Post-Game Talk: Kings drop series to Oilers

[WHOneedsSOX]

They most likely can't afford his new deal (RFA)

Oh shit, extra $8M for Sutter and Parise. Still seems like you'd try to get rid of someone else to free up cap. Someone like Dumba or Zuccarello.

 

[KOPITARRULEZ11]

Why would Minnesota give him up though?

No cap hes a goner unless they move some pieces

 

[YAYSAY]

Durzi getting a lot of hate which sucks considering he was way out of his depth playing top minutes against two of the best players in the world as a rookie. But he always looked very emotionally engaged, with Doughty back and he can slot back into his rightful role I think he's gonna be great

 

[Sleeping Dog]

Forsberg or Fiala should be priority 1a or b with Chycrun

Either of the first two, but a hard pass on Chycrun. Will be expensive and just can’t stay healthy,

 

[fsanford]

Jay Woodcroft some nice comments about Browny

You have to go to like the -13:00 mark, but some nice comments

 

[McDrailers]

Durzi getting a lot of hate which sucks considering he was way out of his depth playing top minutes against two of the best players in the world as a rookie. But he always looked very emotionally engaged, with Doughty back and he can slot back into his rightful role I think he's gonna be great

Coming in peace to say that I thought Durzi was fantastic.

In fact the only piece of your team I thought was bad was AA, which fits because he was putrid for the Oilers as well

 

[Telos]

Durzi getting a lot of hate which sucks considering he was way out of his depth playing top minutes against two of the best players in the world as a rookie. But he always looked very emotionally engaged, with Doughty back and he can slot back into his rightful role I think he's gonna be great

I am in the middle on Durzi and it is all going to boil down to Clarke to be honest. Doughty is still money and isn't going anywhere and Clarke looks very good and very intriguing. If Clarke can put it together and look like the second coming for backline offense, I honestly would be fine with using Durzi as a trade chip because the last thing I want is Durzi getting limited minutes on the third pairing, not really utilizing his offensive skillset, and then letting in a backbreaking bad goal every other game.

 

[YAYSAY]

I am in the middle on Durzi and it is all going to boil down to Clarke to be honest. Doughty is still money and isn't going anywhere and Clarke looks very good and very intriguing. If Clarke can put it together and look like the second coming for backline offense, I honestly would be fine with using Durzi as a trade chip because the last thing I want is Durzi getting limited minutes on the third pairing, not really utilizing his offensive skillset, and then letting in a backbreaking bad goal every other game.

Good point, the d core will be very interesting how it all ends up.

 

[Moses Doughty]

Oh shit, extra $8M for Sutter and Parise. Still seems like you'd try to get rid of someone else to free up cap. Someone like Dumba or Zuccarello.

Even worse, it's 12.7 next year and 14.7 the two after that for those two. Problem is that they need a depth forward or two and a 1a/b goalie with 3.5 mil in cap already. Getting rid of just one of those 2 doesn't create enough room for Fiala+the current needs, and if you trade Dumba you need a top 4 dman as well

 

[WHOneedsSOX]

Even worse, it's 12.7 next year and 14.7 the two after that for those two. Problem is that they need a depth forward or two and a 1a/b goalie with 3.5 mil in cap already. Getting rid of just one of those 2 doesn't create enough room for Fiala+the current needs, and if you trade Dumba you need a top 4 dman as well

Yikes. What a situation to be in.

 

[Moses Doughty]

Either of the first two, but a hard pass on Chycrun. Will be expensive and just can’t stay healthy,

Pretty healthy for the last 3 seasons before the deadline injury, although I agree on being too expensive at the current price based on the speculation

Yikes. What a situation to be in.

Yup, they might have had a true 1 year window for a bit cause of those deals

 

[Peter James Bond III]

Sucks when you have 2017 #7 OA Andersson, 2017 #11 OA Vilardi, 2019 #5 OA Turcotte and 2020 #2 OA Byfield
not playing on the team. Maybe when Turcotte came up and played some with the Kings and was given a longer stint, he excels and stays up and does not get the 2 concussions, that he got in the AHL.

 

[DryIslandBartender]

Durzi hate is dumb he had if a hell of a series. He will be great for many years and he'll learn alot from his game 7 mistake

Reminds me of a Voynov type but Slava had a higher hockey IQ. No way Voynov sits there watching McJesus skate by on a wrap around and score.

 

[KingsofLA]

May be interesting to see where he fits next year. Doughty, Mikey, Roy, Walker, Spencer (who I think will be better as he gets more time to adjust to NHL physicality), Clarke maybe, and Tobi are all in the conversation. I assume one of Walker/Roy goes, and the defense needs some big bodied guys who can play defensively, and maybe of those is Tobi

Totally agree on the too many bodies. Hopefully we don’t see Edler and Maata next season and I’m not too confident with our developmental team with Clarke and get the Byfield treatment (no playing time with the big club and could not play in the AHL). I miss the Lombardi days when the prospect had to earn their spots or forced the team to make trades. Feels like now the kids are getting opportunities with hope they can stick with the big club

 

[apocalypse]

It’s honestly amazing the team not only made the playoffs this year but took the OIL to 7 games given the amount of injuries (in terms of games missed) this team had this season.

I mean at one point we literally had the entire AHL team up at the same time. Yet we somehow made the playoffs and took them to 7 games without Doughty.

Be careful of excuses, you might find one you like.

 

[DryIslandBartender]

The best time to get rid of this man was ages ago.

The next best time is right now.

Red Wings playing the Cryotes in the losers tournament?

 

[Moses Doughty]

Totally agree on the too many bodies. Hopefully we don’t see Edler and Maata next season and I’m not too confident with our developmental team with Clarke and get the Byfield treatment (no playing time with the big club and could not play in the AHL). I miss the Lombardi days when the prospect had to earn their spots or forced the team to make trades. Feels like now the kids are getting opportunities with hope they can stick with the big club

Both are FAs and don't really fit what's needed so I'd be a little surprised, although Edler making a mil as a 7 wouldn't shock me. Need more of a speed/snarl combo on LHD although the bodies issue is really a RHD issue.

I'm ok with this, I had my issues with Deano's system where guys got stuck due to the vet insistence. The one thing with right now that annoys me is that, if we're going to give guys a chance to succeed as kids, put them in better situations. Low minutes, low-end teammates, minimal if any PP time isn't useful and I think that's been harming the kids in LA.

 

[KINGS17]

Do you really think Quick will retire? His play hasn't dropped nearly as much as Brown. And he was amazing in this Game 7 and mostly solid in this series. Smith is 40 and still out there flopping like he's 30.

It's possible Quick could sign a one-year deal for something like $3 million.

 

[shuchukfan]

I don't know his contract status, but I'd be fine parting ways with Lemieux if he keeps playing the same way after his injury. Dude is neutered when he can't play on the edge. He should have been taking runs and doing all the dirty things the Oilers were doing to the Kings. Unfortunately, Tmac knew Edmonton's PP was dangerous, so he had to be reigned in. I don't know what happened to him to make his play fall off so bad after he was out for awhile.

 

[ZJames]

Now it's time for an anxious offseason wondering if any of the young guys will be able to step it up next season. The end of the season had me concerned about Kopitar's play. He didn't seem like himself that last half of the season.

And why in the heck can't the Kings figure out how to develop more forwards? Since Brown and Kopitar, the only forwards they developed were Toffoli and Kempe. And the jury is still out on whether or not Kempe can be a consistent 30-goal scorer.

At the end of the day, the Kings went further than anyone thought they would. The young D-men played great considering their situation. Looking forward to our D lineup next year with a healthy Doughty.

 

[SettlementRichie10]

A lot of conflicting feelings to end the year. In a way I would’ve preferred they just get blown out in four or five games. The Oilers top end talent was light years ahead of the Kings top end talent, and that was the difference. Mcdavid had 14 f***ing points in this series. Insane.

TMac is obviously a loser but I don’t know if Trotz is the answer, either. We need a young coach who won’t be afraid to let the kids sink or swim, or an older Terry Murray type to instill better fundamentals than TMac’s 1-3-1 bullshit. No matter how you slice it, we’re probably 1-2 coaches away from seriously competing again.

One of the top end prospects needs to take a major step forward next season, or I don’t see this team taking another step forward. I’m not convinced that’s Byfield. Maybe it’s Clarke. Maybe Kaliyev has a huge breakout year. Maybe not. We all thought the development of Vilardi, Byfield, and Turcotte were critical to this franchise. Now none of the above are looking like saviors. Even with Byfield, we’re in uncharted territory in terms of recent Kings history. Kopitar stepped right in and made an impact. Doughty stepped right in and made an impact. Either our coaching/management is truly inept at development, or Byfield simply isn’t on that level. But we desperately need him to be.

Danault may one day go down as Blake’s greatest move as a manager. Hopefully he gets the C once Quick and Kopitar are gone.

And yikes Kopitar. The last postseason he was this invisible was 2013. Not sure what any of us should expect from him at this point. I think we can all agree he took a measurable step back this year. Father Time is undefeated.

Dustin Brown is a player I constantly criticized during his prime. But his importance to this franchise cannot be overstated. First Los Angeles King to ever touch the Stanley Cup. He is immortal to this franchise, in ways more than Kopitar, Doughty, and Quick. He came up during some truly lost years, the years of Avery, Nordstrom. The years of Pillows himself, Jason Labarbera. Brown has seen it all, weathered it all, and eventually captained the team to a Cup. God bless you, Brown. Not sure what his plans are for retirement, but hopefully the franchise has something earmarked for him. He deserves to be taken care of forever.

Not sure what to expect going into next year. So many question marks. What happens with Peterson? Does Byfield turn it around or continue sliding into bust territory? Does Danault/Moore/Arvidsson regress? Are we surprised by the emergence of Clarke or someone else not even on our radar? Does TMac change from spearmint gum to Bubbalicious?

God only knows. God bless you all. See you in October.

 

[BigBrown]

Remarkable achievement by the team to get to this spot in the first place. It was a very fun ride, I missed playoff hockey. Congrats on a great career Brownie.

 

[Sentinel]

Congrats to LA. They clearly punched above their weight and went farther than anyone expected.

No shame in this loss. McD played like a man posessed.

 

[Statto]

Sucks when you have 2017 #7 OA Andersson, 2017 #11 OA Vilardi, 2019 #5 OA Turcotte and 2020 #2 OA Byfield
not playing on the team. Maybe when Turcotte came up and played some with the Kings and was given a longer stint, he excels and stays up and does not get the 2 concussions, that he got in the AHL.

Sliding doors… because maybe if he plays one more game and gets a career ending injury. Ifs, buts and maybe’s can win any argument.

It is what it is and the focus now has to be on moving forward. They definitely need to look at how they are developing the offensive prospects but they need to make sure they get it right. I like TMac and he has done some good stuff here, because they mostly seem to want to play for him and 5 on 5 they are excellent. However the special teams were a disaster and the over reliance on plan A is a huge problem. I think I’m leaning towards a coaching change.

AA should never have played, nothing has changed my view on that. Maatta has earned an extension in terms of his play but we need his money elsewhere. Roy, Iafallo and Walker will be (possible) trade chips.

They need a proper plan for Byfield because the talent is clearly there. I want to see him with 2 string wingers every game and stick with it. He needs Kempe and someone like Arvidsson to give him the support he needs to develop properly. Obviously he has strength work to d, as do a number of the kids.

This is Blake’s most important off season to date.

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

Sucks when you have 2017 #7 OA Andersson, 2017 #11 OA Vilardi, 2019 #5 OA Turcotte and 2020 #2 OA Byfield
not playing on the team. Maybe when Turcotte came up and played some with the Kings and was given a longer stint, he excels and stays up and does not get the 2 concussions, that he got in the AHL.

Shit, they should just go out and get 2016 #5 OA, 2017 #6OA 2018 #9OA, solve all the problems....right?