Speculation: Fire Rob Blake Blow it Up Offseason Thread (update: Robitaille, Blake and Hiller stay)

[BigKing]

I think the Tkachuks simply had advice from dad and wanted to play in USA markets...I don't think it was solely a tax issue, and dad was notorious for the contract games IIRC

Captain America wanted to play in the USA and his kids were always going to find a way to do so as well.

No way Brady salves away in Ottawa forever.

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

1) Canadian taxes are higher than in the U.S. Take home pay in either currency is lower.

2) The $9.5 mm that Florida is Paying Tkachuk is the equivalent of almost $11mm in CA. Much easier to get pen to paper on a new deal when your only using 11% of the salary cap as opposed to 13%. I'm sure Matthew learned that lesson from his Dad who played in multiple cities and learned the difference in tax rates.

3) I am not a statistician, but the odds of a group 6/7 teams with one thing in common (Canadian domicile) not winning a championship in 31 years are pretty astronomical.

I think you are being naive in not believing taxes are a huge factor. Here is how I would rank a player's preferences:

1) opportunity to win the Cup - 50%

2) after tax take home pay - 30%

3) opportunity to play for a particular coach or with a player - 10%

4) being near friends and family - 5%

5) amenities in the host city - 5%

Forgot one factor Where does the wife want to live - 100000000000000%

 

[Telos]

One thing about the Kings current situation... If all really does go to sh*t next year, they should at least have some solid options for re-tooling (with a new GM and hopefully at the very least Bergevin gone - ideally Luc too).

Now that PLD's gone, they really only have Doughty as a looming big contract and even then there's only 3 years left so you'd likely have some options. They could have a relatively clean slate to work with pretty easily if they really wanted to.

Say next season is a complete disaster from the very beginning.. The Kings could do the following at the deadline to kickstart a re-tool:

• Trade Gavrikov to a contender
  • $5.875m is a steep cap hit but with Gav being a pending UFA next season, I'm sure they could find a team willing to add Gavrikov if the Kings retained
  • Gavrikov at 50% retained would be just under a $3m cap hit - That's a great add for a contender looking to bolster their D for a long playoff run
  • I imagine you could probably get at least a pick + prospect or a couple picks if they retained 50%
• Trade Doughty to a contender/playoff team
  • Could retain 25% on Doughty to make the cap hit more reasonable.... If the Kings are trading Doughty they're essentially accepting at least a 2-3 year re-tool so having a bit of dead cap for the next 2 seasons wouldn't be the end of the world
  • Doughty at 25% retained would be $8.25m - That's good value for Drew assuming he plays like he did last season - And you could probably get a very nice return in that scenario
  • Could also do this deal next offseason
• Look into trading Kopitar, Danault, Moore, etc

Then in the next offseason or in the following couple seasons you could decide whether you want to trade Kempe for a massive haul and/or Fiala for probably a solid return. In this scenario the Kings would hopefully end up with a top 5-10 pick in the 2025 or 2026 draft (or both). Then they could truly focus on building a new core without Kopi and Drew around.

Obviously, none of that would happen while BLuc is in place and the team is still trying to "compete", but the main problem is all those players not named Moore have either a NTC or a NMC which is going to make things either more difficult to possibly impossible - Gavrikov and Kopitar can refuse to go and there's nothing the Kings can do about it.

Ultimately, that is what is needed, the Kings need to blow it up, the pieces they have such as Kempe and Fiala are in their primes, Moore's value cannot be higher, and Danault, Doughty, and Kopitar would bring in a haul to a contender.

There would be a lot of emotions around getting rid of Kopitar and Doughty and there are arguments for both keeping them and trading them, but it is clear this team isn't going to be a contender before they expire - they had a chance at it with the futures they built a couple of years ago, but they blew it, made stupid trades and signings and failed developing them.

But these are all hopes and dreams. At minimum, under the current management and even ownership, I saw Kopitar and Doughty are glued and aren't going anywhere, and until Blake and Luc are axed there will be no sell off of assets and we are just stuck watching this trainwreck of mediocrity. This is going to be a big lame duck era in Kings history. It is amazing how poorly it has been run.

 

[FSL KINGS]

Obviously, none of that would happen while BLuc is in place and the team is still trying to "compete", but the main problem is all those players not named Moore have either a NTC or a NMC which is going to make things either more difficult to possibly impossible - Gavrikov and Kopitar can refuse to go and there's nothing the Kings can do about it.

Ultimately, that is what is needed, the Kings need to blow it up, the pieces they have such as Kempe and Fiala are in their primes, Moore's value cannot be higher, and Danault, Doughty, and Kopitar would bring in a haul to a contender.

There would be a lot of emotions around getting rid of Kopitar and Doughty and there are arguments for both keeping them and trading them, but it is clear this team isn't going to be a contender before they expire - they had a chance at it with the futures they built a couple of years ago, but they blew it, made stupid trades and signings and failed developing them.

But these are all hopes and dreams. At minimum, under the current management and even ownership, I saw Kopitar and Doughty are glued and aren't going anywhere, and until Blake and Luc are axed there will be no sell off of assets and we are just stuck watching this trainwreck of mediocrity. This is going to be a big lame duck era in Kings history. It is amazing how poorly it has been run.

It's getting pretty bad.

 

[Schrute farms]

This ownership/FO believe currently that "names" sell tickets over a true Cup contender. Anze & DD are going nowhere. They are the Kings -- for better or for worse. That's why everything seems to revolve around them the past 3-5 years. Versus a true rebuild and doing what's best for the LT benefit of the organization. Unless a major sea-change occurs, we're stuck with that until they are gone/retired.

 

[funky]

to the best of my knowledge Alberta isnt a no-tax province

Far from it

 

[Steve Zissou]

Fake news. What the hell is bladesofsteel.com?

This game is legend.



The fighting was one of the best parts.

 

[kilowatt]

i'm gonna keep my good boy mouth shut but just fyi, a warning is like the first step before an infraction and you need boatloads of infractions to even get a temp ban much less a perm so you're chillin

This has been a long time coming to be honest, it’s just a shame that the same thing has been happening for years and never gets resolved. Just ban them and be done with it

 

[kilowatt]

 

[KINGS17]

1) Canadian taxes are higher than in the U.S. Take home pay in either currency is lower.

2) The $9.5 mm that Florida is Paying Tkachuk is the equivalent of almost $11mm in CA. Much easier to get pen to paper on a new deal when your only using 11% of the salary cap as opposed to 13%. I'm sure Matthew learned that lesson from his Dad who played in multiple cities and learned the difference in tax rates.

3) I am not a statistician, but the odds of a group 6/7 teams with one thing in common (Canadian domicile) not winning a championship in 31 years are pretty astronomical.

I think you are being naive in not believing taxes are a huge factor. Here is how I would rank a player's preferences:

1) opportunity to win the Cup - 50%

2) after tax take home pay - 30%

3) opportunity to play for a particular coach or with a player - 10%

4) being near friends and family - 5%

5) amenities in the host city - 5%

Even Gronk know loonie and toonie not real money, and taxes too high in Canada.

 

[dabeechman]

I've been an LA fan since '92, and this might be the first time that I've ever wanted them to get torpedoed. I am so over this FO that I'd rather them bomb this upcoming season than give the .org a reason to keep Blake and Luc.

Probably makes me a bad fan, but a decade without a series win is just fkn painful to support.

 

[The Butcher]

I think the Tkachuks simply had advice from dad and wanted to play in USA markets...I don't think it was solely a tax issue, and dad was notorious for the contract games IIRC

As long as he's not taking diet advice from pops.

 

[MonkeysUncle]

I've been an LA fan since '92, and this might be the first time that I've ever wanted them to get torpedoed. I am so over this FO that I'd rather them bomb this upcoming season than give the .org a reason to keep Blake and Luc.

Probably makes me a bad fan, but a decade without a series win is just fkn painful to support.

The sad part is Luc would mostly like throw his friend Blake under the bus to save his job and give some BS about how he was concerned about some of these moves, but he felt he owned Blake the chance to right the ship. Luc is a weasel and snake oil salesman. I think he would then sale ownership on Bergevin and say look he got Montreal to the finals. Ownership either needs look through the BS or sell the team

 

[DryIslandBartender]

Rewatching the Kings run in 2012, totally different product on the ice. Forgot how awesome Richard’s was in game 1 vs Vancouver, then the next game it was Dustin Brown kicking ass etc.

 

[FSL KINGS]

The sad part is Luc would mostly like throw his friend Blake under the bus to save his job and give some BS about how he was concerned about some of these moves, but he felt he owned Blake the chance to right the ship. Luc is a weasel and snake oil salesman. I think he would then sale ownership on Bergevin and say look he got Montreal to the finals. Ownership either needs look through the BS or sell the team

Just promote Blake to the brain trust. Like the situation in Philly where they just promote guys up & out of the GM position.

 

[MonkeysUncle]

Just promote Blake to the brain trust. Like the situation in Philly where they just promote guys up & out of the GM position.

Still would have same philosophy and nothing changes, best case scenario is both Luc, Blake are removed. then bring in someone outside the organization to run hockey operations with a fresh look and that person can make the changes they want for Gm on down

 

[theMajor]

Just promote Blake to the brain trust. Like the situation in Philly where they just promote guys up & out of the GM position.

so bergevin is next in line??

 

[Reaper45]

so bergevin is next in line??

Why not? Blake sucks. I’d personally rather see someone else, even if it’s Bergevin at this point.

 

[Steve Zissou]

Los Angeles Kings Risk Playoff Miss After Key Player Departures

 

[Statto]

Los Angeles Kings Risk Playoff Miss After Key Player Departures

The thought we are high risk to miss the play-offs is flawed. Obviously it’s possible but…

RV was more or less a non-factor.
PLD is improvement by subtraction.
Lizotte everyone felt should be done here.
Kuemper at worst is probably a wash with Talbot.
Edmundson is probably an upgrade over Edmundson.
We are tougher and have 2 new guys that drive the net (which we lacked).
QB should kick on.

The questions are:
Kopitar and Doughty fall off faster than the young guys improve. Ice time is their biggest issue and a good coach can manage it.
Can Hiller cut it as a HC?
Does Clarke’s X factor outweigh Roy’s over rated D - poor net coverage and lots of D zone giveaways. This is the biggest question but it was always the case no matter what moves were made.
Can Thomas and Turcotte build on decent seasons and replace Lizotte and Grundstrom? Seems possible and certainly not unrealistic.

Honestly I think the roster is better balanced and can be better skilled if Clarke settles and QB takes another step. I think we only miss the play-off if Hiller fails badly which I believe is unlikely. Whether we can win a play-off round is another thing altogether and I won’t have a view until I see them play.

 

[theMajor]

i think its going to take Clarke at least a full season +, likely two, before he can eat the minutes Roy did. Roy played in every situation and was a quiet, reliable workhorse. idk why some people on this board shit on him so much

 

[tny760]

i think its going to take Clarke at least a full season +, likely two, before he can eat the minutes Roy did. Roy played in every situation and was a quiet, reliable workhorse. idk why some people on this board shit on him so much

mainly cause we hemorrhaged netfront goals and his netfront D was charmin soft

i don't think he was that bad overall but he definitely should've been gone at the deadline for some kind of return

 

[King'sPawn]

The thought we are high risk to miss the play-offs is flawed.

The Kings were 1 point away from being in the wild card and 8 points (4 wins) away from being on the outside looking in.

You're right there's are some improvements, there are also a lot of high risks.

 

[tny760]

Los Angeles Kings Risk Playoff Miss After Key Player Departures

is this like, an ai-written article? weird style

 

[theMajor]

mainly cause we hemorrhaged netfront goals and his netfront D was charmin soft

i don't think he was that bad overall but he definitely should've been gone at the deadline for some kind of return

for a dude that was making 3m a year, he was playing far above what he was getting paid - no doubt about that. he obviously ended up being a wasted asset but thats not anything he had control over