Looks like Willie Mitchell is hurt. If he's not ready to play, I assume they'll give his spot to Muzzin. I'd rather Hickey get a shot but it's clear the organization is higher on Muzzin, at this point.
Well, it looks like we may find out sooner rather than later. CBGB says Kopitar is out 4-6 weeks with his knee injury. He's rarely wrong on the injury reports...
YIKES!! That's a lot worse than the 2-3 weeks previously mentioned. I don't see a call-up taking his place, given how deep the Kings are at center. Not that it didn't before, but doesn't that Richards trade look good now?! As for a call-up, I'm betting Hickey or Muzzin. Muzzin was up a couple of years ago, so I bet Hickey finally gets his chance.
Forwards: Toffoli and/or Kozun
Defense: Hickey and/or Muzzin
I'd like to see Loktionov after a few years. I was am still really high on the vision and skill he brings, I am hoping he has bulked up to be a tough but creative smaller player to compliment guys who are willing to go to the scoring areas.
I distinctly remember early on when he got in some games that he made plays that people simply failed to finish, where he could have been a PPG (assist) player through about 8 games if people were not whiffing (cough stoll, parse).
I would love to see Taffoli that kid has guts mad hands and that obviously fits within our system
I think this is right. Is there any real doubt that, with Kopi out, the top 10 forwards are Brown, Williams, Richards, Carter, Gagne, Stoll, Penner, King, Fraser, and Lewis? Of those 10, at least five can play/have played center at the NHL level, so with Kopi out, the four center spots still come from that group of 10, right? While Kopi is out, the 11th and 12th forward spots should get filled primarily by Nolan, Richardson, or Clifford. Westgarth and Lokti are still presumably in the mix? Do any of Cliche, Clune, Toffoli, or the others mentioned jump ahead of the Nolan/Richardson/Clifford/Westgarth/Lokti group? I don't know, but it seems a little far-fetched to me. Lots of depth is good, right?
In terms of D-men, I don't think Mitchell is projected to be out too long (don't recall that I saw what happened to him), but I imagine we'll see Drewiske taking his spot, with Muzzin probably being the most likely candidate for 7th D-man.
Cup of coffee? I'm just waiting to hear who is seen sharing a chalupa over at Taco Bell