Kings Article: Lombardi about Richards and other stuff

[driller1]

So I sucked it up and got the subscription. They had a promo and I paid $3.50/mo... It's a nice site with a clean layout and some guys that I like (LeBrun, Custance, Bourne, Pronan for hockey)... As for the article:

• Spoke about activities since departing the Kings. Explained that he got lots of advisor offers (no GM roles) but was most comfortable with Flyers.
• Talked about loyalty and relationships -- elaborated on how much it meant to him for the team to come over to his garage and drink beers night he got canned
• Noted how Kings didn't need to tear down the team; team simply did not perform last couple years
• Told Pierre in the summer that the Kings were poised to have a big year. Said they had the talent and character, just needed to refocus
• Spoke at length about infrastructure. Noted that the scouts, development program, systems, analytics are what he put in place manned by his people
• Good talk about analytics; must use it as a tool, but not the end-all-be-all. He views leadership and intangibles as a real thing. Need to learn how to win. Mike Richards taught the Kings how to win- he had the "IT" factor
• Discussion about Mike Richards (very, very interesting)

 

[SettlementRichie10]

So I sucked it up and got the subscription. They had a promo and I paid $3.50/mo... It's a nice site with a clean layout and some guys that I like (LeBrun, Custance, Bourne, Pronan for hockey)... As for the article:

• Spoke about activities since departing the Kings. Explained that he got lots of advisor offers (no GM roles) but was most comfortable with Flyers.
• Talked about loyalty and relationships -- elaborated on how much it meant to him for the team to come over to his garage and drink beers night he got canned
• Noted how Kings didn't need to tear down the team; team simply did not perform last couple years
• Told Pierre in the summer that the Kings were poised to have a big year. Said they had the talent and character, just needed to refocus
• Spoke at length about infrastructure. Noted that the scouts, development program, systems, analytics are what he put in place manned by his people
• Good talk about analytics; must use it as a tool, but not the end-all-be-all. He views leadership and intangibles as a real thing. Need to learn how to win. Mike Richards taught the Kings how to win- he had the "IT" factor
• Discussion about Mike Richards (very, very interesting)

That's a pretty juicy cliffhanger you're leaving at the end there.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

I'd be interested to hear his take on Darryl Sutter, and also the B.S. he spewed the past few seasons about "learning to adapt," which didn't happen, or if Pierre asked him if he still thinks the Penguins are the "flavor of the month" after back-to-back Stanley Cup wins.

From everything the player's have said and indicated, it seems like a shakeup is what ultimately helped them refocus. They weren't going to get there if things stayed the same, especially if Sutter was brought back. And we don't know whether or not Lombardi would have made that call.

 

[Shellz]

That's a pretty juicy cliffhanger you're leaving at the end there.

Do we need to pay him now? People are weird.

 

[kingsfan28]

I'd be interested to hear his take on Darryl Sutter, and also the B.S. he spewed the past few seasons about "learning to adapt," which didn't happen, or if Pierre asked him if he still thinks the Penguins are the "flavor of the month" after back-to-back Stanley Cup wins.

From everything the player's have said and indicated, it seems like a shakeup is what ultimately helped them refocus. They weren't going to get there if things stayed the same, especially if Sutter was brought back. And we don't know whether or not Lombardi would have made that call.

He was on record several times that he would never fire Sutter out of respect . If that was the case, he died by his own sword if AEG told him to fired Sutter and he refused.

 

[kingsholygrail]

Doesn't really matter.

 

[driller1]

Do we need to pay him now? People are weird.

That's a pretty juicy cliffhanger you're leaving at the end there.

Doesn't hate Richards. Wants to bury the hatchet. Maybe go hunting with him in the future. No contact.

Still respects Richards for teaching team how to win. He's the one with the intangibles -- compared him to Jeter. Wanted to do an analysis and figure out what happened with his performance. Noted that Richards was not old.

 

[KingsFan7824]

it's the way of the world these days

everything has to be monetized, everything has to be a monthly payment

Not sure if that's just a "these days" issue. Basically been doing that since we traded a cow for five chickens and a pig to be named later. If enough people pay for the name of Pierre LeBrun, then why not get their money? If too few people are willing to pay for his name, then they'll have to change something. Everyone is trying to figure out how to make some money in a world where not only is more for less expected by all sides, but less for more is also quite present.

 

[tonellisghost]

Since he's talking about Richards, I thought I'd add that I am even more certain than ever that the issue was immigration related - he got an entry ban or lost his work visa. It takes 6 months to get that fixed (although it can be permanent like Kate Moss) and that meshes perfectly with the timeline and fits how the kings found out.

Here's another example of how fast it is and how US Immigration views controlled substance issues. If you're a Stranger things fan, this may mean the end of the character or Charlie Heaton's time on the show. the Independent got it wrong. It's not a deportation, it's an entry ban. other than that there is more info there than the time article.


"Foreign nationals may be inadmissible due to the commission of a crime involving drug possession. "

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-e...on-deported-us-cocaine-season-3-a8024526.html

http://time.com/5001315/charlie-heaton-stranger-things-drugs/

I can assure you that you are correct in your assumptions.

TG

 

[kingsboy11]

Doesn't hate Richards. Wants to bury the hatchet. Maybe go hunting with him in the future. No contact.

Still respects Richards for teaching team how to win. He's the one with the intangibles -- compared him to Jeter. Wanted to do an analysis and figure out what happened with his performance. Noted that Richards was not old.

Wouldn't be a Lombardi interview without a baseball reference

 

[driller1]

Not sure if that's just a "these days" issue. Basically been doing that since we traded a cow for five chickens and a pig to be named later. If enough people pay for the name of Pierre LeBrun, then why not get their money? If too few people are willing to pay for his name, then they'll have to change something. Everyone is trying to figure out how to make some money in a world where not only is more for less expected by all sides, but less for more is also quite present.

I flip it around and put myself in Lebrun (or any other journalist's shoes). Statistically, journalism is considered a low paying job. Combine that with unstable job prospects (at best), and you quickly come to the conclusion that one must really, really love their job to do it. At the end of the day, he's got a family and they are probably dependent on his salary for food, clothes, a house, etc. I do not begrudge anyone for doing what's best to provide for their family. The Athletic needs to charge a monthly fee since they do not have advertisements. How else are they going to pay Lebrun and the other writers? Trust me, this whole endeavor is not going to be the next Apple, Google, Facebook, or other multi-billion stock. This product is going to be a niche product for hard core sports fans like us (which implies low margins). Perhaps one day they will build enough scale to be somewhat profitable, but I wouldn't be surprised if The Athletic is currently hemorrhaging money right now.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

As far as The Athletic itself goes, I love the idea and the staff and I've considered subscribing--but with next to nothing for Kings fans and without even a chance to preview even ONE article before doing so, it's not a financial decision I want to make.

Consider this is the first mention of that publication on this board.

As far as the content itself, sounds like people really enjoyed it, and can't blame them--I like LeBrun a lot and everyone here knows how deep DL interviews are. Unsurprised that folks liked it, but a little surprised that it doesn't seem like we got anything we didn't already know.

 

[driller1]

As far as The Athletic itself goes, I love the idea and the staff and I've considered subscribing--but with next to nothing for Kings fans and without even a chance to preview even ONE article before doing so, it's not a financial decision I want to make.

Consider this is the first mention of that publication on this board.

As far as the content itself, sounds like people really enjoyed it, and can't blame them--I like LeBrun a lot and everyone here knows how deep DL interviews are. Unsurprised that folks liked it, but a little surprised that it doesn't seem like we got anything we didn't already know.

I don't know if the offer is still valid, but they had a 1 week free trial when I signed up. Since I also use it for football, I went ahead and just got the subscription anyway.

 

[damacles1156]

Good article, some good content on The Athletic.

Lombardi pretty much summed up what we all know about him. His loyalty to players/coaches, pretty much got him fired.

 

[123slam]

Good article.

don't do it mods

 

[Ollie Weeks]

Thats heartbreaking.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Good article, some good content on The Athletic.

Lombardi pretty much summed up what we all know about him. His loyalty to players/coaches, pretty much got him fired.

If he wanted loyalty, he should get himself a dog.

 

[Herby]

I have a subscription, just to many good writers on that site across all sports.

As far as Dean goes, there is loyalty and there is loyalty to a fault, and this is clearly the case here. He even touched on it when talking to PL when he said he went back and watched video of Richards from 2014 vs 2010 which should have been all he had to see to pull the plug but he found all these others ridiculous reasons not to do it.

I think Dean Lombardi is best in the role he is currently in with the Flyers where he can scout at the amateur and professional level and not build relationships with his players, I don't know if either his preferred style of play or his inability to evaluate "his boys" is going to make him a popular choice to manage a team.

 

[Ollie Weeks]

Although I get your point Herby, considering he’s a multiple Stanley Cup winning general manager, I think its a stretch to say he’s where he belongs.

Pretty confident that some team would accept that level of success even if it meant watching it crumble after so completely.

 

[BigKing]

Lombardi is awesome. He can get a dog and scratch it's ears with a hand that wears two Cup rings.

 

[King'sPawn]

The thing is with Richards, Lombardi always saw a special player in Richards, and took a big chance on him by trading key pieces for him. That gamble paid off.

It was very hard for him to reconcile what was happening on the ice versus what was happening between Richards' ears.

 

[Herby]

I think with the quotes there is still a bit of denial about the whole Richards thing. Bringing up the Game 7 goal vs. Anaheim or the lockerroom comments while ignoring the fact that on most nights during that playoff run he was a total liability on both sides of the ice. The Chicago series does not go 7 if the Hawks don't totally feast on Mike Richards in Games 5-6 (and 7). But that honestly probably falls more on Sutter, he had no business even dressing in a 4th line role.

@Ollie Weeks I don't doubt that he will get a GM job based on past success, but much like with Sutter as a coach there are a lot of potential red flags. The game is more skill and speed based than it was a few years ago and the importance of being able to manage the cap is just massive. And those are two of DL's biggest weaknesses as a GM.

 

[driller1]

I think with the quotes there is still a bit of denial about the whole Richards thing. Bringing up the Game 7 goal vs. Anaheim or the lockerroom comments while ignoring the fact that on most nights during that playoff run he was a total liability on both sides of the ice. The Chicago series does not go 7 if the Hawks don't totally feast on Mike Richards in Games 5-6 (and 7). But that honestly probably falls more on Sutter, he had no business even dressing in a 4th line role.

@Ollie Weeks I don't doubt that he will get a GM job based on past success, but much like with Sutter as a coach there are a lot of potential red flags. The game is more skill and speed based than it was a few years ago and the importance of being able to manage the cap is just massive. And those are two of DL's biggest weaknesses as a GM.

I think DL will be a great GM in the right environment. For example, if a team needs to tear down and totally rebuild from scratch (or even a new expansion team), DL is the guy. It's not just speed and cap stuff. It's putting the right infrastructure in place. Our scouts have been awesome, development team is second to none, and our analytics teams is well regarded. Contrast that to the tire fire that was EDM, and you have a big contrast in institutional strength. Besides, DL is a smart guy. He'll learn from his mistakes.

 

[BigKing]

Lombardi would be a good GM for an organization that has no direction or, to use a DL buzz word, "culture". Everyone loves to shit on him for the last few seasons and a lot of it is deserved, but he leaves a legacy behind him and we are watching it every game so far this season.

As I've been saying when Blake is lionized for a good start to the season, this is still DL's staff and Blake has yet to put his stamp on this team. Even the head coach is DL's hand-picked successor to Sutter.

As mentioned a thousand times, DL's main problem is being loyal to a fault. While that helped torpedo the last couple of seasons, it also helped this organization become what it is today and helped these players become the players that they are. Adapting to the "new" NHL is the other main issue but I'll take being extremely loyal to the guys that won 2-in-3 seasons as my GM's primary fault any day of the week. Really can't blame him after 2014 since that run was so insane...probably felt invincible and that led to bad decisions: namely Richards.

Loyalty should be a two-way street. Money talks, of course, but I believe if Doughty stays in LA, being a player under Lombardi and experiencing that loyalty will have something to do with it. Being a King meant jack shit before DL came here: now it means something around the league with the organization having tons of respect from NHL players and management alike for the first time in its history.

 

[raswilliam]

Dean led more Kings fans to the promised land then all other Kings GM's combined. His sports coat should be in the rafters at staples center. If I ever meet dean in person............