Anyone who still thinks that all this team needs is Hamrlik (or a Hamrlik-type) should take a look at tonight's game. How many times are Gleason and Corvo and sometimes Modry going to get used and abused? Corvo got juked out of his skates on one of the goals by Holmqvist. Gleason was at the blueline looking to break out on a rush in anticipation of a yet another failed clearing pass out of the defensive zone while the winger (Holmqvist again) on his side of the ice was standing in front of the net.
If this team is going to rely on Corvo, Gleason and Kuznetsov to fill the #5, 6, & 7 d-man roles when the playoffs come around, they might as well start making their vacation plans right now.
THIS TEAM NEEDS:
1.) 1 PP quarterback
2.) 1 Physical veteran d-man
3.) 1 winger with size (especially if Allison is done)
I didn't get to watch the game tonight but I totally agree. Any of those three elements would greatly help the Kings to succeed. I don't know what is going to happen but right now the Kings are having a lot of trouble performing in those aspects of the game. Well see, I bet DT knows what is going on. I think that if given the opportunity, he will do his best to make the Kings a competitive playoff team. I'm just not sure that given the talent level of L.A.'s current squad they will be able to guarantee any playoff action.
I do think that L.A.'s defense looks a little thin even with the addition of veteran Brian Muir. I saw on the Trade/Rumors board that someone would like to trade for Denis Gauthier. That is the kind of pick-up I'd like to see. Work effort is tough to gain. I think that AM has done a great job inspiring his players to do things they have never done before but I still think this team needs something to be a successful playoff team w/o Jason Allison or Adam Deadmarsh.
I think that if we get a healthy and ready Miller back we get half of what you I and most think we need. That is why we campaign for Hamrlik, if Miller is back then its ta ta to either Modry,Corvo Kuz whatever to bring in Hamrlik or one like hime.
In Roman (who I doubt will be a king even though there is bit at spectors saying we were scouting him the isles last night) you get the PP guy who plays solid two way hockey and is more defencive minded than Corvo Modry or Kuz by a shot.
You also have to give Gleason his due. He started off the season great and had his chain yanked. He is a kid at the toughest position to play well on the team and has some brilliant night to go along with his bad ones of late.
With Miller out of the line up we are forced to rely on #7 guys having to play top four time and it is killing us. Miller may not have had a great season but with him in the line up we were allot better of a team. It is time to make the deal though as we have several servicable NHL d men and a couple who are proven capable of being mobile. We need one more proven steady talent and for Miller to be back so we can start giving our third pairing guys less ice time and in that, making them back to being effective.
How many times are the refs gonna look the other way when Gleason is fouled? Last night he took a crosscheck to the head. That's supposed to be automatic. Neither guy sees or responds to the flagrant penalty. It was double minor worthy minimum. Gleason protects himself gets tough and draws the penalty. (Too bad we don't give our guys the green light to initiate some of this stuff and get the retaliation penalties on the other guys). I believe the kid is one of the real bright spots of the year. He makes mistakes just like anyone else will, (I have a sneaking suspicion that he might have been told to get his offensive output up), he was moving up the ice early on the break out when Holmquist got the gimme.
Kuznetzov is on the bubble in my mind, and obviously in the minds of the management.
Corvo really bothers me. He can rush the puck but that is all. He is the liability in my mind. He's older has some experience under his belt and still plays a risky game with no edge.
Holland has kept his game simple and concentrates on D. I would have guessed he'd be on the list but I, too,can live with his game. When and if he's more comfortable maybe he'll be edgier.
Does anyone think maybe the Kings D is told not to become involved in the physical aspects of the posi? It seems that the guys go out of their way to not clear the front, not punish encroachment, before or after the play, and they have no space to move the puck as a result. A couple of nasty wacks gets us that step that we need to clear the zone. That's how Matt Scnieder played, and we do miss that type of play, if not him. How many times have we almost cleared the puck only to be scorred on? Our defensive zone transition to offense is iffy at best. Goals are being scorred close in, after the first save, I think if the was more physical presence there would be less chances on these second shots. Other teams have broken down our defensive strategy and are capitalizing.
I think this has to do with team philosophy rather than talent. I wouldn't mind obtaining a journeyman defensive player. Klee was the guy.
Right said. It does seem to be team philosophy thing to me too. Klee were brilliant and I would have loved to see him dawn the purp. I love the MS trade in that Avery gives us an edge and that Kuz as at worst worthy of trade bait and at best a long term project with some upside. Not to mention the rest we got but, we seem to miss MS and his pissy play. (compliment)
I think that if we get a healthy and ready Miller back we get half of what you I and most think we need. That is why we campaign for Hamrlik, if Miller is back then its ta ta to either Modry,Corvo Kuz whatever to bring in Hamrlik or one like hime.
I meant that's what the Kings need even with Miller back. They still need two more d-men in addition to Miller back. You can't go into the playoffs with Corvo and Gleason filling out two spots. And that's assuming that none of Matty, Miller, Vis, and Modry are injured come playoff time which is a HUGE assumption for this team.
What are we going to do when we pass up an opportunity to get a veteran d-man and Miller goes down with an injury before the playoffs start (if we even get there)? Trading deadline has past and there aren't exactly quality veterans just lying around waiting to be claimed.
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In Roman (who I doubt will be a king even though there is bit at spectors saying we were scouting him the isles last night) you get the PP guy who plays solid two way hockey and is more defencive minded than Corvo Modry or Kuz by a shot.
No argument that Hamrlik would be a great addition. But as I said in another thread, no SINGLE player is going to fix this team.
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You also have to give Gleason his due. He started off the season great and had his chain yanked. He is a kid at the toughest position to play well on the team and has some brilliant night to go along with his bad ones of late.
I agree that Gleason has done well for his age and experience. But to expect him to keep up a high level of play for the rest of the season and into the playoffs is setting him up to fail. As it is now, his play has significantly declined as teams have started to figure him out (Huet also). On most quality playoff teams, he'd be a 7th d-man or back in the AHL (where he rightly belongs). If the Kings make it to the playoffs and Corvo, Gleason, Kuzentsov, and Holland fill out the 5th and 6th d-man spots, this team will not have the depth necessary to make it far in the playoffs.
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With Miller out of the line up we are forced to rely on #7 guys having to play top four time and it is killing us. Miller may not have had a great season but with him in the line up we were allot better of a team. It is time to make the deal though as we have several servicable NHL d men and a couple who are proven capable of being mobile. We need one more proven steady talent and for Miller to be back so we can start giving our third pairing guys less ice time and in that, making them back to being effective.
Even with Miller in we are forced to rely on #7 guys. Miller, Maty, Modry, Vis, ?, ?. With him in the line-up, we are a lot better team. With him in Pittsburgh's lineup they are a lot better team also, but that does not mean they become a quality playoff team. Our PK was just as horrible with him as without. That's why we need another veteran physical d-man and a forward with size that plays on the PK.
But we all know there isn't room in the budget to make any changes without subtracting from the team. So, unless someone wants a Stumpel, this is the team we've got for the rest of the season. I just don't want anyone to be suprised if the Kings are on Vacation come April.
We need to 1.) be healthy (which no longer includes Deader and Allison); 2.) to fix the PP and PK; and 3.) increase the size of the team (not across the board, just add one forward and one d-man with size).
I'm not picking on you Punchy. I'm just using your post to make my point.
No worries mate. I see it as debate, give and take and like the challenge.
The thing is this, I agree "ish" with what you are saying. I totally agree that no one player will fix things and that I feel it is time to start fishing or cutting bait with a few of our fellows but, I also feel that if you look at every team in the league, including the Devils, you will find at least one Corvoesque bloke on thier roster.
God help me for saying this but, look at our overall team when Miller and Allison (gulp, and deader) are in the line up. We add one brilliant defencemen that gives us exactly what we need and we add one of the top tuff forwards (of the talented blokes) in the game as well. Now, I you and the rest of the world know that we will never see deader in a kings uni again unless it is near contract time (not knocking him but that is our luck) but, I actually feel that we M I G H T see Ally back this season and Miller will be back soon.
Say we dealt away Modry (or Corvo) and one of the lesser blessed on the team for Hamrlik and were to recieve Miller back,
Matty/Lubo
Miller/Gleason
Hamrlik/Corvo (unless hopefully dealt)
Holland etc. #7. While I agree we would be significantly better with the addition of one more defencive defencemen back there than let Corvo do anything other than spend some time on the PP, we also look better than allot of other good teams around the league as well.
The other thing is if (now like I said, god help me) we were to have our man Allison back our team defence would get better as well. The thing to me is this, we are now a mostly European styled team. Our leaders are Stumpel, Palffy and Straka and while they are brilliant players, they lack the toughness and intensity in the physical aspects of the game to help the team play with the edge needed to keep us near the top of the league in defence all of the time.
I also am beggining to side with those who feel that Andy, while a great coach, must be having us play a style of game that has us be less physically agressive or something along those lines that has us having the worst record in NHL history for successive seasons with the most injuries to its top players.
There has to be some common denominator that is making this happen to us all of the time. We fired the trainers (I don't think that bit were needed but who am I) and it hasn't gotten any better. Something is up.
IF we were to land a Hamrlik we would be subtracting a Corvo/Modry/Kuz as the Isles need a good young D. If you go to spectors you will see the bit that has us scouting the Isles and I have to believe it is for a Hamrlik type of player. Lose one of the strugglers and add one solid bloke and we improve 150%. Now, getting a middle of the road stay at home type for our end and roberts your fathers brother. Maybe Taylor knows we have one in our system but I am suspicious of that. Maybe Grebs, a player who is supposed to be significantly better than Gleason will be able to step in and give us what we want. Maybe its Petiot or one of them although, as I said, I am doubtfull of it.
I say, add (thats the tricky bit) Hamrlik (or his type) to the roster and then we are dead close to getting it and would be in a position to pick up a stay at homer come the deadline if we were playing close to solid.
Add Allison back and I wouldn't add anything else to our top six. I miss deader but, with Straka Stumpel (dear god) Palffy Frolov Allison Armstrong Klatt and the rest, I say we are set enough to make a run up front. Give us Hamrlik taking away one of the escort service and we become that much closer. Then, I feel it is tweaking that needs the business and not wholesale changes to the back 7, but, there are always going to be better than we have out there and I will always want the best on our team. My fear would be that we focus too much on name and not enough on talent (the two are different sometimes) and become a Ranger or Isles or Caps or any other number of teams that have more name players than team players (sometimes different) and it takes a team to win.
Let me add one more thing. Willie you were exactly right at the begining of the season with your call for more D. At the time I thought you were hammering too hard, but you know how right you were now. Can I have those flix of me in my car back now? Please?
God help me for saying this but, look at our overall team when Miller and Allison (gulp, and deader) are in the line up. We add one brilliant defencemen that gives us exactly what we need and we add one of the top tuff forwards (of the talented blokes) in the game as well. Now, I you and the rest of the world know that we will never see deader in a kings uni again unless it is near contract time (not knocking him but that is our luck) but, I actually feel that we M I G H T see Ally back this season and Miller will be back soon.
I see what you're saying but I guess I don't agree. Allison is a major question makr and I would not want to bet the season on the prospect that he might come back. Too risky for me.
And when Miller comes back, we're still the same team as before - horrible on the PK and too small up front to win along the boards and clear the puck. Having him in the line-up before didn't solve this.
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Say we dealt away Modry (or Corvo) and one of the lesser blessed on the team for Hamrlik and were to recieve Miller back,
Matty/Lubo
Miller/Gleason
Hamrlik/Corvo (unless hopefully dealt)
Holland etc. #7. While I agree we would be significantly better with the addition of one more defencive defencemen back there than let Corvo do anything other than spend some time on the PP, we also look better than allot of other good teams around the league as well.
Yes, much better, but still relying too heavily on Corvo and Gleason. Corvo should be the #7 d-man and Gleason should be in Manchester (not because he's terrible but because he's inexperienced and needs some work). It's better, but I think still average compared to other quality playoff teams (e.g. Detroit, Ottawa, Phily, St. Louis if they get MacInnis back, etc.) And if you want to win in the playoffs, those are the teams you've got to go up against.
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IF we were to land a Hamrlik we would be subtracting a Corvo/Modry/Kuz as the Isles need a good young D. If you go to spectors you will see the bit that has us scouting the Isles and I have to believe it is for a Hamrlik type of player. Lose one of the strugglers and add one solid bloke and we improve 150%. Now, getting a middle of the road stay at home type for our end and roberts your fathers brother. Maybe Taylor knows we have one in our system but I am suspicious of that. Maybe Grebs, a player who is supposed to be significantly better than Gleason will be able to step in and give us what we want. Maybe its Petiot or one of them although, as I said, I am doubtfull of it.
Petiot is still in college and would have to be persuaded to leave college but the college season doesn't end until a couple of weeks before the playoffs start. Grebs is injured and still some time before he's back on the ice. But even assuming they would be available, we're still having to rely on inexperienced prospects to log significant playing time during a playoff run. Corvo and Kuznetsov are hacks and Gleason is inexperienced. Using Grebs or Petiot would not solve this. There's also Joe Rullier in Manchester who is as physical as they come, but he also has yet to play in the NHL and lacks experience.
I say, add (thats the tricky bit) Hamrlik (or his type) to the roster and then we are dead close to getting it and would be in a position to pick up a stay at homer come the deadline if we were playing close to solid.
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Add Allison back and I wouldn't add anything else to our top six. I miss deader but, with Straka Stumpel (dear god) Palffy Frolov Allison Armstrong Klatt and the rest, I say we are set enough to make a run up front. Give us Hamrlik taking away one of the escort service and we become that much closer. Then, I feel it is tweaking that needs the business and not wholesale changes to the back 7, but, there are always going to be better than we have out there and I will always want the best on our team. My fear would be that we focus too much on name and not enough on talent (the two are different sometimes) and become a Ranger or Isles or Caps or any other number of teams that have more name players than team players (sometimes different) and it takes a team to win.
I agree that if Allison comes back, it would make things easier. But it doesn't look like Allison is coming back and I don't want to have to bet the entire season on whether he will come back.
As likeable as Klatt and Armstrong are, they'd be playing on the 3rd line for most quality teams. Then there's Stumpel and we all know what Stumpel has been like. Then you add in the question of whether Allison will return and you're left with Straka, Palffy, and Frolov as your only quality top 6 forwards. Ugh!!!! And again, that is assuming none of them get injured in between now and then.
I don't want to go into the playoffs with just barely enough to look good. I want enough to win.
