The Future Is Bright.

[northernKing]

2015-16?

Brown-Kopitar-Toffoli
Pearson-Richards-Carter
King-Vey-Lewis
Clifford-Shore-Nolan
Andreoff

Basically Williams replaced by Toffoli
Penner replaced by Pearson
Stoll replaced by Vey
Fraser replaced by Shore
Richardson replaced by Andreoff

Only hard part is that guys like Penner are stepping up in the playoffs every time and a guy like Richardson just seems like the ultimate utility guy and teammate but just paid a tad too much for the upcoming cap drop. If not for the cap drop would love to see Richardson return next yr

 

[bmr]

Richardson's not a bad player, but for his caphit i'd rather give one of the young guys a chance. I'm still on the fence with Penner. If he would take 2.x million i'd resign him for sure. I think Stoll is a bit overpaid at this point, but he still brings good things to the table.

The biggest thing with Penner is he can be a beast when he wants to be. He is such a huge guy and hard to knock off the puck.

I think you may see the Kings make a trade next year if Toffoli/Vey/Pearson work out with the big club.

 

[Fishhead]

I was hopeful when DL was hired, and then he started talking about slots, roles, "the right fit", and reserve lists, and all kinds of other crap that I hadn't thought about before. It sounded kind of simple and made sense, but I was really skeptical at the time. If it was that easy, why the hell doesn't every GM do it?

What he has done to position this team now, and in the future, is absolutely amazing. One of the best GM's in the league, bar none.

 

[Axl Rhoadz]

I was hopeful when DL was hired, and then he started talking about slots, roles, "the right fit", and reserve lists, and all kinds of other crap that I hadn't thought about before. It sounded kind of simple and made sense, but I was really skeptical at the time. If it was that easy, why the hell doesn't every GM do it?

HAHA, because it takes 5-7 years to come to fruition! Not many organizations have that kind of patience.

 

[bmr]

HAHA, because it takes 5-7 years to come to fruition! Not many organizations have that kind of patience.

Very good point. Most people want instant gratification and don't have the wisdom to see beyond that. The Kings were like this for many years. In order to succeed, the team must grow through disappointments and growth.

I think a lot of teams have such pressure from their market segments that they take a lot of risks in order to be successful. Philadelphia is going through that process right now.

We got very lucky that everything came together at the right now. Adding Richards/Carter, the growth of Voynov and Quick's playoff performances have turned this team into a perennial contender. I feel privileged to be able to be a Kings fan right now.

 

[MynameisKing]

Patience is a virtue that few organizations have! You'll see alot of them trying to take shortcuts and gamble. Most lose.

 

[etherialone]

I agree, I think the fact, for now, esp in the playoffs, he's being slotted in a position where he's not facing top competition is good for him and gives him a chance to shine in a more comfortable area.
Hard to take your eyes off him last night, he looked very comfortable playing in all 3 zones. He's a shooter and I think he'd be a good fit with Kopi, and maybe move Brown down to the 2nd line next year. Having 2 shooters on the 2nd line wouldn't be as balanced .But the kid is clearly a top 6 player and you can see that in his play and decision making.





Thanks for the summary, and with Deano getting what? 10 more this year in the draft? Stocking that farm system and keeping it rich.

I am looking forward to Pearson maybe making the team next year on LW, he's clearly on that path. A friend of mine who does fantasy hockey asked meabout him because he knows I am a Kings fan. he said (and I don't know fantasy hockey so I wasn't familiar with the name/site) Dobbler hockey or someone who posts articles there had a nice piece on Pearson and how he's rising fast.

Anyway, I liked your overview
Kings are lucky you don't have HOmer...took many bad decisons and valuable picks traded away for too many years and now a thin farm system that needs to be restocked.

I couldn't agree more though it is sad to watch such a storied franchise like the Flyers have to suffer through these hard times. Still a very good team and who knows, if they can give a little time to this group of players maybe they can get back on track but when you consider how close they were with MR and JC in the line up it sure doesn't look too good.


I didn't even touch the next wave group of kids or the outsiders who have real shots like Kitsyn and Porkins or any of the other kids. We are truly deep and set for the next 5 years today. After this years draft in another 4 to 6 years we will be looking ready to keep the machine running for even longer.

DL has done an amazing job.

 

[tsanuri]

2014-15?

Brown-Kopitar-Toffoli
Pearson-Richards-Carter
King-Vey-Lewis
Clifford-Shore-Nolan
Andreoff

Basically Williams replaced by Toffoli
Penner replaced by Pearson
Stoll replaced by Vey
Fraser replaced by Shore
Richardson replaced by Andreoff

Only hard part is that guys like Penner are stepping up in the playoffs every time and a guy like Richardson just seems like the ultimate utility guy and teammate but just paid a tad too much for the upcoming cap drop. If not for the cap drop would love to see Richardson return next yr

Both Stoll and Williams are signed through 2015. So unless we plan on trading them both before that season nope.

 

[cyclones22]

I just rewatched the replay and TT was skating like his hair was on fire. It was ridiculous how good he looked in that 3rd period. It's no wonder he's being almost universally praised on all networks about his play last night. He did everything well. Backcheck, pass, shoot and backed off or blew by the defense several times.

 

[northernKing]

Both Stoll and Williams are signed through 2015. So unless we plan on trading them both before that season nope.

Sorry meant 2015-16

 

[dogyekcoh*]

Man! The more I see Toffoli plays the more I like this kid. Besides his hockey IQ and offensive skills he can also plays a nice defensive game. I really like his stick works and positioning in our zone defensively.

 

[Whiskeypete]

might as well add and begin to talk about Pearson in here as well now. i tried focusing on him all the time when he was out there. at times it was difficult due to his TOI being short and very random (for obvious reasons).

the two things that stood out to me was

1- he needs to keep his feet moving. it may have been the circumstances, but he was cruising quite a bit and coasting. it may have been due to, "i can't believe i am in a NHL playoff game. hey that's Joe Thornton over there." he was just slightly behind a step on a few situations due to it. otherwise known as the 'speed' of the game being faster. not worried about this because it's an adaptation and not a skill issue.

2- he didn't shy away from sticking his nose in anyplace. i didn't see him playing off, playing soft or giving guys space due to being a rookie.

overall i thought he did a good job. for the stage he was playing on to keep his composure and not commit any mistakes was a win. he went largely unnoticed which for a rookie is a good thing, because it means he didn't F up.

 

[Sydor25]

Pearson had a great pass to Fraser in the slot. Kid has skills.

Fraser just fumbled the puck and didn't get a shot.

 

[KingKopitar11*]

King probably won't be here next season or the one after. We have much better choices coming up.

 

[KBA4life]

King probably won't be here next season or the one after. We have much better choices coming up.

We can all hope!

 

[Reclamation Project]

We can all hope!

 

[Rorschach]

i think he has looked better on the 4th line, than he did skating with MR and Carts. he seemed to worried about staying out of their way, or setting them up. now he is just out there playing his game and making things happen. his overall play is better, his aggressiveness has improved and his positioning.

i am not saying this is where he belongs, but his slotting into the fourth line has been a benefit for him

He's a mismatch on the 4th line.

 

[Papa Mocha 15]

Man! The more I see Toffoli plays the more I like this kid. Besides his hockey IQ and offensive skills he can also plays a nice defensive game. I really like his stick works and positioning in our zone defensively.

I liked this one last night.

 

[spintheblackcircle]

Vey (I am happy to see him silence his critics. For my money though the play different positions and provide different contributions he is equal to or even better than Toffoli. Vey is becoming the player I was accused of over hyping when he was drafted. Gonna be a good one).

Been a Vey fan since juniors. Is the general perception that he will be with the big club next year, or are there still questions out there plus the quality in LA will make it hard to be in LA next year?

 

[Whiskeypete]

He's a mismatch on the 4th line.

it isn't or wasn't a matter of a mismatch situation entirely. it came down to the kid just playing HIS game. on the #4 he doesn't have to worry about playing off and reacting to two linemates that have years of chemistry. he doesn't have to worry about the pressure of playing on the #2 and the expectations that holds.

on the #4 at this point he can play a simplified N-S game and adjust to the NHL game. the kid is a shooter and playing with MR and Carts it was evident he was struggling with what to do at times in the O zone. Carts is the shooter on that line right now, plain and simple. TT often times was in no man's land and indecisive, because he wasn't sure if he should be setting up as a shooter or on the walls to cycle the puck and as a setup man. to often he would be hip to hip, or near MR or JC. that is lack of chemistry and understanding of their games, but it shows his mind is thinking the same as theirs.

TT will end up on the #1 or #2 line, but the kid needs some time to develop chemistry with linemates so they aren't skating in each others pocket. right now he doesn't know where those guys (MR and JC) are going to go and it shows.

down on the #4 there is no mistaking he is the shooter. he will be the one moving into the shooting lanes, while Fraser - Nolan - Richardson - etc dish him the puck. it simplifies the game for him, while yes taking advantage of some mismatch opportunities.

 

[agentfouser]

it isn't or wasn't a matter of a mismatch situation entirely. it came down to the kid just playing HIS game. on the #4 he doesn't have to worry about playing off and reacting to two linemates that have years of chemistry. he doesn't have to worry about the pressure of playing on the #2 and the expectations that holds.

on the #4 at this point he can play a simplified N-S game and adjust to the NHL game. the kid is a shooter and playing with MR and Carts it was evident he was struggling with what to do at times in the O zone. Carts is the shooter on that line right now, plain and simple. TT often times was in no man's land and indecisive, because he wasn't sure if he should be setting up as a shooter or on the walls to cycle the puck and as a setup man. to often he would be hip to hip, or near MR or JC. that is lack of chemistry and understanding of their games, but it shows his mind is thinking the same as theirs.

TT will end up on the #1 or #2 line, but the kid needs some time to develop chemistry with linemates so they aren't skating in each others pocket. right now he doesn't know where those guys (MR and JC) are going to go and it shows.

down on the #4 there is no mistaking he is the shooter. he will be the one moving into the shooting lanes, while Fraser - Nolan - Richardson - etc dish him the puck. it simplifies the game for him, while yes taking advantage of some mismatch opportunities.

Playing on the fourth line also keeps him away from the other teams' top players, and probably gets him many fewer defensive zone starts. It can be important for young players to be a bit sheltered in their early career, so they don't hurt the team by being put into the toughest situations.

 

[etherialone]

Been a Vey fan since juniors. Is the general perception that he will be with the big club next year, or are there still questions out there plus the quality in LA will make it hard to be in LA next year?

Me too.

The problem that we have today with bringing Vey up or so I am told is that we aren't able to make space for him. He is ready. Evans said recently that Vey could easily make the team if we can find a spot.

He can't play LW (much in the same way that Toffoli and Loktionov couldn't) and that is our only real area of need.

Depending on Stoll being back which I completely believe he will then it would mean that we have to put Vey on the fourth line. We would have to move a player to make room for him but it could happen. I just don't see us bringing him in to play a shut down role when it isn't really his strong suit.

So after all that I have to say that for the most part nobody really knows how we are going to work LV into the line up next season but we do know or believe that he is ready.

Can't wait to see him get there.

If our botom 6 was

Pearson/Vey/Tofolli

Clifford/Nolan/Lewis

I think we would be an even more difficult team to play.

 

[Vino]

Am I only one, who is worries, that we don't have any young, tough, right shooting customers in our system?

Toffoli is a really good top 6 -prospect and I'd like Pearson, but a succesfull team needs also some size and grit. I really hope, that when we trade Jonathan Bernier, we get back player like young Wayne Simmonds. Or a big shutdown center, who can play against other teams top centers. Colin Fraser is a ultimate heart'n'soul player, but he is just too small.

All our big dman-prospects shoots left, so who will replace Matt Greene when he's gone?

 

[etherialone]

Am I only one, who is worries, that we don't have any young, tough, right shooting customers in our system?

Toffoli is a really good top 6 -prospect and I'd like Pearson, but a succesfull team needs also some size and grit. I really hope, that when we trade Jonathan Bernier, we get back player like young Wayne Simmonds. Or a big shutdown center, who can play against other teams top centers. Colin Fraser is a ultimate heart'n'soul player, but he is just too small.

All our big dman-prospects shoots left, so who will replace Matt Greene when he's gone?

We have Andy Andreoff and we have Mersch too. Both play big hitting/scoring games.

If you are looking for a guy to play MG's spot when he goes we have Gravel who could slip right into that role but be faster and younger and Forbort who has turned his focus to being as good of a shut down dman that he can be.

We also have Roach who puts up points but is better suited to being a mobile SAH down the road.

Our next tough dman will be Deslauriers.


So up front we have Porkins Mearsh Andreoff and even Shore to some extent and on the blue line we have Gravel, Forbort Deslauriers and Roach with Miller down the road.

I left Kozun out because while he can play with a great amount of edge and has very solid hands he has yet to get a sniff from the big club so I will wait until we at least show some interest.

We will work around the right handed shot part by either moving someone or really the guys we have who fill those spots now are young enough to where we should be alright for awhile longer.

 

[kinghock]

Me too.

The problem that we have today with bringing Vey up or so I am told is that we aren't able to make space for him. He is ready. Evans said recently that Vey could easily make the team if we can find a spot.

He can't play LW (much in the same way that Toffoli and Loktionov couldn't) and that is our only real area of need.

Depending on Stoll being back which I completely believe he will then it would mean that we have to put Vey on the fourth line. We would have to move a player to make room for him but it could happen. I just don't see us bringing him in to play a shut down role when it isn't really his strong suit.

So after all that I have to say that for the most part nobody really knows how we are going to work LV into the line up next season but we do know or believe that he is ready.

Can't wait to see him get there.

If our botom 6 was

Pearson/Vey/Tofolli

Clifford/Nolan/Lewis

I think we would be an even more difficult team to play.

Stoll can be traded in this scenario?