Could It Be? Is It True?

Wayne Gretzky back in Los Angeles?

(AP)

Not a far fetched headline considering that's the word on the preseason street. Los Angeles Kings GM Dean Lombardi was on Fan 590 today and mentioned something about interest in getting Gretzky back to LA. I'm sure it's been talked about for years, but this mention may mean something could happen in the near future. We shall see!

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Landed In The Hockey News!

The current September 7th issue of The Hockey News has a preview of all 30 teams in the NHL written by Adam Proteau that includes a short statement by bloggers of each team. I was asked to write about how the Kings will fare for this new season and I graciously accepted. My only restriction was to keep it under 50 words, which was a bit stifling but I managed to power out something I hope all Kings fans can stand behind.



Here is a screen shot of the digital issue. I'm located on the top half of page 33 next to a great picture of Drew Doughty. Just in case you can't read it, it says:

Underrated Kings GM Dean Lombardi has continued to quietly build a contender with (almost) nobody watching. This young team will play with drama-filled, Boys on the Bus exuberance worthy of a reality TV show.

A few words were snipped out of what I wrote, but it doesn't affect the overall message, which is that this team will make other markets aware of its presence by continuing on the path set out by Lombardi years prior. For Kings fans, there shouldn't be any surprises in the team's potential output considering the additions and subtractions made this summer.

Thanks to Earl Sleek for the mention as he was chosen to write on the Anaheim Ducks. Congrats to fellow HLOGers Elise from 18,568 Reasons Why... and Bethany from Bethany's Hockey Rants. And congrats to all the other bloggers who were asked for thoughts on their respective teams.

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Hockey Fest 2009: Part II - Staying On Target

The final day of Hockey Fest 09 proved that the Los Angeles Kings remain on the path Dean Lombardi set out since he arrived on the scene, which was to strip down the roster and organization and build it back up by getting to the draft table. Since then the Kings have had more picks than I can remember (273?) and have built a franchise full of young potential studs.

From the weekend festivities I felt the main message for fans to take with them was that the Kings are still moving in the same direction toward the same goal. The management team hasn’t deviated from its original end goal and there’s no reason to think it might happen this year. If anything, the fruits of this plan should be showing itself with more goals from the forwards, continued solid defensive support, reliable goaltending, and an elevated consistency across the board. The team has been working towards this ideal, and I think they will finally make something of their potential this season. This doesn’t mean it will happen automatically; the steps to the finish line will be siphoning more blood and sweat from the players with rabid fans looking on.

Day 3 of Hockey Fest had three panels with the first consisting of current management. Dean Lombardi, Ron Hextall, and Terry Murray expressed the commitment of further improvements from the roster. As I said in my first recap, no one reinvented the wheel this past weekend; everything has been said before and other things seemed more common sense than anything else. For example, Lombardi stated that the Kings did not market Drew Doughty like the Tampa Bay Lightening did with Steven Stamkos. They let him come in and earn the respect of his teammates. Essentially if Doughty did not live up to any marketing hype, "the veterans would resent him."

Any sort of resentment would not have been the product of unsuccessful marketing; rather, the resentment would have stemmed from the expectations of an 18-year-old kid leading this team into the playoffs. Lombardi also mentioned Doughty has been rounding out his nutrition and shedding his baby fat and was now developing into an athlete with more upside than one with minimal bodyfat coming in. This obviously has been a topic that has generated enough attention since the summer before he was drafted, which is why I made sure to ask Doughty about what steps he had been taking in regards to his nutrition.

Lombardi fielded a question specifically about Dany Heatley from the audience and I’m glad this shut down any of those still thinking his coming here was a possibility. Right after the question was asked, Lombardi spoke about two things:

1. The most important things for the team are for Anze Kopitar to step up his game and for Doughty and Jonathan Quick to keep progressing.
2. The second is to look at San Jose’s progression; they have improved six years in a row with the average age dropping each year. The Kings are on the path to now be able to find players who can be added to fit specifically into the system. He would "like this group to reach its potential before looking outside of the club." It would be too risky of a move to take a chance on Heatley right now while the core is still forming. Basically, he doesn’t want to guess if he doesn’t have to.

If anyone is surprised by this, you should go back and read everything Lombardi has preached since he’s arrived. He wants to be sure that any big move the Kings make takes "the team to the top." Getting Heatley could potentially do more harm than good, which would move the team backwards effectively stunting its growth. If he ends up a bust, he’ll add a negativity to the forming core while taking up the most dollars on the salary cap, which I’m sure no one else would want to deal with. The improvement of Kopitar is the key to this team making a jump. Lombardi emphatically said to look to Kopi for "that dynamic goal"and that "great things start to happen off the fundamentals of the game."

Preaching to the choir.

DL also addressed Teddy Purcell's roster spot saying that college players have no clue how to play in tight corners and that "he's not going to play unless he pays the price."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It's no surprise that the ex-goalie of the management group is the one to take goalie-related questions, right? Of course!

During the Q&A, Hextall said he considered Quick to be the number one goalie with Erik Ersberg as the backup, and Jonathan Bernier would be best served going back to the Manchester Monarchs. I'm sure the knowledge of Bernier's impatience of getting to Los Angeles isn't foreign, so I won't feel too badly in completely agreeing with Hextall. Bernier's cocky confidence is felt 3,000 miles away and I'm in the mood to keep him at arm's length from the roster. The unknown for Hextall is definitely Ersberg. He's a solid goalie but isn't sure if he has the physical ability to play 60-65 games a season due to his size. To add to the bottom line, Hextall stated that there were no plans to move Ersberg. That being the case, anything can happen during the season. It appears the goalie situation hasn't deviated from the end of last season up until now, which makes me a whole lot more comfortable than this time last year.

I got a rare insight into Quick from Dustin Brown that I'm sure the everyday fan is unaware of; the fact that he has a cocky attitude both on and off the ice. You'd never know it from watching the way he plays, but Brownie spoke very highly of him when we lobbed a few questions his way. Of Quick: "He's cocky in a way that you actually like him," and he ended that by saying, "You can have an average team in front of you. If you're a good goalie, you have a good team."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Terry Murray said what Terry Murray usually says; the Kings don't want to lose sight of last year and will focus on getting more pucks IN the net starting at training camp. He would like the team to be an aggressive forechecking team, which I am completely on board with. He also mentioned that his lines were already down on paper so he'll have set lines to try out at training camp. The definite lines he said out loud were the first line (Ryan Smyth - Anze Kopitar - Justin Williams) and the first two defensive pairings (1 - Drew Doughty - Sean O'Donnell; 2 - Rob Scuderi - Jack Johnson). The only line up in the air for TM is the 4th line. Who could it be?

Raitis Ivanans - John Zeiler - Peter Harrold? (Whoa... I just threw up in my mouth a bit.)

Other than this little tidbit, there weren't any earth-shattering bits of insight. But one thing I asked specifically was if he had a surprise rookie forward in mind who could make a statement out of training camp. He responded by saying he wasn't 100% sure on anyone but that Richard Clune might make a name for himself. Regarding the playoffs, he said if they didn't make the top 8 spots in the West, it wouldn't be a huge disappointment but that they had to show improvement. This was a bit different than what Lombardi said earlierabout the playoffs. If the Kings didn't make it, according to DL, it "would not be a major disaster but would be a major disappointment."

I honestly can't disagree with anything said during the weekend. Everything was inline with how the Kings are being built up and, in the end, I'm happy with how everything went. The venue was very nice, clean, and sent the message that the Kings were continuing to move forward in the players' development. From the fan perspective I was pretty pleased at how everything was presented although the area could have used a bit more signage on the exterior to showcase what was going on and where to go. The heat was killer but that didn't stop the street hockey tournament even on the black asphalt. Much thanks to the Kings for providing this opportunity

Make sure to check out all the news on the event on KingsCast, Frozen Royalty, The Examiner, and the Press Box Perspective!

Next stop: the playoffs! (...or not...)

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Kings World Podcast - Ep 1.34

It's that time of the summer when there just isn't anything to get excited over. To combat this "sheer excitement," Marie and I got together to record something semi-interesting about the Kings. There have been some movement and additions by Dean Lombardi, but nothing too earth shattering.

We discuss the trades and signings as well as who the Kings picked in the 2009 NHL Draft. Marie isn’t as confident as I am that the Kings will make the playoffs, but there is always a chance the Kings can actually pull something out of their behinds. Of course, everyone looks forward to Frozen Fury coming to you this year on September 26. Also, you will be able to hear Marie’s exciting Chicago story, which blows Patrick Kane’s out of the water!

We welcome any and all feedback! Please direct any questions, comments, or thoughts to kingsworldpodcast[at]gmail[dot]com.

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Dean Lombardi Is A Genius

I hate double posting, but I can't wait for this one. Jack Johnson was signed to a two-year deal earlier today. The cap hit will be $1.425 for the two years.

Dean Lombardi, I bow down to you.

(Further analysis to come after Teddy Purcell is re-signed.)

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Asshole Coming Through

Well, Lombardi finally made a splash tonight after a very quiet Free Agency opening day with many GMs out of their minds signing players to ridiculous contracts. The wait was killer as a Kings fan and finally Darren Dreger (resident favorite of A Queen Among Kings) broke the story via Twitter just a few minutes ago that the Kings had traded for Aves' Ryan Smyth.

Reaction #1: Omg, we got an asshole in the lineup.

Reaction #2: Who in Zeus' jizz did the Kings give up to get Smyth?

Reaction #3: (After reading the trade results) Hahaha!

In the end the Kings gave up a 5th round pick in 2010, D Kyle Quincey, and D Tom Preissing. First off, the 5th round pick is chump change. Secondly, I cannot believe someone took Preissing from us!!

Lombardi, you are awesome.

But, sadly Quincey will be leaving the sunny coast of Los Angeles for the snowbanks of Denver. This is the only part I'm a bit sad about, but we didn't really need him after the signing of Rob Scuderi (Go Deano!) to a 4-year, $13.6 million contract yesterday. Smyth has 3 years remaining on his 5-year contract in Colorado with the cap hit at $6.25 mil. He will make $6.5 mil this season, $5.5 next, and $4.5 in 2011-2012. Quincey was definitely the big piece in this trade and I'm glad that was all the Kings had to give up.

The pieces are falling into place... and jesus christ, Ryan Smyth is a King...

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Boo Larry Brooks

On August 3, 2008, NY Post writer Larry Brooks wrote "Switches Brew – NHL Investigating KC Connection" and I’d like to take some time and space to address some of his comments. I'm going to discount what he's saying concerning AEG and connections to Kansas City. It's no secret that AEG has built a new arena there and I can't deny its efforts to get butts in the seats, but I don't have any inside information concerning that. What I AM interested in addressing is Brooks' seemingly uninformed opinions on the Kings, specifically, because I have taken some offense. Just because the Kings aren't following what other franchises are doing, doesn't mean that the path they're following is incorrect. Building young with high draft picks means that they're going to have to get paid at some point in time. I'd rather pay millions for Anze Kopitar than millions for someone in their 30's who's a mediocre player.

"They are likely to have the league's lowest payroll this season while GM Dean Lombardi sheds anyone with market value over the age of 25, yet have raised prices this offseason while promising to do so again next summer."

This is true; they most likely will have the lowest payroll. This is mostly due to the fact that the Kings only have one of those weird, but all too common, contracts in Michal Handzus ($4 million for 4 years). Why shouldn't they overpay their OWN YOUNG DRAFT PICKS? Oh yeah, because the CBA doesn't allow for that. There are restrictions on what a player can make while they are in the entry level phase of their hockey careers. Yes, the Kings management has explained to the fans that the ticket prices will be raised over the next few seasons. I think this is a better strategy than raising the prices by an exorbitant amount in one summer, which is exactly what Luc has told us. This isn't a secret. I would rather the increase happen in this manner than by being blindsided by the costs. I mean, it’s not like the payroll is going to stay in its bargain basement for long. Maybe what Mr. Brooks doesn’t realize is that after next season, there are going to be a number of RFAs to re-sign and we're going to need the cap space. Let's take a quick glance:

Anze Kopitar
Jack Johnson
Teddy Purcell
Matt Moulson
Brian Boyle

This list honestly scares me; that's 2 pure NHL studs, one AHL Rookie of the Year, and 2 potential high-performance work horses. respectively. I'm not sure what Drew Doughty, Thomas Hickey, and Oscar Moller will make, but if they meet their performance bonus conditions, their combined salaries could take a huge chunk out of the available payroll. I'm not saying I see Hickey and Moller in the lineup for next season, but you never know what could happen.

Here is a list of players who, as of this moment, remain questionable as to whether they will stay with the Kings past the 08-09 season:

Kyle Calder (UFA)
Derek Armstrong (UFA)
Matt Ellis (UFA)
Denis Gauthier (UFA)
Jason Labarbera (UFA)
Erik Ersberg (UFA)
Danny Taylor (UFA)
Matt Greene (RFA)

The goaltenders will be more of a roster issue than a salary issue. We don't have a clear #1 goalie but I like that there are 3 who could potentially earn that spot for next season. As of this moment, Barbs is the projection for the top spot, so we'll see how he, Ersberg, and Taylor do this coming season. I have a feeling that if Barbs again can't stay healthy and play like I know he has the ability to play, then he'll be released after next season is over. As sad as it would be for me because Barbs is so freaking cool in person, Jonathan Bernier is the future and there's not too much leeway in terms of goaltenders in this franchise. I hate to say Barbs is the expendable one because he's the oldest, but that may just be the ugly truth. (*sad face*) From the end of last season to this coming season, we've already shed 8 roster players and I foresee next summer not being any different.

"LA owner Phil Anschutz and Leiweke have somehow amassed real power within the league despite running one of the NHL's eyesore franchises."

Look, I know that the Kings aren't the model franchise. But what do you mean "somehow amassed real power?" Los Angeles is one of the largest markets with one of the richest ownership groups in the NHL. I thought that money equaled power. This writer is failing to mention just how much AEG owns and is worth.

"Ownership could not care less about putting a winning product on the ice, instead it's consumed with manufacturing a scheme that will place an NHL team in AEG's arena in Kansas City."

I resent Mr. Brooks saying that "ownership could not care less." I’m not saying that I do or don’t agree, but AEG is a worldwide corporation with a million things going on, which is why Phil Anschutz named Dean Lombardi the President and General Manager of the Kings. Get that? PRESIDENT of the Kings. The guy who runs the franchise, makes all the decisions, hires and fires who he feels is necessary, etc. If any national writer needs a scapegoat, go to Lombardi, not Anschutz. They can make all the accusations they want; I just want them to have the ability to know where to place the appropriate blame. And if he did actually accuse Lombardi, I'd be defending DL as well. I feel like I'm beating a dead horse.

"It's time for the league to take a hard look at Anschutz, Leiweke and AEG, and to apply meaningful punishment if in fact the Kings did violate NHL financial regulations."

Excuse me? What do the Kings have to do with Anschutz giving a loan to Del Baggio?! Once again, Lombardi runs the Kings and the last time I checked, Deano wasn't the one who handed out that loan. Get your facts straight, sir, because you're annoying me.

In moving to a different article, we see something worth taking note of. Sean O'Leary brings up an interesting notion from the offices of the Sprint Center in Kansas City in his article titled "Kansas City, Omaha Are Glad They Built, Even Without Pro Teams." The events that are being booked after the new arena was opened are doing more than enough to sustain the area. Shania Tate Ross who is the director of Marketing and Communications is quoted throughout the article with the most prominent being at the end of the article. "There are so many more expectations in terms of amenities from performers, athletes and spectators. You can't compete if you don't have the most updated arena." When you read this, you realize that the new arena was built more to accommodate a diverse group of events to the city, not an NHL franchise.

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Don't Be Stupid

If ANYONE thinks Dean Lombardi is stupid enough to trade away Anze Kopitar for ANYONE, he needs to stick his head into a dirty toilet.

I hate rumors and I'm really wondering where this particular one got started. This really has got to be the most asinine rumor. The Ottawa Sun is reporting something is brewing, but, honestly, I can't believe people are considering this. In a three-way trade the Chicago Blackhawks would send G Nikolai Khabibulin and D Cam Barker/D Brent Seabrook to the Senators, the Sens would send G Martin Gerber and D Andrej Meszaros to the Kings, and the Kings would send Kopi to Chicago. WHAT?!?! This would be a mistake of gigantic proportions. How do those two guys equal Kopi? How does that equate to being a positive for the Kings? Why would Lombardi trade away our top line center and future extraordinaire for two minor players from the Sens?

Can't see this happening? BECAUSE IT WON'T. EVER.

This rumor probably started because either Brian Murray or Dale Tallon inquired about Kopi just to see what Lombardi would say. I'm sure they were met with, "Hell fuckin' no." If Lombardi wanted all of Los Angeles to drive him out of the city with stakes and pitchforks, this is what he would do: trade away Kopi, Dustin Brown, Patrick O'Sullivan, Alexander Frolov, Jonathan Bernier, Jack Johnson, and Drew Doughty for picks in 2009, 2011, and 2012. Do you see that happening? I didn't think so. So, to whomever started this rumor, please run headfirst into the nearest wall.

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Year-In-Review – 1 – Management

With the playoffs in full gear for the top 16 teams in the league, the Kings have been left on the outs. I think we all knew this was going to be the reality back in December when the Kings tallied a couple of losing streaks that seemed unending. But one positive from the latter half of the season was when the Kings left California on an 8-game road trip through the eastern (read: cold) states. Some of the boys in Manchester were called up sporadically throughout this trip and made quite a showing. But good things always come to an end and the Kings continued their mediocre play through the end of the season, which, honestly, couldn't come soon enough.

For this set of Year-In-Review posts, I will be specifically looking into the Kings’ management, coaching, goaltending, defense, and offense. I plan on this being an on-going project that will be in this specific order. I am fully aware that this will be a daunting, yet “fun” and informative, task that I'm hoping you all will join me on. So grab a beverage or five of your choice for this trip down memory lane.

(Getty Images)

I guess I should state specifically that I am full supporter of Dean Lombardi's plan for the Kings. I said it back in December and I'll say it again “DL knows what the hell he's doing.” He has more pieces to his puzzle possibly falling into place going into this off-season. The young core of this team has done a great job of coming together while growing individually as well. There is no doubt who will be running this team in the next few years. I don't think I've ever really doubted Lombardi's plan; I witnessed first-hand his success with the Sharks while living in northern California, which was painful to say the least. Knowing that he is now the mastermind behind this organization's rebuild makes me rest easy. Now, if I were a fan in Toronto, I'd be in a different pot of crap. But I'm a couple thousand miles away in sunny So Cal liking where I am, where this organization's headed, and am in full support.

There have been various times throughout the season where the firing of DL became the topic of choice. His decisions regarding everything had been questioned. One that bothered me was when I heard the various jeers of DL's decision to draft Thomas Hickey, I thought, “C'mon, he really can't be THAT terrible.” Being projected to go in the double digits, DL picked him up fourth (4th) overall, which leads me to want to say, “C'mon people, there's a reason why DL wanted him.” Lo and behold, less than a year later Hickey is a certified badass. Need proof? Go check out the Seattle Thunderbirds and see what their team captain has contributed this past season.

People have already started predicting what holes are going to be filled for next year's roster, which I have admittedly done myself. But I'm a self-proclaimed terrible predictor, so I'm not even going to attempt at writing anything down. I prefer to just think about what lines could feasibly work. Now I don't want to blindly hand over my confidence to DL in his decision-making process, but I think I'd be comfortable in doing so. I know I've thrown hissy fits over the course of this season (see: texts to KingsCast) over various player transactions, but at the end of the day I realized that there was a specific reason for every one of his decisions.

As a sidenote: While I'm on the topic that is separate from the players on the roster, I'd like to revisit a specific article from March 5th, 2008, in which columnist Steve Dilbeck of the Daily News brought the issue of ownership to the forefront. In "It's time for Kings' owner to pass the puck," he stated that AEG’s Phil Anschutz should sell the team for the betterment of the franchise. He did raise a couple of valid points, but at the same time, how much does ownership really factor into how well a team is performing? (For a passionately stated opinion, please visit RudyKelly over at Battle of California.) Personally, I don’t see how Anschutz or his lack of presence is affecting the Kings. From everything I’ve heard this year, Lombardi had basically been given carte blanche; he received the okay to spend up to the cap in terms of salary if need be, he went and relieved many within the organization of their duties, and, to my knowledge, hasn’t had any restrictions placed on him in terms of his duties as acting President and GM of the Los Angeles Kings. Near the end of his article Dilbeck stated:

"I asked to speak to Anschutz for this column and was told it wouldn't happen. No surprise.

I asked to speak to Leiweke and was told he was out of town. No surprise there, either. Poor Lombardi had to speak for the organization, and he has been around for less than two years."

I would actually think it very odd if Anschutz came around and spoke about the Kings. I’d wonder why in the world he was talking about a team that he doesn’t have an influence over like DL does every hour of every day, which is separate from the fact that Anschutz owns the company that owns the franchise. I would also wonder where DL was and why he was not in front of the camera answering any and all questions thrown his way. Dilbeck’s point of DL only being around for two years, in my opinion, doesn’t hold a lot of water. Don’t you think he’d be the best to answer questions about a team that HE IS BUILDING? This is his plan, his vision. I would expect no one else to come out and speak competently about what the direction the Kings are headed in. I'm not exactly sure what Dilbeck was trying to do with his piece besides annoy a lot of people.

DL obviously doesn't have to worry about whether or not he'll still be employed by the Kings next year because that's a given. I knew he wasn't going to get fired this season and I'm positive he's gonna be around for next season as well. One thing I'm really excited about being a season ticket holder next season is that I'll be able to hear straight from DL's mouth about his plans for the roster and what's constantly on the horizon.

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Sophomore Stud

(AP Photo/Francis Specker)

TURRRRCO!! TURRRCO!!!!

Sully's shootout goal. This was about the 26th heart attack I had during this game. A great ending to a great effort.

"I don’t mind batting cleanup," O'Sullivan said. "Turco is an unpredictable goalie so I kind of had a plan of what I was going to do out there. That is one of the moves I've been doing my whole life on breakaways, so it worked out for me."

Good job, Kings. This has somewhat re-deemed yourselves from the debacle from Tuesday.

Great to have Lombardi on Kings Talk after the game. And I THINK he alluded to the organization looking at Drew Doughty at the draft.

Here is the list of the mid-season ranking for the 2008 Entry Draft - North American Skaters.

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The Train Is Pulling Up To The Station

The Kings have been playing atrociously lately, which is not news. Their inconsistent play has made me one sad panda. I texted KMS2 this morning saying, “I have officially boarded the Fire Marc Crawford Train!!!” But once I calmed down, I realized that I haven’t fully boarded said train, rather, I have bought my ticket and am waiting for the train to pull up. My reasoning is this: this is the third 5-game losing streak the Kings have recorded this season and they are currently on a three-game road trip. I will fully board this train if they get zero points in these next two games. If they lose all three in this road trip, that would make it a 7-game losing streak and I’d upgrade my ticket to first class and ride in style.

I can’t tell you how embarrassing it was to listen to Detroit (25-6-3) absolutely dominate my poor team (12-21-2) last night (I think I would have hung my head in utter shame if had actually watched this on TV). Hearing Cammy get a penalty in the first minute of the first period and then have Hank score at 0:59 was ridiculous. How fucking predictable this has become. Not only are the Kings on a losing streak, but they have to play the NHL’s best team? Way to rub salt in the wounds, scheduling committee. But wait, I shouldn’t place the blame on you since you could not have foreseen the Kings sucking this much 35 games into the season. How could you, with a promising crop of players and a boatload of new free agents. But how do you think it makes me feel when I ask a Canadian buddy what he thinks of Aubin and the response I get is, “He’s a bag of crap.”

This reminds me of a very straight forward question Keith asked in Episode 7 of KingsCast, “Slippery Slopes.” He said, “If Dean Lombardi is so good at signing prospects and drafting, why is he so terrible at signing free agents?”

What is interesting to me is that it seems as if there are trade rumors constantly circulating. Talk about players, gossip about GMs, and the like, but I haven’t heard or read anything coming from Camp Lombardi. Is something going on behind the scenes that no one knows about? There has to be; DL can’t be sitting in his office okay with any of this. He’s been quiet this season and I’m wondering why. Am I correct in assuming that he’s waiting for the end of this small roadtrip to fire Crawford?

As I see it, Crawford has 2 guaranteed days of employment left. If he comes back to LA with two more loses, he’s gonna be packing his bags and hitting the road. I think I was the last person to jump on this train; I guess I was holding on to some non-existent hope. Stupid me; Crawford has taken this talented group of players and done nothing with them. There are so many new faces on this team and he really hasn’t given them time together to gel with each other. The whole line-changing again and again and again and again has got to stop. Next thing you know, we’ll have Aubin centering the top line!

This team needs a leader; someone that can challenge these guys because it’s obvious these players aren’t responding to jackshit. Things that have pissed me off thus far:

1) Our defense looks slow and disorganized. And aren’t the D-men supposed to switch sides on the PP? Vish looks awkward out there on the point.

2) I don’t know who made the final decision to send back Moulson, bring in Gauthier, and hold onto Klemm, but that was piss poor decision-making. Gauthier did absolutely nothing and, really, neither did Klemm. Why did Crawford put him out there as a forward when he’s a defensive defensemen? Why the fuck didn’t you just keep Moulson? Klemm is a left-handed shot as is Moulson. Honestly, what was Klemm giving you that Moulson wasn’t? Out of those three players, only ONE showed any promise, and that was the one that was sent back prematurely.

3) Why the hell does the PK suck so badly? Why do they always look like they’re back on their heels and afraid to challenge? And for that matter, why does the PP look weak too? Stop passing so goddamn much and take it to the net!

4) THANK GOD Bernier was sent back to Lewiston. I think I would have cried if he was on this team right now. He would have been destroyed trying to back this team up. But he's safe down there in the Juniors; look for him on Team Canada!!

What exactly is going on with the lines of communication on this team? It is apparent to me that Crawford is sending out bad non-verbal signals to go with his verbal messages. Or maybe it’s the tone with which he talks. Tone and inflection can change the meaning of a message entirely. What the hell is he doing in that locker room??

So the question here is this: Is Dean Lombardi going to give the city of Los Angeles a fabulous Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa gift and fire Marc Crawford?

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Part II - GM

Part I - Coaching

Part II - GM

The reason why I decided to write about these topics is because of a recent column I read at hockeybuzz.com by Carla Muller. She wrote about an article she came across on foxsports.com mentioning rumors of Luc Robitalle filling in Dean Lombardi’s shoes as GM. My stance on most issues is mild at best (because I don’t want to foolishly make an uneducated opinion), but I definitely would not be an advocate for this happening. As as fan who is taking in (as much as possible) everything the Kings organization are putting out to the fans, I’m liking what I see. This is specifically referring to Robitaille becoming President of the business operations. But let me look at DL for a second.

If you check out his Wikipedia page, it appears that DL knows what the hell he's doing. He built up the Sharks into what they are today, a hated contender in the Western Conference. The players that he drafted before the lockout developed and made up the power house that they were 2-3 years ago causing them to be constant thorns in my side. I was a personal witness to many of their games, not that I enjoyed it, but I couldn't deny them their efforts. Now I don't know what DL is like in person, he could be a douche or he could be the kindest man ever, what I do know is that he's already building this team to something.

If you look at a previous post, you can see that there is a core that's being formed involving specific players. And what I think is promising is that this core does not include Cammy or Fro. These two are expected to be the veterans once this Core 4 begins to dominate. There is a lot that's going on within the team roster right now, which doesn't include the players developing in Manchester (and Bernier out in Lewiston). From an interview at Inside The Kings, DL said he drove 6 hours to see how Bernier was doing out in Lewiston. 6 hours of driving! If you don’t think that’s dedication, then you need to open your eyes. Lombardi has a plan and it’s not some one-year plan either. If you take him out of the equation, what’s going to happen to the developing players that are in the system? Are they going to be brought up prematurely or moved to some other team? My “Baby Bernier Watch” is on here for a reason. It’s not because I think he’s a cutie pie, which I’m sure every girl will tell you that he is. It's here because I believe he has the potential to rock the net when he’s good and ready to play a full season for the Kings. But I will not be hesitant to say that the players have to f-ing protect their goalie. The games at the beginning of this season were lost not because of Bernier’s poor playing; it was because he wasn’t protected! I can’t tell you how difficult it was to watch the defensemen not blocking shots for him or not cutting off the passing lane for him. Overall, they just were not acting like a cohesive unit. You can’t throw a 19-year-old goalie out there and expect him to be like Roy in his prime! It doesn’t work like that! Sorry, I think I stepped on my little soap box unknowingly...

In moving from DL to Robitaille, I think Lucky is doing a FANTASTIC job on the business relations end of the spectrum. He is one of THE faces of the LA Kings and I would be shocked if he didn’t stick with this job for a number of years. He is one of those franchise players that needs to be in this type of position, which enables him to be accessible to the fans while working toward the betterment of this organization. I don’t think he would be the best fit as a replacement GM. I don't know all of the inner workings of what GMs have to do, but I will say that I think Lombardi knows exactly what he's doing and how the Kings should be building. And I am a complete advocate in keeping Robitaille as the public face of the organization to the 20 million people living in Los Angeles. You can’t deny the draw that Lucky has; in knowing this, why would you put him in the GM position to face the wolves. He's already doing a hell of a job wooing the crowds now. I think maybe it's the fact that he's the highest scoring left-wing in the entire NHL. But what do I know, I'm just a girl.

Conclusion: I want to see what DL has up his sleeves and I love seeing Robitaille in this position, which keeps him visible to the fans. I’d rather not see a front office shakeup right now, but if that’s what the Higher Ups want…

Follow up: 12.07.07 : I found this over at The Hockey News, an article titled "All The Kings Mistakes." Could this guy have presented more lopsided stats? In order for me to even consider this guy as reliable, he probably should have presented the numbers in a more complete manner. He is basically letting you all know what he thinks of DL. Below was copied and pasted from this article.

Here’s a list of L.A.’s top five scorers so far this year and five of their worst regular roster players (from a statistical perspective). Some were brought in by Lombardi, some by former GM Dave Taylor, Deduce the trend.

Best

Anze Kopitar, 29 points (drafted by Taylor)
Mike Cammalleri. 25 points (drafted by Taylor)
Dustin Brown, 24 points (drafted by Taylor)
Alexander Frolov, 20 points (drafted by Taylor)
Lubomir Visnovsky, 16 points (drafted by Taylor)

Worst

Michal Handzus, 5 points, minus-11 (signed by Lombardi)
Rob Blake, minus-11 (signed by Lombardi)
Brian Willsie, 4 points, minus-7 (signed by Lombardi)
Patrick O’Sullivan, minus-7 (acquired by Lombardi)
Brad Stuart, minus-10 (signed by Lombardi)

Now, the resurgent Flyers:

Michael Richards, 31 points (drafted by Clarke)
Daniel Briere, 30 points (signed by Holmgren)
Joffrey Lupul, 17 points (acquired by Holmgren)
Mike Knuble, 16 points (signed by Clarke)
Jeff Carter, 15 points (drafted by Clarke)

Let me ask you this, Mr. Ryan Kennedy. Where are the plus/minus numbers for the first and third group of players? What are the point totals for all of the players in the second group? Where are the guys that Taylor signed and Lombardi drafted (P.S. These guys are kinda kicking a lot of ass right now). When you're trying to present an argument or trying to raise some eyebrows, why don't you give up ALL of the numbers. Thanks.

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