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GDT: Offseason GDT II

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Raccoon Jesus said:
Did you forget the part with Rakell where he played 4 games in his first callup, then 18 in 2014, before finally sticking with 71 games and a whopping 31 points in 2015? And that until this year when he demonstrated he could handle it, he was playing not in a top six role, but a bottom six role?

Rakell's most common linemates in 2015 were Cogliano, Silfverberg, Etem, and Sekac.

In other words, they worked him in slowly, and it took him portions of three years before he became a full-time scoring threat NHLer. Never was he ever penciled in for the top line, he earned it over years.
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Very good point.

As is the case with the vast majority of ALL NHL teams trying to develop talent the proper way.

Except EDM Oilers, and we see how that has turned out.
 
damacles1156 said:
Kings staff and Sutter are paid Millions of dollars to develop NHL talent properly. In the Dark days of Kings hockey there was no development, that's not the case with this Kings staff.

Id trust them for once.

I am starting to question if any of you even remember the dark days of Kings hockey....

What happens when you plug 40% of your roster with rookies ? You all know the answer to this question.
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High draft picks? That would help the re-tool!


Also hasn't Kempe been playing against men for a while now? SEL? AHL?
 
Trolfoli said:
High draft picks? That would help the re-tool!


Also hasn't Kempe been playing against men for a while now? SEL? AHL?
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Not NHL Men.

Kempe probably needs another AHL season, he still has holes in his game, that the AHL can sort out. Better that Kempe sort it out in the AHL, the NHL is not a development league.

Folks, Kempe is not the next Kopitar (not even close) I don't even think Kempe has Toffoli's scoring touch (never will). I think he will develop into a more speedy, 30-40P player

A more skilled, Tanner Pearson so to speak.
 
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I would just like to point out that this is HF (Hockey's Future). People may get excited about prospects. It's okay to be excited about prospects.
 
Damacles thought Kempe was more skilled than Toffoli awhile back, guess he changed his mind. I'm still psyched that he'll be a very good player for us, at the very least improving our bottom 6. Still needs a bit of time in the AHL, but I'm sure he'll get a call up next year.
 
Omni Owl said:
Damacles thought Kempe was more skilled than Toffoli awhile back, guess he changed his mind. I'm still psyched that he'll be a very good player for us, at the very least improving our bottom 6. Still needs a bit of time in the AHL, but I'm sure he'll get a call up next year.
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He changes his mind a lot. I bet half his posts are edited by him after the fact. I recall him saying the same things about toffoli never making it
 
KingPuckChoo said:
King - Kopitar - Kempe line :amazed::amazed::amazed:
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qj2rpig.png
 
Omni Owl said:
Damacles thought Kempe was more skilled than Toffoli awhile back, guess he changed his mind. I'm still psyched that he'll be a very good player for us, at the very least improving our bottom 6. Still needs a bit of time in the AHL, but I'm sure he'll get a call up next year.
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There's a big difference between saying "i'm not high on a guy" and saying "I don't think he's ready."
 
damacles1156 said:
Kings staff and Sutter are paid Millions of dollars to develop NHL talent properly. In the Dark days of Kings hockey there was no development, that's not the case with this Kings staff.

Id trust them for once.

I am starting to question if any of you even remember the dark days of Kings hockey....

What happens when you plug 40% of your roster with rookies ? You all know the answer to this question.
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You go back to the days of the LA Kings when guys like Aki Berg and Olli Jokinen were sold to fans as physical beasts and forced into the lineup because there was nobody else. Not only were the scouts wrong but some of the Kings top prospects were ruined because they were called up before they were ready and force fed minutes they didn't EARN. You want a call up? Score more than 11 goals in the AHL. How about having a "holy crap this kid is ready" season instead of a "he looks pretty good" season. And most of this speculation is based on a hole at #1 LW which can be filled at any time by Lombardi. I'd be shocked if the Kings went into a season with a hole at that vaunted #1 LW again. We all saw how much space Lucic opened up for Kopitar and his other various linemates. There is a formula there, a type of player needed there and there are free agents and guys available via trade who can and will fill that slot before a rook.
 
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Yes Kempe may need some seasoning in the AHL yada yada yada...but the guy won a Calder Championship last year and was a vital contributor to the effort and now once again this year looking to go deep with another championship run. Kempe can level up his play to make the NHL roster out of training camp. He's proven to be coachable and willing to do what it takes.

Lucic-Kopi-Toffoli
Pearson-Carter-Kempe
Mersch-Dowd-Gaborik
Clifford-AA-Brown
King-Shore-Nolan

Of course the Sutter will mix&match lines tactically during the game. Trade King or Nolan a 3-4 Dman. Lewis walks.
 
Kempe will have a shot at camp. IF he earns it, he earns it. His speed will help his odds given the talk going on this offseason.
 
We'll have a better idea of who will have a shot to make it when we know which guys will be back, or brought in. If Lucic is back, it's less likely Kempe makes it. If they bring in a defensemen, it's less likely Gravel makes it. If Lewis comes back, that pushes someone out. If King were to go, that opens up a spot.

With Ontario going for a 2nd straight Calder Cup, Lombardi and Sutter have had plenty of time to watch that team play the last 2 years. If they do it again, you almost have to promote more guys again. The Kings need as many cheap guys that can play as possible.
 
If the name wasn't Kempe--how mad would folks be if DL was like "here's our new LW1--he scored 11 goals in the AHL last year?"
 
KingsFan7824 said:
We'll have a better idea of who will have a shot to make it when we know which guys will be back, or brought in. If Lucic is back, it's less likely Kempe makes it. If they bring in a defensemen, it's less likely Gravel makes it. If Lewis comes back, that pushes someone out. If King were to go, that opens up a spot.

With Ontario going for a 2nd straight Calder Cup, Lombardi and Sutter have had plenty of time to watch that team play the last 2 years. If they do it again, you almost have to promote more guys again. The Kings need as many cheap guys that can play as possible.
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Lewis and Lucic are probably the most interesting stories of the Kings summer. We all know the coach loves Lewis but he's got a glass ceiling talent-wise and there are plenty of capable, younger, cheaper options ready to take his place. I really think you're gonna see something similar to Eric Belanger where Lewis will sign elsewhere, be given more minutes and less defensive responsibility and put up a few more points. We've been told that the Kings and Sutter need to change a little in their thinking and if a guy like Lewis is signed and given a raise that thinking will be right out the door. 4th liners are mix and match, if you're focusing on them and being loyal then the formula is broken. Same can be said for King, Nolan, Clifford-expendable assets and the Kings need more speed.
 
The Tikkanen said:
Lewis and Lucic are probably the most interesting stories of the Kings summer. We all know the coach loves Lewis but he's got a glass ceiling talent-wise and there are plenty of capable, younger, cheaper options ready to take his place. I really think you're gonna see something similar to Eric Belanger where Lewis will sign elsewhere, be given more minutes and less defensive responsibility and put up a few more points. We've been told that the Kings and Sutter need to change a little in their thinking and if a guy like Lewis is signed and given a raise that thinking will be right out the door. 4th liners are mix and match, if you're focusing on them and being loyal then the formula is broken. Same can be said for King, Nolan, Clifford-expendable assets and the Kings need more speed.
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That would be the easier way to open up a little more cap space this summer.

Loyalty worked between winning the Cup in 2012, and winning the Cup in 2014. It hasn't worked as well since. Lombardi hasn't traded anyone that played any sort of significant role on either Cup team, other than backup goalies. After the last 2 years, we'll see if that changes at all. If he can let guys like Mitchell and Williams walk, he can do it to Lewis too. Trading guys has been a different story though. Just something to watch for.
 
The Tikkanen said:
Lewis and Lucic are probably the most interesting stories of the Kings summer. We all know the coach loves Lewis but he's got a glass ceiling talent-wise and there are plenty of capable, younger, cheaper options ready to take his place. I really think you're gonna see something similar to Eric Belanger where Lewis will sign elsewhere, be given more minutes and less defensive responsibility and put up a few more points. We've been told that the Kings and Sutter need to change a little in their thinking and if a guy like Lewis is signed and given a raise that thinking will be right out the door. 4th liners are mix and match, if you're focusing on them and being loyal then the formula is broken. Same can be said for King, Nolan, Clifford-expendable assets and the Kings need more speed.
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I would like LA to add another pick or two in the first 3 rounds and could see 2 of these guys bringing back at least a 3rd rounder
 
SFKingshomer said:
Much rather overpay Okposo long term than Lucic.
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not sure I would. Their abotu the same age (okposo is one year older), but I just worry how Okposo plays without Tavares. I definitely did not watch enough Islanders game to definitively state one way or the other, but I know how Lucic fits with Carter and Kopitar. And i like it
 
SFKingshomer said:
Much rather overpay Okposo long term than Lucic.
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I would rather not pay term and money to either player. But if I had to choose, I would pick Lucic since he has proven to be effective on the Kings system, and has chemistry with both Kopitar and Carter, which gives us the option to play him on either line. Okposo, while a fine player, is a gamble because we don't know how he will play here.
 
Agreed. I like Okposo, but Lucic is a known quantity around here too. I do think Okposo would be fine without Tavares but he's also a bit of an injury risk.
 
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