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Here's the cliff, everyone jump. EDM wins 4-2

Reclamation Project said:
I'm convinced KingPuckChoo and KH24 are the same person. Some super bot.
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Ziggy Stardust said:
Being a fan since I was about 9, which was in the Gretzky era, I grew up expecting those Kings to be a playoff team, but also got used to the disappointment of them not stepping up to perform in the playoffs.

Those Tom Webster coached Kings were pretty inconsistent in their performances and would usually get trounced by Edmonton (save for their first playoff meeting in the Gretzky era in '89). They were still an inconsistent regular season team with Melrose behind the bench in '93, but that team played their hearts out to get to the Finals and I think they went further than any of us ever expected, except we didn't expect them not to make the playoffs again until 1998.

After the disastrous Larry Robinson years, we saw a little bit of success with Andy Murray, getting the Kings to the playoffs in his first three seasons, then they got hit by the injury bug for the next couple of seasons and didn't have the depth to overcome them. The Kings failed to reach the playoffs for six consecutive years thereafter.

It wasn't until Terry Murray was brought in where we started to see a glimpse of stability as far as playing defense goes. Then after two early exits in the playoffs in 2010 and 2011, it became apparent that this team was underachieving in 2012 and they needed a new level of intensity and a coach behind the bench who can push them to play up to and beyond their potential.

The Kings finally found an identity when Darryl Sutter was hired. They were a team that was notorious for their aggressive forecheck, and their aggressive drive to the net. They looked like a determined team, and they went on a tear to capture their first Cup. They followed that amazing run up with another deep run in 2013 after taking a lengthy amount of time off thanks to the lockout shortened season. The Hawks ran roughshod through everyone in the league that season and into the playoffs. But we saw how resilient this team was in 2014 and how determined they were to win when they won three consecutive Game 7s all on the road and the numerous comebacks that they staged throughout their second Cup run.

Why am I going through a history lesson of the Kings over the past three decades? It's a history of what some of us have been through, the various emotions, the highs, the many lows, and the standard that we want to see this team establish given what they have accomplished over the past three seasons.

Historically, the Kings were always known as a team that was notorious for underachieving, or for being pretenders. They were a team that was in that perennial "black hole" that Dean Lombardi described. Seeing them achieve the ultimate high in hockey may have spoiled some people, but to me it instilled hope that this team is no longer a pretender. Expecting them to be a playoff team or a Cup contender every year while this core is intact is something that this team should accomplish.

Seeing them sleepwalk through the season and teeter in and out of playoff contention throughout this season is not something I expected from a team that was supposed to be one of the deepest squads in the NHL. This season the Kings are mired with a number of underachievers and players performing below their standards. I see teams with less talent playing with more heart and desperation, the same level of heart, desperation and determination that we saw from this team in 2012 and 2014.

I'm not going to expect this team to win the Cup, reach the Cup Final or the Conference Final every year, but at minimum, this team should be in the playoffs so long as guys like Kopitar, Carter, Doughty, Quick, etc. are all on this roster.
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Very well said. I've been along for the ride for what seems like an eternity too. Bad times and good. You didn't mention how the team just gave up on Murray near the end of his stint as coach.
This year has been a huge disappointment, as at times, they just haven't seemed to be totally into games. DL is going to have his hands full trying to correct mistakes and starting over with some new blood. I believe he can do it. Best GM this team has ever had, imo.
 
The same thing happened in 2012 with a certain poster saying we were going to miss. Whether we do or not, those kinds of posts are pretty selfish if you think about it. Its like this:

"We're not making the playoffs"
- If we make the playoffs, they're like "Cool, prove me wrong boys!"
- If we don't make the playoffs "I was right. Told you so."

It's self serving and pointless.
 
KingPuckChoo said:
but hey, on the bright side...that Sekera trade keeps getting better

money well spent

Rich-Businessman-Lighting-Cigar-With-100-Dollar-Bill-Shutterstock.jpg
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I fail to see how it's so bad. Sekera was our best defenseman before he got hurt. If we miss we keep the pick. McKeown was a solid prospect, but he was exactly that, a prospect. Who knows if he pans out or not? Even if he does he wouldn't be making an impact on the Kings for another 3-5 years.

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KingsKnight said:
The same thing happened in 2012 with a certain poster saying we were going to miss. Whether we do or not, those kinds of posts are pretty selfish if you think about it. Its like this:

"We're not making the playoffs"
- If we make the playoffs, they're like "Cool, prove me wrong boys!"
- If we don't make the playoffs "I was right. Told you so."

It's self serving and pointless.
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AKA "The Dancing Boy Special".
 
KingsFan7824 said:
When it comes down to just a few points, every missed point just gets magnified. A regulation loss to Buffalo, Arizona, Edmonton, Carolina, New Jersey. SO losses to Edmonton and Toronto. The 6 worst teams in the league, 14 possible points in those 7 games, and the Kings came away with 2. Throw in a home loss to Philly, and an OT loss in Philly, and that's 3 out of 18 possible points. That turnover against Florida that resulted in 0 points in that game, 3 out of 20 points. If the Kings had managed just 10 of those possible 20 points, it's a different discussion, as the Kings might have a top 10 record, and home ice in the 1st round.

Then there are those 2 home games against Calgary where the Kings had 3rd period leads only to lose in OT. If the Kings had won those games in regulation, assuming everything else is the same(probably wouldn't be, but whatever), Kings have 95 points, the Flames have 91.

It sucks that it's slowly turning into one of those what could've been seasons. You are what your record says you are, and so far, the Kings just haven't been good enough, for whatever reasons, to be a playoff team. It can still change.
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If, if, if...... every team in the league could point out individual games where "lost" points would have made a huge difference in current standings. These kinds of things tend to balance out EXCEPT the Kings may have lost focus on the importance of having a middling decent shoot out record (2 points out of a possible 10).

And unless something was physically wrong with your number one goaltender, why would you start your number 2 in game 80 when you're 1 point back of a spot. That's simply disrespectful and just gives your opponent extra incentive.
 
Nose of Sutter said:
I fail to see how it's so bad. Sekera was our best defenseman before he got hurt. If we miss we keep the pick. McKeown was a solid prospect, but he was exactly that, a prospect. Who knows if he pans out or not? Even if he does he wouldn't be making an impact on the Kings for another 3-5 years.

[mod]
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Personally I'd rather have McKeown than 16 games of Sekera. Sekera also just started fitting in the last 10 games he played so basically we got 10 games for McKeown. Thats a big loss in my book.
 
KingsKnight said:
The same thing happened in 2012 with a certain poster saying we were going to miss. Whether we do or not, those kinds of posts are pretty selfish if you think about it. Its like this:

"We're not making the playoffs"
- If we make the playoffs, they're like "Cool, prove me wrong boys!"
- If we don't make the playoffs "I was right. Told you so."

It's self serving and pointless.
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These kinds of posters, I would ignore if I had a policy of using the ignore button.

Not just self-serving and pointless, but useless as well. Waste of time reading that crap.
 
KingsHockey24 said:
Personally I'd rather have McKeown than 16 games of Sekera. Sekera also just started fitting in the last 10 games he played so basically we got 10 games for McKeown. Thats a big loss in my book.
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Who says that the Kings will only get 16 games out of Sekera?

Sekera could easily be a fixture in LA for the next 4-5 years. I think Dean will try to re-sign Sekera. He looks to me to be our 2nd best defenseman, and that's pretty good considering Muzzin, Martinez, and Regehr aren't chopped liver.
 
KingsHockey24 said:
Personally I'd rather have McKeown than 16 games of Sekera. Sekera also just started fitting in the last 10 games he played so basically we got 10 games for McKeown. Thats a big loss in my book.
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you'd rather have McKeown in 2018 (maybe) than Sekera?

I'm surprised no one is making a stink about the pick, that's more likely to be a player than McKeown.

Regardless, I don't see how DL could NOT make that move, and he gave up assets for the deadline's biggest name yet again...and people are still complaining. He can't play the games for them, DL has done a great job of managing the team within its constraints this year.
 
I'd rather have Sekera, who plays a similar game as Kimmo Timonen, a dman who can play big minutes in any situation. Sekera should be locked up for at least 5 years. He's still 28 and will be in his prime years.
 
Brad Doty said:
you'd rather have McKeown in 2018 (maybe) than Sekera?

I'm surprised no one is making a stink about the pick, that's more likely to be a player than McKeown.
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Especially considering how good our scouting has been. The guys that they have traded in these instances, Colten Teubert, Matt Frattin, etc haven't exactly panned out
 
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