D.J. Smith Hotseat Thread

Clif said:
I think you and I are two of Byfield’s last believers/defenders on this board. He has, simply put, never been prioritized on this team. It’s why I am actually happy to move on from Kopi. The page needs turning and it came down to Kopi himself to turn it by retiring.

Now Byfield will have his wingers who can play with his speed and skill and we’ll see if he’s still a frustrating, so-close tease or a guy who can finally put it together.
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Agreed, if he gets the shot at playing with Kempe and Panarin this season (and Holland/HC doesn't do something to instead restrict him) then one way or another we will have our answer.

Clarke needs to be prioritized as well and not remain in Doughty's shadow. I really hope we get a HC with enough sense to properly lineup players despite the player's ego/resistance.
 
symbology said:
QB seems to be hot and cold. Maybe injury related, who knows. I recall the previous season he looked really good with Laf and Fiala for a bit as well.
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He sort of meanders through cold streams until the end of the season when he throws a little geyeser

I am a Byfliever too.

But he adjust slow to changes usually.

So I pretty much staple him to Pan and Adry for 20 games and prepare for some bumps along the transition way.

This will affect his points total but the main thing is they are playing good enough to score on teams like the Avs and in the playoffs , by the end of the season
Something Moore- Byf and Laff could not do.
"During the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Trevor Moore – Quinton Byfield – Alex Laferriere line faced immense trouble as the Los Angeles Kings were swept 4-0 in the Western Conference First Round by the dominant Colorado Avalanche. [1]
Because the Avalanche held the league's top-ranked defense and scoring pace, the Kings' secondary line was completely stifled offensively. [1]
2026 Playoff Line Performance (4 Games)
  • Goals For / Against: 0 GF / 3 GA — The line was held without an even-strength goal during the short series and struggled to contain Colorado’s elite transition game.
  • Shot Control (CF%): 44.5% — After dominating puck possession in the regular season, they spent most of their playoff ice time pinned in the defensive zone.
  • Expected Goals (xGF%): 42.1% — They were heavily out-chanced by Colorado's depth lines and top defensive pairings.
Individual 2026 Postseason Stats
The trio's individual production vanished during the four-game sweep:

Player [1, 2, 3]Games PlayedGoalsAssistsPoints+/- Rating
Quinton Byfield4022-2
Trevor Moore4000-3
Alex Laferriere4000-3
Despite the quiet postseason, NHL analysts noted that the trio rounded out the top five most exciting young lines across the league heading into the tournament due to their regular-season chemistry. [1]"





 
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DryKing said:
Agreed, if he gets the shot at playing with Kempe and Panarin this season (and Holland/HC doesn't do something to instead restrict him) then one way or another we will have our answer.

Clarke needs to be prioritized as well and not remain in Doughty's shadow. I really hope we get a HC with enough sense to properly lineup players despite the player's ego/resistance.
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I feel the Clarke must be #1 over DD is overblown.
He is already plugged into most offensive upside situations as the #1 D.
No point in using him as the #1 d in defensive downside situations.
Keep plugging DD and MA into those.

Hopping ole Uncle Ken can thread the needle this Summer with FA's and draft better than Blake.
 
Clif said:
I think you and I are two of Byfield’s last believers/defenders on this board. He has, simply put, never been prioritized on this team. It’s why I am actually happy to move on from Kopi. The page needs turning and it came down to Kopi himself to turn it by retiring.

Now Byfield will have his wingers who can play with his speed and skill and we’ll see if he’s still a frustrating, so-close tease or a guy who can finally put it together.
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I also believe Byfield can shine as a #1C.

He battled nasty injuries this season:

He shone towards the end of the season in a key, high-pressure stretch, with stellar production on 2nd line AND stellar faceoff %. 11g, 16p, +10 and was probably around 55% at the dot in his last 16 regular season games.

Wasn't great in the playoffs against the best team in the league, yes. But he played on the 2nd line for 4gp, 0g, 2a, -1, @21:40 TOI. His "nemesis" (our nemesis?) Stützle was 4gp, 0g, 1a, -1 @25:30 TOI playing on the 1st line against a 2nd overall team with 37 more GA in the regular season.

He will almost certainly never be the cerebral tactician and decision maker Kopitar was...but how many top centers are on Kopitar's level when it comes to these two qualities? IMO our expectations are unreasonably high in that regard. QB could, however, be better offensively. I think he has more "swagger" that is a bonus when it comes to being a more unpredictable consistent offensive threat.
 
The Nuts said:
He sort of meanders through cold streams until the end of the season when he throws a little geyeser

I am a Byfliever too.

But he adjust slow to changes usually.

So I pretty much staple him to Pan and Adry for 20 games and prepare for some bumps along the transition way.

This will affect his points total but the main thing is they are playing good enough to score on teams like the Avs and in the playoffs , by the end of the season
Something Moore- Byf and Laff could not do.
"During the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Trevor Moore – Quinton Byfield – Alex Laferriere line faced immense trouble as the Los Angeles Kings were swept 4-0 in the Western Conference First Round by the dominant Colorado Avalanche. [1]
Because the Avalanche held the league's top-ranked defense and scoring pace, the Kings' secondary line was completely stifled offensively. [1]
2026 Playoff Line Performance (4 Games)

  • Goals For / Against: 0 GF / 3 GA — The line was held without an even-strength goal during the short series and struggled to contain Colorado’s elite transition game.
  • Shot Control (CF%): 44.5% — After dominating puck possession in the regular season, they spent most of their playoff ice time pinned in the defensive zone.
  • Expected Goals (xGF%): 42.1% — They were heavily out-chanced by Colorado's depth lines and top defensive pairings.
Individual 2026 Postseason Stats
The trio's individual production vanished during the four-game sweep:


Player [1, 2, 3]Games PlayedGoalsAssistsPoints+/- Rating
Quinton Byfield4022-2
Trevor Moore4000-3
Alex Laferriere4000-3
Despite the quiet postseason, NHL analysts noted that the trio rounded out the top five most exciting young lines across the league heading into the tournament due to their regular-season chemistry. [1]"
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Trevor Moore tied for 3rd on the team, along with Byfield, with 2 points. Laf led the team with 4 points.

Panarin had 3 points, all of which came on the PP and technically L1 was a complete failure offensively as it produced 0 even strength goals (L2 produced 1 even strength goal, which isn't much better but still better).

L1 was far more of the problem than L2.

Was this AI?
 
VCRW said:
1C was the problem with Line 1. Kopi couldn’t keep up, make a pass, receive a pass or create an offensive chance. It was hard to watch after all the great playoff performances in the past.
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It was hard to watch. Kopi did his best, but was unable to keep pace with play. Combine that with a ponderous D corps (minus Clarke/Anderson) unable to move the puck out of the D zone, there you have it. Avs spent a lot of time in the Kings zone.

I remain optimistic about Byfield to 1C with juice and bread. He will definitely solve the pace issue.

If Smith or ??? gets the job, have enough huevos to move Doughty to where he belongs, #2/#3 pair, and on the pine during any non 5x5 play. Then replace Ceci/Dumo with more mobile options and I believe the Kings will get past playoff round 1.
 
waynet said:
It was hard to watch. Kopi did his best, but was unable to keep pace with play. Combine that with a ponderous D corps (minus Clarke/Anderson) unable to move the puck out of the D zone, there you have it. Avs spent a lot of time in the Kings zone.

I remain optimistic about Byfield to 1C with juice and bread. He will definitely solve the pace issue.

If Smith or ??? gets the job, have enough huevos to move Doughty to where he belongs, #2/#3 pair, and on the pine during any non 5x5 play. Then replace Ceci/Dumo with more mobile options and I believe the Kings will get past playoff round 1.
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Totally agree. Kopi definitely slowed down this season, but it was exacerbated by who he was lined up with. If Smith returns as HC, it's pretty likely he will not have the huevos needed to align Doughty to a proper role with the team.

Booth would look good next to Doughty on the 2nd line, then a couple more seasons we should have Woolley and Brz ready to hopefully take over the 2nd line duties.

Booth's big challenge will be gaining strength over the summer. If he can do that (and maintain his foot speed in the process) Edmundson or Dum likely get traded.

Edmundson would be great to hold on to, if we can.
 
DryKing said:
Agreed, if he gets the shot at playing with Kempe and Panarin this season (and Holland/HC doesn't do something to instead restrict him) then one way or another we will have our answer.

Clarke needs to be prioritized as well and not remain in Doughty's shadow. I really hope we get a HC with enough sense to properly lineup players despite the player's ego/resistance.
Click to expand...
Yes exactly - one way or another.

Yes on Clarke also. Lead the team in blocked shots but can’t get a second of PK time? I guess Ceci’s stationary approach to the kill was too good to pass up.

DJ still giving Doughty all those minutes is one of a few reasons I’d be wary of him.
 
DryKing said:
Trevor Moore tied for 3rd on the team, along with Byfield, with 2 points. Laf led the team with 4 points.

Panarin had 3 points, all of which came on the PP and technically L1 was a complete failure offensively as it produced 0 even strength goals (L2 produced 1 even strength goal, which isn't much better but still better).

L1 was far more of the problem than L2.

Was this AI?
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Ya sorry and thanks.

I thought this ship was lazy idiot proof?
 
The Nuts said:
Ya sorry and thanks.

I thought this ship was lazy idiot proof?
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Try "cocky idiot duping naive lazy person". 🤣
And unless someone has the time/knowledge to proof check and correct them...misknowledge spreads.

All this is putting even more pressure on saving humanity in the hands of those who care, seek knowledge in their life and are willing to sacrifice their time and sanity to help others. 🦉

In other words...we're doomed.
 
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LAKingSteve said:
Felt like it was much ado about nothing. Yeah, we'll have a new coach by early-mid June. Didn't really expect him to put all his cards on the table but this was a meh. Let's see some action, no need for more interviews until after changes are made.
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They are trying to lessen the trail of tears so more season ticket holders and fans in general are not swept away in a flood.
 
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