Confirmed with Link: Kings have traded Jonathan Quick to #CBJ as part of a deal that will send back Joonas Korpisalo.

[ScoreZeGoals]

Blake doesn't have the resume to be compared to anyone who actually won shit as a GM in this league. All GM's make mistakes, and lord knows Lombardi made a ton after 2014, but history is written by the victors (and since Lombardi did the impossible and won in L.A. his mistakes get washed over/excused a bit). Blake on the other hand has yet to win a damn playoff series, and IMO doesn't get near as much scrutiny as he deserves. It's always McLellan this, McLellan that (who I also feel will never win shit in L.A.), but this is Blake's roster. Blakes dumbass developmental decisions, Blake trading away prime assets when the Kings aren't a contender, Blake pulling out of the rebuild way too soon, etc. Blake sucks

 

[Herby]

When Blake wins a cup, we'll forgive his missteps and have more trust in his judgment. Like Lombardi earned.

Lombardi just got to far away from what made him successful. I remember a professor once telling us we should think about what our future self might think of a decision we are making (I think to prevent really poor ones). Lombardi it was the opposite, if he had talked to the DL of 2007 he wouldn't have made some of these moves. This was a guy who traded his best player a few weeks after taking over and here he was 8 years later afraid to move on from the corpse of Mike Richards.

Trading high picks for rentals was also something DL wouldn't have done earlier in his career, no matter the situation.

Blake doesn't have the resume to be compared to anyone who actually won shit as a GM in this league. All GM's make mistakes, and lord knows Lombardi made a ton after 2014, but history is written by the victors (and since Lombardi did the impossible and won in L.A. his mistakes get washed over/excused a bit). Blake on the other hand has yet to win a damn playoff series, and IMO doesn't get near as much scrutiny as he deserves. It's always McLellan this, McLellan that (who I also feel will never win shit in L.A.), but this is Blake's roster. Blakes dumbass developmental decisions, Blake trading away prime assets when the Kings aren't a contender, Blake pulling out of the rebuild way too soon, etc. Blake sucks

I too am amazed at how the blame is skewed towards Todd. I am not saying Todd hasn't been bad, and he was woefully outcoached in the post-season. But the Kings glaring issues are way more based on poor management decisions than poor coaching ones.

Todd didn't pass on Stutzle
Todd didn't butcher the goaltening and LHD situation
Todd didn't override the scouts to draft Turcotte over Zegras
Todd didn't put all these guys in the AHL
Todd didn't assign Clarke back to the OHL
Todd didn’t give Cal P $5m a year.

Todd poorly used Kaliyev
Todd overplayed veteran players
Todd made very little in-game adjustments
Todd gave Durzi to long a leash in the playoffs
Todd made poor in-game decisions (Edler def zone vs. McDavid at home)

It's pretty apparent the first list had a way larger impact on the teams shortcomings this season than the second one. Yet some people want to give the guy who made those decisions (which include hiring the guy responsible for the second list) the chance to make a fourth coaching hire. It amazes me.

 

[BigKing]

@Herby At the end of the day, T-Mac is Blake's hire so if he sucks, Blake sucks more.

 

[KINGS17]

Didn't DL start with trying to prop up an existing team though, before tearing it down? Hence the Cloutier contract and such?

Yes, he tried to get Drury in here to be a leader, and made an offer to Chara, but I doubt he really expected them to bite.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

I recall quite a number of names being mentioned as UFAs the Kings pursued. Besides the aforementioned Drury and Chara, there was also Daniel Briere, Scott Gomez, Marian Hossa, and of course, Ilya Kovalchuk. They also tried to sign Brad Richards after acquiring Mike Richards.

Probably a good thing they would up with the likes of Alyn McCauley instead.

 

[King'sPawn]

Lombardi just got to far away from what made him successful. I remember a professor once telling us we should think about what our future self might think of a decision we are making (I think to prevent really poor ones). Lombardi it was the opposite, if he had talked to the DL of 2007 he wouldn't have made some of these moves. This was a guy who traded his best player a few weeks after taking over and here he was 8 years later afraid to move on from the corpse of Mike Richards.

Trading high picks for rentals was also something DL wouldn't have done earlier in his career, no matter the situation.

Trading picks is something he wouldn't have done earlier in his career, because he didn't win the cup earlier in his career.

He's explained this multiple times that not only is it hard to win the cup, but to keep the right people to win more cups with him.

And considering he always has emphasized the importance of having players like family and creating that environment, I can totally see him being unwilling to move on from Richards.

As far as "trading his best player," Lombardi has talked at length about players who don't play when they're injured versus players who don't play when they're hurt. I think that was a bit of a shot at Demitra, who played a full season twice in the 16 seasons he played in the NHL, and never after the Kings traded him away. Where as Richards was, from what it sounded like, playing through a LOT of pain and discomfort, even when he probably should have hung up his skates.

So, to me, I think Lombardi is pretty consistent with his approach; and while he made bad decisions, they are a lot more defensible and forgivable.

Blake and McLellan couldn't even go one offseason after saying they need Kaliyev needs to play in the top six before running to the candy store and getting another player to keep him suppressed down in the lineup.

 

[SettlementRichie10]

Because similarly bad moves are again being made, with many of the same justifications for defending them then being again made now.

This trade is similar to the Sekera trade. This trade never should have been made, teams that aren't contenders don't trade 1sts for rentals. Had the Kings wanted to pursue one or both of these players this summer, that would have been fine. But to just flush a 1st down the toilet because you think you can contend without a true top goalie, without a 3C and with two of Edler/Durzi and Walker taking a regular shift (with all 3 only one injury away from being in the lineup). The Sekera trade was not universally criticized around these parts either, there were many justifications for why a team out of the playoffs should have made this move. And while that team was a playoff proven team, they were also out of the playoffs at the time (where this one was a lock) and had no chance to sign Sekera (where this team may be able to sign one or both). The one consistent is that teams who are trading big assets for rentals should be locked in SC contenders, if you trade a 1st and miss the playoffs (2015) or lose in the first round its a crap trade.

There were many people who defended the MR non buy-out decision, even years after it happened. And it was not MMQB, anyone who objectively watched MR play in the 2014 playoffs could have seen it was over. But instead you got people grasping for the 2-3 plays he made as some kind of justification. Had this years team gone on a deep run both Edler and MacEwen would have had a few decent plays too. Richards was without question the worst player on the team in those playoffs, worse than even Jeff Schultz. Every line he played on was dragged into an abyss, especially defensively. But the GM brought him back for reasons that had nothing to do with ability on the ice.

This could be my shameless bias for Lombardi, but I give him a pass on Sekera. “Just make the playoffs and anything can happen” was a real thing with those Kings teams.

Moreover, the 14/15 team had some stretches throughout the season where they looked unbeatable. I understand the gamble. Voynov was gone. The team had a proven core. Fill a hole and see what happens. Again, it was a gamble, but one I understand making.

Lombardi made a lot of bad moves but he was also dealt a really bad hand with Voynov’s criminal assault and Richards drug addiction. He essentially lost his entire second defensive pairing within the span of a couple months between Mitchell leaving for free agency and Voynov doing what he did.

But the cold reality is that as an executive you don’t always get a good hand. It’s up to you to make the right adjustments. Dean doubled down instead of adjusting in some instances, and that’s why he is no longer GM of the Kings.

Blake has far less rope with me because he hasn’t won anything yet. Is that unfair? Yes. Are sports unfair? Yes.

 

[lumbergh]

Just curious, but why are we bringing up moves that eventually worked out as multiple cup wins made by the same management that made the moves?

Because hfboards.

 

[kingskring]

Because hfboards.