Speculation: LA Kings News, Rumors, Roster Thread part VII

[apocalypse]

I question Grundstrom's future with the team.

Why? He'd be a perfect player to keep around on the bottom six. He's cheap and can be a physical presence on a team that desperately needs physicality.

 

[deaderhead28]

Why? He'd be a perfect player to keep around on the bottom six. He's cheap and can be a physical presence on a team that desperately needs physicality.

I don't see a spot for him next year.

 

[Trash Panda]

I don't see a spot for him next year.

All the more reason for a player like brown to not return.

Having thoughts of retaining a 37 year old shell, while moving on from a VERY effective young player who plays a similar role is a fools errand.

 

[deaderhead28]

We'll see what Blake does around March 10th at the deadline.

 

[deaderhead28]

All the more reason for a player like brown to not return.

Having thoughts of retaining a 37 year old shell, while moving on from a VERY effective young player who plays a similar role is a fools errand.

We disagree,I expect Brown to be in the line up if Brown and Blake can come to a reasonable price and if Brown accepts a 3rd line role.If Brown and Blake can't come to a mutual agreement,you might see Brown agreeing to a deadline trade.I am not a Grundstrom person nor do I think he will he on this team next year.

 

[apocalypse]

We disagree,I expect Brown to be in the line up if Brown and Blake can come to a reasonable price and if Brown accepts a 3rd line role.If Brown and Blake can't come to a mutual agreement,you might see Brown agreeing to a deadline trade.I am not a Grundstrom person nor do I think he will he on this team next year.

Why is that?

 

[deaderhead28]

Why is that?

I think we've players in Ontario that are better,not enough spots.

 

[kings11]

Realistically, with JADs production in the Ontario but also a soon-to-be RFA..
what’s his value? Who can we target?

 

[apocalypse]

I think we've players in Ontario that are better,not enough spots.

Yeah but I see Grundstrom as a big player who can set the tone for the team and LA needs more players like this. We are a small team and get pushed around night in night out.

 

[deaderhead28]

Why? He'd be a perfect player to keep around on the bottom six. He's cheap and can be a physical presence on a team that desperately needs physicality.

Where does Vilardi go?JAD? Possibly Turcotte?

 

[Trash Panda]

We disagree,I expect Brown to be in the line up if Brown and Blake can come to a reasonable price and if Brown accepts a 3rd line role.If Brown and Blake can't come to a mutual agreement,you might see Brown agreeing to a deadline trade.I am not a Grundstrom person nor do I think he will he on this team next year.

Anderson-Dolan
Villardi
Andersson
Grundstrom
Turcotte



Any of these players would be better suited for that exact 3rd line role, and aren’t 37 years old in the twilight of their careers. Not to mention the expiring waiver exemption on some of them.

Brown returning would be an absolute kick to the balls of forward progress. Let’s call it a career & plan the Jersey retirement. For gods sake.

 

[apocalypse]

Where does Vilardi go?JAD? Possibly Turcotte?

Vilardi plays in top 6 when he's ready. JAD can be traded. and Turcotte can wait when 3c opens up. He'll probably take over 2nd line c and PD moves down to 3rd.

 

[YP44]

Me too. The Kings could really use that one goal and -5 right now.
Maatta, believe it or not, hasn't been as bad as he was the first 25 games. He's done the job, and thats all that matters.

thank you for not using the obvious pun. I have to admit that Maatta has been ok lately. However I do not see any chance of a long term fit with the Kings, Clague at least had a sliver.

 

[apocalypse]

thank you for not using the obvious pun. I have to admit that Maatta has been ok lately. However I do not see any chance of a long term fit with the Kings, Clague at least had a sliver.

I think you resign Maata. He's come around the last few games and he's a big body on defense. LA needs the big bodies.

 

[Choralone]

Frankly, its the fact that Blake actually said "expected goals" instead of just "goals ". The implication there is that the analytics - which are purely optics - are judged to be below par. I see nothing wrong with the 5 x 5 offense whatsoever, but the PP needs an awful lot of help. And the biggest problem is the hesitancy to move the puck quickly from Kopitar and Doughty. I don't think anyone believes that analytics are going to help them decide to remove either from the first unit due to the "living legend" status both possess.

And the Shore point is dead on. I would also suggest that the opposite is something to be afraid of: players whose value isn't based on analytics won't be given the same chances that fancy stat darlings get. Simply having a higher volume of shots from close to the slot only theoretically correlates to success, its not a measure of quality, just quantity. And quantity is no indicator of anything without filtering through other indicators. So just trust your experience and don't let misleading, or potentially misleading data points have any undue influence.

Hockey is above all a game of passion and resiliency. Top players scoring, bottom players setting the pace and changing the tone. Momentum is so valuable, and there is no metric for making the right decision at the right time. Its assumed that those decisions will lead to a positive result that can be justified by a metric, but there just isn't one out there that measures heart and timing. The most important plays of the game don't always occur late in the third.

I mean, if you believe the organization doesn't know how to properly select, capture, and interpret stats - or place them in context - uh, yeah, I guess.

 

[Herby]

In order for it to become "a Mike Richards situation" they would have to sign Brown to a 6 year contract extension at $5.75M per season.

That was only one part of the Richards disaster in 2015. You are right, there isn't a contract situation this time around but the other part of the disaster could clearly be there should Brown return next season, even on a 1 year deal and turn in a Richards like performance on the ice. Richards was horrific that year, he was the worst player on the ice most nights and he was hurting the Kings in the standings in a year they were fighting for a playoff spot. But even with all that visible to everyone, the morale reportedly suffered when he was demoted because the locker room consists of human beings with feelings and respect for the player (no matter how bad he looks), not robots. The same thing could easily happen if at this time next year Brown is so bad that Blake's hand is forced and he is demoted to Ontario, the room may not like it even if its the logical move.

Blake is just better off in telling Brown its been an amazing two decades in the organization but that we have to go in another direction. Hopefully Brown retires but if he wants to go play 1 more year somewhere just wish him luck. This isn't some unique unheard of scenario, Mike Modano finished up in Detroit following 21 seasons for the Stars and Brodeur left the Devils after 22 seasons to sign with the Blues.

 

[deaderhead28]

Anderson-Dolan
Villardi
Andersson
Grundstrom
Turcotte
Any of these players would be better suited for that exact 3rd line role, and aren’t 37 years old in the twilight of their careers. Not to mention the expiring waiver exemption on some of them.

Brown returning would be an absolute kick to the balls of forward progress. Let’s call it a career & plan the Jersey retirement. For gods sake.

We shall see,What if Blake brings in a scoring fwd in the offseason,then it really gets wild.

Kempe Kopi Iafallo
Moore Byfield Arvidsson
Turcotte Danault Kaliyev
Lemieux Lizotte ?

*Brown
JAD
Vilardi
Andersson
Grundstrom

 

[TruKingFan]

thank you for not using the obvious pun. I have to admit that Maatta has been ok lately. However I do not see any chance of a long term fit with the Kings, Clague at least had a sliver.

The emergence of Durzi really shut the door for Clague here. Might even make Walker dispensable as part of a trade for a young LHD. Matta won’t be be re-signed but has played much better of late.

 

[kingsfan28]

thank you for not using the obvious pun. I have to admit that Maatta has been ok lately. However I do not see any chance of a long term fit with the Kings, Clague at least had a sliver.

It did cross my mind . Look, Clague had every chance to take the spot in the off season and didn't. People always say how the Ducks rookies got their chances and are doing so much better than ours. Clague had that chance, and never stepped up and took it. Durzi steps in near mid season and did more in 3 games than Clague did in 46 total . I wish him luck where ever he ends up, but he really had no place on the team.

 

[kingsfan28]

In order for it to become "a Mike Richards situation" they would have to sign Brown to a 6 year contract extension at $5.75M per season.

and have an "incident at the border" situation. Brown most likely will be back next year, for 1 year deal. Accept it. He will have to understand it won't be in the top 6 and in a limited role. If one of the kids can step up and take his job, fine, but nobody has...yet.

 

[Chazz Reinhold]

Wheeler’s 2022 NHL prospect pool rankings: No. 2 Los Angeles Kings

The Kings built a formidable prospect pool in a short amount of time, which resulted in a group that, for a couple of years, was adding without subtracting. Now prospects are starting to become players and the addition (which still included four high picks and a true star prospect from the 2021 draft class) isn’t outpacing the subtraction at quite the same rate.

The result is, after two consecutive years as my No. 1-ranked pool, a precipitous drop all the way to… *gasp*… second place!
Out are Arthur Kaliyev, Tobias Bjornfot, Rasmus Kupari, Kale Clague, Cole Hults, Mikey Anderson, Sean Durzi, Lias Anderson and Jacob Moverare due to some combination of NHL graduation, trade, or age. That’s nine pieces. That’s significant changeover.
In are Brandt Clarke, Francesco Pinelli, Kirill Kirsanov, and Samuel Helenius.

And somehow the Kings pool is still, without question, the deepest in the league — and a pool that I debated keeping at No. 1. It has star quality at the top, depth in quantity of legitimate NHL prospects into the late teens, and still 24 prospects worth of inclusion here. There are forwards and now defencemen of all shapes and sides, with the best depth of right-shot defencemen in the league. Really the only hole in the pool, especially after adding Clarke — and even after all of the turnover — is in net.

It’s remains an incredible group all told.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Agree with a lot of Wheeler's thoughts in there.

A lot of graduations and a lot of injuries, quite a few guys are a year or two out longer than we thought, not necessarily a bad thing, but will look bad in projection. A lot of 'projects' that will take time in Byfield and Turcotte and even Clarke--guys that can 'play now' but undoubtedly have more to give when you watch them. Whether they get there or not is fair to question but the raw latent ability isn't.

I think that makes Buffalo #1 in his rankings? Few more guys there having big years that add a little certainty.

 

[Axl Rhoadz]

I think you resign Maata. He's come around the last few games and he's a big body on defense. LA needs the big bodies.

Maatta has been pretty solid for us all year...he doesn't get enough credit.

 

[Herby]

I think there is a clear top-2 for LA, and then beyond that there isn't a ton of consistency from the guys who write about this kind of stuff.

I'd personally have Faber higher, he just does so many things well on the back-end that will translate well to the NHL level and I don't think anyone above him in that tier below QB and BC has the sure thing potential upside to make them more valuable assets than the sure thing floor he possesses. It will be interesting to see how he does in the Olympics, even a watered down Olympics will still be the highest level of competition he has ever faced. Team USA has 8 d-man, none I would say are sure fire locks to be playing when the elimination round starts other than maybe Kampfer who played in the NHL last year and has supposedly been one of the best defenseman in the KHL this season. If they balance the pairs with righty/lefty Faber will have to beat out one of Drew Helleson or Nick Perbix, two fellow NCAA d-man, assuming Kampfer has one spot locked up. I think (hope) Faber's versatility and ability to play with any type of partner finds him a regular spot in this tourney, but he is very young. I still think he has a chance to challenge for a spot in LA by the end of next season, although things have been complicated a bit by the emergence of Durzi.

Someone should tweet Wheeler and ask him why he thinks Turcotte is a bust and why he is a Turcotte hater. That write-up sure looks like one that was written on this board 2 years ago to heavy criticism, just saying

I am surprised he uses the "clock ticking" line to put JAD (IMO atleast) really really low on his rankings but doesn't use the same when describing Vilardi. They are the same age and both playing in the minors, both are producing similarly, both may find their future in the NHL as wingers. Yes, Gabe has a higher ceiling, but also a lower floor. If Gabe can't score at the NHL level he is going to play in the KHL, where as JAD can play in the bottom six. I think them being 10 spots apart is pretty ridiculous to be honest. Is there anyone here who values Tyler Madden for example more than JAD?

I really want Spence to be an NHL player, but the size is a big concern, upside is Jared Spurgeon, but for every Jared Spurgeon there are a bunch of others who can't overcome it. It's not as tough as it was 20 years ago, but it will still be a challenge. But either way, it's a great lottery ticket to have from a 4th round pick. At the very least he is an excellent AAAA player to have on your minor league team for a few years before going overseas if the NHL doesn't work out. Interestingly enough, I asked someone whos hockey knowledge I really trust who he was most impressed with from the Reign last weekend in Grand Rapids and he said "The pint-sized Asian d-man was the most noticeable player for your team"

 

[Kurrilino]

We'll see what Blake does around March 10th at the deadline.

I really really hope, absolutely nothing