So many of you are out with pitchforks after the team gave up 9 goals in a game, and I get that, but it's one game. It's always the same arguments, fire the coach/GM, trade the vets, play the kids.
Looking at the season as a whole, the Kings are currently 7th in the conference in point percentage, which puts them squarely in playoff position and contention. They're 7th in the league in goals. 7th in the league in power play goals. Several young players are contributing, with Vilardi and Kaliyev being the breakout stars this season.
On the minus side, the Kings are giving up a lot of goals. A LOT. 3rd worst in the league in goals against.
From reading this board for years, it's apparent that many of you think Blake has no idea what he's doing. Rebuilding, but only half way, messing up development, etc. I'm just gonna put this out there, but I think this season is the culmination of years of planning by Blake. It's obvious this is not the same Kings team from 5 years ago. The overall philosophy is completely different. I think Blake saw the changes happening in the league and moved to transform the team for the new NHL. What you have is a high skill team playing a much more entertaining, but riskier, brand of hockey than in years past. No lead is safe with this team, no matter which team is in the lead. Play fast, more risk, more scoring. I'm here for it.
The plan has a major flaw. Blake hoped he could transition to this new brand of hockey but keep the goals against down. The problem is that goaltending has been abysmal all season. We can pick on Petersen, and he deserves it, but Quick has also been bad. Petersen has been especially poor for penalty kills. The Kings are tied for 2nd worst in the league in goal differential on penalty kills. The cliché "your goaltender is your most important penalty killer" is true, and it's showing. In addition, the Kings weird penalty kill system is not working. Opponents are finding weaknesses in this 1-1-2 setup and exploiting it.
These are isolated issues that can be fixed. Blake has taken the first step of putting Petersen on waivers. It's obvious there's no confidence in Cal, but Quick is not the answer either. It's hard to find a good goalie at any time, even harder 25 games in. Your options are primarily career back ups that you hope can catch fire. No one is going to trade the Kings a #1 goaltender, especially this far from the trade deadline. Blake is going to have to earn his paycheck with this issue.
The other issue is the risky plays and giveaways. It's like everyone wants to play like Sean Durzi now. Cross ice passes or right through the middle on breakouts, turning the puck over in the neutral zone, outnumbered attacks, or getting overpowered in your own zone. It's pretty loose out there. This is harder to fix now that the Kings are a third of the way into the season. This is where Todd McLellan has to earn his paycheck. Trying to convince Vilardi or Durzi to make safer plays is just not an overnight process. Durzi, Lizotte, Kupari, and Walker are not going to get stronger on the puck overnight.
I don't blame anyone for some righteous anger about the last game. I just think this is what the Kings are by design.
