Speculation: LA Kings News, Rumors, Roster Thread 2022-23 Season

[SettlementRichie10]

Vilardi is obviously having one hell of a coming out party. We needed one of Vilardi/Turcotte/Byfield to hit big, and it’s looking like Vilardi was the one to do it.

Most of the issues on this team fall on management. Blake has hoarded picks and prospects for years now, which has resulted in a lot of logjams and not a lot of roster stability. Players like Iafallo and Walker remind me of Quincey and Frolov. Good players. Important bridge players. But ultimately didn’t fit into the long term trajectory of the team.

Blake is good at a lot of things, but he’s not decisive with his NHL roster, and that concerns me. He doesn’t seem to have any identity or culture in mind for this team. He sits on prospects and continues to roll in new veterans. Meanwhile, we have six or seven of the exact same mid-size puck moving defensemen, and can’t seem to leverage that into areas of actual need.

A few of us have been pretty vocal about this for years now, and it bears repeating. Most GMs can sit on high picks and draft good players. Some GMs can make shrewd trades and bring their team out of a rebuild. Few GMs can transition from playoff contention to Cup contention by fine tuning their roster and making tough decisions.

Blake has demonstrated he’s a part of the first two groups. Is he a part of the third? I guess time will tell.

TMac is TMac and won’t be head coach when this team starts to actually contend. Not much there worth analyzing.

 

[Ben Grimm]

What Should Los Angeles Do With the Logjam of Talent in the AHL?

The Los Angeles Kings drafted a lot of promising prospects who are beginning to outgrow the AHL. Could they be involved in a trade for Jakob Chychrun?

thehockeynews.com

 

[kilowatt]

Vilardi is obviously having one hell of a coming out party. We needed one of Vilardi/Turcotte/Byfield to hit big, and it’s looking like Vilardi was the one to do it.

Most of the issues on this team fall on management. Blake has hoarded picks and prospects for years now, which has resulted in a lot of logjams and not a lot of roster stability. Players like Iafallo and Walker remind me of Quincey and Frolov. Good players. Important bridge players. But ultimately didn’t fit into the long term trajectory of the team.

Blake is good at a lot of things, but he’s not decisive with his NHL roster, and that concerns me. He doesn’t seem to have any identity or culture in mind for this team. He sits on prospects and continues to roll in new veterans. Meanwhile, we have six or seven of the exact same mid-size puck moving defensemen, and can’t seem to leverage that into areas of actual need.

A few of us have been pretty vocal about this for years now, and it bears repeating. Most GMs can sit on high picks and draft good players. Some GMs can make shrewd trades and bring their team out of a rebuild. Few GMs can transition from playoff contention to Cup contention by fine tuning their roster and making tough decisions.

Blake has demonstrated he’s a part of the first two groups. Is he a part of the third? I guess time will tell.

TMac is TMac and won’t be head coach when this team starts to actually contend. Not much there worth analyzing.

What’s exciting though is that Vilardi is two years older than Turcotte and Kaliyev and three years older than Byfield. If we see breakouts in the next few seasons from those three as well, we’re going to have a hell of a team.

Turcotte - Byfield - Vilardi
Fagemo - Kupari - Kaliyev

 

[Chazz Reinhold]

What’s exciting though is that Vilardi is two years older than Turcotte and Kaliyev and three years older than Byfield. If we see breakouts in the next few seasons from those three as well, we’re going to have a hell of a team.

Turcotte - Byfield - Vilardi
Fagemo - Kupari - Kaliyev

Nope. Since Turcotte and Byfield haven't broken out yet it's impossible for them to do so now.

 

[Piston]

I am really impressed with Kupari. The guy is huge and can skate. I'd like to see TM give him an opportunity.

 

[kinghock]

I am really impressed with Kupari. The guy is huge and can skate. I'd like to see TM give him an opportunity.

Kupari was the best defensive forward on the Kings during last game.

Also, he has untapped offensive potentials.

He looked so good offensively in AHL.

I believe his skills are transferable to NHL.

 

[No Name The Nameless]

I like today's lines. Plus I think Byfield needs to be surrounded by more talent.

Every evaluation of team moves seem to revolve around how it will affect Byfield. Why is this?

 

[Waterbuf]

Has there been any official statement that Clarke is staying up past 9 games? Or has he already

 

[BringTheReign]

What’s exciting though is that Vilardi is two years older than Turcotte and Kaliyev and three years older than Byfield. If we see breakouts in the next few seasons from those three as well, we’re going to have a hell of a team.

Turcotte - Byfield - Vilardi
Fagemo - Kupari - Kaliyev

I think there's starting to be legitimate backing to the idea that the Kings just slow cook their forwards. It also makes sense why management seems to excel at identifying players like Moore, Iafallo, and Lizotte. It is still frustrating as hell as ideally we'd have players hit sooner, but the obvious take is that it's better for them to take their time than to miss completely.

 

[kilowatt]

Has there been any official statement that Clarke is staying up past 9 games? Or has he already

He's at 8 games and likely plays tonight. There'll be a decision to make in the coming days.

 

[YAYSAY]

Kupari was the best defensive forward on the Kings during last game.

Also, he has untapped offensive potentials.

He looked so good offensively in AHL.

I believe his skills are transferable to NHL.

His defensive prowess is really underrated. I remember last season during the Kings first big roadtrip he was 3rd line center and was constantly matched up against other teams 1st lines, and I can't recall correctly but I don't think his line gave up a single goal the whole trip, or at least gave up the fewest. I also think there's a reason why he eventually played the last few games in the playoffs last season over Byfield.

 

[Telos]

Vilardi is obviously having one hell of a coming out party. We needed one of Vilardi/Turcotte/Byfield to hit big, and it’s looking like Vilardi was the one to do it.

Most of the issues on this team fall on management. Blake has hoarded picks and prospects for years now, which has resulted in a lot of logjams and not a lot of roster stability. Players like Iafallo and Walker remind me of Quincey and Frolov. Good players. Important bridge players. But ultimately didn’t fit into the long term trajectory of the team.

Blake is good at a lot of things, but he’s not decisive with his NHL roster, and that concerns me. He doesn’t seem to have any identity or culture in mind for this team. He sits on prospects and continues to roll in new veterans. Meanwhile, we have six or seven of the exact same mid-size puck moving defensemen, and can’t seem to leverage that into areas of actual need.

A few of us have been pretty vocal about this for years now, and it bears repeating. Most GMs can sit on high picks and draft good players. Some GMs can make shrewd trades and bring their team out of a rebuild. Few GMs can transition from playoff contention to Cup contention by fine tuning their roster and making tough decisions.

Blake has demonstrated he’s a part of the first two groups. Is he a part of the third? I guess time will tell.

TMac is TMac and won’t be head coach when this team starts to actually contend. Not much there worth analyzing.

Maybe, I get what you're saying, but if Blake were more decisive in that regard Vilardi wouldn't be on the team anymore.

 

[SettlementRichie10]

Every evaluation of team moves seem to revolve around how it will affect Byfield. Why is this?

Because he’s a 2nd overall pick who hasn’t shown much development, so people are desperate to get him more production.

Meanwhile, 19 year old Kopitar was 1v1ing prime Chris Pronger with shit for linemates.

In all seriousness, though, Byfield’s deployment has been botched hard by management thus far. It’s not entirely his fault.

Maybe, I get what you're saying, but if Blake were more decisive in that regard Vilardi wouldn't be on the team anymore.

We can’t wait around for 5+ years on every prospect. What’s happening with Vilardi is extraordinary, but people need to understand how rare it is for a D+5 to breakout this suddenly and explosively. Vilardi is the exception, not the rule.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Because he’s a 2nd overall pick who hasn’t shown much development, so people are desperate to get him more production.

Meanwhile, 19 year old Kopitar was 1v1ing prime Chris Pronger with shit for linemates.

In all seriousness, though, Byfield’s deployment has been botched hard by management thus far. It’s not entirely his fault.



We can’t wait around for 5+ years on every prospect. What’s happening with Vilardi is extraordinary, but people need to understand how rare it is for a D+5 to breakout this suddenly and explosively. Vilardi is the exception, not the rule.

Re: Byfield, maybe it's because we've seen how much better he--and many of the kids--is when given solid linemates. It's good for their confidence and growing abilities. And that's not exclusive to Byfield btw, go ahead and look who the other lottery picks around the league are playing with.

Re: Vilardi there were very clear extenuating circumstances that led to many around here suggesting a prolonged breakout path just like this one. And it's all the same people that are saying that also about Turcotte and Byfield. Maybe it's time to listen and be open to the idea that "D+(year)" doesn't mean much on its own.

But I agree with you about Blake.

 

[SettlementRichie10]

Re: Byfield, maybe it's because we've seen how much better he--and many of the kids--is when given solid linemates. It's good for their confidence and growing abilities. And that's not exclusive to Byfield btw, go ahead and look who the other lottery picks around the league are playing with.

Re: Vilardi there were very clear extenuating circumstances that led to many around here suggesting a prolonged breakout path just like this one. And it's all the same people that are saying that also about Turcotte and Byfield. Maybe it's time to listen and be open to the idea that "D+(year)" doesn't mean much on its own.

But I agree with you about Blake.

D+ means a ton. Of course it does. You can’t just throw out decades of historical precedent with hockey prospects because one of our own bucks the trend.

Edit: To be clear, I obviously agree patience with prospects is good. I haven’t advocated for trading Byfield or even Turcotte. They’re worth holding on to as long as possible.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

D+ means a ton. Of course it does. You can’t just throw out decades of historical precedent with hockey prospects because one of our own bucks the trend.

Edit: To be clear, I obviously agree patience with prospects is good. I haven’t advocated for trading Byfield or even Turcotte. They’re worth holding on to as long as possible.

I just don't think you can throw out factors like a guy missing an entire year, that's all. I think holding to it as a hard and fast rule with no context makes as much sense as expecting guys to buck the trend.

 

[bmr]

I am really impressed with Kupari. The guy is huge and can skate. I'd like to see TM give him an opportunity.

I really think a Fiala/Byfield/Kupari line could work well. You need a good mix of players for a successful line. Kupari doesn’t even need to be a scoring machine for that line to work. Skate hard, dig for pucks and the opportunities will come.

I feel like the Kings have the flexibility to do a lot more mix and match if they need to. Vilardi will thrive with anyone, so I expect to continue to see him with Kopitar.

 

[Fishhead]

Because he’s a 2nd overall pick who hasn’t shown much development, so people are desperate to get him more production.

Meanwhile, 19 year old Kopitar was 1v1ing prime Chris Pronger with shit for linemates.

In all seriousness, though, Byfield’s deployment has been botched hard by management thus far. It’s not entirely his fault.



We can’t wait around for 5+ years on every prospect. What’s happening with Vilardi is extraordinary, but people need to understand how rare it is for a D+5 to breakout this suddenly and explosively. Vilardi is the exception, not the rule.

There is also the fact that Kopitar was light years ahead of Byfield when he was drafted. He was a complete player already and filled-out physically. It's not just Byfield either, there wasn't a single player in the 2020 draft that was even close to what Anze was when he was drafted. Anze didn't become an All-Star because the Kings put him in some position in the lineup, he did it because he's a fricken beast.

You are also ignoring the fact that Vilardi had a serious long-term injury, and that a season was wiped out due to COVID. It's really his D+4 at best, probably more like his D+3 as far as development time he's had. He has missed well over a year in his combined recoveries.

D+whatever doesn't really mean much anyway, it's all right as a general benchmark but it's a small part of the equation. Just because Byfield hasn't broken out yet doesn't mean it's the team's fault or his own fault, it might just be his development path regardless of what happens.

 

[SettlementRichie10]

I just don't think you can throw out factors like a guy missing an entire year, that's all. I think holding to it as a hard and fast rule with no context makes as much sense as expecting guys to buck the trend.

On this much we agree: Covid shortened seasons really screwed with a generation of prospects’ development path. So in that regard, it’s worth re-contextualizing D+, yes.

 

[kilowatt]

Let's also recognize that we got super lucky that Kopitar fell to us. If he was Andrew Kopitar from London, Ontario, he would have gone second overall, and only because Sidney Crosby was the next all-time great.

 

[King'sPawn]

Kopitar started playing against men in Slovenia when he was 15 years old. Then played in Sweden overseas (including his D+1 year), and was put with some good support his rookie year.

There are plenty of factors in Anze's favor. Which, to his credit, he took advantage of.

 

[kinghock]

There is also the fact that Kopitar was light years ahead of Byfield when he was drafted. He was a complete player already and filled-out physically. It's not just Byfield either, there wasn't a single player in the 2020 draft that was even close to what Anze was when he was drafted. Anze didn't become an All-Star because the Kings put him in some position in the lineup, he did it because he's a fricken beast.

You are also ignoring the fact that Vilardi had a serious long-term injury, and that a season was wiped out due to COVID. It's really his D+4 at best, probably more like his D+3 as far as development time he's had. He has missed well over a year in his combined recoveries.

D+whatever doesn't really mean much anyway, it's all right as a general benchmark but it's a small part of the equation. Just because Byfield hasn't broken out yet doesn't mean it's the team's fault or his own fault, it might just be his development path regardless of what happens.

I believe (hope) we are going to see dominant Byfield this season and it will be very soon.

 

[LAKings88]

I still think Byfield will be more of a facilitator if/when he hits.

Seems more like a Joe Thornton type.

Hoping he can be a Tage Thompson.

 

[kinghock]

His defensive prowess is really underrated. I remember last season during the Kings first big roadtrip he was 3rd line center and was constantly matched up against other teams 1st lines, and I can't recall correctly but I don't think his line gave up a single goal the whole trip, or at least gave up the fewest. I also think there's a reason why he eventually played the last few games in the playoffs last season over Byfield.

“He’s a big man that skates extremely well and his play without the puck is something we’re proud of,” Todd McLellan said of Kupari this morning. “He does a really good job sorting things out coming back to his end, he defends well, long stick and he’s a very good penalty killer when he has to do those things. Quite often, those first-round draft picks are always relied on to score, is this guy going to score 35 or 40, we want him to score but there are some things he does really well right now. If he keeps doing those things, it will keep them available to us.”

 

[Fishhead]

Kopitar started playing against men in Slovenia when he was 15 years old. Then played in Sweden overseas (including his D+1 year), and was put with some good support his rookie year.

There are plenty of factors in Anze's favor. Which, to his credit, he took advantage of.

I think that first part was much more important than anything a NHL team could have done. In his first NHL game you could tell he was going to be a first liner, the only question was his ceiling. He forced his way onto that first line in preseason and never looked back.