Around the League 2024-25 season

[bland]

The whole Wolf thing is just weird to me because they knew about him, he's a former JR King, they think he's great and amazing. He's still available 7th round. Wouldn't you just give the hometown kid a shot at that point? I mean, last pick and all. Unless there was intel that Lee was a homerun.

Better guess would be that they thought he would go undrafted and could be signed.

 

[King'sPawn]

TSN Top 50 Under 24

1. Jack Hughes
2. Connor Bedard
3. Macklin Celebrini
4. Tim Stutzle
5. Owen Power
6. Brock Faber
7. Matvei Michkov
8. Cole Caufield
9. Moritz Seider
10. Ivan Demidov
11. Jake Sanderson
12. Alex Nikishin
13. Wyatt Johnston
14. Leo Carlsson
15. Luke Hughes
16. Will Smith
17. Ryan Leonard
18. Artyom Levshinov
19. Zeev Buium
20. Matt Boldy
21. Lucas Raymond
22. Adam Fantilli
23. Alexis Lafreniere
24. Dustin Wolf
25. Juraj Slafkovsky
26. Seth Jarvis
27. Lane Hutson
28. Cutter Gauthier
29. Logan Stankoven
30. Sam Dickinson
31. Thomas Harley
32. Zayne Parekh
33. Yaroslav Askarov
34. Brandt Clarke
35. Logan Cooley
36. Matthew Knies
37. Dylan Guenther
38. Mason MacTavish
39. Trey Augustine
40. Jacob Fowler
41. Bennett Senecke
42. Cayden Lindstrom
43. Denton Mateychuk
44. Easton Cowan
45. Tij Iginla
46. Kaiden Guhle
47. Pavel Mintyukov
48. Tom Willander
49. Berkly Catton
50. Connor McMichael

People can pick apart who they think is to high, to low or who should or shouldn't be on the list. But this is the age group where the Kings a bunch of high picks and nobody can deny the ROI has been bad, and absolutely horrible when you factor in the best pick was traded for empty calories.

- Faber was clearly their crown jewel pick, and he is traded for a non-needle moving winger
- Blake had the realistic opportunity to draft #4, #8 and #20.
- #9, #11 and #21 were taken almost immediately after bad Kings picks
- #24 and #26 were pushed on messageboards as potential Kings picks (But how could Blake have known?)
- A good chunk of the rest could have potentially been drafted by the Kings with high picks in 2022 and 2023 had picks not been handed out like Halloween candy for black hole warriors like Fiala and Gavrikov.

For anyone here to young to remember being a Kings fan from 1994 to 2007, well you sadly have your own "Serious Hockey, Serious Fans" and "I play my best hockey when" era you can tell your kids about.

Though I know it's not your intent, but the statement of Kings option picks are a bit misleading.

Stutzle, Sanderson, and Jarvis were all from the same draft. The Kings could have only taken one.

And while he's not doing great at the moment, I'm still not convinced Byfield was a "bad" pick. Imagine Byfield with the free reign Stutzle had, and imagine Stutzle "needing to learn to check" like Byfield needed to. I just think we're overlooking or underestimating essential factors.

Turcotte hasn't worked out to his draft position either. But nobody was calling for Seider at 5th. Not you, me, or independent scouting services. People wanted Zegras, Caufield, Cozens, or Turcotte (others liked Dach and Byram, but they were already gone). It doesn't exonerate Blake, as ultimately it's the scouting staffs job to do. But Seider at 6th was Wheeler at 5th level shocking.

I just think there's a lot of hand-wringing over picks when the picks themselves have been defensible. I'm not sure why, after years of criticizing development decisions, there's this insinuation the biggest culprit is "bad picks."

The ROI has been bad, but comparing them to other players with different factors at their benefit is missing the big picture.

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

Though I know it's not your intent, but the statement of Kings option picks are a bit misleading.

Stutzle, Sanderson, and Jarvis were all from the same draft. The Kings could have only taken one.

And while he's not doing great at the moment, I'm still not convinced Byfield was a "bad" pick. Imagine Byfield with the free reign Stutzle had, and imagine Stutzle "needing to learn to check" like Byfield needed to. I just think we're overlooking or underestimating essential factors.

Turcotte hasn't worked out to his draft position either. But nobody was calling for Seider at 5th. Not you, me, or independent scouting services. People wanted Zegras, Caufield, Cozens, or Turcotte (others liked Dach and Byram, but they were already gone). It doesn't exonerate Blake, as ultimately it's the scouting staffs job to do. But Seider at 6th was Wheeler at 5th level shocking.

I just think there's a lot of hand-wringing over picks when the picks themselves have been defensible. I'm not sure why, after years of criticizing development decisions, there's this insinuation the biggest culprit is "bad picks."

The ROI has been bad, but comparing them to other players with different factors at their benefit is missing the big picture.

There's also a different component of this, what I mean by that is, you said, imagine what Byfield could be ith the free reign that Stutzle had, but what is Stutzle right now? He's a good player, no doubt, and he can score, absolutely. He's also, a disaster on the defensive side, doesn't help that the entire team is a tire fire on the defensive side, but Stutzle won't win anything playing like that, so is that we are striving for? Offensively pleasing forward who couldn't piss on a fire in the defensive zone if they tried? Byfield has massive skill, just as much as Stutzle, but Stutzle has put it together faster, at the expense of defense, Byfield can grow into the offensive game, but Stutzle is basically a more gifted Zegras at this point.

 

[Sol]

Are you guys seriously still trying to cope by misrepresenting Stutzle and pretending that Byfield wasn’t a bad pick? Wtf


All these statements are true all at once
1. Stutzle is a far superior player
2. Byfield was a real bad pick at 2nd overall
3. Despite being a real bad pick he might be a decent NHLer.

 

[kilowatt]

Are you guys seriously still trying to cope by misrepresenting Stutzle and pretending that Byfield wasn’t a bad pick? Wtf


All these statements are true all at once
1. Stutzle is a far superior player
2. Byfield was a real bad pick at 2nd overall
3. Despite being a real bad pick he might be a decent NHLer.

Byfield's longest point-per-game stretch in his entire career is 22 points in 22 games. Tim Stutzle is over a point per game over his last three seasons. The comparison is over, Byfield isn't nearly as good. He's capable of controlling a game, but he doesn't do it at even half the frequency that Stutzle does. Hell, Byfield is below 0.5 points per game in his career. Pierre Luc Dubois is outscoring Byfield this year.

 

[SaltyElkHunter]

I listened to you f***ers and drafted him in fantasy. He’s been a mountain of disappointment after scoring an incredibly awesome Goal 1 time.

 

[Herby]

Though I know it's not your intent, but the statement of Kings option picks are a bit misleading.

Stutzle, Sanderson, and Jarvis were all from the same draft. The Kings could have only taken one.

And while he's not doing great at the moment, I'm still not convinced Byfield was a "bad" pick. Imagine Byfield with the free reign Stutzle had, and imagine Stutzle "needing to learn to check" like Byfield needed to. I just think we're overlooking or underestimating essential factors.

Turcotte hasn't worked out to his draft position either. But nobody was calling for Seider at 5th. Not you, me, or independent scouting services. People wanted Zegras, Caufield, Cozens, or Turcotte (others liked Dach and Byram, but they were already gone). It doesn't exonerate Blake, as ultimately it's the scouting staffs job to do. But Seider at 6th was Wheeler at 5th level shocking.

I just think there's a lot of hand-wringing over picks when the picks themselves have been defensible. I'm not sure why, after years of criticizing development decisions, there's this insinuation the biggest culprit is "bad picks."

The ROI has been bad, but comparing them to other players with different factors at their benefit is missing the big picture.

I think you mistake a bad pick and bad player as being the same thing. My opinion is that when you draft a guy #2 overall and he's not a star by his fifth season, it's probably a bad pick, even more so when the guy who went right after him and who we all spent months debating about looks well on his way to another 90 point season.

It gets back to the whole drafting a project vs. a more ready made thing. How much better will QB have to be than Stutzle when he reaches this mythical peak that guys like Emerson talk about that it comes close to making up what they have missed out from this bad pick? Although I think the truth is the Kings expected a lot more by now. The Kings management tells us now they drafted a long-term project with a #2 overall pick while at the same time trying to contend in a window with guys in their late 30's? They are incompetent, but are they really that incompetent?

On the other point, I did try and separate the players into a group that the Kings realistically could have taken (Stutzle, Caufield, Boldy) vs. one that were drafted right after but the Kings had no expectation of drafting (Seider, Sanderson, Raymond) to make it a more accurate representation

 

[King'sPawn]

I think you mistake a bad pick and bad player as being the same thing. My opinion is that when you draft a guy #2 overall and he's not a star by his fifth season, it's probably a bad pick, even more so when the guy who went right after him and who we all spent months debating about looks well on his way to another 90 point season.

It gets back to the whole drafting a project vs. a more ready made thing. How much better will QB have to be than Stutzle when he reaches this mythical peak that guys like Emerson talk about that it comes close to making up what they have missed out from this bad pick? Although I think the truth is the Kings expected a lot more by now. The Kings management tells us now they drafted a long-term project with a #2 overall pick while at the same time trying to contend in a window with guys in their late 30's? They are incompetent, but are they really that incompetent?

On the other point, I did try and separate the players into a group that the Kings realistically could have taken (Stutzle, Caufield, Boldy) vs. one that were drafted right after but the Kings had no expectation of drafting (Seider, Sanderson, Raymond) to make it a more accurate representation

I may be dense, but I still just think there are too many variables to call something a bad pick or bad player.

Is Byfield yielding yet what I hoped for, especially for a second overall? Absolutely not. And I'm disappointed in his season so far. I was hoping he would have bridged the gap. And he's not put it together yet.

But I attribute a lot of that to how he's been handled. We won't be able to experience an alternate universe of 'what if the Kings took Stutzle instead?' I'm not delusional to think Byfield would be definitely better, but I think Stutzle playing in an environment that complements his style of play better can't be overlooked.

After being played in a grinder role at center and struggled, he was moved to wing, upped his game, and got comfortable and was winning battles. Then they move him back to center and has to play the ice differently now. Should a 2nd overall pick be more flexible? In an ideal world, sure, but my general philosophy is - if you see a player beginning to thrive and grow in some conditions, keep those conditions.

Do I think Stutzle would be putting up more points on the Kings than Byfield? Certainly. Do I think he'd be at 23 points? Honestly no. I think the Kings would still be putting him either at Kopitar's wing or on the second line, and we'd hear Hiller talk about how points are nice, but you need to play defense, like he does with Clarke. So, maybe at around 16ish points and still more one-dimensional. Like the player everyone hoped to get out of Kevin Fiala.

Maybe that makes him a bad pick for the Kings, but until they have a more robust and flexible approach to development, a larger number of picks are going to be "bad picks."

 

[crassbonanza]

I may be dense, but I still just think there are too many variables to call something a bad pick or bad player.

Is Byfield yielding yet what I hoped for, especially for a second overall? Absolutely not. And I'm disappointed in his season so far. I was hoping he would have bridged the gap. And he's not put it together yet.

But I attribute a lot of that to how he's been handled. We won't be able to experience an alternate universe of 'what if the Kings took Stutzle instead?' I'm not delusional to think Byfield would be definitely better, but I think Stutzle playing in an environment that complements his style of play better can't be overlooked.

After being played in a grinder role at center and struggled, he was moved to wing, upped his game, and got comfortable and was winning battles. Then they move him back to center and has to play the ice differently now. Should a 2nd overall pick be more flexible? In an ideal world, sure, but my general philosophy is - if you see a player beginning to thrive and grow in some conditions, keep those conditions.

Do I think Stutzle would be putting up more points on the Kings than Byfield? Certainly. Do I think he'd be at 23 points? Honestly no. I think the Kings would still be putting him either at Kopitar's wing or on the second line, and we'd hear Hiller talk about how points are nice, but you need to play defense, like he does with Clarke. So, maybe at around 16ish points and still more one-dimensional. Like the player everyone hoped to get out of Kevin Fiala.

Maybe that makes him a bad pick for the Kings, but until they have a more robust and flexible approach to development, a larger number of picks are going to be "bad picks."

I think the big thing for me is that Stutzle is basically responsible for driving all of the offense. In his entire career the lowest he has been is 6th on the team in points, which was during his rookie season. Since then he has either been first or second in points. I think he likely would have benefited greatly from being a winger with Kopi and Kempe. When comparing situations it's good to look at all aspects and one of those is having quality teammates that can take the pressure off of a young player.

 

[Schmooley]

I may be dense, but I still just think there are too many variables to call something a bad pick or bad player.

Is Byfield yielding yet what I hoped for, especially for a second overall? Absolutely not. And I'm disappointed in his season so far. I was hoping he would have bridged the gap. And he's not put it together yet.

But I attribute a lot of that to how he's been handled. We won't be able to experience an alternate universe of 'what if the Kings took Stutzle instead?' I'm not delusional to think Byfield would be definitely better, but I think Stutzle playing in an environment that complements his style of play better can't be overlooked.

After being played in a grinder role at center and struggled, he was moved to wing, upped his game, and got comfortable and was winning battles. Then they move him back to center and has to play the ice differently now. Should a 2nd overall pick be more flexible? In an ideal world, sure, but my general philosophy is - if you see a player beginning to thrive and grow in some conditions, keep those conditions.

Do I think Stutzle would be putting up more points on the Kings than Byfield? Certainly. Do I think he'd be at 23 points? Honestly no. I think the Kings would still be putting him either at Kopitar's wing or on the second line, and we'd hear Hiller talk about how points are nice, but you need to play defense, like he does with Clarke. So, maybe at around 16ish points and still more one-dimensional. Like the player everyone hoped to get out of Kevin Fiala.

Maybe that makes him a bad pick for the Kings, but until they have a more robust and flexible approach to development, a larger number of picks are going to be "bad picks."

Points aside, Byfields play is concerning this year. Last year he was a beast on the walls and was stripping pucks and threading passes to Kopitar and Kempe. This year hes been really soft on the walls, hasnt won puck battles, and is lobbing feather passes that dont connect to his linemates. Took one step forward last year and two steps back this year.

 

[kingsfan28]

The whole Wolf thing is just weird to me because they knew about him, he's a former JR King, they think he's great and amazing. He's still available 7th round. Wouldn't you just give the hometown kid a shot at that point? I mean, last pick and all. Unless there was intel that Lee was a homerun.

You rarely find home runs in the 7th round, and I don't think that's what they were looking for with a high 7th [pick #188]. Every team has their list, Lee was BPA on the Kings and a massive longshot to make it drafted there, any player drafted there is. It sound like they didn't think he was going to be drafted and almost wasn't at all.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Crosby and Kyle Connor throwing more heat than any King this year

 

[ru4reals]

Byfield's longest point-per-game stretch in his entire career is 22 points in 22 games. Tim Stutzle is over a point per game over his last three seasons. The comparison is over, Byfield isn't nearly as good. He's capable of controlling a game, but he doesn't do it at even half the frequency that Stutzle does. Hell, Byfield is below 0.5 points per game in his career. Pierre Luc Dubois is outscoring Byfield this year.

When it rains it pours.

 

[kingsfan28]

This is pretty funny...

 

[Surf Nutz]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1835812813517812096

And another one signs the common-sense, win/win deal.

QB probably would have signed for $7 million, so the Kings ended up saving about $800k in cap space over the next five seasons. In exchange, they gave up team control of QB during his age 27, 28, and 29 seasons. But hey, no big deal, those aren't productive or prime years for a player or anything. Another master-class performance.

With Byfield slumping this year you would have shat all over $7 mil from Blake,

What contrived BS!

Your repetitive masterclass , dual edged sword posts add nothing to the community.

Get off your high horse!

Byfield mentioned that he had a couple of offers on the table from the Kings, and they came to a mutual agreement. That's how negotiations with your star player should go. You don't know what those offers were. No one has said, to my knowledge, that Kopi or Doughty played any role in the negotiations.

Quinton Byfield speaks on his new, five-year contract - "I want to be an LA King for the rest of my life" - LA Kings Insider

5 years for 55. With yesterday’s announcement, the number-one priority for the summer is locked in. We didn’t know exactly how many years Quinton Byfield would sign for. We didn’t know exactly what the AAV would be. We did know, though, that he would be signed. Now he is. “We are extremely...

lakingsinsider.com

All too often here people disregard the fact that all these players are individuals with their own motivations and interests. Ideally you have a situation where the interests of the player and the team line up, and the player feels appropriately valued and motivated to succeed. Seems like that's what happened with Byfield. He says he wants to be a King for life. This deal goes a long way to making that happen.

The other piece of the calculation is the age at which Byfield goes UFA. Let's all hope he "kills it" and earns an 8-year mega deal for his next contract. A 5-year RFA deal means that next contract could cover his mid career from age 26 to 34, or all of his mid-career. An 8-year RFA deal means that next contract covers 29-37, which is mid- to late-career. I think both sides would prefer the first situation and not the latter, where the contract would have to account for his probable decline after age 35.

 

[Herby]

Nashville pulled the plug on former 1st rounder Tomasino.

He looked on the right path when he played a full NHL season at 20, but Nashville had him right back in Milwaukee the next season, and he never recovered. They probably should have moved on from him when they sent him back down the first time. Much like with Bjornfot, when a player plays a full NHL season under-21 and then is moved back to the AHL the long-term results are usually poor.

 

[kingsfan28]

Looks like Victor Arvission is back on IR. One of the only smart moves by Blake was not resigning him.
2g 3a this season.

 

[BigBrown]

Looks like Victor Arvission is back on IR. One of the only smart moves by Blake was not resigning him.
2g 3a this season.

Didn't realize he'd been that bad with the Oilers. I was a big fan of his when he was healthy but he had some pretty major injuries towards the end of his last contract. Looks like he might need some time to bounce back, if at all possible at this stage.

 

[Omni Owl]

Looks like Victor Arvission is back on IR. One of the only smart moves by Blake was not resigning him.
2g 3a this season.

One of the few good moves Blake made was letting RV walk and then signing Foegele.

 

[kingsfan28]

Didn't realize he'd been that bad with the Oilers. I was a big fan of his when he was healthy but he had some pretty major injuries towards the end of his last contract. Looks like he might need some time to bounce back, if at all possible at this stage.

He was on Mcdavid wing too.

 

[DoktorJeep]

Looks like Victor Arvission is back on IR. One of the only smart moves by Blake was not resigning him.
2g 3a this season.

Good player on bad team syndrome strikes again.

 

[shuchukfan]

Watching the Ducks and Sens and it really annoys me that I can watch this for free and without hassle, unlike the Kings. Sign up for a free account, put Victory+ on my Roku and I'm set. Ducks and Knights let you watch their games for free, so why not the Kings? Tired of using a VPN with ESPN+ and, no, I'm not paying for Bally's or whatever it's called now, especially since the "product" is so inconsistent.

 

[SettlementRichie10]

The Bruins are like the Pittsburgh Steelers of the NHL, an amazing culture and system that produced regular season results, but not enough top-end talent to do consistently well in the playoffs.

Pasta is still a star player in his prime, but beyond that, there isn't much.

I saw a wild statistic the other day about Tomlin Steelers never once falling below .500 in his entire tenure.

That’s such an impressive feat considering some of the bleak post-Ben years.