OT: Carter and Richards Still Paying Dividends in Philadelphia

[PuckinUgly57]

The secret to the Flyers' turnaround? ‘We got drunk, that helped’

But I'll still gladly enjoy the 2 Cups.

=)~~

 

[Kings4OT]

I remember arguing with a few of those from the Philly board about the trades, I get it that we gave up quite a bit and even tho I like Simmonds I would make those moves in a heartbeat. Sure Carter came from Columbus but that doesn't matter. They think they "won" every trade even Weal...I think its laughable, sure Richards ran his course quickly but the Kings don't win any cups IMO (I don't think they win the 2nd without having won that first one) without him. Those Flyer fans kept saying wait and see in 5 or 8 years.....really? ok how is it panning out for Philly. I'm ok with where the franchise is and I also know its going to crumble quickly but I can live with that. Most of us never thought the Kings would get 1 and they got 2 impressively. I am still worried about Carter when he returns but these guys have played pretty well without him

 

[PuckinUgly57]

I was referring to the whole "Dry Island" thing back in 2011, when Carter and Richards' jersey numbers weren't on the board as players who would go dry for 1 month periods. I found it funny that a franchise that made such a big stink about boozing has one of their core players admit it was a drunkfest that turned them around.

In all fairness they weren't the only ones, Holmgren (GM at the time) stated he had 23 players on the roster and there were not 23 numbers on the board. Carter and Richards' names were the most prominent ones, Richards being the captain and Carter a young star, which is why it was such a big deal. There were reports long before that those two as well as others partied hard and there was locker room dissension, which is supposedly a big reason why Pronger was brought in in 2009 having captained 2 franchises at that time and apparently players started to go to Pronger by 2011 when Richards and Carter were dealt.

I also agree, the Kings won this trade hands down, end of discussion. Two Cups speaks for itself, and Richards was huge in the first one but less important in the second one. I also agree that the second win doesn't happen without the first one, that is where Richards showed them how to win and turned the franchise into a winner. he showed them in 2012, the Kings used that knowledge in 2014 even though he wasn't as huge a contributor (he had key moments - setting up Gaborik's game tying goal with under :10 left against Anaheim for example. Gaborik won that game too).

They got a great player in Simmonds, but that's about it. Schenn never materialized in Philadelphia, in fact Flyers fans are pissed off that he is so successful now in St. Louis but in 6 seasons he teetered between a 2C/3C and frustrated the hell out of fans. The Flyers experienced what the Kings have so many times over, a player anticipated to be great in their uniform but only does so after being traded. Coutourier is decent but rounding out at about 35 points a season career wise, it's a bit disappointing considering he was an 8th overall pick. He is having a career year however, so maybe he turns the corner but if not, they have him locked in at $4.33 million hit for the next 4 seasons.

Simmonds' future in Philadelphia is in question too, as both Giroux and Voracek make $8.25 million each for the next 5 and 6 years respectively. Simmonds is a bargain now at $3.975 million (hit, actual salary is $4.75 million this season and $5 million in 2018-19 - which is still a bargain). They will have a lot of UFAs so money should be available, but he will command a lot more than what he got on this deal, plus their 1st round pick Provorov (D, 7th overall/2015) will be coming off his ELC and will need a new contract as well depending on his progression (bridge deal? Long term? Still up in the air). Plus both their goalies will be UFAs at that point and we all know the shit show known as Flyers goaltending. My point: there is no guarantee he will be a Flyer next summer or beyond.

So almost 7 years after the trade, the Flyers have yet to make it out of the ECSFs and have missed the POs 3 times in the last 5 years with 2 ECQFs eliminations in there as well. I'll take the Kings track record including the two non PO appearances and two Cup wins in 6 years than a bunch of decent players who haven't won shit.

Carter, he will be fine once he gets back up to speed. At least there is depth now to help him along until he gets to that point. If all goes well he should be in top form as the POs roll around.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Just looking for some Kings news and ran across this dated today. You guys know I think the defining moment of this team going from doormat to champion was when Richards crushed Burrows in Game 1 of the WCQFs in 2012, it change the whole attitude of the team. Brown mentions that exact moment here:

We snuck into the playoffs as the eighth seed. We had to play Vancouver — the Presidents’ Trophy winners – in the first round. I remember toward the end of Game 1, Mike Richards absolutely obliterated Alex Burrows in front of their bench. We were up 3–2 with under a minute to go and were holding on and Mike stepped up and made a huge play. And after that, it just felt like we had the edge on them.

Read this and a part of me wants to believe it was Tommy (Ox). So glad that man got to see not only one but two Cups.It's hard to believe March will be 15 years since my dad passed away and April will be 3 since the Oxilator did.

At the parade a few days later I met an elderly fan. He told me he had been waiting since 1967 for us to win a Stanley Cup. And as we traveled down Figueroa Street, I kept meeting more and more people like him. Fans who had been there for everything: The start of the club, the Triple Crown era, the Gretzky years, the Cup finals loss, the dark periods and everything in between. They stayed loyal after all those seasons, and it was a tremendous honor to be a part of the team that brought them a Cup.

Los Angeles | By Dustin Brown

Good read but long.

 

[Kings4OT]

Pearson has been bad most of the season, heads not in the game.....hopefully its a passing thing because we need him to get it together

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Pearson has been bad most of the season, heads not in the game.....hopefully its a passing thing because we need him to get it together

I was just thinking the same thing yesterday, I know he works hard and does make solid plays that generally lead to chances or goals often but the dude needs to get on the board. He is a solid, good two-way player.

He was set up perfectly in the slot last night, found the soft spot and sat there in the middle of an Oiler triangle from 10-12 feet out in the slot - a very high percentage scoring area - and put it right into Talbot's chest. Last year that goal goes in because of placement, taking an extra split second to see where he is shooting. He has the 5th most SOG for LA (89) but ranks 7th on the team in goals (behind "sniper" Lewis, 9....yikes). The positioning shows he is doing the right thing, the shot placement shows he is doing the wrong thing. Almost seems like he is playing Sutter's shot quantity game again instead of Stevens' shot quality game.

I think he is overthinking everything, he is now considered one of the secondary core players, new contract, etc. and is struggling. It's new pressure. He just needs to get back to being assertive like he was last season and it'll come. He has a longer leash than Iafallo did because of what he has proven but at some point Stevens needs to do something to motivate him a bit more.

Being demoted has hit Iafallo's confidence, it is very apparent but as a young, new NHL player he will have to go through these peaks and valleys to become a consistent player. Pearson has already been through this and should tap into that experience to get himself out of it.

Considering the Kings have the 9th best offense in the league, mostly without Carter and with Pearson not producing, if he can get it going they will easily be in the top 5-7.