The Hiller effect

Illegal_Stick

Illegal_Stick

Super Star
It's hard to believe people don't want to come to LA and play hockey, but they don't. The only reason I can see is behind the bench. The whole league laughed at us when Hiller cost us crucial games with amateur (at best) moves/decisions. Then they watched Spence not even get a chance to prove himself in the playoffs and get sent away because he won't play him. And now I'm sure we are watching Gav walk away for less than was offered (not confirmed, but if Holland "upped" the offer twice, it had to get past 7?) to play paired with Adam Fox. He showed he could be a top pair guy this year and Hiller still pushed him back when a hobbled Doughty came back.

Marner knows Hiller well and he didn't even seem to consider LA. As long as this clown is in charge of the bench, we are undesirable. Every one here knows that if Vegas had went out the exact same way to Edmonton, their coach would be long gone already. They demand excellence, we don't.
 
There’s very little question in my mind that Hiller is part of the problem but he’s just an extension of the front office’s approach to winning hockey in 2025. It’s not fun to watch and I’m sure it’s not fun to play. So why sign in LA? Holland is finding out why we have to overpay. Bigger AAV or longer term.
 
They said they changed their philosophy, that they were going to forecheck. Then we all saw them sit back and trap throughout the year and in the playoffs. The rest of the league saw it also. Change!
 
LA needs homegrown talent to thrive and that is what the Kings have stepped away from as of late (trading away draft picks year over year, not managing their pipeline, giving talent away due to bottleneck, etc).

The state of the Org is one of chaos - Headcoach who alienated a lot of the team and outside players through his play only limited line philosophy (he spoke of trust then did not display that same trust at the most crucial time), GM who is essentially a rental, President who simply doesn't know how to lead the Organization to success, phantom GM advisor who lurks in the shadows, and a lot of bad press recently when it comes to Los Angeles itself. The Org needs to clear house and set a solidified vision which it actually acts towards fulfilling.

Even though, players simply do not want to play on the west coast where they have to work extra hard for recognition (east coast bias with the media, etc), have tougher travel schedules and are outside of a true hockey market.
 
Nobody has ever wanted to come to LA. I remember the Kings chasing Drury, Kovalchuk, many others. Lombardi was complaining about it. Pretty sure that was pre-Hiller.

Hockey players generally want to play in hockey cities, unless there are many other benefits (like no taxes and/or consistent winning). The Kings are an afterthought in LA. The Knights offer consistent winning, no taxes, and a team that has a high profile in the city, plus a much lower cost of living.

East Coast teams also offer less travel and a shorter flight home for European players. Until the Kings manage to get deep in the playoffs year after year, no big UFA is going to come here unless the Kings overpay big time. And often not then.
 
santiclaws said:
Nobody has ever wanted to come to LA. I remember the Kings chasing Drury, Kovalchuk, many others. Lombardi was complaining about it. Pretty sure that was pre-Hiller.

Hockey players generally want to play in hockey cities, unless there are many other benefits (like no taxes and/or consistent winning). The Kings are an afterthought in LA. The Knights offer consistent winning, no taxes, and a team that has a high profile in the city, plus a much lower cost of living.

East Coast teams also offer less travel and a shorter flight home for European players. Until the Kings manage to get deep in the playoffs year after year, no big UFA is going to come here unless the Kings overpay big time. And often not then.
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Miami ain't exactly a hockey city. Players want to play where they have the best chance to win.
 
DryKing said:
LA needs homegrown talent to thrive and that is what the Kings have stepped away from as of late (trading away draft picks year over year, not managing their pipeline, giving talent away due to bottleneck, etc).

The state of the Org is one of chaos - Headcoach who alienated a lot of the team and outside players through his play only limited line philosophy (he spoke of trust then did not display that same trust at the most crucial time), GM who is essentially a rental, President who simply doesn't know how to lead the Organization to success, phantom GM advisor who lurks in the shadows, and a lot of bad press recently when it comes to Los Angeles itself. The Org needs to clear house and set a solidified vision which it actually acts towards fulfilling.

Even though, players simply do not want to play on the west coast where they have to work extra hard for recognition (east coast bias with the media, etc), have tougher travel schedules and are outside of a true hockey market.
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Maybe we should restart the “Kings Are Moving to Kansas City” threads?
 
DryKing said:
LA needs homegrown talent to thrive and that is what the Kings have stepped away from as of late (trading away draft picks year over year, not managing their pipeline, giving talent away due to bottleneck, etc).

The state of the Org is one of chaos - Headcoach who alienated a lot of the team and outside players through his play only limited line philosophy (he spoke of trust then did not display that same trust at the most crucial time), GM who is essentially a rental, President who simply doesn't know how to lead the Organization to success, phantom GM advisor who lurks in the shadows, and a lot of bad press recently when it comes to Los Angeles itself. The Org needs to clear house and set a solidified vision which it actually acts towards fulfilling.

Even though, players simply do not want to play on the west coast where they have to work extra hard for recognition (east coast bias with the media, etc), have tougher travel schedules and are outside of a true hockey market.
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Very well said. If you look at the Cup teams we had 11-12 guys on those rosters that were home grown and yes organization is definitely in chaos. President has no idea how to lead an organization to success and should have walked out the door with Flake.

I don't agree players don't want to come to non-true hockey markets. Florida just resigned 3 of their top guys from the Cup teams. Players want to play where they can win.

But yes homegrown talent is the way to go. Draft and develop the players and then find the pieces that fit the puzzle around them. Something ol' Deano was great at but has been lacking since.

Will be interesting to see the reception Hiller gets when he is announced on opening night. My money is on a chorus of boos.
 
santiclaws said:
Nobody has ever wanted to come to LA. I remember the Kings chasing Drury, Kovalchuk, many others. Lombardi was complaining about it. Pretty sure that was pre-Hiller.

Hockey players generally want to play in hockey cities, unless there are many other benefits (like no taxes and/or consistent winning). The Kings are an afterthought in LA. The Knights offer consistent winning, no taxes, and a team that has a high profile in the city, plus a much lower cost of living.

East Coast teams also offer less travel and a shorter flight home for European players. Until the Kings manage to get deep in the playoffs year after year, no big UFA is going to come here unless the Kings overpay big time. And often not then.
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This comment from Adam Herman is right on:
“The NHL needs to do something about the unfair competitive advantages that teams like the Panthers and Golden Knights have: Being well-run teams that players want to play for.”

I don't know if Hiller effect is real but I would think guys would want to sign and play with Maurice than Hiller if everything else is equal. No taxes are nice, but I don't see players taking a discount to play in Nashville or Seattle. Playing for a winning and competent organization is very important.

Maybe KH should have touted the 105 points in 24-25 when he was making offers to FA's.
 
DryKing said:
LA needs homegrown talent to thrive and that is what the Kings have stepped away from as of late (trading away draft picks year over year, not managing their pipeline, giving talent away due to bottleneck, etc).

The state of the Org is one of chaos - Headcoach who alienated a lot of the team and outside players through his play only limited line philosophy (he spoke of trust then did not display that same trust at the most crucial time), GM who is essentially a rental, President who simply doesn't know how to lead the Organization to success, phantom GM advisor who lurks in the shadows, and a lot of bad press recently when it comes to Los Angeles itself. The Org needs to clear house and set a solidified vision which it actually acts towards fulfilling.

Even though, players simply do not want to play on the west coast where they have to work extra hard for recognition (east coast bias with the media, etc), have tougher travel schedules and are outside of a true hockey market.
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Kempe, Byfield, Turcotte, Laf, Helenius, Clarke, Anderson all homegrown. I mean, Kopi and Drew are still here. That’s 9 players drafted by the Kings. Greentree will play sooner than later and the homegrown goalie will be legit.

I wouldn’t call the org in chaos, but I agree Hiller remaining is a bad look. The Kings had to beat the Oilers this year and they choked somewhat spectacularly. Regardless of who’s coaching, that’s the number one issue. 4 years in a row is humiliating.

That said, I think today went quite well, all things considered. The only way out is through. Time to get mean.
 
Clif said:
Kempe, Byfield, Turcotte, Laf, Helenius, Clarke, Anderson all homegrown. I mean, Kopi and Drew are still here. That’s 9 players drafted by the Kings. Greentree will play sooner than later and the homegrown goalie will be legit.

I wouldn’t call the org in chaos, but I agree Hiller remaining is a bad look. The Kings had to beat the Oilers this year and they choked somewhat spectacularly. Regardless of who’s coaching, that’s the number one issue. 4 years in a row is humiliating.

That said, I think today went quite well, all things considered. The only way out is through. Time to get mean.
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I agree, my point simply is that 95% of the Kings top talent is going to be home grown - that is the reason trading away draft picks should not be done lightly. Blake traded quite a few 1st and 2nds over the last several seasons which are going to hurt us.

As to the Org being in a state of chaos, it really is. When you look at well run organizations like Vegas, it's pretty obvious to see to the dysfunction within the Kings. Worse yet, Anaheim has been killing it lately with a GM with vision, several years of strong drafts and now a top tier coach. The Kings will have a long stay in the cellar ahead of them if they do not start fixing things now and pulling some of the weeds within the Organization.

I also think Holland did a good job today based on what he could have reasonably been expected to pull of. While he pulled in decent players, he overpaid for all of them which shows how hard the task ahead of him really is. He's not the problem, however we do have to match that with what appears to have been a subpar draft.
 
DryKing said:
I agree, my point simply is that 95% of the Kings top talent is going to be home grown - that is the reason trading away draft picks should not be done lightly. Blake traded quite a few 1st and 2nds over the last several seasons which are going to hurt us.

As to the Org being in a state of chaos, it really is. When you look at well run organizations like Vegas, it's pretty obvious to see to the dysfunction within the Kings. Worse yet, Anaheim has been killing it lately with a GM with vision, several years of strong drafts and now a top tier coach. The Kings will have a long stay in the cellar ahead of them if they do not start fixing things now and pulling some of the weeds within the Organization.

I also think Holland did a good job today based on what he could have reasonably been expected to pull of. While he pulled in decent players, he overpaid for all of them which shows how hard the task ahead of him really is. He's not the problem, however we do have to match that with what appears to have been a subpar draft.
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Ah I see - I misunderstood the homegrown part. Yeah that’s a real necessary part of the build here.

I also see where you’re going with this. I see it more as a crisis than chaos. This last playoff loss simply hurt more than the other three combined. It’s a throw-you-in-the wilderness kind of loss if they let it be. These signings are less about who the Kings are and more about how do they beat one team 4 out of 7 times. And if they manage that, the assumption is they’ll have enough momentum on their side to extend the run.

Speaking of Florida, they became what they are by focusing on beating Tampa Bay. Their blockbuster trade for Tkachuk is nothing we can relate to. But they weren’t getting anywhere either until they beat their divisional dragon. They just…clearly succeeded. Immensely.

Yeah, agreed Holland did what he could today. And I think it’s enough to make it interesting.
 
DryKing said:
Blake traded quite a few 1st and 2nds over the last several seasons which are going to hurt us.
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It wasn’t long ago that the Kings farm system was lauded as the best in the league. But as Yanetti alluded to, you can’t play everyone, and some players had to be moved or lost (and some were). My hope is that the Kings learned their lessons from this. I was doom & gloom after the Perry signing, but now I’m willing to wait & see what happens. That said, I agree with other posters who say we still won’t beat the Oilers
 
Pretty much every player knows this franchise is adrift with no ideas.

The coach reflects this.

The FO is a clown show.

New GM hire was damage control.
Still the same old guard pulling the strings.

AEG does not care about winning.
Add to that AEG is toxic ownership entity.

Why would players want to come here except if you want to collect a paycheck, be anonymous, and enjoy the beach life.
 
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