Waived: Hickey (NYI) & Clune (NSH) Claimed from Waivers

[Bandit]

Not sure I can abide with losing a #4 overall pick without ever even putting him in a single NHL game. Seems like a total waste, regardless of what void we're trying to fill with Mitchell being out.

 

[CNS]

****ing dumb move by Lombardi. I don't understand at all why Bodnarchuk is up and Hickey wasn't. Very poor asset management after drafting him 4th overall. Whatever. At least we still have Kevin Gravel.

 

[damacles1156]

Not sure I can abide with losing a #4 overall pick without ever even putting him in a single NHL game. Seems like a total waste, regardless of what void we're trying to fill with Mitchell being out.

The worst part is, if Muzzin doesn't make the team....He has to clear waivers as well. Bodnarchuck too

 

[Mr Forever]

I expect the Oilers will claim him.

I'm surprised we didn't, to be honest. He would be worth the risk.

 

[kingsfan]

Well, there's a couple extra roster spots. Glad to see Hickey go somewhere where he will get a shot.

Time to go grab a depth guy.

Glad he went outside the conference and not to an Edmonton or something. Not that he'll likely bite us in the ass or anything, but hate to give a rival any free assets.

Free pass or compensation?

Free pass. I believe, if they try to waive him, we get to have a chance at reclaiming him, assuming it's this season, as do anyone else who put in a claim. Also, anyone else who put in a claim can get him if NYI sends him down. Considering we only know that three teams (CLB, EDM and MONT) passed on him, that leaves about 25 other teams who may have put in a claim on Hickey but didn't get him due to the Islanders claim.

 

[Telos]

Not sure I can abide with losing a #4 overall pick without ever even putting him in a single NHL game. Seems like a total waste, regardless of what void we're trying to fill with Mitchell being out.

It is much easier to abide after winning a Stanley Cup

Hickey just was a calamity of misfortune. When we drafted him, we had hoped he would fill a 3-4 spot behind Johnson, but then he got injured, needed surgery, and then we drafted Doughty. By the time he was ready to go there was Johnson and Doughty ahead of him, and then was competing against Voynov and Martinez and wasn't able to beat them out for the 5-6 slot.

At the time of the draft, it was a decent pick, the rationale and reasoning was there, but due to injuries, excellent drafting of other picks, and him not living up to his billing, it just wasn't meant to be for him in LA.

Some draft picks fail, the key is that our scouting team hit enough on their lower picks to make up for it. I wouldn't be too hard on them, we've made out well these past few years.

 

[kingsfan]

What does the NYI D look like? I assume Visnovsky is still pushing to play in Europe, so without him, who is there? Hamonic, Streit, MacDonald and who else?

Off-season was so long ago I don't even remember who they signed, if anyone.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

****ing dumb move by Lombardi. I don't understand at all why Bodnarchuk is up and Hickey wasn't. Very poor asset management after drafting him 4th overall. Whatever. At least we still have Kevin Gravel.

I really hope someone asks DL about this in the next interview. Muzzin AND Bodnarchuk over Hickey suggests something else entirely. Maybe it was a Bryzgalov situation where DL wanted to give him an opportunity elsewhere? Shrug. Something doesn't seem right.

And like I posted on the trade board...now instead of hearing how much a bust Hickey is, we're going to hear how stupid we are for giving up a 3-4 defenseman for nothing

 

[Telos]

****ing dumb move by Lombardi. I don't understand at all why Bodnarchuk is up and Hickey wasn't. Very poor asset management after drafting him 4th overall. Whatever. At least we still have Kevin Gravel.

Because we don't need a puck moving defenseman that doesn't move pucks. You're only upset over his billing as a 4th overall, but management can't look at that, once the draft is over, they are just any other prospect on the depth chart. Willie Mitchell is injured. They need a big body to get their stick on the puck, not a smallish skater to bring the puck up the ice. It is about what the Kings need, not about saving face on a failed pick.

Dean knows what he is doing, and I guarantee you that he assessed Hickey's value around the league prior to this point. It is not like he woke up one morning and realized he needed to organize his depth chart. They know all about their own prospects. I am inclined to trust our staff's judgement on this call.

 

[damacles1156]

I really hope someone asks DL about this in the next interview. Muzzin AND Bodnarchuk over Hickey suggests something else entirely. Maybe it was a Bryzgalov situation where DL wanted to give him an opportunity elsewhere? Shrug. Something doesn't seem right.

And like I posted on the trade board...now instead of hearing how much a bust Hickey is, we're going to hear how stupid we are for giving up a 3-4 defenseman for nothing

No idea, it's possible the Kings are just not very high on Hickey.

They love Muzzin's size.

 

[CTKingsFan]

The worst part is, if Muzzin doesn't make the team....He has to clear waivers as well. Bodnarchuck too

Since he's management's wonder boy he'll probably make the team....

 

[Renbarg]

What does the NYI D look like? I assumeVisnovsky is still pushing to play in Europe, so without him, who is there? Hamonic, Streit, MacDonald and who else?

Off-season was so long ago I don't even remember who they signed, if anyone.

Hamonic, Streit, MacDonald, Martinek, Carkner. Those 5 are serviceable when healthy (although not to be confused among the best in the league). The rest are scrubs such as Landry, Wishart, and Finley.

Vis may or may not play here. Hickey has a real shot at the number 6 spot (his to lose imo). If Vis comes, he is looking at the number 7 spot and waiting to fill in when Martinek inevitably gets injured.

 

[damacles1156]

Because we don't need a puck moving defenseman that doesn't move pucks. You're only upset over his billing as a 4th overall, but management can't look at that, once the draft is over, they are just any other prospect on the depth chart. Willie Mitchell is injured. They need a big body to get their stick on the puck, not a smallish skater to bring the puck up the ice. It is about what the Kings need, not about saving face on a failed pick.

Dean knows what he is doing, and I guarantee you that he assessed Hickey's value around the league prior to this point. It is not like he woke up one morning and realized he needed to organize his depth chart.

Not upset Hickey is gone, kid will get his shot.

But I wish people would watch Hickey play before throwing out critiques of him.

Hickey is not small, He is 6ft about 190 to 195 lbs. He no longer plays the puck mover game(hasn't for two years now)....

He plays like Scuds does , Right place , Right time, Correct hockey play.

Hickey is a completely different player, and was Manchester's best defender.

I am stoked to see him get a shot finally, Dean made a mistake with this one(my opinion).

But you can't keep them all right ?

 

[Butch 19]

It is much easier to abide after winning a Stanley Cup

^^^^ that totally takes any sting out of this situation.

Bottom line, Hickey was a terrible choice at #4. Several pundits had him rated late 1st early 2nd round. How many "surprise picks" made in the top 5 or 10 turn out great?

There were several (many) impact players drafted after him that DL overlooked. (and who cares if Boston was looking at him at #8? let him slip to 8!))

I'm just glad this is over.


happy place, happy place

 

[damacles1156]

Since he's management's wonder boy he'll probably make the team....

LOL right, I look forward to seeing the board blow a gasket after Muzzin continues to cough the puck up everywhere. The it ends up in the back of the net.

 

[Butch 19]

Not upset Hickey is gone, kid will get his shot.

Hickey is a completely different player, and was Manchester's best defender.

I am stoked to see him get a shot finally, Dean made a mistake with this one(my opinion).

hey - I thought that was LaBarbera a few years ago...

And come on, Hickey had his shot, right here. He couldn't make the team.

 

[kingsfan]

Hamonic, Streit, MacDonald, Martinek, Carkner. Those 5 are serviceable when healthy (although not to be confused among the best in the league). The rest are scrubs such as Landry, Wishart, and Finley.

Vis may or may not play here. Hickey has a real shot at the number 6 spot (his to lose imo). If Vis comes, he is looking at the number 7 spot and waiting to fill in when Martinek inevitably gets injured.

Awesome, I'm glad he's finally going to (most likely) get a shot here. Kid deserves it. He'd be a regular (IMO) if not for our unreal depth.

Because we don't need a puck moving defenseman that doesn't move pucks. You're only upset over his billing as a 4th overall, but management can't look at that, once the draft is over, they are just any other prospect on the depth chart. Willie Mitchell is injured. They need a big body to get their stick on the puck, not a smallish skater to bring the puck up the ice. It is about what the Kings need, not about saving face on a failed pick.

Dean knows what he is doing, and I guarantee you that he assessed Hickey's value around the league prior to this point. It is not like he woke up one morning and realized he needed to organize his depth chart. They know all about their own prospects. I am inclined to trust our staff's judgement on this call.

That'd be the same staff that made him a 4th overall pick?

I'm a DL guy for sure, but I'm not going to turn a blind eye to this and just assume he did everything right. In this particular issue he turned a 4th overall pick into a minor leaguer who left via waivers. That is almost the worst you can do in terms of managing this particular asset.

 

[DryIslandBartender]

Interested to see how Hickey performs in NY. If he's a complete bust there, all this hand wringing over how we let him go for nothing is moot.

 

[Bandit]

It is much easier to abide after winning a Stanley Cup

Hickey just was a calamity of misfortune. When we drafted him, we had hoped he would fill a 3-4 spot behind Johnson, but then he got injured, needed surgery, and then we drafted Doughty. By the time he was ready to go there was Johnson and Doughty ahead of him, and then was competing against Voynov and Martinez and wasn't able to beat them out for the 5-6 slot.

At the time of the draft, it was a decent pick, the rationale and reasoning was there, but due to injuries, excellent drafting of other picks, and him not living up to his billing, it just wasn't meant to be for him in LA.

Some draft picks fail, the key is that our scouting team hit enough on their lower picks to make up for it. I wouldn't be too hard on them, we've made out well these past few years.

Yeah, I know all the circumstances, but still I can't see how Muzzin is a better choice when by all accounts Hickey has been the best defenseman in Manchester this season. Hickey might not have even been claimed if he started the year with the Kings (assuming the Visnovsky situation is resolved in the next few days), so why not give him a shot to start the season? It's not like we're bursting with awesome defenders in the minors. When Mitchell and Scuderi are gone, who do we have that could even attempt to replace them? There's Forbort, and ... ?

Just seems like a bad choice to let him go without a single game in the NHL, but you're right, the cup does take away the sting.

 

[LAKings88]

The problem I had with Hickey is that I thought LA should be looking at Voracek, Gagner, or Couture. Brandon Sutter was also available.

Hcikey was a bust as Kings prospect. We will see if he will be an NHL bust.

Best wishes to him.

 

[damacles1156]

Interested to see how Hickey performs in NY. If he's a complete bust there, all this hand wringing over how we let him go for nothing is moot.

I don't think anyone is upset he was let go for nothing.

Just puzzled how he outplayed some guys that are in Camp.

And didn't get a call up.

 

[no name]

Not sure I can abide with losing a #4 overall pick without ever even putting him in a single NHL game. Seems like a total waste, regardless of what void we're trying to fill with Mitchell being out.

I blame DL and Hickey equally. DL reached by an estimated 15 picks and Hickey never stepped up. He was terrible in manchester for the majority of his career. Injuries and failure to recover from injuries in a suitable amount of time hurt Hickey, but again some of that could come from Hickey's desire to push himself.

 

[BigBrown]

I remember Lombardi boasting about the offers he got for Hickey after he had that great WJC tournament (playing besides Luke Schenn if I recall correctly). It's a shame that it has come to this, but like Telos I have no doubt they assessed the situation properly and did what they had to do. His trade value is next to nothing, otherwise they would have simply traded him instead of assigning him to Manchester and having him go through waivers. They were hoping he'd pass through, instead he got picked up. It happens. It's just too bad he was a 4th overall pick and was seemingly doing quite well in Manchester.

 

[Telos]

Not upset Hickey is gone, kid will get his shot.

But I wish people would watch Hickey play before throwing out critiques of him.

Hickey is not small, He is 6ft about 190 to 195 lbs. He no longer plays the puck mover game(hasn't for two years now)....

He plays like Scuds does , Right place , Right time, Correct hockey play.

Hickey is a completely different player, and was Manchester's best defender.

I am stoked to see him get a shot finally, Dean made a mistake with this one(my opinion).

But you can't keep them all right ?

That is a role he was forced to play because he couldn't do anything else. 6 foot is small when you are comparing him to 6-3 Mitchell and Greene, and even 6-1 Scuderi. He isn't a shutdown defenseman. He fills a completely different role than what this team needs. All our offensive defensemen are youngsters and he was passed over by the lot of them. There was no where for him to go and he no longer filled the role we needed to fill.

Awesome, I'm glad he's finally going to (most likely) get a shot here. Kid deserves it. He'd be a regular (IMO) if not for our unreal depth.

That'd be the same staff that made him a 4th overall pick?

I'm a DL guy for sure, but I'm not going to turn a blind eye to this and just assume he did everything right. In this particular issue he turned a 4th overall pick into a minor leaguer who left via waivers. That is almost the worst you can do in terms of managing this particular asset.

I am not saying to turn a blind eye to it, or that Dean did everything right. I am just saying that there was good reasoning at the time of the pick, and that if you are expecting your scouting staff to be perfect, then you're in for disappointment.

Failed picks happen, and our scouting staff has done a very good job for us these past few years. They made up for their mistakes by hitting on more prospects in the later rounds. Doesn't make the pick O.K. but does the job of getting us to the Cup. Hickey had his chance and failed. The worst thing they could do is force Hickey in the NHL lineup to defend the cup in a shutdown role. Our staff says he won't fit the bill and I am inclined to agree with them over your assessment.

Dean tried to move him and couldn't. There is nothing he can do at this point. Hickey had to go. There was no other choice. The pick was a mistake, but our staff did their job, and Hickey didn't live up to his billing and lost out on his. They are not going to treat him special or risk wins in a mini-season to squeeze out a mid to late pick. We are not desperate for picks. We are in a win now mode.

Trust our staff to do that job and disregard their egos and draft pick titles.

 

[damacles1156]

That is a role he was forced to play because he couldn't do anything else. 6 foot is small when you are comparing him to 6-3 Mitchell and Greene, and even 6-1 Scuderi. He isn't a shutdown defenseman. He fills a completely different role than what this team needs. All our offensive defensemen are youngsters and he was passed over by the lot of them. There was no where for him to go and he no longer filled the role we needed to fill.



I am not saying to turn a blind eye to it, or that Dean did everything right. I am just saying that there was good reasoning at the time of the pick, and that if you are expecting your scouting staff to be perfect, then you're in for disappointment.

Failed picks happen, and our scouting staff has done a very good job for us these past few years. They made up for there mistakes by hitting on more prospects in the later rounds. Doesn't make the pick O.K. but does the job of getting us to the Cup. Hickey had his chance and failed. The worst thing they could do is force Hickey in the NHL lineup to defend the cup in a shutdown role. Our staff says he won't fit the bill and I am inclined to agree with them over your assessment.

Dean tried to move him and couldn't. There is nothing he can do at this point. Hickey had to go. There was no other choice. The pick was a mistake, but our staff did their job, and Hickey didn't live up to his billing and lost out on his. They are not going to treat him special or risk wins in a mini-season to squeeze out a mid to late pick. We are not desperate for picks. We are in a win now mode.

Trust our staff to do that job and disregard their egos and draft pick titles.

I am happy for Hickey, and yes I get it Hickey failed here. He sucks.

Glad a team see's some value in the kid.