2019-20 Off Season Thread

[Stunner_At_Staples_Kings]

Sharks really trying to resign Karl's Son, Erik.

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/nhl-rumors-sharks-erik-karlsson-004322929.html

 

[Stunner_At_Staples_Kings]

2019 NHL Mock Draft 3.0: Order now set for next weekend's draft

NBC Sports has Colorado taking Bowen Byrnam at #4.

Have Kings taking Cole Caufield. I don't know enough about everyone, but he's listed at 5'7, and the write-up says he won't be ready any time soon because of that size. Those two reasons would be "hard pass" for me, but again, I don't know enough.

 

[Stunner_At_Staples_Kings]

Royal Lineage: Bowen Byram (feat. Vancouver Province reporter Steve Ewen) - LA Kings Insider

Man, it does not sound like that kid is going to fall to us. LA narrowing down to probably two guys.

The team isn’t inclined to share additional details towards a critical decision with the media, but from my interpretation, the Kings are looking at Kirby Dach or Dylan Cozens (slight chance that might be Trevor Zegras rather than Cozens) in the most probable event that Byram or Alex Turcotte are snapped up in some variation at three and four.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Phaneuf bought out. Brutal cap hit in 2020-21 of a little over $4 million.

Looks like the 3 regulars of Martinez, Doughty and Forbort will be back and LaPoo, MacDermid, Walker and Roy will compete for 4-7 although I'd like to see LaPoo moved and keep MacDermid around as 6-7 to keep teams honest. Also means Durzi, Clague and Brickley will be competing as well.

Should be some serious competition on the blue line in Training Camp barring a move for a T4 defender.

 

[davnlaguna]

Phaneuf bought out. Brutal cap hit in 2020-21 of a little over $4 million.

Looks like the 3 regulars of Martinez, Doughty and Forbort will be back and LaPoo, MacDermid, Walker and Roy will compete for 4-7 although I'd like to see LaPoo moved and keep MacDermid around as 6-7 to keep teams honest. Also means Durzi, Clague and Brickley will be competing as well.

Should be some serious competition on the blue line in Training Camp barring a move for a T4 defender.

I didn’t think they would do it because of the cap hit
5+ a year for two years or 4 years of this. I guess it saves a little but I would rather have it off the books sooner. Of course they didn’t ask me

 

[PuckinUgly57]

I didn’t think they would do it because of the cap hit
5+ a year for two years or 4 years of this. I guess it saves a little but I would rather have it off the books sooner. Of course they didn’t ask me

Next year makes more sense financially but this opens up a roster spot, which clearly seems to be the motivation to do it now.

I also forgot to add Anderson, so that's 8 defenders competing for 4 spots. My money will be on Roy, Walker for certain and most likely MacDermid. LaDue too unless he is moved or one of the others impresses at camp. The remaining guys will hone their craft in Ontario until the trade deadline and probably get a cup of coffee in LA.

Martinez will most likely be shopped having 1 year left after 2019-20 and their most valuable piece on defense to trade, possibly Forbort since he will be a UFA in summer 2020 unless the Kings resign him either now or after Jan 1.

 

[LoCal Kings]

Wondering if the Hawks trade for LD Maatta signals they are taking a Forward at #3, and not Byram. ? Unless they are somehow dumping Seabrook or Keith (unlikely).

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Wondering if the Hawks trade for LD Maatta signals they are taking a Forward at #3, and not Byram. ? Unless they are somehow dumping Seabrook or Keith (unlikely).

Could also mean they want NHL caliber defenders so as not to rush Byram if they choose him, just food for thought.

Seabrook...yikes. That contract is worse than any Kings one I can think of.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Karlsson reported signing 8 year/$92 million deal ($11.5 million AAV) with the Charks. Good way to start your week if you're him.

Bad way to extend a contract, he isn't worth that and I think he has passed his peak so it's all downhill from here. Also means the end of Pavelski most likely and Thornton is up in the air.

Good jobs Sharks, welcome to cap hell. This contract will look horrid by 2021.

 

[LoCal Kings]

I'm thinking the Karlsson contract will look bad by mid December. Unless it's some secret sign and trade (highly doubtful).

No idea how much up and coming talent Sharks have in their system, but they currently only have 1 1st, 1 2nd, and 2 3rd round picks in the next 3 NHL DRAFTS combined!!

 

[Deader2818]

jesus they have 26mil in cap hit on just 3 defense man and that goes on till 2025

 

[PuckinUgly57]

I'm thinking the Karlsson contract will look bad by mid December. Unless it's some secret sign and trade (highly doubtful).

Very doubtful. I think it's funny that Karlsson was talking about testing the market and getting full value, Ottawa or Montreal were possible destinations because his wife wanted to be back closer to family, blah blah blah and what does he do, someone offers him $11.5 million and he takes it.

If SJ didn't offer him $11.5 million but AZ did, he would be a Coyote right now. Dude was always about the money, everything else was BS.

No idea how much up and coming talent Sharks have in their system, but they currently only have 1 1st, 1 2nd, and 2 3rd round picks in the next 3 NHL DRAFTS combined!!

They just got a 2nd round pick this week from the Braun trade as well as a 3rd in 2020, I assume there will be more moves the next year or two to get some of these picks back because they have traded away a lot of them to win now.

jesus they have 26mil in cap hit on just 3 defense man and that goes on till 2025

That's an absurd number, and now moving Braun for cap space and recouping picks their top 4 is Burns, Karlsson, Vlasic and Dillon. With the first 3 and their long term deals, they are all under simultaneously under contract (except Dillon) through 2024-25 and at that time their respective ages will be 40, 35, 38.

That is freaking OLD for a defense core you have $26.5 million invested in and none of the 3 will be effective at that point for what they are getting paid. Dillon will be the youngest at 34 in 2024-25 but he is a UFA next summer and probably won't be back.

Even their 5-7 isn't that young, ranges between 23-26 with Middleton being the 23 year old. He was drafted in the 7th round by LA in 2014 and went unsigned, so he took an ELC with SJ in 2017 and has only 3 NHL games experience to date and will also be an RFA next summer.

Unless they draft and develop some gems on defense, they are screwed being so top heavy. I'm getting giddy just envisioning what kind of train wreck that team will be in 2-3 years.

 

[davnlaguna]

I'm thinking the Karlsson contract will look bad by mid December. Unless it's some secret sign and trade (highly doubtful).

No idea how much up and coming talent Sharks have in their system, but they currently only have 1 1st, 1 2nd, and 2 3rd round picks in the next 3 NHL DRAFTS combined!!

Before drew signed he said that he and Karlsson deserved more than PK
And they would get about the same money

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Before drew signed he said that he and Karlsson deserved more than PK
And they would get about the same money

Players always back one another when it comes to contracts, they are all part of the union. They are always on the same team when it comes to money and getting themselves and their brethren as much money as possible. That's why you'll hear stuff like "....works his ass off, great teammate, pays the price, etc etc..." throughout the year when a guy like Doughty may be talking about a fourth line scrub in Carolina or something.

Non contract however, especially a guy like Doughty, they talk some serious trash. This was from Doughty when asked about this season's Norris back in March:


The sad part is he is right, and Karlsson is right there with him as defensively deficient. I'm sure the history between LA and SJ plays a role but he's spot on here.

 

[LAKINGSFAN]

I have a question. I have been a Kings fan for a long time. I do not profess to know as much as some of you on this board and I really enjoy reading your opinions. When it comes to the job Blake has done so far, some of you dont like what he has done. My question is, with the cap mess that Lombardi left, what could Blake have done to better this team. It doesnt seem like there was much wiggle room for him to do much. Just wondering.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

I have a question. I have been a Kings fan for a long time. I do not profess to know as much as some of you on this board and I really enjoy reading your opinions. When it comes to the job Blake has done so far, some of you dont like what he has done. My question is, with the cap mess that Lombardi left, what could Blake have done to better this team. It doesnt seem like there was much wiggle room for him to do much. Just wondering.

Great question, and you'll get a variety of answers from everyone on this board. My .02 is that I never was a Blake fan as a player or an executive and I'll explain.

He was a bit overrated - he was more entertaining than solid, i.e. the huge butt checks, big shot - and was always focused on money. Every contract he received in LA from until he left made him the highest paid defender in the league until a comp would come up, and then on his next contract the Kings topped that to once again make him the highest paid defender in the NHL. They always took care of Blake.

His demands were about $7.5 million as he aproached UFA status in 2001 (he was making $5.5 million), Pronger got a 3 year/$29.5 million deal as an RFA coming off a Hart and a Norris Trophy in 2000 and that immediately pushed his demands to $9 million. The Kings' final offer was $8.5 million, he said no, and we know the rest.

Even Blake's Norris can be questioned, he won because he put up 23 goals that season, not because he was solid at both ends - he remains one of only 5 defensemen in the history of the trophy (1953) to win it with a negative plus/minus (-3), and the only one to do so in the last 36 years. Bottom line: he was overrated but keeps coming back to LA for money; returning in 2006 on a 2 year/$12 million deal and admittedly not being interested because LA was a losing team, goes to SJ and plays much better for 2 years, retires in 2010 returns to LA as an executive (AGM) in 2013 after 3 years in the War Room with Shanahan but no team management experience.

As an executive he is inept. Dumbo gets fired in 2017 and Blake gets his first draft, and they take Vilardi who's health and injury issues were very public knowledge and well, here we are 3 years later and he will most likely miss his third training camp in a row because of the back. That was a very high risk pick at 11th overall, the highest pick they had since 2009 (5th overall, Schenn) and gutsy but it's not looking good. For a franchise that needed to restock after trading away 1sts to win now still, a feel a more conservative approach was necessary.

He made a lot of lateral moves or low risk/high reward moves (Cammalleri, Jokinen, Mitchell, etc.) which of course Dumbo's idiot contracts had a lot to do with, but while guys like Sweeney are not afraid to cut big names and dollars to look to the future Blake stayed still with the loyalty no doubt learned from being under Dumbo. I think the defining idiot move for Blake was last summer, when he chased Kovalchuk like a 5th grader who likes an 8th grade girl and not only gave him big bucks but also tacked on the extra year.

I have no problem with GMs giving out big contracts but you need to know the overall state of your team in order to do so. The Kings just got eliminated in a sweep at the hands of Vegas and while Quick stood on his head, guys like Doughty, Kopitar and Brown had career years. It was obvious they were not going to replicate that in 2018-19 but for whatever reason Blake felt that was the floor now and not the ceiling. He doubles down on that and signs Kovalchuk and here we are, even older and more expensive. They (Robitaille and Blake) lauded this team as a contender last summer but had to back peddle at the State of the Franchise meeting, still not admitting this is not a PO team.

He has made one good move as far as I'm concerned, and that was moving Muzzin. Bigger names were traded during this season but Muzzin was one of the few who got a 1st round pick in return which honestly probably shouldn't have been part of the package considering the player involved. Getting that pick is one thing, but couple in the failure of Futa and Yanetti and the scouting staff the last 5 years and I am cringing thinking they may screw this up again. Three picks in the first two rounds (5, 22 and 33) can absolutely fast track a franchise but I'm nervous about what they do.

His inexperience shows, he looks like an amateur compared to his peers. This team has trade water every year under his watch, which is now going to be entering year 3. Contrast that to Dumbo's first 3 years and you'll see a huge difference in how he managed players, contracts and strategy.

If you want an example, Trouba was just traded to the Rangers for Pionk and the 20th overall. Sounds good right? Well Winnipeg got their own 1st round pick back from the Hayes trade at the deadline and Pionk is a bottom pair defender. So NY just got a 25 year old, two-way, complete franchise, RH defender for basically Paul LaDue.

I have very minimal faith in Blake and this regime, and were I AEG I am watching this guy like a hawk. If there is not significant progress (and that needs to be defined - I'm not saying an immediate return to contention) in 2019-20 I am giving this guy his pink slip next summer and possibly Robitaille too.

 

[davnlaguna]

Corey Perry a UFA
Ducks bought him out

 

[LAKINGSFAN]

Thanks for the explanation Puck. I always enjoy reading your posts.

I do agree that I was not Happy with Blake when he went chasing the money (especially the Sharks).

I am on the fence with the Vilardi pick. I think it was a high risk high reward and still hoping that he can get the issues with his back resolved and help this team at some point.

I would have preferred not to have signed Kovalchuck and save that money for someone else. Also, I dont like that he wasnt utilized by the coaching staff. That being said, I wasnt a fan of hiring big Willy as the replacement for Stevens.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Corey Perry a UFA
Ducks bought him out

Not surprised, they had come to a mutual agreement last week that it was best for both parties to move on. The question was if Murray could get someone to take him with salary retention but at $8.625 million and a few years left the Ducks would have had to sweeten the deal quite a bit. Similar situation to Phaneuf I'm assuming, Blake probably kicked the tires to see if there would be any takers but no dice.

His cap hit much like Phaneuf's for LA is going to be brutal next season:



I still think he is a turd but he may find a team who needs a veteran with a little bit of grit and leadership on a relatively small deal. Dude has made about $80 million over his career, he isn't hurting for money.

 

[davnlaguna]

Not surprised, they had come to a mutual agreement last week that it was best for both parties to move on. The question was if Murray could get someone to take him with salary retention but at $8.625 million and a few years left the Ducks would have had to sweeten the deal quite a bit. Similar situation to Phaneuf I'm assuming, Blake probably kicked the tires to see if there would be any takers but no dice.

His cap hit much like Phaneuf's for LA is going to be brutal next season:

View attachment 208304

I still think he is a turd but he may find a team who needs a veteran with a little bit of grit and leadership on a relatively small deal. Dude has made about $80 million over his career, he isn't hurting for money.

My wife thinks he will be an ice girl next year.
Ok she thinks his knee is still bad but not Permanent IR bad and he will retire