Rumor: Planning Ahead: 2019 Off-Season

[DoktorJeep]

The risk with Podz is 100% about his contract and lack of transfer agreement. It’s nothing personal against the player, even with his quotes.

 

[AzKing]

I don't think you understand.

You said:


I was saying that's not specifically the case. SKA and no cap is a better financial situation.

You brought up Kovalchuk and Panarin; one of which HAD to come over because there was an agreement between the NHL and Russia at the time he was drafted, and he had established himself by then. The other did not come over until 6 years after he was supposed to be drafted. Russian players drafted high typically already have committed to playing in North America. The ones who came over from Russia since the transfer agreement ended were either not high (top 10 draft picks) or have not established themselves as superstars.

I'm not saying Russians are running away from the NHL in droves. I am saying that spending a high pick on a player who isn't sure if and when he wants to come to play in the NHL is too risky, especially since the status of Vilardi, their other top prospect, is unknown. These are his words:

"Говорят, Америка, Канада – это круто. Но сейчас я не хочу туда ехать". Интервью нового русского суперталанта


Even though this is a translation issue, it's safe to infer he wants to finish his contract which lasts for 2 more years (this article was in September, so that's why I'm not saying 3); he also doesn't seem to want to come over until he has a family and he can actually play in the NHL. He doesn't want to play in the AHL.

Ultimately, if Blake and the scouting staff are satisfied enough where they spend the 5th overall pick on him, I'll be thrilled. He was one of my favorite players at the start of the year, from the moment he scored a hat trick at the Hlinka Gretzky tournament. I just don't feel enthusiasm from him that he wants to come to North America in any reasonable time; he basically plays like how we always wanted Brown to play.

I always take Russian interviews with a grain of salt to some extent because there are nefarious influences there that are watching every single word he says so he will need to be careful not to cross anyone. It's essentially a criminal enterprise. That said, he isn't coming over anytime soon if those comments do have sincerity. If he is going to wait until he has a family and is mature enough, that could be 25/26 years old.

 

[KingsCourt]

The risk with Podz is 100% about his contract and lack of transfer agreement. It’s nothing personal against the player, even with his quotes.

cannot take any risk on the pick...we already lost GV (ok not lost but highly uncertian), we can't afford to draft him not come over for 5 years, there are other choices, no need to force it

 

[Papa Mocha 15]

I don’t think you’re understanding.

I specifically brought up Kovalchuk and Panarin because you seem to think SKA has unlimited magic money. Both Kovalchuk and Panarin were superstar SKA players, and both left SKA for the NHL.

Of course, their decisions aren’t entirely based in money, but hopefully you get the point this time. SKA being rich means nothing. NHL teams are rich, too. Prime Kovalchuk was signed for a measly $4.4 million per year with SKA in 13/14.

I don’t know where you’re getting this myth that KHL players make infinity money, but it’s not based in reality whatsoever. In terms of USD, no one over there is making some absurd amount of money.

Again, I ask you to list all the superstar Russian players leaving the NHL in droves. It’s just not happening, because these players - in most cases - want to play in the NHL, for the money, the lifestyle, and the legitimate competition.

I’m not claiming Podkolzin is 100% risk free. He’s not. What I *am* saying is that he’s good enough to take what amounts to a minor risk.

I just want to clarify because I haven't had my coffee yet, but are you interpreting our #5 pick as a minor risk? If that is the case, I disagree. I don't think it is the be all end all but we don't get top five picks often and if someone is ready to go or much closer with a higher likelihood of signing here, wouldn't it be more prudent to get someone who is likely to at least show up in North America? Personally, I would rather see if someone wants to trade up and gives up the right deal for the 6th through 10th pick with another draft pick to boot. I want quantity right now to refill our cupboards.

 

[DoktorJeep]

cannot take any risk on the pick...we already lost GV (ok not lost but highly uncertian), we can't afford to draft him not come over for 5 years, there are other choices, no need to force it

I think with a top ten pick, the risk is viewed more cautiously.

 

[DryIslandBartender]

You take Pods at 5 if he’s there, no question. I think the Hawks take him there so this discussion may be pointless.

The draft is about talent, not risk. How many teams passed on Kopitar because he was from a country nobody heard of?

Right now the Kings are lacking talent, goal scoring and players that can play defense. The top 6 is a disaster and Pods has excellent hands at top speed with a scoring touch. We don’t have anyone with that skill set.

Kings aren’t competing anytime soon so we can afford to let him continue to play in the KHL. What we can’t afford to do is pass on talent because they won’t come over to NA right away.


Then again this is the Kings and with this Front office, wouldn’t surprise me if they screw the draft up.

 

[Mats26]

How does Byram rate vs these 2?

Miro Heiskanen and Cale Makar.

 

[No Name The Nameless]

You take Pods at 5 if he’s there, no question. I think the Hawks take him there so this discussion may be pointless.

The draft is about talent, not risk. How many teams passed on Kopitar because he was from a country nobody heard of?

Right now the Kings are lacking talent, goal scoring and players that can play defense. The top 6 is a disaster and Pods has excellent hands at top speed with a scoring touch. We don’t have anyone with that skill set.

Kings aren’t competing anytime soon so we can afford to let him continue to play in the KHL. What we can’t afford to do is pass on talent because they won’t come over to NA right away.


Then again this is the Kings and with this Front office, wouldn’t surprise me if they screw the draft up.

If you strike out then you do not get any talent. Everything is about risk. Does his talent versus the other available players outweigh his risk?

 

[AzKing]

You take Pods at 5 if he’s there, no question. I think the Hawks take him there so this discussion may be pointless.

The draft is about talent, not risk. How many teams passed on Kopitar because he was from a country nobody heard of?

Right now the Kings are lacking talent, goal scoring and players that can play defense. The top 6 is a disaster and Pods has excellent hands at top speed with a scoring touch. We don’t have anyone with that skill set.

Kings aren’t competing anytime soon so we can afford to let him continue to play in the KHL. What we can’t afford to do is pass on talent because they won’t come over to NA right away.


Then again this is the Kings and with this Front office, wouldn’t surprise me if they screw the draft up.

And if the player doesn't come over for 6-7 years then would you still view the draft as a success if they take Podkolzin? He may come over to the NHL but his quotes don't show any sort of urgency and if wants to wait until he has a family and wants an immediate entry to the NHL with no stops before, it could be a lot longer than a couple of years before anyone sees him.

The draft is always about risk as well. You don't riverboat gamble with a Top 5 pick. You can do that if you are in the 20's and you need big ceiling with risk.

 

[kings11]

Not sure if anyone has posted this before but i completely missed this...
According to a Russian poster here, there was more to the Futa/Blake/Prokhorkin conversation.. The guy states that Prokhorkin told Futa he was coming over.. we know this, however, the reason Prokhorkin has been missing playoff games is because he has refused to resign... Now this is new and could be crap, but why else would they suspend their stud LW for PO games and again he has yet to resign... I'm startig to get a little more optimistic about Prokhorkin finally coming over..

 

[Reaper45]

You take Pods at 5 if he’s there, no question. I think the Hawks take him there so this discussion may be pointless.

The draft is about talent, not risk. How many teams passed on Kopitar because he was from a country nobody heard of?

Right now the Kings are lacking talent, goal scoring and players that can play defense. The top 6 is a disaster and Pods has excellent hands at top speed with a scoring touch. We don’t have anyone with that skill set.

Kings aren’t competing anytime soon so we can afford to let him continue to play in the KHL. What we can’t afford to do is pass on talent because they won’t come over to NA right away.


Then again this is the Kings and with this Front office, wouldn’t surprise me if they screw the draft up.

The problem is the Kings need what he brings NOW, and they have to wait at minimum 2 years before they can get those skills. Not worth the wait imo.

 

[redcard]

I've got 7 years worth of poorly photoshopped Porkins pics ready to finally have their day.

 

[DryIslandBartender]

And if the player doesn't come over for 6-7 years then would you still view the draft as a success if they take Podkolzin? He may come over to the NHL but his quotes don't show any sort of urgency and if wants to wait until he has a family and wants an immediate entry to the NHL with no stops before, it could be a lot longer than a couple of years before anyone sees him.

The draft is always about risk as well. You don't riverboat gamble with a Top 5 pick. You can do that if you are in the 20's and you need big ceiling with risk.

Who knows when he comes over, Kings don’t need him right away anyhow and most of these guys in the draft won’t be seen at the nhl level for 2-3 years. I don’t see the big deal in waiting and being patient with Pods. We are going to have to do that anyway with whoever we draft.

I’m watching his games and seeing a Datsyuk/Kavalchuk dynamic in his game, less of a sniper than Kovie but has his speed and handles like Datsyuk.

We can pass that up, sure for someone that is more amicable in negotiations, doesn’t have a high ceiling but a floor of being an average NHL production.

 

[DryIslandBartender]

The problem is the Kings need what he brings NOW, and they have to wait at minimum 2 years before they can get those skills. Not worth the wait imo.

Why do the kings need him now? They aren’t competitive now. Going to be a lotto team next season.

 

[kings11]

Who knows when he comes over, Kings don’t need him right away anyhow and most of these guys in the draft won’t be seen at the nhl level for 2-3 years. I don’t see the big deal in waiting and being patient with Pods. We are going to have to do that anyway with whoever we draft.

I’m watching his games and seeing a Datsyuk/Kavalchuk dynamic in his game, less of a sniper than Kovie but has his speed and handles like Datsyuk.

We can pass that up, sure for someone that is more amicable in negotiations, doesn’t have a high ceiling but a floor of being an average NHL production.

I like Podzolkin, but i think his competition for #3 is increasing.. personally I like Turcotte and Dach better, however.... should he begin to slide and i'm guessing he will... we could make a play to trade up and acquire him benefiting from the whole Russian factor/fear/bias

 

[ScoreZeGoals]

The problem is the Kings need what he brings NOW, and they have to wait at minimum 2 years before they can get those skills. Not worth the wait imo.

I couldn't disagree more. If you are counting on some kid to come in and quickly help turn things around you are not building your team correctly. Those are dream scenarios that you don't count on. There will be no quick turnaround. Too much age, too much salary, and too few high end quality prospects. This thing is going to need to be built back up again, you take the best players available and let them develop. If Podklozin says he's determined to play in the NHL, two years is no big deal if the Kings think he's the most talented on the board at the time.

 

[AzKing]

The best thing that can happen is for teams to start getting weird at #3 and having everything slide. You are going to have people saying that Chicago are idiots if they pass on Byram at #3 or they are idiots for passing on Podkolzin at #3. I don't think that Podkolzin will fall past Colorado if he is there because they are a team that can shoot for the moon and have him stay over there if he wants. They have the youth already on the top lines so they can gamble. If Chicago takes someone like Cozens, then we are going to get either a shot at Turcotte or Byram which is what a lot of people want to see.

This shows the draft from a Chicago perspective:

NHL mock draft 2019: Predicting the first 15 picks after the lottery

 

[AzKing]

I couldn't disagree more. If you are counting on some kid to come in and quickly help turn things around you are not building your team correctly. Those are dream scenarios that you don't count on. There will be no quick turnaround. Too much age, too much salary, and too few high end quality prospects. This thing is going to need to be built back up again, you take the best players available and let them develop. If Podklozin says he's determined to play in the NHL, two years is no big deal if the Kings think he's the most talented on the board at the time.

That's the thing though, Podkolzin has not said that he is determined to play in the NHL anytime soon. He has said in that interview that he will take his time and wait until he is ready. What does that mean? Nobody knows and even if he says he will come eventually, there is absolutely no control over that. It could be 2-3 years or it could be 5-6 or even longer. I am not going to argue that he isn't a very high level talent but I just don't think that there is even a remote chance that the Kings will take a guy that they can't really do anything with. It's not about getting a guy in here who can contribute now or next year. It is about getting a guy that you have control of to some extent.

With Vilardi being in his current situation, they are in a bad spot. If he was 100% healthy and ready to go, they would have a huge chip in their arsenal already. Without that guarantee, I feel that they have to go with someone that they can at least get their hands on sooner than later and work with. That may well be Byram if he is there.

 

[Steve Zissou]

I've got 7 years worth of poorly photoshopped Porkins pics ready to finally have their day.

I'll show you mine if you show me yours.

 

[redcard]

I'll show you mine if you show me yours.

And now all the repressed memories of my 7th grade gym teacher come rushing back.

 

[No Name The Nameless]

Didn't Podz say he will wait until he has a family? If so, that sounds like a lot longer than two years . Even if the context is skewed that sounds like a guy who would have have the right mindset to make it as a young guy.

 

[riznat]

Didn't Podz say he will wait until he has a family? If so, that sounds like a lot longer than two years . Even if the context is skewed that sounds like a guy who would have have the right mindset to make it as a young guy.

What if he’s not marriage material, maybe he’s messy or bad at conversation. We could be waiting a long time.

 

[ScoreZeGoals]

That's the thing though, Podkolzin has not said that he is determined to play in the NHL anytime soon. He has said in that interview that he will take his time and wait until he is ready. What does that mean? Nobody knows and even if he says he will come eventually, there is absolutely no control over that. It could be 2-3 years or it could be 5-6 or even longer. I am not going to argue that he isn't a very high level talent but I just don't think that there is even a remote chance that the Kings will take a guy that they can't really do anything with. It's not about getting a guy in here who can contribute now or next year. It is about getting a guy that you have control of to some extent.

With Vilardi being in his current situation, they are in a bad spot. If he was 100% healthy and ready to go, they would have a huge chip in their arsenal already. Without that guarantee, I feel that they have to go with someone that they can at least get their hands on sooner than later and work with. That may well be Byram if he is there.

This will be ironed out more during the draft process and teams will have a much better idea where he stands. If he remains that noncommittal he will slide, pure and simple. I just don't buy that happening

 

[Docgonzo]

The other risk with Podkolzin is that not only does he have to want to come to the NHL, but he also has to want to come to LA. Otherwise he can just stay at home earning KHL money until he’s a free agent and then picks his team. Harder for others since other European leagues don’t have the money and Northern American kids would have to travel across the ocean to dodge a team that drafted them.

 

[riznat]

Knowing nothing insightful about the draft, I want Byram or turcotte