I stopped listening to him 2 years ago…. other than what I see reposted here. He over sensationalizes kings draft picks to a completely unrealistic level and passes it off as gospel. There are probably a list of 15 top 6 forwards that were “the future” of the kings over the last 5 years.
I don’t think he’s a malicious guy or anything he’s just wrong 90% of the time.
I’m saying his eye tests for prospects isn’t near what he sells. Just calling it out. He’s honestly probably right less than half of the posters on this board because he co-signs his own bullshit and will never admit he was wrong.
It’s cool you guys are buddies I’m just saying he has the credibility of a broken clock in terms of talent assessment.
He gets scoops but to be honest these days he’s got a record closer to lockout Eklund than prime Bob McKenzie like he pretends to be.
The only reason that fire gets any oxygen is because he is a broken stick in the middle of the desert in terms of media coverage in LA.
Just not a fan of his work. He also comes off as a douchebag in his personal antidotes and attacks on fans who call out his whoppers. Definitely way less of a assclown than Bernstein though.
Tell me in all honestly his talent assessment has a better than 10% hit rate with a straight face.
My biggest issues is with looping in his fans as if they are incapable of thinking.
I get it - there's sometimes a presentation that can escalate opinions towards him. Fans find his callouts hilarious. Detractors find him grating. And as he provides more content, the divide can widen.
I've frankly given up trying to change minds on people liking him. Not that it's a lost cause - but I've just said my piece enough. Those who like him will like him. Those who won't, won't.
But it's reached a point where there's virtually nobody saying "Mayor said this, so it must be true", but the moment there's an opportunity to tie him in to being the spinster, the detractors will turn the dialogue into imagining him trying to pump up the most mundane and inane arguments. And suddenly he's become the focal point of the criticism.
As for his eye for talent? It's hit and miss. I'm not certain, but I'm guessing some of his excitement coincides with what he hears from scouts and others he speaks to. I'm trying to think of when he's provided his own opinions in articles when writing about prospects (and made it clear), and I can't. I think he defers more to those with more experience.
So, how good is his eye for talent? Because I can't recall any instance he specifically refers to mechanics or personal style of play, I can't answer.
I do know offhand, two players whose tires he pumped for a long time were Mikey Anderson and JAD. JAD didn't work out, but Anderson seems to have worked out. He's transparent about Lee's growing skill to go with his size - I don't have his optimism on Lee. But he's also very hopeful of Slukynsky, in which I do.
As far as his predictions versus others on this board, very few offer substantive, in-depth opinions on this board. Which isn't a knock on the posters here - they either haven't seen the prospects play until they hit the AHL, or they rely on what media is available. Or they have posters tell them that they're not allowed to get excited about "nobodies." So, I'm not going to compare Hoven's record to other posters.
There are definitely knowledgable ones, but we had most of the board ready to give up on Vilardi three seasons ago and Byfield one season ago. So, I think the average poster here has quite a generous share of misses here we don't dwell on nearly as much as we'd like. And, of course, that includes me. I thought JAD and Kaliyev would be playing more meaningful hockey, just as two examples. I thought Turcotte would be playing more by now, but I'm giving myself a pass due to injuries.
I just think you're projecting your dissatisfaction with Hoven onto his fans. We're all Kings fans and we enjoy different facets. Just because people enjoy Hoven doesn't mean they're incapable of individual thought. Just like many of his non-fans.
Edit: anyway, thanks for listening. Sorry to go on a rant. I hope we provide content where you eventually enjoy it at some capacity.