Tidbits: Around the League: NHL News - 2023-24
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Man what is going on with the LA Kings? This was a consensus cup contender thru like mid-way into last season going into this year. Down 5-0 to the Sabres right now. Sabres have it in them to throw a bunch of goals up quickly but damn.
I really thought the Kings couldve had something special and maybe they still will but starting to think they jumped the gun and tried to force things too much chasing Fiala and then Dubois. The Dubois trade especially.. they must have thought that he'd start giving a f*** once he finally got out of the small markets and blossom into the talent every thought he could be but nope.. dude has like 0 dawg in him.
I really thought the Kings couldve had something special and maybe they still will but starting to think they jumped the gun and tried to force things too much chasing Fiala and then Dubois. The Dubois trade especially.. they must have thought that he'd start giving a f*** once he finally got out of the small markets and blossom into the talent every thought he could be but nope.. dude has like 0 dawg in him.
Theyre down a touchdown now lol. everytime i check back on that game theyve given up another.
- Dec 10, 2012
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- 19,536
Sounds like they need a little leadership and culture in their locker room.
Foligno+Zuccarello
for
Fiala
Money is a wash, LA is on the hook for less term, their locker room improves by a billion percent, we get a real 2nd line winger for Rossi. This is a win-win.
I actually saw a baseless rumor that Wild were one of the teams in on Kapo Kakko and was wondering if a trade of Zucc for him straight up would make sense and if he would waive NMC for it. This is Ek to Aves level of rumor so not worth discussing anyway tho.
Kopitar is a -6 in this game. Injured? Washed? More likely just dealing with wtf ever illness has been wandering thru the league the last couple of months. Thats been under-discussed btw. Its obv not on the level of covid or that one mumps year but there's been something f***ing dudes up lately.
Its the other guy in right now
EDIT: oops my bad talbot has come on and given up a couple. classic hot & cold talbot
I wasn't just talking about tonight though. I mean, look at his last 5 games.
Cam Talbot Stats And News
- Dec 10, 2012
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I have a lot of time for that rumor, no matter how baseless. I have a fair amount of time for Kakko to the Wild in general, assuming the cost isn't too high
oh yeah. he's on a run of bad games it looks like. but he's got a .911 pct on the year which is actually really high for how many goals have been scored this year. there was a thing i saw today actually.. i think league average this year is somewhere under .900? It used to be I always thought a .900 goalie was just ok or good enough but apparently now thats like elite lol.
They did just get a new coach. Sometimes that has some growing pains.
I had LA finishing 3rd behind EDM and VGK with ~100p in the Pacific. I didn't guess that VAN would figure things out and blow up the West.
BagHead
Registered User
I don't blame them, he was incredible until just recently. In his first 25 games he had a .925 save%. In his last 7 (all of the games since that 25 game mark) he's had a .865 save%. It's taken him just 7 games to turn a .925 into a .911 (a number someone should call for him, maybe). It's like he went to bed an all-star goalie on January 6th, and woke up a sieve on January 7th.
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Y'know.
If you think about the idea of the Wild being put into a 7 game playoff series against the various western playoff teams, I think they would almost definitely lose to the (6) teams coming from each division right now and then there's the Kings and idk what to think about them.. if this is temporary or if they're falling apart (I lean more towards it temporary I suppose) but then with the Blues... like I actually think the Wild would pretty decisively beat the Blues in a 7 game matchup and same for the Preds and the Flames.
Like they really are still just that fringe level playoff team that we all pretty much expected from the start.
If you're maximizing for long term enjoyment I suppose you hope they finish as poorly as possible but if you also want to enjoy some hockey now I suppose the best you can hope is that they sneak in as the playoff team with the worst record and then magically advance past the 1st round only to lose in the quarters and still preserve that #15 draft pick. I mean everyone's free to hope for a cup ofc but this is a team thats playing guys like mermis, merrill, lucchini, letteri, etc.
If you think about the idea of the Wild being put into a 7 game playoff series against the various western playoff teams, I think they would almost definitely lose to the (6) teams coming from each division right now and then there's the Kings and idk what to think about them.. if this is temporary or if they're falling apart (I lean more towards it temporary I suppose) but then with the Blues... like I actually think the Wild would pretty decisively beat the Blues in a 7 game matchup and same for the Preds and the Flames.
Like they really are still just that fringe level playoff team that we all pretty much expected from the start.
If you're maximizing for long term enjoyment I suppose you hope they finish as poorly as possible but if you also want to enjoy some hockey now I suppose the best you can hope is that they sneak in as the playoff team with the worst record and then magically advance past the 1st round only to lose in the quarters and still preserve that #15 draft pick. I mean everyone's free to hope for a cup ofc but this is a team thats playing guys like mermis, merrill, lucchini, letteri, etc.
- Mar 19, 2023
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Ottawa scored another empty netter today, this one from beside their own net.
Looks like Brännström, who scored the goal, managed to stay clear of the incoming punishment though. No crosschecks to his face but who knows what happened outside on the parking lot.
Looks like Brännström, who scored the goal, managed to stay clear of the incoming punishment though. No crosschecks to his face but who knows what happened outside on the parking lot.
Not trying to keep that debate going but it is bad sportsmanship to do that imo and that used to be a thing people cared about but maybe they dont anymore and that's whatever.
That being said I dont think there has ever been a period in hockey where cross-checking a guy in the face has been considered a proportionate response (no matter what Ryan Reaves might have you believe) lol.
The PLD trade killed LAK, and they haven’t had luck with their high draft pick. Byfield is decent, but you expect way more from a #2 oa, especially when the next guy was Stutzle, and Turcotte has been a dud. Clarke is still a question mark, also, though he scores like crazy in lower leagues.
Who would’ve thought that Faber would be the best out of the bunch?
Who would’ve thought that Faber would be the best out of the bunch?
Obvious Fabertism
Registered User
The injuries really derailed the possibilities of the team hitting legit underdog/contention position by the post-season. The Mermis - Merrill - Goligoski trifecta is way too much to overcome, but if we had been able to accrue cap space and been in a more clear playoff position, acquiring a depth defenseman or two could have gone a long way to making this team at least a possible run threat. They do have some streaks of looking really good, and Kap has finally returned to the form that allows him to be a true difference maker.
I like our core players, and want most of them here when we do get the cap reins off. The confidence shattering from a true losing season could damage future potential in my opinion, its been a very positive thing in my eyes to see our young players stepping up and leading the way to win games or remain competitive even in the face of tons of adversity. Its truly been our geriatric vets and a few of your mentioned depth guys that have had an outsized impact on the season's results. Margins are just so slim in this league, for this current team especially with the cap limitations. Its very unlikely that they make any splash, but I still am enjoying the season and like watching this team win when they are playing well, its one of the more entertaining and creative iterations of a MN Wild roster IMO.
I think youve actually reminded me why LA could still have something special. I still think Byfield and Clarke could be special. I think for *most* players you cant really have a feel for how where its going until they're 23/24. I remember how Mark Stone grabbed Clarke earlier in the year and Clarke was like literally cowering in fear.. like he was a kid who shouldnt even be there.
Once these guys become young men they're going to show who they really are and the Kings are gonna be really good. Not as good as if they just sat tight with Faber tho! I suppose the problem with that is that by that time Kopitar will be 100% washed which is probably why they rushed things to begin with.
They have a ton of cap space available to use. There is still $4m left in LTIR space even with 2 guy on (regular) IR and a full 23 man roster (so 25 player salary count). If they wanted/needed to they pretty much have Spurgeon's full cap hit to play with for cap space.
If they still have a lot of teams ahead of them when they approach the TDL, they can use that cap space in exchange for picks, as the third party in a deal.
Otherwise, I don’t see them making any deals of consequence due to the NMC’s and NTC‘s attached the players that would be logical to move.
Otherwise, I don’t see them making any deals of consequence due to the NMC’s and NTC‘s attached the players that would be logical to move.
BagHead
Registered User
The Kings sort of did the Wild blueprint of the 2010's. The Wild basically had two cores, one older and one younger, and neither was in their prime at the same time. It led to a consistently good team, but one incapable of winning it all because the parts never all sang in harmony. I think the Kings would have been better served by moving on from Kopitar and Doughty, and just building a single young core. Now they've got two aging stars, a couple of pieces in the middle of varying quality (PLD and Fiala), and a young core that isn't as good as it would have been without them making the trades for PLD and Fiala.
It's crazy to me that in both the Fiala and PLD trades, the Kings gave up both extra assets and the best player. Those just gutted them.
Dr Jan Itor
Registered User
If the league was any sort of fun, the 31 other teams would all get together and do it to Toronto every chance they got, and only to Toronto.
- Dec 10, 2012
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- 19,536
Didn't the Hawks start it with Kane that one year?
Would love to fix situations like this but it seems like the league is content with this type of stuff.
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