who probably should have been in Ontario playing in PP and PK situations last year so he would be better prepared for those bigger moments in the big league.

The important thing here isn't results, it's progress. Laferriere and Byfield getting top situational play IS the very progress we need. Expecting results right away is what got them into this mess in the first place.

 

[BigKing]

Pat Maroon wasn't some amazing fighter but he turned into "good enough" for this day-and-age.

Helenius is just going to need to be a boring fighter that doesn't look to just sit back and trade them very often. I agree with RJ that he is going to eat some bad punches if he tries to open it up with some dudes that know what they are doing.

I agree he is much better than when he first came over, but that isn't saying much.

 

[Lt Dan]

Respectfully, I am a little confused wondering why one would complain about the kids not getting chances in one thread, and simultaneously complaining in this one about a kid actually getting an opportunity in an important spot.

This is the internet bro. Nothing should ever shock you.
Except goatse. I am still mentally scarred from that

 

[Steve Zissou]

Goose bumps.

 

[King'sPawn]

Respectfully, I am a little confused wondering why one would complain about the kids not getting chances in one thread, and simultaneously complaining in this one about a kid actually getting an opportunity in an important spot.

Why are so many of you pigeon-holing Laferriere into a bottom 6 spot based off of his rookie season? This is a quality player who probably should have been in Ontario playing in PP and PK situations last year so he would be better prepared for those bigger moments in the big league.

The important thing here isn't results, it's progress. Laferriere and Byfield getting top situational play IS the very progress we need. Expecting results right away is what got them into this mess in the first place.

Ultimately, I see him more as a utility bottom-six player. But I'm also okay with him getting the opportunity. This is what I've been hoping for in general - youth put in positions to succeed.

Powerplay is a great opportunity to learn shot placement. And he's a tenacious checker, which powerplay units benefit from.

As far as why I see him on the bottom-six, it's the general skillset he has. It's his style of play as an energy player. He hasn't drawn in the defenders and set up the play, shown the vision to be an exceptional passer, or show the shot placement/technique to be a dangerous scorer.

I don't think he's too different from Trevor Moore's style of play before Moore got a scoring touch. But I also don't expect him to have that growth arc (even though their USHL and NCAA numbers are very similar).

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

This is the hand they are dealt with given their shortage of right-hand shots. Fagemo is headed to Utah, but ideally you'd like to see him in that right-hand, one-time position on one of the PP units.

 

[bland]

Ultimately, I see him more as a utility bottom-six player. But I'm also okay with him getting the opportunity. This is what I've been hoping for in general - youth put in positions to succeed.

Powerplay is a great opportunity to learn shot placement. And he's a tenacious checker, which powerplay units benefit from.

As far as why I see him on the bottom-six, it's the general skillset he has. It's his style of play as an energy player. He hasn't drawn in the defenders and set up the play, shown the vision to be an exceptional passer, or show the shot placement/technique to be a dangerous scorer.

I don't think he's too different from Trevor Moore's style of play before Moore got a scoring touch. But I also don't expect him to have that growth arc (even though their USHL and NCAA numbers are very similar).

He is most likely there for "puck recovery" skills, which is fine. I don't know if he has the pure skills to be a top line winger, but plenty of players who aren't top-6 on paper have carved out excellent careers on that spot based on guile and effort. The fact that he is being given that chance is everything we have been asking for over the past few years.