It’s deadline season!

[hokiecat]

The goal is to win the cup. Holland understands the limitations of this Kings team. All he wants is a competitive team throughout the season. Playoffs would be a plus, however, just don't be out of the race by January. I don't see the Kings making the playoffs for the next seven or so years. Too many teams have jumped them and they will get better while the Kings struggle. True hockey fans such as LGK are not going anywhere.

Holland will make minor tweaks, however, to compete with the Avs's, Stars and now Minn and the entire East a complete rebuild has to happen. A retool only works when you have a solid young nucleus. It will be interesting to see how far Anaheim and San Jose go in the next few seasons.

^^^^This. I watched the Ducks game last night. They were ahead by 2 and blew the lead in the third. Then they tied it up with around 40 seconds to go and won in the shootout. A better team and more fun to watch.

Holland is just trying to keep the Kings competitive to sell tickets. We've already been passed by the Ducks and Sharks. They both have 4 mega hype young prospects under 23 in the NHL playing well. Kings have QB, who's no Celebrini or Carlson, and Clarke. Turk is just a guy. Kaliyev and Bjornfot didn't work out. And Blake ended the rebuild too soon. Unlike Chicago who has a promising core and still a zillion top picks.

We're stuck in the middle. Hopefully Holland can work some rebuild on the fly magic. Getting Panarin was a win.

 

[symbology]

I know what the goal is and I admire your positivity.

But I can't help but think this is half-@ssing it. I understand bolstering the bottom 6, but the Kings lost Fiala, Kuzmenko and now Perry...the "minor injury" bug this season isn't exactly ignoring the Kings either, there's constantly someone improtant missing. I doubt a 3rd line center (whom we already have in Turcotte if you think about it) and a bottom 6 winger that struggled so bad that he was bought out are going to move any needles for the "win now" motive.

If he was serious he'd go seriously after Elias, but there was not a sound about it. I doubt he'll be much more affordable come draft...on the contrary - teams that are buyers have less motivation to add an expensive player on a long term contract come the trade deadline. If he doesn't even want go after Elias - what is his plan for center position beyond this season?

And then there is defense...8+ million tied to two worst D-men on the roster. If Ken was serious about winning, he'd be trying to resolve this situation, either by moving one of Dumo and Ceci, or maybe by moving Edmundson and hoping Dumo fits well with Clarke and finding a 3rd pairing puck moving D-man capable of playing on the powerplay.



Again, half-@ssing this will likely mean the Kings barely miss the playoffs and are in the worst possible position draft-wise.

The Kings Org. has been half-@ssing it for a while. The players have been half-@ssing it all this year. So, why stop now.

Anything can happen and the Kings can "possibly" squeak into the playoffs. Kings made some moves to try to save face. "We tried to improve the team for a playoff run". blah blah. They did not overspend and this really is not moving the needle much. It is more of a facade. Give many fans the look and feel of a serious team. All they while they just really suck.

From what it sounded like the Canucks were not in a hurry to get rid of Petey. A team would have had to seriously over pay to get him at the TDL. The way I see it, come the draft, the Canuckleheads will know exactly what draft pics they will be receiving for him. Not a 1st rounder that could possibly be an 8th thru 20th pick. That is a huge difference in value there. So, there was no motivation for them to take a risk on their return, unless they got overpaid.

 

[symbology]

Maybe having Laughton around the young kids would not be so bad.

 

[VCRW]

Maybe having Laughton around the young kids would not be so bad.

View attachment 14068

He’s only 31 and a very solid center who can play 2C, 3C or 4C. I was very pleased that Holland picked him up. Seems as though the front office has conceded that QB is now a winger.

 

[Helvetica]

I know what the goal is and I admire your positivity.

But I can't help but think this is half-@ssing it.

it's probably been echo'd elsewhere, but he basically filled a position of need since Danault was traded, and converted Foegele and Perry into Mathieu and 2 x 2nds.

So, even if you think the kings are cooked and want to sell off players for assets, he basically did that. If you knew nothing about what was moved, and only that the kings received a pair of 2nds and a 3rd, i think we'd all be happy Holland did that. He cant move everything as a lot of guys have NTC's and you still have to find trade partners and all that. Going after Petterson may still happen, but it doesn't really benefit the Canucks to move Petterson right now when the pool of bidders is probably smaller now than it will be in the offseason. Same with Roberts, which is why neither of them got moved despite there being plenty of interest.

In all honesty, i think he actually improved the team slightly here. You filled the defensive center role and improved faceoffs. Mathieu and foegele are a wash, although mathieu actually has a few more points. And because of the injuries they are still going to play some of these kids down the stretch here. At the end of the day, you can disagree with the King's plans to "go for it" this season, but you can't predict injuries, and the King's just don't really have the assets to go after some big fish at the deadline. And the ultimate value of their picks isnt likely to change all that much. They aren't suddenly going to lose the next 15-20 games and sink to a top 5 pick. So Holland went, grabbed some assets, and kept the team's hopes alive so they can play meaningful hockey down the stretch in kopi's swan song. That's solid work given the team direction and context of where the team is at.

 

[Madness20721]

I'm really glad Holland didn't go insane trying to right the sunken ship.

Technically, if a ship has already sunk, righting it makes no difference.

 

[JasonU]

They aren't suddenly going to lose the next 15-20 games and sink to a top 5 pick. .

I could easily see this happening.

 

[Helvetica]

I could easily see this happening.

i think they're more likely to make the playoffs than to be a lottery team.

 

[Liz4LA]

It was meh, like the team. Holland was pretty straight forward in the presser. They didn't go "all-in" because of the injuries. They are "still going for the playoffs, but we all know that's really it- not going to be a contender for the cup. He didn't sell their young goalies, which is good. From what I've been watching, the Laughton guy seems like a well-liked player.

 

[The Nuts]

Outside of the Ceci/Dumoulin signings I think Holland has been excellent. I’m very happy with him as GM.

I agree, he was heavily scapegoated.
I like Dumo and Ceci got better.
IMO he had to take what you can get and LA is not a sought out destination because of recent politicians taxes and other reasons.
Bunch of good signings, nimble trade line walk on the tight rope.
2 more seasons, lets see what Summer brings

 

[The Nuts]

What do the Kings achieve by adding 2 vets to take up roster spots that could be used to test out the AHL guys?

Will we see players leaving the Kings for nothing, again, only to make careers elsewhere?

Joseph was a free add, but Laughton makes little sense, even for a 3rd.

And he fired the coach too late, too.

He also failed to act on Danault situation before his trade value plummeted.

I don't know why you're so happy. No sane GM would spend big in this situation...

They keep a facsimile of going for it in 11's last season.
The Reign have less taken away for a very hopeful playoff run.
Good experience for young coach and team.

True on Hiller.

Danault, Moore and Foegle were awsome all the way through the playoffs.
Worth waiting to see, the complete implosion was a surprise.
Danault was never bringing much more than a second and he was a black hole on the Kings

 

[The Nuts]

The goal remains make the playoffs. That isn’t changing no matter how much everyone kicks and screams online. Holland’s job is to make the playoffs.

The AHL guys suck. They aren’t NHL level players yet. Period.

If the goal remains the same and the Kings don’t have NHL level players to fill in the holes then the GM must acquire NHL players from outside the organization. Joseph is versatile winger who replacing Foegele. Laughton is a very solid hard working defensive Center. He’s simply better than Danault. Both Joseph and Laughton will be options for next year’s squad. They’re solid NHL bottom six players.

Holland didn’t have the desire or green light to fire Hiller until he did. The blame for Hiller belongs to Luc.

Danault quit on Hiller. Gavrikov quit on Hiller. Spence quit on Hiller. Foegele quit on Hiller.

Holland acquired a first line winger for the very little cost. He also added several assets and held onto his 1st round pick. He’s doing his job.

Too harsh on the Reign, 1st place in the Pacific.
Guys that know how to play a role and play a team.
In addition to all the guys have come up were solid and made contributions.
I understand no stand out blue chips but that part of your comment was lazy and disrespectful.

TheAHL.com | The American Hockey League

theahl.com

 

[The Nuts]

There’s just no way all four of Anderson/Edmundson/Ceci/Dumo can all come back next season. Holland needs to find a way to move at least two of them.

Lets not be dumping defenseman like we did with Spence or losing the like Gav unless we have a replacement in hand or coming back.
That's where Hiller handed Holland the grenade that blew up in our faces.
I think we know top tier guys usually don't pick to come here.

 

[Clif]

Holland’s trade deadline was a confirmation on his grasp of reality. He may have been hired to win now, but his insistence on keeping the first this year in the Panarin trade and stating explicitly he wanted to get the scouts some picks to build the pipeline deserve attention. He’s not out of touch.

 

[The Nuts]

I know what the goal is and I admire your positivity.

But I can't help but think this is half-@ssing it. I understand bolstering the bottom 6, but the Kings lost Fiala, Kuzmenko and now Perry...the "minor injury" bug this season isn't exactly ignoring the Kings either, there's constantly someone improtant missing. I doubt a 3rd line center (whom we already have in Turcotte if you think about it) and a bottom 6 winger that struggled so bad that he was bought out are going to move any needles for the "win now" motive.

If he was serious he'd go seriously after Elias, but there was not a sound about it. I doubt he'll be much more affordable come draft...on the contrary - teams that are buyers have less motivation to add an expensive player on a long term contract come the trade deadline. If he doesn't even want go after Elias - what is his plan for center position beyond this season?

And then there is defense...8+ million tied to two worst D-men on the roster. If Ken was serious about winning, he'd be trying to resolve this situation, either by moving one of Dumo and Ceci, or maybe by moving Edmundson and hoping Dumo fits well with Clarke and finding a 3rd pairing puck moving D-man capable of playing on the powerplay.



Again, half-@ssing this will likely mean the Kings barely miss the playoffs and are in the worst possible position draft-wise.

I don't think this is fair at all.
Ken is walking the line on a tightrope at the deadline and he made it to the other side.
Still a shot at an unlikely berth and some picks for the future.
He also took advantage of Pan.
Turcotte, not a great center, especially for 3 c, already bumped to the wing in place of Laughton who Toronto paid a 1st for and Ken a 3rd.
The plan is try for right hand center to play with Pan.
Elias is a left and Kopitar is there after Hiller tried Laffy on of our few rights.
Again on Dumo and Ceci he had to take players who would sign and I don't think he had many options.
Clarkes curve with Edmu has been great , another stupid thing would be trading him before a replacement is coming back.
What's a 3rd pairing puck moving , PP defender?
Is there one such unicorn in the league?

 

[The Nuts]

The goal is to win the cup. Holland understands the limitations of this Kings team. All he wants is a competitive team throughout the season. Playoffs would be a plus, however, just don't be out of the race by January. I don't see the Kings making the playoffs for the next seven or so years. Too many teams have jumped them and they will get better while the Kings struggle. True hockey fans such as LGK are not going anywhere.

Holland will make minor tweaks, however, to compete with the Avs's, Stars and now Minn and the entire East a complete rebuild has to happen. A retool only works when you have a solid young nucleus. It will be interesting to see how far Anaheim and San Jose go in the next few seasons.

Let me be the first to refute your claim of no playoffs for 7 freaking years.
I mean , do you have a room of servers and military grade AI for that analysis?

 

[The Nuts]

He’s only 31 and a very solid center who can play 2C, 3C or 4C. I was very pleased that Holland picked him up. Seems as though the front office has conceded that QB is now a winger.

No they have not , Byfield is a C all the way.
Could be 2 or 3.
Laughton may not be here in September

 

[Pevsfreedom]

Technically, if a ship has already sunk, righting it makes no difference.

That's exactly what I meant.

 

[ICE24]

Let me be the first to refute your claim of no playoffs for 7 freaking years.
I mean , do you have a room of servers and military grade AI for that analysis?

Holland is not going to start a rebuild while he is there. So for the next two years the Kings will be in the middle or toward the bottom of the division. A complete rebuild takes around 5 years so there is the 7 years.