***LA Kings @ Minnesota Wild GDT 10/13/25

[Pickle_Pucks]

I suggested that last year in a Clarke thread. He is not good at defending.

Yes I think a lot of people put his weaknesses down to "strength and physicality". But he's 6'2 200lb. Markar is 6'0 187. Makar gets by with high IQ, elite skating and reading the game. Clarke looks lost on the back end often. It's not his physicality.

I'd love to see Fiala - QB - Clarke for 5 games in fantasy land.

Love Laf but he's a 3rd liner.

 

[T]

Not like converting Clarke is gonna happen tomorrow. Would take a lot of practice time first. But with this organization, it won’t happen at all. Thinking is too creative for Ken and Luc.

don't disagree. Brzustewicz gives me hope but I have what to do in the short term. not giving up 3 PPG in the first would be a good start

 

[Clif]

It reminds me when Brian Boyle was on the NY Rangers,they changed him from a defenseman to center and the rest is history.Brian Boyle became a good two way center man.It would be interesting if the Kings did have Clarke as a forward to see how he adapts to that

To be fair Boyle was a center when he was drafted. It was the Kings, under Lombardi - Boyle was Taylor’s pick - who got creative and tried to make him a hulking defenseman. It was okay but he became an effective player when put in the position he belonged in all along.

 

[VCRW]

So… Mr. Holland… your leading scorer needs a contract. What’s the frikkin’ holdup? We have gone from a bumbling front office last year to total incompetence this year. There is no one in the pipeline to replace Juice if he walks. This drawn out negotiation is truly dumb.

 

[Hockey53]

To be fair Boyle was a center when he was drafted. It was the Kings, under Lombardi - Boyle was Taylor’s pick - who got creative and tried to make him a hulking defenseman. It was okay but he became an effective player when put in the position he belonged in all along.

Thanks for the reminder Cliff,I had forgotten that Boyle was a center when he was drafted and Taylor tried to make him into a hulking defenseman.

 

[tokyoking]

What a weird day. With the kings down 3-0 I still clicked on the link on the NHL app to listen to them and I was pleasantly surprised to hear the dodgers game (which I didn’t think I could listen to online). Of course it was great to hear them win and it was also nice to see that the kings came back to tie their game.

Oh and my swamp rabbits jerseys came and they are awesome.

 

[VCRW]

What a weird day. With the kings down 3-0 I still clicked on the link on the NHL app to listen to them and I was pleasantly surprised to hear the dodgers game (which I didn’t think I could listen to online). Of course it was great to hear them win and it was also nice to see that the kings came back to tie their game.

Oh and my swamp rabbits jerseys came and they are awesome. View attachment 13016

Love the blue jersey and the carrot stick logo - the black one? Not so much…

 

[symbology]

His elite talents are stick handling /passing / finishing around the net. He's so sneaky, and an excellent finisher around the net / inside the circles. Can turn nothing into something. Can dish the puck with lots of deception.

His main deficiency is his strength, physicality and skating speed.

If you only had this information, you'd say put him on the wing with some physical line mates, say QB and Laf. Maybe they could get away with Fiala - QB - Clarke if they had Mikey, and whoever he is playing with now, backing them up.

Unfortunately this kind of out of the box thinking never happens at the NHL (pro sports...).

However, the game is changing and you NEED an elite puck mover at the back and nobody is REMOTELY close to Clarke in the org. Not even a trace of a hope and prayer. Clarke is IT. Nobody anywhere on the horizon, so they have no choice to develop him there.

If there was a logjam maybe they'd give it a shot...well Hiller, probably the least likely coach in the league to pull something like that.

But Clarke reminds me a bit of Dylan Guenther, and Clarke is bigger and stronger (heavier, at least...).

Fox always talks highly of Clarke's skating. The only positive to Clarke's skating is his quick edge work and deception. His acceleration and top speed are both below average.

I may be in the minority, but at this time in his development I do not think he has enough tools to really excel at either position.

 

[Bollocks]

So… Mr. Holland… your leading scorer needs a contract. What’s the frikkin’ holdup? We have gone from a bumbling front office last year to total incompetence this year. There is no one in the pipeline to replace Juice if he walks. This drawn out negotiation is truly dumb.

Yes, there is. His name is Brandt Clarke!

The genius plan of Ken is letting Kempe walk for nothing and then put Clarke on the wing. That's probably why Ceci got 4 million/year. He's eventually going to be the top 4 D-man. Rejoice! Rejuice?

 

[symbology]

Yes, there is. His name is Brandt Clarke!

The genius plan of Ken is letting Kempe walk for nothing and then put Clarke on the wing. That's probably why Ceci got 4 million/year. He's eventually going to be the top 4 D-man. Rejoice! Rejuice?

One of the few types of forwards I see Clarke being able to become is a Corey Perry type. However, he does not really have the size/strength to hang in front of the net all night, and he does not have the wrist shot.

So, I am not sure what Clarke would do up front.

 

[Bollocks]

One of the few types of forwards I see Clarke being able to become is a Corey Perry type. However, he does not really have the size/strength to hang in front of the net all night, and he does not have the wrist shot.

So, I am not sure what Clarke would do up front.

I thought it was obvious I was kidding lol.

Personally I don't think that kind of experiment is worth doing, especially so soon in his career. D-men take longer to mature, he needs to build more strength and his sub-par skating speed isn't great for a winger anyway.

 

[ICE24]

A point is a point when none were expected. The Kings beat the Wild for two periods. Yes, a 3 goal lead will lead to complacency, however the Kings battled back and had a chance to win and that is all as fans we can ask for. Well done.

 

[Dr. Tran]

Not joking in the least. Doomed for mediocrity unless there is a massive clear out and a 3-5 year retooling.

Unfortunately he have Holland running the show.

When was the last time that actually worked?

 

[Dr. Tran]

I had the Kings & Dodgers on at the same time with the Dodger game on mute. After the 2nd period I decided to pause the Kings & finish watching the Dodgers. And they won, woo-hoo! Then I took a nap & watched the 3rd period. And I think that did the trick. Things aren't perfect with the Kings. But that was a great comeback & they earned that point. Also, it's 4 games. Let's not start jumping off bridges or firing & trading the whole team just yet. And I say this as someone who's not a fan of Hiller.

 

[Clif]

Thanks for the reminder Cliff,I had forgotten that Boyle was a center when he was drafted and Taylor tried to make him into a hulking defenseman.

No sweat - it’s been a long time. At leasf Boyle went on to have a good career. Jeff Tambellini did not.

 

[jammer06]

Congratulations to the following posters who correctly guessed within +/-1 of 34 SOG for the kings and/or 26 SOG for the Wild:

Kings 33,35 (1 Point):
Nyssa42

Wild 26 (2 Points):
beady eye
AngelEyes

Wild 25, 27 (1 Point):
SirJW
randdog
VCRW
hornman
TooCool
Dr. Tran
Nyssa42
Ros

Well I don't blame anyone who turned that one off after the first and then rejoined when the kings were making it interesting in the third. Pretty clear that above Hollands new defensive acquisitions the penalties are the storyline of the beginning of the season, as is the penalty kill. I'm not a great statistician but 7 PP goals allowed in 4 games is not the kind of thing you want to sustain. In general you'd think that would regress to the mean but it won't happen on its own if they aren't making it a priority. Way to absolutely steal a point on the road, but these problems are the self inflicted type.

 

[Statue4Deano]

Imagine Brandt Clarke playing in a system built to maximize his unique skillset. Imagine Brandt playing in Colorado or Dallas or Anaheim…

 

[Statue4Deano]

To be fair Boyle was a center when he was drafted. It was the Kings, under Lombardi - Boyle was Taylor’s pick - who got creative and tried to make him a hulking defenseman. It was okay but he became an effective player when put in the position he belonged in all along.

Boyle definitely drafted as a Center but he played both Center and Defense for BC during his Senior year. That’s where the idea started.

 

[jammer06]

Imagine Brandt Clarke playing in a system built to maximize his unique skillset. Imagine Brandt playing in Colorado or Dallas or Anaheim…

Honestly I'm picturing a lot of Erik Karlsson in Ottawa.... There's good and there's bad running your offense through one guy. As usual it works best when he's a player that makes the players around him better.

 

[santiclaws]

What a weird day. With the kings down 3-0 I still clicked on the link on the NHL app to listen to them and I was pleasantly surprised to hear the dodgers game (which I didn’t think I could listen to online). Of course it was great to hear them win and it was also nice to see that the kings came back to tie their game.

Oh and my swamp rabbits jerseys came and they are awesome. View attachment 13016

I have a Swamp Rabbits t-shirt I am quite fond of. Love that logo.