Apotheosis and moving forward

The first parallel I would like draw from are the amount of UFA's Colorado had. One.

Most LGKer's (myself included, guilty as charged) dream of this team contending after next season. Some dreamed at the beginning of the Lombardi era that it would be this season. If Colorado had 1 FA on the '96 team, it's because they had only one hole to fill and the other holes were filled with trades.

How many holes do the Kings have now, going into next season? I count at least 3 maybe 4, plus one roster player already filled by UFA, Handzus (not counting Preissing). Realistically, how many of these holes can be filled by players on the Reserve List? eg. Top 6 LW- no one.

When the Kings can get down to having only one hole to fill, then you can call them contenders. But DL has done a good job of building up the Reserve List, so we can reduce our dependency on UFA's. Which is good because AEG never did support that anyway and they will not magically change their minds about it this summer. Our only options for personnel improvement are through trades and smart drafting. It's the way Colorado did it, and New Jersey and Detroit and that suits AEG just fine. Your post puts into perspective that we've got a long way to go, still.

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Originally Posted by CBGB

You're retirement lasted longer than mine - congrats.

One thing about the Colorado breakdown. Do you think they would have been the same had they KEPT Theodore instead of trading him for Roy?

I'll tell you this. If Theodore is in net vs the Kings, the Kings win the Stanley Cup that year.

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I beg to differ. Theodore, or even, Thibeault would not have carried that team all the way to the Finals. think about the what ifs....

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Originally Posted by CBGB

You're retirement lasted longer than mine - congrats.

One thing about the Colorado breakdown. Do you think they would have been the same had they KEPT Theodore instead of trading him for Roy?

I'll tell you this. If Theodore is in net vs the Kings, the Kings win the Stanley Cup that year.

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It was Jocelyn Thibault.

The Colorado breakdown began a few years ago as they increased their dependency on UFA's and moved away from developing players. You could argue they stepped away from smart drafting, either way, they deviated from what Detroit and New Jersey do.

I count no less than 7 players acquired by UFA on that current roster.

nice column.

For you younger folk and anyone else bored like me, I wish to add as some flavor (assuming memory does not fail yet again) that back in the day hockey mad Quebec derided the Nordiques as "Les Dindres" which I believe translates as "The Turkeys." Their fans really suffered. There was a whole us French Canadians against the rest of the world theme present as well, which apparently was too close reflected by the Nordiques and their travails. In one incident I recall reading about, some of the Nordique players went after a sportswriter who called them "Les Dindres" (if I have that term correct) after the team lost yet another game. Apparently, the sportswriter lived but it was a close thing.

Into this situation comes Lindros, consensus #1, an english canadian who is a real stud, playing the physical game the French Canadians especially love. See, Gauthier, good player, a little undertalented for the NHL but always willing to scrap--maybe too willing to scrap and sometimes honestly perplexed when the ref's call him for slamming some guy's head through the boards. They never called that in French juniors. And I held up, I am sure Gauthier argues.

Anyway, back in the 1980's early 1990's, the Nordique draft Lindros No #1 and Lindros refuses to play for the Nordique. Apparently this is a big deal as French Canada often feels slighted by the English speaking majority, and Lindros or his family make a few comments which do not go over so well, in French Canada at least. So the Nordique make a trade, losing the #1 overall pick. The pretty girl refuses to go with them to the prom, and calls them the hockey equivalent of retard. They are bummed. The team leaves for Colorado. The French Canadians are still bummed. Even Sean Avery makes fun of them.

Though at the time it was a big blow, this actually worked out better for the organization. Over time, 3-4 very good players prove > than a single great player, in that situation at least.

So, for the Kings, they need overall depth. One player alone will not do it. Kings need better players in a lot of places--top six, bottom six, back, goalie. And a lot of patience as some of these young guys [I]may[I] fit the bill at some point. Those Doughty and Simmonds kids, among others, have strong promise.

(also reduced ticket prices during the years the team is below average, thank you)

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Originally Posted by BeerMan

I beg to differ. Theodore, or even, Thibeault would not have carried that team all the way to the Finals.

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Beat me to it. Theodore does not win 10 straight playoff OT games. No way, no how. Montreal was not that good that season, Roy strapped them to his back and carried them.

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Originally Posted by gescom

undoubtedly, Eric Lindros was the biggest boon to the organization because it not only gave the Avalanche Peter Forsberg, Mike Ricci and Chris Simon, it also facilitated further deals that landed them Sylvain Lefebvre, Uwe Krupp, Claude Lemieux, Mike Keane, Patrick Roy and some kid named Adam Deadmarsh.

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Without dissecting this into what player begot what player (As its been done) I just wanted to comment on the importance of getting the right players to fit into your club. The collective group highlighted above had already been on Cup Winners and after looking back have won a collective 12 Stanley Cups(7 After that trade). They understood what it took to get there, having climbed the mountain, and had all won AND lost after making deep playoff runs.

Some around here have looked recently at Lombardi dealing away O'Sullivan for Williams as him "Getting rid of a problem" or trying to compare them against each other as a player vs. player, and that's not really what you need to look at. In some ways, this deal is somewhat similar to dealing away Sundin before his prime for what eventually became Lemieux. Acquiring a player with less top end talent who has performed on the biggest stage at the most crucial time of the year for a player that COULD be a top 5 player in this league for a long time. Lemieux was Mr. Clutch in more than one playoff season thereafter.

Williams carried the Canes at times during their Stanley Cup run.

Looking back, would you trade a top flight junior player at the time, Jarome Iginla for an aging center in Joe Nieuwendyk? I would. The former has been a top end player for quite a while, but the latter was crucial in winning his next 2 teams Stanley Cups, and loosing in the Final a 3rd time.

Good takes.

A lot of failure in sports, Hollywood, business, politics, and crime stems from trying to repeat what worked once before. Every time someone is crowned "the next" Gretzky, Jordan, Mantle -- check for your wallet, because you're being hustled. DNA doesn't work that way. We only get one of each of these. What the Avs did will never be done again in a similar way. The Colorado success turned on one thing, and one thing only: the Roy acquisition. Without that, no Cups, in every likelihood.

But there is still a lesson to be learned here, and it's the same one they teach at military academies. "Concentration of force at the decisive point." In other words, have your resources ready to use at the critical time. So -- when the best goalie in the world, a Cup winner in his prime, became available through a fluke combination of bruised egos, bad tempers, and a-hole Canadien fans, LaCroix had the nerve to make the call and had the resources to make an acceptable offer. The Kings are getting close to having those resources too, if the right guy or guys somehow become available. So, yeah, don't get too attached to anyone on this roster.

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Originally Posted by gescom

at the draft party a couple of years ago, and under a considerable haze, i heard Birdman yell out the following (about 4 or 5 times, i think) - "don't marry yourselves to players!" he went on to reiterate that idea more than once on the boards, and i believe it to be absolutely sage...

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I still can't get myself to customize my jersey, and it ain't because I don't like anyone enough, and it ain't because I don't have the dough.

The logo is enough.

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Originally Posted by gescom

Schenn!

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The original post was excellent and epic, so don't get me wrong when I say that this was the most intriguing part for me.

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Originally Posted by Vicarious

nice column.

For you younger folk and anyone else bored like me, I wish to add as some flavor (assuming memory does not fail yet again) that back in the day hockey mad Quebec derided the Nordiques as "Les Dindres" which I believe translates as "The Turkeys." Their fans really suffered. There was a whole us French Canadians against the rest of the world theme present as well, which apparently was too close reflected by the Nordiques and their travails. In one incident I recall reading about, some of the Nordique players went after a sportswriter who called them "Les Dindres" (if I have that term correct) after the team lost yet another game. Apparently, the sportswriter lived but it was a close thing.

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correct take on what the derision translates to, but it's "les dindes". ;)
les nordiques = une bande des dindes. it rhymes!


ges, what you say birdman said about not getting attached to players. definitely something i've subscribed to over the years. it's pointless to me to pin any emotions on the inner workings of a team office whether the moves suck or not.

the rest is all well said. :clap:

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Originally Posted by Wolvie

I still can't get myself to customize my jersey, and it ain't because I don't like anyone enough, and it ain't because I don't have the dough.

The logo is enough.



The original post was excellent and epic, so don't get me wrong when I say that this was the most intriguing part for me.

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^^^^^^^^^^^
this


(and I will say I agree with ges on this one although I love Kane)