2024-25 Off Season Thread

[CaptHowdy00]

If the Kings end up with 92 or 93 points and are in 4th place in the Pacific, will they make the playoffs? And if this is enough to get them in, will Blowme get to keep his job? Or does he get to keep his job of the Kings get out of the first round?

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Ran across this, I definitely think the Kings didn't utilize PLD properly but "I didn't know what was expected of me" is unacceptable. You got a massive deal, lots of assets were moved to make that trade happen, paraded around LA claiming it will be your forever home, know Kopitar and Dunno are defensive studs who you said you wanted to learn from and you don't know what was expected of you? Bizarro.

Pierre-Luc Dubois reflects on what went wrong with LA Kings: ‘I didn’t really know what was expected of me’

When Pierre-Luc Dubois takes the ice for the Capitals this fall, he will don a jersey for his fourth team in five…

russianmachineneverbreaks.com

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Second time in a week:

Sources: Vegas to pay Lehner without cap hit

A resolution between the Golden Knights and Robin Lehner will pay the goaltender $4.4 million for this season, but he will not count against Vegas' salary cap, sources told ESPN.

www.espn.com

First one was Guadreau's signing bonus paid in July before his death and how that wouldn't count against the cap for the BJs.

Interesting how this is happening now.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

TA with the Kings season projection, I'll recap in a but but the picture says it all.

Full article:

Los Angeles Kings 2024-25 season preview: Playoff chances, projected points, roster rankings​

By Dom Luszczyszyn, Sean Gentille and Shayna Goldman

Somewhere in Crypto.com Arena, there should be a pair of dartboards — one with Connor McDavid’s face in the middle and the other with the NHL’s playoff bracket. For the Kings, that’s been a season-ending combination not once, not twice, but thrice.

What’s an organization to do, other than petition for a change to the postseason format? That’s a question they’re continuing to reckon with in Los Angeles. “Build the best possible roster and hope it works out” is what it boils down to — and the Kings know better than most just how difficult a task that can be.

The task at hand becomes a lot more difficult when your best defenseman suffers a significant injury during the preseason, one that has him out “month-to-month.” That dictated a recalibration of Los Angeles’ odds this season.

We don’t know the exact timeline for Doughty’s return, though Frank Seravelli ball-parked it at 10 to 14 weeks. On the longer side, that would mean Doughty misses half the season, which is what we’re going with here. Anything less, and the Kings’ playoff chances look slightly rosier.

That does mean the Kings’ chances take a hit, though it’s not quite as disastrous as some might think. Prior to the injury, they were expected to be a 94.3-point team that makes the playoffs 62 percent of the time. With the injury, that drops to 92.7 points with a 55 percent chance.

It’s not the end of the world, especially if Doughty comes back earlier than expected. But it does put a team that wasn’t safe to begin with closer to the playoff cut line. The weakness of the Pacific gives Los Angeles a smoother path to make it than Utah or Minnesota, but not by much.

If you thought losing in the first round to the Oilers was a bad way to end the season, there’s a real chance this season could be worse. This year, the Kings might not even earn the privilege of doing so — not unless the team sees a material jump from some of their future stars. Even if that happens, a deep run feels unlikely.

---

The big question​

Is this the year Quinton Byfield blossoms into a franchise talent?

Byfield’s 55-point breakout last season wasn’t just impressive — it was helpful. In an era when we’ve watched so many high-profile picks deliver on their potential almost immediately, he provided a reminder that some elite prospects take a bit longer to find their game. Plenty, in fact.

It’s not that his first three professional seasons were catastrophically bad, either. A six-game NHL audition after being drafted turned into 40 games, which turned into 53. One point turned into 10 points, which turned into 22. His progress was linear. It was positive. It was also slow — not just slower than the likes of Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews and Jack Hughes, either. In 2022-23, while Byfield was still playing a chunk of games in the AHL, Tim Stutzle had a 90-point season at age 20 for the Senators. He was the No. 3 pick in 2020, selected immediately after Byfield.

Heading into last season, the Kings didn’t exactly seem to think Byfield was ready to be a major NHL contributor, either. Acquiring Pierre-Luc Dubois signaled as much. In him, the Kings thought they were getting a long-term answer on their top six and an immediate addition to a center depth chart already topped by Anze Kopitar and Phillip Danault. Byfield, in other words, would have to show that he was still an elite prospect and still a center.

He certainly handled the first part of that equation. Byfield didn’t just stick in the NHL for his 21-year-old season — he played nearly all his minutes at left wing on a line with Kopitar and Adrian Kempe, and he proved that he belonged. In terms of five-on-five production, his 2.07 points per 60 minutes were ahead of players such as Jack Hughes, Nick Suzuki and Bo Horvat. He also increased his offensive impacts overall, helping the Kings generate plenty of shots and chances, and showed signs of a more fully rounded game.

Byfield remains Corey Pronman’s top-rated Kings prospect, still projecting to be a top-of-the-lineup player. From the Kings’ Pipeline ranking: “(Byfield’s) athletic tools are elite. He’s so quick for a guy his size, as he has the speed and edge work of a 5-foot-11 forward in a 6-foot-4 frame. He combines that speed with great hands and the ability to beat opponents with skill on the move. He’s physical enough, but Byfield’s large frame can help him overpower opponents even if he’s not going to lay guys out.”

That wasn’t simply enough to get his development back on track; it gave the Kings even more justification to move on from Dubois while they still could. Turns out, they had their top-six center in the organization after all. On balance, it was good enough to lift Byfield into the Player Tiers for the first time — sure, he was down in 5C, but nobody else on the list was coming off a 22-point season, either. Quite a leap.

Continued

 

[PuckinUgly57]

And even still, nobody else, outside of perhaps Connor Bedard, seems like a better bet to level up even further in 2024-25. Los Angeles’ plan is to start him on a line with Kevin Fiala and Warren Foegele. That’s not quite the same as having Kopitar as a security blanket, but it’s not bad, either. Fiala brings high-end speed, 30-goal production and some playmaking ability to Byfield’s wing. The latter should be of particular service, since Byfield’s playmaking on the wing last season wasn’t particularly stellar. Foegele, meanwhile, brings quality grime on the right side. It’s a combination that makes immediate sense, and it could certainly lead to Byfield establishing himself as a franchise talent.

Does that mean he’ll show up in the Franchise Tier ahead of next season? Unless he makes a quantum leap, no. That realm is reserved for the league’s top 30 players — and that’s a bit away from Byfield’s projected plus-9 Net Rating. Not being there in a year, though, doesn’t mean he can’t get there eventually. That’s another helpful reminder for the rest of us.

The wild card​

Can Brandt Clarke fill the Doughty-sized hole on the blue line?

Doughty’s injury throws a wrench right into the Kings’ defense. Already, Los Angeles was going into the season without Matt Roy’s shutdown presence. Losing Doughty for the next couple of months only strains this group and puts pressure on a player such as Clarke to step it up.

Before Doughty was injured, there were questions regarding whether Clarke would even be in the top four. He started camp on the third pair with Joel Edmundson, a sign that the team might not think he’s ready. Now, he sort of has to be. Now the question becomes just how ready he is and whether he can help keep this defense afloat to start the season.

Clarke has star potential, according to The Athletic’s Prospect Tiers. Some concerns with his development just kept him out of the All-Star territory, but there’s still some reason to be optimistic about his readiness to become a producer at the NHL level thanks to his vision and puck-moving ability. Clarke already had a plus-2 Offensive Rating that will jump up to a plus-5 with top power-play deployment.

By the numbers, the Kings’ top pair won’t stack up to playoff caliber with Clarke in Doughty’s place. But maybe with a stout partner such as Anderson, who has a team-high plus-6 Defensive Rating, their complementary skills will push them to outperform expectations.

There’s a lot of uncertainty around Clarke, but he has a huge opportunity to show exactly what he is capable of.

The strengths​

We already waxed poetic about Byfield’s upside — this season feels like the one in which the Kings could officially become his team. What makes that prospect especially tantalizing is how the team is setting him up for success — with Fiala riding shotgun on the left side. With Kopitar and Danault soaking up tough minutes, that duo has a real opportunity to feast this season.

They didn’t get much of an opportunity to do that together last season, playing only 63 minutes together, but that time was highly promising, with the pair earning 69 percent of the expected goals. Both players are growing into highly involved players with the puck and should feed off each other well. Foegele on the right side can handle all the dirty work and grades out well as a support second liner.

That second line should be a source of strength for the Kings this year, a pillar of the team’s depth approach. That’s anchored further by one of the team’s quintessential pairs: Danault and Trevor Moore.

While the duo no longer has Viktor Arvidsson by their side, they should still be able to win their matchups capably, as they usually do, thanks to their defensive might. Danault’s offensive game may only be average, but defensively he remains one of the league’s finest centers. The Kings allowed just 2.36 expected goals against per 60 last season with Danault on the ice in relatively tough minutes. Given the assignments he takes on, earning 57 percent of the expected goals and 58 percent of the goals is incredibly impressive.

With those two duos anchoring the middle six, the Kings are extremely well-positioned to win their matchups. Combined, their middle six has a Net Rating of plus-18, the second-best mark in the league. Alex Turcotte and Akil Thomas have potential to add to that on the fourth line, which further punctuates Los Angeles’ place as one of the absolute deepest teams in the league.

That’s built from the middle out, a quartet that may lack a true franchise ace but looks quality from top to bottom. The Kings rank seventh in the league at the most important position, which may allow the team to squeeze out more value than projected for here. If the centers drive the bus, the Kings are on the right path.

What really helps is the defensive structure of the top three with Kopitar, Byfield and Danault all projected to have a Defensive Rating of plus-3 or higher. Only one other team — Vegas with Jack Eichel and William Karlsson — has more than one, and only 12 other centers grade out so well. The Kings are loaded with shutdown options down the middle.

That makes life a lot easier for the team’s defensive corps, and they’ll need it without Doughty, whose projected Net Rating of plus-11 will be severely missed. A lot of that came on the defensive side of the puck, where only Jonas Brodin carried a stronger defensive impact. Doughty formed an elite shutdown pair with Mikey Anderson, allowing just 2.2 expected goals against per 60 and 1.73 goals against per 60 last season. That’s impressive in tough minutes — now we get to see how much of that Anderson was responsible for.

That will be a serious challenge with the remaining depth on the right side, all three of whom look woefully inept defensively. Clarke at least has puck-moving upside to boast; he just has to prove he can handle a bigger role.

Further down the depth chart, there are some individual strengths worth highlighting. Vladislav Gavrikov’s defensive ability continues to be a plus on the second pair, and he’s a monster when it comes to shutting down entries against. He won’t have Matt Roy by his side, which is a big loss, but the offensive ability of Jordan Spence has potential to get more out of the pair.

The top two pairs feature some strong opposing skills on either side, which could mean they achieve more than the sum of their parts. For the Kings to have any success this season, they’ll have to.

Continued

 

[PuckinUgly57]

The weaknesses​

The Kings have a lot of good players. What they’re missing — as made painfully obvious by three straight playoff defeats at the hands of the Oilers — are truly great players. And losing their best player obviously makes that fact hurt even more.

Franchise cornerstone pieces give a team championship upside. They’re the type of players that raise a team’s ceiling, and the Kings, at the moment anyway, are woefully short.

During the team’s previous championship window, those players included Kopitar and Doughty. In 2024, those players can’t still be Kopitar and Doughty, even if the latter was healthy. Neither has the offensive ability anymore to be leaders at their position, and that puts the Kings behind the best of the West.

It’s likely that Byfield will supplant Kopitar at some point, but the transition to it being his team hasn’t been quick enough to bridge the gap between eras. Clarke will get a massive opportunity this year to be the guy, but that’s a lot of pressure to put on a young player who has yet to prove he’s a full-time NHLer, let alone a difference-maker.

It’s helpful that Kopitar is still as good as he is, but part of the reason that the Kings have been good, but not great, is that no one has stepped up to take the mantle yet. The Kings are still his team, and that’s a problem for a 37-year-old. The clock is ticking on his utility and when it does, the Kings could take a dramatic step back. We’re going to see the risk of that play out on the defensive side over the first few months of the season without Doughty.

Kopitar still rocking out at his age is impressive, but on a contending team, he’s much better suited for a second-line shutdown role. He’s not as involved in the offensive zone or bringing the puck into it, and his ability to create chances ranks really low. He can still win his minutes, but his scoring ability has been steadily second-line caliber in four of the last five seasons.

Kopitar’s running mate, Adrian Kempe, does a lot more of the work with the puck these days and he’s a more impactful player for it. Last year, his puck touches went up and he saw a rise in his scoring rates as a result. He’s a key piece for the Kings’ offense after scoring 75 points last season, but his resume suggests it’s unfair to expect a repeat. On a contender, he’d be great as the support winger on the top line, or the lead guy on the second line. Here, he doesn’t stack up well next to other go-to wingers.

That might be a moot point if the first line is only that in name. Flip Byfield’s line with Kopitar’s and things look a little more balanced — especially if Byfield takes the step many expect. But that’s still an “if” for this season, one that can elevate the Kings, but should still be treated as a wait-and-see.

Depth and balance are the key to the Kings’ forward lines, but losing Arvidsson and, yes, even Dubois has the top nine looking thinner. Alex Laferriere is far from an optimal choice on the top line, and it’s worth noting that trio got caved in last year in 83 minutes, earning just 44 percent of the expected goals. Tanner Jeannot might work as a reclamation project, but for now looks like a huge downgrade. On the fourth line, losing Arthur Kaliyev indefinitely is a big blow if it means more of Trevor Lewis in the lineup.

On top of all that, the other issue is offense. The Kings’ forwards have the fourth-best Defensive Rating in the league, but also the 21st-ranked Offensive Rating at minus-8. That’s made all the more problematic by a lack of offensive utility from the blue line — especially now with Doughty out of the picture. Neither Anderson nor Gavrikov grade out well for their roles, and the presence of both Edmundson and Kyle Burroughs now makes things look painfully dire. That has potential to be one of the league’s worst pairs, a huge black hole.

Those issues could all be masked with strong goaltending, but a duo of Darcy Kuemper and David Rittich doesn’t exactly inspire — it gives the team two 1B’s. Maybe that works out for a Kings team that is so good defensively, but with how weak they expect to be offensively, a standout goalie would help.

Kuemper isn’t far removed from being that, ranking 15th in goals saved above expected in 2022-23. A bounce-back season after finishing 69th last season may be in the cards for him given his strong track record beforehand. But at 34, that may have just been a sign of things to come.

If it is, it’s another thing that likely limits this team’s ceiling, but at this point, that’s not even the concern. Surviving without Doughty long enough to make the playoffs is, and the team without him doesn’t look set up for success.

Continued

 

[PuckinUgly57]

The best case​

Byfield jumps to superstardom and drags Fiala to twin 90-point seasons, Clarke is a revelation and Doughty comes back earlier than expected. Add a resurgent Kuemper to the mix and not only do the Kings make the playoffs, but they look well-positioned to enter their next era.

The worst case​

Doughty’s loss is painfully felt and the Kings struggle immensely without him. Clarke shows he doesn’t have it, Byfield fails to take a step, and Kopitar declines, too. Add subpar goaltending to the mix and the Kings fall well short of the playoffs, leaving doubt regarding their status as a future contender.

---

The bottom line​

The Kings were already heading into the season with a chip on their shoulder after another postseason elimination by the Oilers. Now they have to navigate the indefinite absence of their No. 1 defenseman.

The road to the playoffs got a lot tougher, but this team still has the ceiling and depth to get there.

Pretty in depth article, any thoughts?

 

[davnlaguna]

TA with the Kings season projection, I'll recap in a but but the picture says it all.

So you’re saying there is a chance. ;(

 

[Kings4OT]

Ran across this, I definitely think the Kings didn't utilize PLD properly but "I didn't know what was expected of me" is unacceptable. You got a massive deal, lots of assets were moved to make that trade happen, paraded around LA claiming it will be your forever home, know Kopitar and Dunno are defensive studs who you said you wanted to learn from and you don't know what was expected of you? Bizarro.

Pierre-Luc Dubois reflects on what went wrong with LA Kings: ‘I didn’t really know what was expected of me’

When Pierre-Luc Dubois takes the ice for the Capitals this fall, he will don a jersey for his fourth team in five…

russianmachineneverbreaks.com

I understand what he is saying, but agree just a little. His lack of effort at times was at times as stated....Pencake like.....thats unacceptable at any cap hit in the NHL let alone what he got. I will say 40 points from a 3rd C is good no matter how you slice it and if you consider 2 of his linemates waived and the other was a rookie i really dont know how much more production Kings fans want in his situation. Plus playing the 1 3 1 added to it.... I will be suprised if he isnt pushing 70 points baring injury in a role better suited for him and with linemates he needs. Still, he had 4 more points than the legend.....shocking, but not

 

[Stunner_At_Staples_Kings]

Byfield hat trick tonight.

 

[davnlaguna]

The Kings of preseason
Kopitar hasn’t shown up yet but Byfield with the Tour du Chapeau was nice to see

 

[PuckinUgly57]

I understand what he is saying, but agree just a little. His lack of effort at times was at times as stated....Pencake like.....thats unacceptable at any cap hit in the NHL let alone what he got. I will say 40 points from a 3rd C is good no matter how you slice it and if you consider 2 of his linemates waived and the other was a rookie i really dont know how much more production Kings fans want in his situation. Plus playing the 1 3 1 added to it.... I will be suprised if he isnt pushing 70 points baring injury in a role better suited for him and with linemates he needs. Still, he had 4 more points than the legend.....shocking, but not

Spot on. He wasn't put in a position to succeed, I almost think McLellan had it out for him from day one.

Maybe it was the LA showboating before he ever laced up for camp, maybe it was a personality mismatch, not sure. But he should have been elevated to 2C and let Dunno handle 3C, and if that meant dropping TOTM to the third so be it. What team has an $8.5 million 3C? Uhh..no one.

It just didn't work for either party, and I think both are to blame. And putting 40 points up on L3 is a coup as far as I'm concerned.

This dude will put up 70 points this season because the Caps aren't as stupid as the Kings.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Byfield hat trick tonight.

Game was streamed on LAK.com, Buster looked good.

Never in a million years did I think I'd say that. Prove me wrong this season buddy.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

The Kings of preseason
Kopitar hasn’t shown up yet but Byfield with the Tour du Chapeau was nice to see

Last season not withstanding because the Kings looked like ass in preseason, but they generally play well during preseason and tend to fall apart when the real season begins.

Hoping I'm wrong.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

If the Kings end up with 92 or 93 points and are in 4th place in the Pacific, will they make the playoffs? And if this is enough to get them in, will Blowme get to keep his job? Or does he get to keep his job of the Kings get out of the first round?

P4? Not a chance. The Central Division has talented teams as a whole, and they'll take up the PO spots. My guess (no order) for the West will be Vegas, Edmonton, Vancouver, Nashville, Minnesota, Nordalanche, Stars and Blues.

Bowlby should have been fired after last season, and.I don't think it'll matter what happens unless the Kings make an extended run. Right now the POs look like a long shot to me as is.

If the Kings miss altogether or even get wiped out in the WCQF, Blake is gone for sure.

And not a moment too soon, he ruined this team in a span of 24 months.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

P4? Not a chance. The Central Division has talented teams as a whole, and they'll take up the PO spots. My guess (no order) for the West will be Vegas, Edmonton, Vancouver, Nashville, Minnesota, Nordalanche, Stars and Blues.

Bowlby should have been fired after last season, and.I don't think it'll matter what happens unless the Kings make an extended run. Right now the POs look like a long shot to me as is.

If the Kings miss altogether or even get wiped out in the WCQF, Blake is gone for sure.

And not a moment too soon, he ruined this team in a span of 24 months.

I forgot about Winnipeg, they'll be in the mix too. So I definitely don't think LA will be in that group finishing P4.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Opening Night roster set:

14 11 9
10 24 12
22 55 37
47 15 26 61

44 21
84 7
6 92
5 82

35 31

No real surprises to me except Andre Lee. Thomas didn't have a strong start to camp but finished strong.

 

[Kings4OT]

Opening Night roster set:

14 11 9
10 24 12
22 55 37
47 15 26 61

44 21
84 7
6 92
5 82

35 31

No real surprises to me except Andre Lee. Thomas didn't have a strong start to camp but finished strong.

Interesting, Buster gets 20g and 30g wingers instead of a 0g and a few guys who got waived

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Interesting, Buster gets 20g and 30g wingers instead of a 0g and a few guys who got waived

I'm seriously starting to believe McLellan just didn't like PLDs showboating, the whole Tour of LA stuff. He's old school and probably believes in humility and PLD was anything but before he put a skate on. I found it humorous but maybe McLellan saw it as hubris.

Fagemo, Copley and Studnicka waived for purposes of assignment to Ontario. Pretty sure Fagemo is on his last legs as a King.

 

[LAKINGSFAN]

I didnt get a chance to watch a lot of the pre season games but what I did see Buster looked pretty good.

I am not sure why McLellan would set PLD up for failure when it would ultimately cost him his job. In regards to tour of LA, wouldnt that be the Kings PR/marketing dept. I saw him throw out the first pitch at a Dodger game and assumed the Kings set all of that up.

Finally, just a random note. I saw that Bjornfoot was just sent down the Panthers AHL affiliate.