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

[Raccoon Jesus]

Band-Aid for a gunshot wound.

Would be pointless to acquire him just to watch Todd somehow keep dressing Walker & playing Durzi on his off side.

*trades for Gavrikov*
*immediately rolls him out with Durzi, but it's Durzi on LD and Gavrikov on RD*

 

[dman3474]

Yes, but I'm saying it's not his fault TMac is trying to use him as an all around Dman.

It's ludicrous that he's being played 20 minutes per night.

He's a bottom pair Dman and PP specialist. You utilize him in that fashion, and he can be an asset not a liability.

He's also 24 years old, in his second NHL season, and 4th pro season. Still time for the rest to come around. His poor defense is more noticeable when he's on the left side, he does better on the right. He is also tied for 4th (edit: tied for 5th, I missed Arvidsson) on the team in points, tied with Gabe and above Adrian.

There is definitely room for him for at least another season or two.

Durzi, Spence, and Clarke can platoon in and out of the lineup for a season or two. Make sure the right player is traded.

Roy and Walker need to get traded, sooner the better.

 

[Schmooley]

Not to a team with aspirations to win playoff rounds.

Kempe was really good last year and had a bigger impact than Gavrikov ever has. Kempe is having a bad year and looks slow. Danault has been bad also.
Gavrikov is being overrated because hes the only one publicly available besides chychrun.
If the Kings trade for him I doubt it would even move the needle much.

 

[YP44]

Durzi is the defenseman who has got to go. His production is pointless when he's constantly hemming his own team in the defensive zone and constantly bleeds goals. He is the drizzling shits in his own zone, and I'm dumbfounded how any coach with a working pair of eyes would send his dumbass on the ice in penalty killing situations.

Bingo

 

[bland]

Durzi is experiencing something now that is similar to what Roy went through after his second full year. Upward trajectory while trying to make a name for themselves, then once they become a fixture that aggression - and ascension - plateaus as they gain comfort.

Durzi was full of piss and vinegar last year, playing with a chippy edge and willing to get his nose dirty to make an impression. He was an emotional catalyst for this team last year and became a favorite of a lot of the vets. That, when paired with his obvious offensive talents, overrode the glaring deficiencies in his defensive game and bought him a spot this year instead if going back and earning it.

I said after his first NHL game that he was the single worst defenseman I have ever seen in the NHL, but his intagibles made him worth that squeeze. This year the intangibles have been dialed down while the rookie mistakes have kept on truckin'.

This is a deeply flawed player who must maintain that edge in order to keep his spot. Without it there is just no reason to prioritize him over equally good offensive defenders with better fundamentals that won't hurt you multiple times on a nightly basis.

 

[FSL KINGS]

I highly advise against moving a 30+ goal scoring winger to 3C while young, capable center prospects sit in the AHL.

The real problem is that Kopitar turns every skilled winger into a disaster because of his defense only play.
Kempe scored most of his goals when being moved down to the 2nd line and Arvidson up.

If we find a playmaking center, who can match the speed of Kempe and Fiala we have a complete different game.
I would seriously give Kupari a try. This guys can fly, has playmaking skills and while still growing into his body, has the size to succeed.

Why this has not been tried over Kopitar is far beyond me.

Not advocating for Kempe at center as much as just pointing out that moving Kempe to center fixes the too many wings problem & is easier than moving someone for a center, especially if the cap only increases a little.

Gavrikov, don't want to give up a high pick in this draft. Adding a decent to good LD will help, but doesn't fix goaltending. A good old fashioned hockey trade, player for player trade would be nice. Rather just wait on the off-season to add a LD than give up a first. Just too much wrong with the team right now.

 

[All The Kings Men]

Durzi was full of piss and vinegar last year, playing with a chippy edge and willing to get his nose dirty to make an impression. He was an emotional catalyst for this team last year and became a favorite of a lot of the vets.

Which vets?

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

Which vets?

The vets he sees on TV and thinks he knows everything about them...those ones.

 

[Kudelski37]

Which vets?

I danault.

 

[cyclones22]

This is the kind of shit that I hate about his tweets. Says nothing but implies everything. Then nothing happens. Dudes a bozo.

My question is how many times has he said the name Toddfather lately? Almost as cringe worthy as "warmies".

 

[Eagle Fang]

You don't think there's room for a PP specialist on the team?

The coach is misusing him. There's a way to manage these types of players and make them an asset to the team.

That said, I wouldn't be opposed to trading him either.

Exactly this. This is one of those things that you don't need to be an experienced coach to see. How Durzi is being deployed is so mind boggling it's more on TMac than Durzi himself.

Bottom pairing, PP specialist is what he is. With the current lineup, he and Edler should be getting the least amount of ice time of the d men. If used within his means, he can be an asset no doubt.

Also doesn't help the team as a whole sucks.

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

@Raccoon Jesus

I only tagged you.....shit I don't know why, you were around back then.....tell me if I am wrong though,

Before 2012......there was bitching and moaning....then....we win....and win again.....and its a bit less.....

But does it seem now....there is MORE bitching and moaning....now....since we have won....than before? Just reading this shit was reminding me of how bad posters were back in 2011-2012, before the wins etc.....seems like we have eclipsed that level.

 

[Sol]

Durzi is experiencing something now that is similar to what Roy went through after his second full year. Upward trajectory while trying to make a name for themselves, then once they become a fixture that aggression - and ascension - plateaus as they gain comfort.

Durzi was full of piss and vinegar last year, playing with a chippy edge and willing to get his nose dirty to make an impression. He was an emotional catalyst for this team last year and became a favorite of a lot of the vets. That, when paired with his obvious offensive talents, overrode the glaring deficiencies in his defensive game and bought him a spot this year instead if going back and earning it.

I said after his first NHL game that he was the single worst defenseman I have ever seen in the NHL, but his intagibles made him worth that squeeze. This year the intangibles have been dialed down while the rookie mistakes have kept on truckin'.

This is a deeply flawed player who must maintain that edge in order to keep his spot. Without it there is just no reason to prioritize him over equally good offensive defenders with better fundamentals that won't hurt you multiple times on a nightly basis.

I have been wondering all season why he’s playing so much tame

 

[kings11]

small point of order.. Ed has an NMC.. would need his permission to waive

Yup, but it’s time for him to ride the pine… after Todd is gone because it ain’t happening otherwise

 

[bland]

Which vets?

Danault for certain, but perhaps the pluralization was hyperbole

 

[YP44]

@Raccoon Jesus

I only tagged you.....shit I don't know why, you were around back then.....tell me if I am wrong though,

Before 2012......there was bitching and moaning....then....we win....and win again.....and its a bit less.....

But does it seem now....there is MORE bitching and moaning....now....since we have won....than before? Just reading this shit was reminding me of how bad posters were back in 2011-2012, before the wins etc.....seems like we have eclipsed that level.

I used to just be a reader on here before 2012. I think the bitching and moaning is more now. The bar got heightened with those wins, and years of being beaten down and accepting mediocre are likely to blame. Plus as a society it has become more and more to just flat out bitch and curse about shit. I am as guilty of it as anyone.

 

[Statto]

He's also 24 years old, in his second NHL season, and 4th pro season. Still time for the rest to come around. His poor defense is more noticeable when he's on the left side, he does better on the right. He is also tied for 4th (edit: tied for 5th, I missed Arvidsson) on the team in points, tied with Gabe and above Adrian.

There is definitely room for him for at least another season or two.

Durzi, Spence, and Clarke can platoon in and out of the lineup for a season or two. Make sure the right player is traded.

Roy and Walker need to get traded, sooner the better.

Complete waste of Clarke and Spence. Durzi is a diminishing return.

1. Needs sheltering 5/5
2. Leads the team in giveaways and does so both sides of the ice.
3 . Pinches constantly at the wrong time.
4. Unbalances the D setup on whichever line he’s on. His partner cannot play off him because you never know what he’s going to do. So they both look bad.
5. He’s not learning… same errors over and over again.

Sure he puts up points but Clarke and Spence will put up points and both probably end up better offensively, both already are better. The quicker it’s Doughty, Clarke, Spence the better. It’d mean they can get DD’s minutes down which will make him sharper.

Roy/Walker, yep completely agree. Roy as our defensive specialist nearly coughs the puck up more than Durzi and all from the D zone.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

@Raccoon Jesus

I only tagged you.....shit I don't know why, you were around back then.....tell me if I am wrong though,

Before 2012......there was bitching and moaning....then....we win....and win again.....and its a bit less.....

But does it seem now....there is MORE bitching and moaning....now....since we have won....than before? Just reading this shit was reminding me of how bad posters were back in 2011-2012, before the wins etc.....seems like we have eclipsed that level.

I used to just be a reader on here before 2012. I think the bitching and moaning is more now. The bar got heightened with those wins, and years of being beaten down and accepting mediocre are likely to blame. Plus as a society it has become more and more to just flat out bitch and curse about shit. I am as guilty of it as anyone.

I think the board leading up to TM's firing--and including right after it with Sutter's hire--looked a lot like it did now. It's a team with playoff aspirations performing below the bar. The difference back then was we had already had 30 years of failure and were used to self-depricating humor and people smashing on the organization wasn't met with so much shoe polish.

 

[Rick Knickleback]

Complete waste of Clarke and Spence. Durzi is a diminishing return.

1. Needs sheltering 5/5
2. Leads the team in giveaways and does so both sides of the ice.
3 . Pinches constantly at the wrong time.
4. Unbalances the D setup on whichever line he’s on. His partner cannot play off him because you never know what he’s going to do. So they both look bad.
5. He’s not learning… same errors over and over again.

6. Is still new enough that his gaudy offensive numbers might really be worth something to a GM who is either:
a) In search of a 2nd unit PP QB
b) not informed enough

The return is diminishing, but might not yet be diminished! Deal him.

 

[YP44]

I think the board leading up to TM's firing--and including right after it with Sutter's hire--looked a lot like it did now. It's a team with playoff aspirations performing below the bar. The difference back then was we had already had 30 years of failure and were used to self-depricating humor and people smashing on the organization wasn't met with so much shoe polish.

i noticed it says I joined Jan 2012....I'm pre-cup!!
I think I joined to comment on trade deadline that year.

 

[Rick Knickleback]

The difference back then was we had already had 30 years of failure and were used to self-depricating humor and people smashing on the organization wasn't met with so much shoe polish.

Bingo. Gretzky and Ziggy had their remaining fanboys, but for the most part, we were tired of losing and demanding more.

As we should be now. Two cups is a great legacy, and I'll always love those teams and think what they accomplished is absolutely stellar. Both runs, in retrospect, look absolutely insane and hard to ever duplicate: 2012's dominance and 2014's perseverance. But we're as far removed from 2012 now as 2012 was from taking the Avs to 7 games in the 2nd round in 2002. Time to move on, and moving on will require more piss and vinegar from the constituents too. Fans and media alike.

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

I used to just be a reader on here before 2012. I think the bitching and moaning is more now. The bar got heightened with those wins, and years of being beaten down and accepting mediocre are likely to blame. Plus as a society it has become more and more to just flat out bitch and curse about shit. I am as guilty of it as anyone.

Thats what I felt as well....for me....as I get older I just get less tolerant of the bullshit.....makes me great company I will tell you that....

 

[Mats26]

If these are the same pro scouts that were part of discussions to convinced Blake to re-sign Edler this offseason. Tell them to catch the next flight back to LA.

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

I think the board leading up to TM's firing--and including right after it with Sutter's hire--looked a lot like it did now. It's a team with playoff aspirations performing below the bar. The difference back then was we had already had 30 years of failure and were used to self-depricating humor and people smashing on the organization wasn't met with so much shoe polish.

Fair enough, I guess the problem I run into, is there is 100% valid reasons for people to bitch and moan.....but they bitch and moan about the stupidest shit, the (omg trade Kopitar in 2015 crowd) the Tmac doesn't know what he's doing crowd, (it's not that he doesn't know what he's doing, it's the players are absolutely not responding in a way they did last year, is that on him, the players, or both.......I think you know where my head is at there)

Not sure if it's better than the, omg why did player XXX do that....when he should have done YYYY....I saw that in another thread, how a poster can see better passing lanes than whoever the f*** he was talking about....and I just kinda went....well f***ing duh, you have the sky view of it, and no pressure.......of course you are going to see something better for f*** sake....that kind of criticism, is bullshit nonsense.....

You want to bitch and moan, bitch about not having LD, bitch about riding Edler till he dies, bitch about no goaltender, bitch about boneheaded plays, Durzi giveaway, Vilardi giveaway etc, those have teeth, those have merit....

 

[BigKing]

I think the board leading up to TM's firing--and including right after it with Sutter's hire--looked a lot like it did now. It's a team with playoff aspirations performing below the bar. The difference back then was we had already had 30 years of failure and were used to self-depricating humor and people smashing on the organization wasn't met with so much shoe polish.

The issue is that Lombardi's rebuild featured exciting young talent v. Blake's that featured the old versions of DL's exciting young talent on top of a team that was unbelievable boring to watch. DL's bad teams lost a lot but Dustin Brown was throwing 300+ hits a year and you were looking at 10+ years of elite talent in 11/8/32. The Kings also had a Top 5 prospect pool with Kopitar and Doughty crushing the NHL and not being factored into those rankings. We also didn't know what it was like to win.

Now we know what it is like to win and we haven't witnessed a playoff series victory in over seven seasons with only three playoff appearances and four total playoff victories over that same time. Blake's rewards for purposely sucking have not panned out yet even though he has had six drafts.

Back to DL's bad teams...we had guys that you couldn't question when it came to desire and compete level. Matt f***ing Greene! This current team is promoted like Teen Beat (New Juice Pic was the tag line I saw on Kings Twitter last night) and they play like it.

STH'er since 2001-02. The Rob Blake era has been the worst stretch during my 20 whatever years of going to the games.