GDT: GM#79 LA Kings vs Calgary Flames @7:00pm 4/1/19 Kopitar's 1,000th NHL game

[Legionnaire]

I don't see anyone turning this roster around. At best, this roster is a black hole team. I have been advocating a complete rebuild for quite some time.

Okay. But do you see anyone capable of rebuilding this roster? Because one hand washes the other...

 

[kingsholygrail]

Quick is the golden boy. Conn Smythe winner. He's the big game, non-system goalie. Maybe he doesn't suck, but maybe he always was a system goalie that outside opinions said he was? How many big games has he won since 2014?



The only real chance they had to trade him would've been in June 2012, before he got the 10 year contract. I'm going to guess that nobody would've wanted to trade him at that time, even if it was the right move, which it would've been. They still had both Bernier and Jones, and they didn't get anything for either guy. Or nothing anyone wanted for Jones anyway. Also had to trade Kuemper, who they got nothing for. 3rd rd pick for Scrivens. Had they traded Quick after the Conn Smythe, they could've gotten something decent. Nobody knew 2014 would end up happening, but then Quick wasn't as big a factor that year as he was in 2012. I guess he rallied the troops after everyone got smoked in SJ, but he was also part of the team that got smoked in SJ in those first couple games.

Once DL handed Quick that contract, all options were thrown out the window.



The problem is they were last in the league when they fired Stevens. The players on this team have no room to talk. Who cares what coach they like or dislike. They got tired of the guy they actually won with. Did they get tired of winning? They didn't want to play professional hockey from day 1 of training camp this year. They just weren't interested. They deserve WD, and they'll also likely turn on whoever it is that stands behind them next year in quick fashion, because none of them are likely going anywhere.

This is Quick's only season below .900. It's actually managed to drop his sv% a full .003 career wise to .914, but even with this season, he's still above Bernier and Jones. Scrivens isn't even playing in this league anymore. This is the first year Kuemper has had a starting job. We'll see how he holds up next season. Quick's not a golden boy, but he's also not the problem with this team with so many players doing poorly.

 

[KINGS17]

Okay. But do you see anyone capable of rebuilding this roster? Because one hand washes the other...

I don't see this management team as capable of building a championship roster, but neither was Dave Taylor and he managed to acquire a few key pieces of the puzzle. Better to start acquiring pieces of the next puzzle and throw away pieces you know aren't going to fit down the line.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I'm totally with you on how ****ty this team has been this year, but I don't get the Kopitar 0 PP goals and Doughty 0 even strength goals thing. Does it make any difference if you swap 3 of Kopitar's even strength goals with 3 of Doughty's PP goals? Still the same number of goals, and still the same suckage.

It is quite shocking that a player of Doughty's skill can go an entire season with over 1400 minutes played at 5 vs. 5 and not score a single goal. I don't know how to explain that.

That's more bad luck than anything, piled on top of everything else. Kopitar made the same observation the other day, that there's no excuses but on top of all that everything that could go wrong did go wrong.

Drew took 110 ES shots this year, 0 goals.
Last year, 123 shots, 6 goals.
The previous, 117 shots, 7 goals.

It looks like he'll have the same # of shots, maybe more, but with shit luck, especially with the league-wide save percentage down bigtime.

There are some things they'll have to correct on their own. Many things, in fact. But there are some that fate will correct on its own.

 

[Lt Dan]

On the exercise bike?

This post can't get enough love!