Pre-Game Talk: PLAYOFFS!!!!

[Eye of Ra]

What do you think the lines look like? I'm guessing:

AA - Kopi - Kempe
Moore - Clutch - Arvy
Lemieux - Lizotte - Kaliyev
Iafallo - Byfield - Brown

Spence - Roy
Durzi - Bjornfot
Moverare - Edler

Quick

Why not Grundström? He is a physical player who will fit like a glove in the playoffs with his style.

 

[King'sPawn]

Credit to Blake and TM are due, as they did make the playoffs.

I stated this was a base expectation at the start of the season, though, as it aligns very closely with Lombardi's timeline when he took over - only difference is Lombardi didn't make the playoffs his first season here. Aside from that, the previous seasons were:
Pick outside top-10 (Bernier 06, Kupari 18)
Top-5 pick (Hickey 07, Turcotte 19)
Top 2 pick (Doughty 08, Byfield 20)
Top 10 pick (Schenn 09, Clarke 21)
Playoffs

There are still legitimate concerns over organizational decisions which need to be addressed sooner rather than later. But the myopic are free to ignore that like they have all season.

 

[Bandit]

The answer is me
<---this guy

On the bright side it looks like you found Jesus. @Raccoon Jesus that is...

 

[johnjm22]

Credit to Blake and TM are due, as they did make the playoffs.

I stated this was a base expectation at the start of the season, though, as it aligns very closely with Lombardi's timeline when he took over - only difference is Lombardi didn't make the playoffs his first season here. Aside from that, the previous seasons were:
Pick outside top-10 (Bernier 06, Kupari 18)
Top-5 pick (Hickey 07, Turcotte 19)
Top 2 pick (Doughty 08, Byfield 20)
Top 10 pick (Schenn 09, Clarke 21)
Playoffs

There are still legitimate concerns over organizational decisions which need to be addressed sooner rather than later. But the myopic are free to ignore that like they have all season.

I don't really think the situation is comparable at all.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Why not Grundström? He is a physical player who will fit like a glove in the playoffs with his style.

I don't think they'd change the lines form what's worked at this point, which is Grundstrom beside Byfield and Kaliyev. Lemieux is awesome when he's on but he's been rough since his return from injury.

 

[21Dog]

Why do I feel the need to start buying Jameson

I've been fully stocked since the week of the Ram-49er playoff game.

 

[21Dog]

My thing with TM is this. Really likeable guy, I get the sense he truly cares, not just about his job but for the players and the org and their success. I think he's an excellent behind-the-scenes coach and it's clear his system works, at least for the regular season. He's got the guys bought in and as tenacious as they've ever been while fighting through more adversity than ever before.

I think he's a godawful game day coach, borderline Willie D, with his matchups and icetime deployment and lack of adjustments and there is PLENTY of history there even pre-LA that agrees with that opinion.

As such he's an above-average NHL coach and it's clear to see why he gets whomped in the playoffs repeatedly. He'll be the guy to take us to the verge, but not all the way. I'd love to be wrong but a guy who gets out-line-matched at home doesn't inspire confidence of change.

Of course, in the meantime, I'm rooting for him and the team, and I'd love nothing more than to be wrong and for him to grow into a GREAT coach by figuring out that the game plan/lines are actually adjustable on the bench and to the situation. He just seems too stubborn, as if making adjustments is playing the opponents game rather than our game.

Getting a Dusty Baker vibe here.

 

[BringTheReign]

I'm thinking we see the bottom six as is with the exception of swapping Lemieux for Grundstrom. I'd honestly prefer to keep Grundstrom in, but Lemieux is kind of necessary in my mind. I'd also like to see Spence over Maatta, but if Maata is healthy I'm guessing we see him on the left side. It then gets tricky as we either play someone on their offside or Spence sits.

AA - Kopi - Kempe
Moore - Danault - Arvidsson
Iafallo - Lizotte - Brown
Kaliyev - Byfield - Lemieux
*Grundstrom

Maatta - Roy
Bjornfot - Durzi
Edler - Spence
*Moverare, Stetcher

Quick
Petersen

 

[Sol]

Oh god the non-stop undulating by Throat Inc. in this thread never ceases to amaze me. I could take the bait and explain it but Im going to pull off the signature move of the found of Throat Inc. and never justify my position.

Back to the important topic, I like the idea of Hollywood + California Reffing. Maybe having the boys in black and white stripes with a sprinkle of hollywood magic would be the perfect playoff avatars.

Kind of crazy to think the Kings get favorable reffing when the game against the Oilers they were getting the most questionable powerplays.

 

[Schmooley]

Oh god the non-stop undulating by Throat Inc. in this thread never ceases to amaze me. I could take the bait and explain it but Im going to pull off the signature move of the found of Throat Inc. and never justify my position.

Back to the important topic, I like the idea of Hollywood + California Reffing. Maybe having the boys in black and white stripes with a sprinkle of hollywood magic would be the perfect playoff avatars.

Kind of crazy to think the Kings get favorable reffing when the game against the Oilers they were getting the most questionable powerplays.

Oiler fans already calling out the refs before the series starts. I see some stuff about Kopitar and the Kings getting away with clutch and grab hockey. They dont really know the Kings are not that kind of team.

 

[Lt Dan]

My thing with TM is this. Really likeable guy, I get the sense he truly cares, not just about his job but for the players and the org and their success. I think he's an excellent behind-the-scenes coach and it's clear his system works, at least for the regular season. He's got the guys bought in and as tenacious as they've ever been while fighting through more adversity than ever before.

I think he's a godawful game day coach, borderline Willie D, with his matchups and icetime deployment and lack of adjustments and there is PLENTY of history there even pre-LA that agrees with that opinion.

As such he's an above-average NHL coach and it's clear to see why he gets whomped in the playoffs repeatedly. He'll be the guy to take us to the verge, but not all the way. I'd love to be wrong but a guy who gets out-line-matched at home doesn't inspire confidence of change.

Of course, in the meantime, I'm rooting for him and the team, and I'd love nothing more than to be wrong and for him to grow into a GREAT coach by figuring out that the game plan/lines are actually adjustable on the bench and to the situation. He just seems too stubborn, as if making adjustments is playing the opponents game rather than our game.

ok so it is really hard to multi quote

Getting a Dusty Baker vibe here.

Oh there it is. Because of 21Dog's post , I went and looked up TMAC's playoff record. I have to admit, that it was better than I thought

 

[KingsFan7824]

Make the moves Blake made over the summer, and being in the mix for a spot is a minimum. With how they got here, and with the way the roster is, this is an enjoying the playoffs type year.

This isn't 2016, where it was an all-in dud. This isn't 2018, where half the roster is still from 2014, and you get embarrassed by a crazy expansion team. It's not even an ok, let's see what the young guys have, because they haven't been in the front seat all year. If they lose every game 5-1, yeah, that'll suck, but this is the first post-Cup and post-run of bottom 5 finishes season.

It's not exactly holding onto the past, bit it's also not embracing the future. It's a weird little in between season, but they only get this one shot at it. Right now, win 1 game, win 6 games, it's a feel good story either way. There's no sitting in the same spot on the couch superstition. That's not these playoffs. Sit back, take in the atmosphere, see how far they go, enjoy it for what it is, and next year is more serious.

Unless of course they make some hardcore Cinderella run. With Iafallo as the leading candidate for the Conn Smythe. Mental images of Kopitar giving the Cup to Brown first. Doughty coming down from the rafters to play Game 6 against Toronto. Vilardi scoring on the PP on a pass from Tkachev in Game 7. Just weird stuff like that.

 

[KINGS17]

I think the Kings have a shot against Edmonton in the 1st round, but if they get past the Oilers, I don't expect this to be a favorable matchup for them in the next round:

VS

 

[BigKing]

Credit to Blake and TM are due, as they did make the playoffs.

I stated this was a base expectation at the start of the season, though, as it aligns very closely with Lombardi's timeline when he took over - only difference is Lombardi didn't make the playoffs his first season here. Aside from that, the previous seasons were:
Pick outside top-10 (Bernier 06, Kupari 18)
Top-5 pick (Hickey 07, Turcotte 19)
Top 2 pick (Doughty 08, Byfield 20)
Top 10 pick (Schenn 09, Clarke 21)
Playoffs

There are still legitimate concerns over organizational decisions which need to be addressed sooner rather than later. But the myopic are free to ignore that like they have all season.

Except that Blake picked at #11 in his first draft so Vilardi is his Bernier draft. Blake has had five drafts to get to this point versus four.

Now, each made the playoffs in four years from the start of the rebuild with the difference being Year 1 of Blake's rebuild was not supposed to be a rebuild.

As for the team and what they accomplished this year, it is pretty impressive that they are here without Doughty. I said the season was over when he got injured the first time. Kudos to them for scraping these points together. 10 loser points is pretty impressive when your goal differential is only +2 on the season. You can kind of compare them to the 2010 team (Lombardi's first playoff team) with that team getting nine loser points but I also feel like they won a lot of shootouts that season with Stoll being unstoppable.

That team made it interesting in Round 1 but ultimately got bounced in six games. That seems like a realistic outcome to this series as well. Regardless, you'd like to leave this series like we did in 2010 when the young future of the team--sans Handzus--were the leading scorers. Playoff Jack Johnson!!! If they lose this series but we see the Byfield from the past two games along with Spence, Kaliyev etc. showing well then I'm at full mast for next season pending what Bowlby does this offseason.

Speaking of Bowlby, I liked all of the acquisitions this past offseason and--even as a noted Blake "hater"--said as much when they happened. It's not a shock to be in the playoffs when adding two legit forwards but it is very surprising when it happens with this defense, a kind of goalie carousel and Trevor Moore turning in to a stud while the vaunted forward prospects, outside of Kaliyev, have mostly done nothing.

Let's not start jerking each other off just yet, however. Let's hope this is an enjoyable playoffs unlike the past two trips but there is a lot of work to be done this off-season. Hoping we get enough playoff games here to help Blake make an even more informed decision on what is necessary to push this team to another level.

 

[MBH]

If Montreal can Danault to the finals, the Kings can.
The odds are stacked against them, obviously.
And the PP needs to start working.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I think the Kings have a shot against Edmonton in the 1st round, but if they get past the Oilers, I don't expect this to be a favorable matchup for them in the next round:

VS

Sutter > TM, but I don't think the Flames outgun us that much. They're a one line team.

 

[cyclones22]

I really hope that the Kings keep Chris Hajt and Craig Johnson warm...it would suck to lose those guys to NHL coaching positions in other organizations and watch them be successful. Not every head coach hire has to be a retread or "name".

 

[Peter James Bond II]

Make the moves Blake made over the summer, and being in the mix for a spot is a minimum. With how they got here, and with the way the roster is, this is an enjoying the playoffs type year.

This isn't 2016, where it was an all-in dud. This isn't 2018, where half the roster is still from 2014, and you get embarrassed by a crazy expansion team. It's not even an ok, let's see what the young guys have, because they haven't been in the front seat all year. If they lose every game 5-1, yeah, that'll suck, but this is the first post-Cup and post-run of bottom 5 finishes season.

It's not exactly holding onto the past, bit it's also not embracing the future. It's a weird little in between season, but they only get this one shot at it. Right now, win 1 game, win 6 games, it's a feel good story either way. There's no sitting in the same spot on the couch superstition. That's not these playoffs. Sit back, take in the atmosphere, see how far they go, enjoy it for what it is, and next year is more serious.

Unless of course they make some hardcore Cinderella run. With Iafallo as the leading candidate for the Conn Smythe. Mental images of Kopitar giving the Cup to Brown first. Doughty coming down from the rafters to play Game 6 against Toronto. Vilardi scoring on the PP on a pass from Tkachev in Game 7. Just weird stuff like that.

Love it and all so true.
More weirdness: Chromiak and Clarke join the Black Aces in round 2. AND: Danault does staredown 2.0 with McDavid; but McDavid flinches and looks away.
(does anyone have staredown 1.0 with Loserdeau?) please post.

 

[tny760]

kinda stayed out of this lately and i'm just verbally vomiting here, but i was surprised by how many predictions on the main board have this series going 6 or have the kings making it out

i just kinda have it in my head that we're getting swept out barring a JQ miracle and quite frankly i don't have a problem with that.. kids are gonna get to see what playoff hockey looks like then the heavy lifting starts. team's gonna be healthy, a bit more direction and understanding

not gonna actively root against the team obviously, and i'm happy they're getting the experience.. but that's a hell of a mountain to climb. maybe the feast/famine style doesn't work for the oilers in a playoff series? maybe mike smith can't lead them to the promised land. i don't know. stay out of the box.

 

[Sol]

Hopefully we can be led to the light by our excellent coaching staff. Our Jack Adams Coach of the Galaxy should be able to sweep these LOilers in 3. Lets go.

 

[Sol]

kinda stayed out of this lately and i'm just verbally vomiting here, but i was surprised by how many predictions on the main board have this series going 6 or have the kings making it out

i just kinda have it in my head that we're getting swept out barring a JQ miracle and quite frankly i don't have a problem with that.. kids are gonna get to see what playoff hockey looks like then the heavy lifting starts. team's gonna be healthy, a bit more direction and understanding

not gonna actively root against the team obviously, and i'm happy they're getting the experience.. but that's a hell of a mountain to climb. maybe the feast/famine style doesn't work for the oilers in a playoff series? maybe mike smith can't lead them to the promised land. i don't know. stay out of the box.

Not really surprising when you consider the fact that the oilers are playoff chokers.

 

[shuchukfan]

stay out of the box.

I think that will be the key to winning the series.

 

[Buddy The Elf]

kinda stayed out of this lately and i'm just verbally vomiting here, but i was surprised by how many predictions on the main board have this series going 6 or have the kings making it out

i just kinda have it in my head that we're getting swept out barring a JQ miracle and quite frankly i don't have a problem with that.. kids are gonna get to see what playoff hockey looks like then the heavy lifting starts. team's gonna be healthy, a bit more direction and understanding

not gonna actively root against the team obviously, and i'm happy they're getting the experience.. but that's a hell of a mountain to climb. maybe the feast/famine style doesn't work for the oilers in a playoff series? maybe mike smith can't lead them to the promised land. i don't know. stay out of the box.

Edmonton has all the pressure in the world on them. Think about Vancouver in 2012. I think some Kings fans thought the Kings had a chance in 2012 because they played well against Vancouver and almost beat them in 2011 (I think). This is a similar situation. You have a Canadian team with high expectations from the fans and media. They have everything to lose and the Kings have everything to gain. The Kings could easily get smoked but I won't be surprised regardless of what happens.

 

[Little Psycho]

I think the Kings have a shot against Edmonton in the 1st round, but if they get past the Oilers, I don't expect this to be a favorable matchup for them in the next round:

VS

If they win the first round I'd consider that winning the cup. Just winning the first round will be enough for me.

 

[Peter James Bond II]

If Darnell Nurse is out...or not 100%, that will help.