Speculation: Fire Rob Blake Blow it Up Offseason Thread (update: Robitaille and Blake stay)

[KingPuckChoo]

Helenius will make the Kings next season or the season after that gives us Kopitar, Danault, PLD and Helenius down the middle. That’s four big centers (minus Danault) who plays big.

Something to look forward to.

PLD is a center?

 

[RocketKing]

Nobody’s gonna bail us out on DuBoat, we’re stuck with him maybe he gets better.

We have to find a legit goalie and we have to make significant culture change to our forward group.

Use Fiala as the biggest trade asset to find a way to change the scattered BS we got going with our weakling forwards. If Brady Tkchuck is actually a possibility I’d add anything not named Kempe and QB with picks to make that deal happen. Who knows maybe we can get something done with Swayman? But we need a serious change because this team ain’t going anywhere.

 

[KINGS17]

Nobody’s gonna bail us out on DuBoat, we’re stuck with him maybe he gets better.

We have to find a legit goalie and we have to make significant culture change to our forward group.

Use Fiala as the biggest trade asset to find a way to change the scattered BS we got going with our weakling forwards. If Brady Tkchuck is actually a possibility I’d add anything not named Kempe and QB with picks to make that deal happen. Who knows maybe we can get something done with Swayman? But we need a serious change because this team ain’t going anywhere.

I would trade Kempe for Brady Tkachuk straight up and not even give it a second thought. I doubt Ottawa would go for it though.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Marner for Dubois.

 

[doug93003]

Helenius will make the Kings next season or the season after that gives us Kopitar, Danault, PLD and Helenius down the middle. That’s four big centers (minus Danault) who plays big.

Something to look forward to.

This reminds me of the message board comments in the early 2000's constantly waiting for the next big thing. There are very few difference makers in their early 20's. The Kings just went through a rebuild. They had a highly rated farm system. They traded the wrong pieces for the wrong pieces and blew it. Blake had a chance at Jack Eichel and the prospects to get it done.....he chose DuBoat. Hiring Rob Blake and Luc was Dave Taylor part 2. It was a mistake then and keeping them around is a mistake now. We'll see if ownership is committed to winning.

 

[RocketKing]

I would trade Kempe for Brady Tkachuk straight up and not even give it a second thought. I doubt Ottawa would go for it though.

It would have to be more but Kempe’s the only guy that has any jam so I try to keep him him out. I’d move Clarke with Fiala any day for BT.

 

[CowMix]

But if you had lizotte and Gallagher on one line each could get into one of the opposing 1cs pant legs



Honestly man for years I got accused of being blindly optimistic.

Now I’m accused of being blindly pessimistic.

The nuance you’re missing is what made me make that transformation…which is Blake mistake and Blake mistake.

We aren’t fans of the “anything can happen in the playoffs” but because that’s something you say to young teams on the way up—not capped out aging teams with dwindling assets that are likely to be much worse next year with no help on the way. This was supposed to be the best year and every move says Blake staked his job to that.

I mean you're not really the kind poster I'm talking about, I'm calling out the endless pessimistic ones.

There's a pretty vocal group in here who seemingly enjoy/cheer for being right about the Kings performing poorly than the Kings actually winning.

 

[BaileyFan]

Marner for Dubois.

Marner seems like the exact kind of guy Blake would trade Byfield, Kempe, Kaliyev, and a 2nd for this summer.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

It’s pretty awesome that Blake gave up more to get Dubois than what Vegas gave up to get Eichel.

 

[kilowatt]

I mean you're not really the kind poster I'm talking about, I'm calling out the endless pessimistic ones.

There's a pretty vocal group in here who seemingly enjoy/cheer for being right about the Kings performing poorly than the Kings actually winning.

Who? Call the group out if you're so sure. I see a lot of people viewing a lot of the moves Blake's made the past three or four years as a negative for the franchise even if it resulted in higher season totals in the short term, myself included.

What I see is a couple individuals who whine about everything negative anyone says, and those couple individuals are now on my ignore list. The forum is now mostly filled with rational people who are excited when the Kings do well and are upset when the Kings do poorly. A lot of us believe that the sooner Robitaille, Blake, and Bergevin are no longer in charge, the better for the long-term success of the franchise.

Every rational person here will eat crow and apologize if this team can win a cup, we just don't see it happening given the roster construction, the aging core, and the general state of the franchise.

It’s pretty awesome that Blake gave up more to get Dubois than what Vegas gave up to get Eichel.

Nah, looks good to me.

 

[Statto]

People complain about negativity and I have at times early on. Certainly some of the early criticism was based on not liking Blake, not facts. If I predict right now the next rebuild will fail and that every draft pick over the next 5 years will not be an impact player the odds mean I will absolutely will be more right than wrong. It’s far easier to successfully predict failure and say ‘I was right’… successfully predicting success is where in general you show proper knowledge.

BUT since Danault was signed specific concerns started getting raised. There have been various specific, constructive concerns all fundamentally driven by the early ending of the rebuild. Every decision since then has been about trying to shoe-horn a team into contender status that wasn’t ready. We hear about slow cooking prospects but then rush the main roster… it’s a complete juxtaposition. Covid buys them a couple of mistakes if you don’t look at the big picture, but when you step back the strategic decisions have been wrong. Most of the specific criticisms and predictions are unfortunately bearing the rotten fruit that was anticipated. The PLD deal looks worse by the minute… desperate at best.

Sure we can say it is only 2–1 but the manner of the defeats tells the most likely outcome of the series.

The job that has to be under most pressure is Luc’s… from there his replacement can deal with the rest.

 

[SettlementRichie10]

To be honest Blake either thinking he still had a contender in April 2017, or badly mis-evaluating the 2018 roster should have been the first red flag.

It was to some of us.

 

[DyslexicTom]

It was to some of us.

When Blake trotted on stage and tried to sell us the idea that he thought the team was a contender in the wake of the signing of Kovalchuk was a giant alarm for me.

"That... certainly is a take" was my reaction.

 

[doug93003]

A serious organization would have never hired Rob Blake to begin with. Teams that want to compete for cups bring in an experienced GM with a history of winning when it's time to get over the hump. Guys like Dean Lombardi. Had ownership slowed Dean Lombardi down a bit on the veteran deals like the one given to Brown the Kings could have still been competing today. You can't fault a guy for trying to extend a contention window, it natural to want to go with your guys.... but you can definitely fault Blake for coming in and thinking the Kings were still there.

There is no way this roster competes with Edmonton...ever. Rosters need to be filled out with character guys who do the little things to win, especially against skilled teams like Edmonton. The Kings in 2011/2012 are a perfect example. The Kings roster today is filled with guys who are the opposite of that.

 

[kilowatt]

No they hadn't. This is an outright denial of the events. Blake came in April of 2017 traded for Jussi Jokinen, Carl Hagelin, Dion Phaenuf, and Torrey Mitchell, signed Kovalchuk all in an effort to make the playoffs.

Then he started dismantling the team towards the end of the abysmal Willie Desjardins season in 2019. Up until that point he was clearly still trying to build around the previous group, to say otherwise is a gross mis-remembering of the facts.

To be honest Blake either thinking he still had a contender in April 2017, or badly mis-evaluating the 2018 roster should have been the first red flag.

I don’t blame him for trying that first season. Any GM with that roster he had probably would have done the same. I don’t blame Doughty for being vocal about wanting to win either, every player should want that. I just wish we’d traded Doughty and Quick back in 2019 when we knew we’d be in for a long rebuild.

 

[Statto]

A serious organization would have never hired Rob Blake to begin with. Teams that want to compete for cups bring in an experienced GM with a history of winning when it's time to get over the hump. Guys like Dean Lombardi. Had ownership slowed Dean Lombardi down a bit on the veteran deals like the one given to Brown the Kings could have still been competing today. You can't fault a guy for trying to extend a contention window, it natural to want to go with your guys.... but you can definitely fault Blake for coming in and thinking the Kings were still there.

There is no way this roster competes with Edmonton...ever. Rosters need to be filled out with character guys who do the little things to win, especially against skilled teams like Edmonton. The Kings in 2011/2012 are a perfect example. The Kings roster today is filled with guys who are the opposite of that.

I’ve always said that the strategy is down to Luc (that’s essentially his job). So extending the window is on Luc, deciding to rebuild was Luc and coming out of it too early was Luc. Blake’s job was to execute the strategy and he has certainly made some mistakes with Petersens deal and PLD being the highlights for me. I think some of the other moves were Blake trying to execute Luc’s strategy…. Fiala, Danault, RV were all good moves in a vacuum if they would have taken the team over the top, but the roster wasn’t ready. I’m not saying Blake isn’t culpable because I’m sure he had some input and the PLD deal itself should be a fireable offence but the biggest villain is Luc.

Don’t get me wrong, I do have a slither of hope and pray I’m wrong but the possibility seems rather improbable.

I don’t have an issue with hiring a less experienced GM though, there are too many retreads.

 

[chris kontos]

Actually a 3rd or nothing is the lowest OS.

Is he that far into Blake's dog house?

How about a young defenseman like Harris?

only if he's right handed and under 6 feet tall. and thinks he's a scorer

 

[HabsAddict]

I’ve always said that the strategy is down to Luc (that’s essentially his job). So extending the window is on Luc, deciding to rebuild was Luc and coming out of it too early was Luc. Blake’s job was to execute the strategy and he has certainly made some mistakes with Petersens deal and PLD being the highlights for me. I think some of the other moves were Blake trying to execute Luc’s strategy…. Fiala, Danault, RV were all good moves in a vacuum if they would have taken the team over the top, but the roster wasn’t ready. I’m not saying Blake isn’t culpable because I’m sure he had some input and the PLD deal itself should be a fireable offence but the biggest villain is Luc.

Don’t get me wrong, I do have a slither of hope and pray I’m wrong but the possibility seems rather improbable.

I don’t have an issue with hiring a less experienced GM though, there are too many retreads.

You can't tinker with firing one, you got to clean house.

BargainBin and his troupe was canned in one go.

As for PLDonkey, it was BargaibBins wet dream to draft him and then persued him as a Habs GM. There is no doubt in my mind that he would of filibustered Kings management to get him.

BargaibBin is pure nepotism and will do a lot of damage with his blinders. Get rid of him and the old boy network.

 

[johnjm22]

A serious organization would have never hired Rob Blake to begin with. Teams that want to compete for cups bring in an experienced GM with a history of winning when it's time to get over the hump.

Exactly. Just like how Tampa Bay hired Steve Yzerman to be their GM in 2010. He was an extremely experienced general manager.

 

[Statto]

You can't tinker with firing one, you got to clean house.

I agree. But let the new President clear it out, it established the power/authority base. There may be some bits that they don’t need to burn down as let’s face it we have no idea in detail what bits are fit for purpose. However sure I’d pretty much tear the guts out of things.

 

[KINGS17]

I mean you're not really the kind poster I'm talking about, I'm calling out the endless pessimistic ones.

There's a pretty vocal group in here who seemingly enjoy/cheer for being right about the Kings performing poorly than the Kings actually winning.

The Kings aren't winning anything meaningful, so what is it you are cheering for, the black hole, mediocrity?

 

[LAKings88]

I just can’t see the level of cleaning out necessary happening. Both Luc and Blake need to go. No fn way to Bergy too! Bring back Futa imho.

 

[King'sPawn]

I don’t blame him for trying that first season. Any GM with that roster he had probably would have done the same. I don’t blame Doughty for being vocal about wanting to win either, every player should want that. I just wish we’d traded Doughty and Quick back in 2019 when we knew we’d be in for a long rebuild.

I agree for the most part.

Here's my thing with Blake and his regime.

2017 - I saw as a grace period for Blake. He didn't have to blow things up. Even though he had been there for some time, I get wanting to see if the roster he inherited would play to his vision.

2018 - after the Vegas sweep, and seeing Toffoli and Pearson looking like they weren't going to lead a new core by their mid-20s, I thought it was time to move them. They still had plenty of value in trade, but older core players can still guide and buoy the next wave. I felt this is when the rebuild should have started.

However, Blake went a different way. He wanted to fill holes he saw in the playoffs. Because that was his direction, I was on board with the Kovalchuk signing. Not as a linemate for Kopitar, but to provide depth offense, especially on the powerplay.

He also traded Pearson for Hagelin, which was after they fired Stevens for WD. I hated both these moves. Kings were having issues and Blake traded a young player with value for a depth forward who had his stock artificially inflated.

WD "sounded like" a good hire, because the complaint of Nucks fans was that he spread ice time too much - and we were all already talking about managing Kopitar's minutes better. Instead, Kopitar kept getting overplayed and Kovalchuk, with his great point shot, was put in front of the net "because the opposition won't see it coming."

They finally started a rebuild late in 2018 after doubling down twice, post sweep, of trying to make themselves more of a contender. And Desjardins did the opposite of what the team needed from him.

There are additional missteps even after that of course. But my problem with Blake started after how he managed the team in 2018 offseason.

I don't think Brown, Kopitar, Doughty, Quick, etc needed to be traded at the start of the rebuild. They were already a bottom-5 team with them. And they provided experience and knowledge for the new pieces acquired. And it offers a viable "passing of the torch" as young players supplant the legends to eventually take over the team.

Unfortunately, the opposite happened. And the legends supplanted management as far as deciding the team's direction. The buy in from the vets was on Blake and Luc to manage. And they exited the rebuild too early to appease the old guard who hated losing.

 

[Statto]

I agree for the most part.

Here's my thing with Blake and his regime.

2017 - I saw as a grace period for Blake. He didn't have to blow things up. Even though he had been there for some time, I get wanting to see if the roster he inherited would play to his vision.

2018 - after the Vegas sweep, and seeing Toffoli and Pearson looking like they weren't going to lead a new core by their mid-20s, I thought it was time to move them. They still had plenty of value in trade, but older core players can still guide and buoy the next wave. I felt this is when the rebuild should have started.

However, Blake went a different way. He wanted to fill holes he saw in the playoffs. Because that was his direction, I was on board with the Kovalchuk signing. Not as a linemate for Kopitar, but to provide depth offense, especially on the powerplay.

He also traded Pearson for Hagelin, which was after they fired Stevens for WD. I hated both these moves. Kings were having issues and Blake traded a young player with value for a depth forward who had his stock artificially inflated.

WD "sounded like" a good hire, because the complaint of Nucks fans was that he spread ice time too much - and we were all already talking about managing Kopitar's minutes better. Instead, Kopitar kept getting overplayed and Kovalchuk, with his great point shot, was put in front of the net "because the opposition won't see it coming."

They finally started a rebuild late in 2018 after doubling down twice, post sweep, of trying to make themselves more of a contender. And Desjardins did the opposite of what the team needed from him.

There are additional missteps even after that of course. But my problem with Blake started after how he managed the team in 2018 offseason.

I don't think Brown, Kopitar, Doughty, Quick, etc needed to be traded at the start of the rebuild. They were already a bottom-5 team with them. And they provided experience and knowledge for the new pieces acquired. And it offers a viable "passing of the torch" as young players supplant the legends to eventually take over the team.

Unfortunately, the opposite happened. And the legends supplanted management as far as deciding the team's direction. The buy in from the vets was on Blake and Luc to manage. And they exited the rebuild too early to appease the old guard who hated losing.

I always felt WD did exactly what was intended… that was the start of the rebuild in my eyes and felt it at the time regardless of what may have been stated (I forget… I’m old).

 

[DoktorJeep]

These excuses for BLuc are a joke. It’s on record from Beckerman in April 2017, aka ownership, that the team was expected to compete for the cup, and the hiring of BLuc to replace Dean was to try and make that happen.

Ownership was wrong then and we are living with the consequences. In hindsight, there is no legitimate reason for having made the change at the time. The worst sins of Lombardi have not come close to being erased. And there is no improvement under BLuc that is unique.

You don’t have to look beyond Kempe to see Robitaille and Blake as nothing but unqualified political operators who have grifted millions while living off the works of their predecessor.