KINGS Claim Nikita Scherbak

[BallPointHammer]

Couple things.
1. I like that Blake is being careful and low key so far. See what you got, chip away at the salary cap, bring in some decent young free agents.
2. Keep the player development system humming along. Kings biggest strength.
3. Scouting/Drafting has to keep proving itself every year. Kings need talent plain and simple.
4. Doughty is thee untouchable. Brown stays because he is the heart and soul of the team. Everyone else is available.
5. Trade deadline makes room and minutes for the young guys. The NHL isn't a development league but all players have a rookie season. It's a start.
6. The new era has begun. Plenty of adversity so far and more to come. Good! This team has to forge it's own new identity.

 

[KINGS17]

Again, you said you would address this, and you keep avoiding it like the plague,

WHAT does a player's playing career, have to do with front office success??

Answer that and I'll respond to your question there...

Read this:

Blake and Luc both won Cups but they did it on other teams. They had to go elsewhere to win and then they came back to collect a check and live at the beach again. In Blake's case, he did it in part to rehab his image here in LA because he always had designs on working for the Kings at some point since he lives here. Don't think for a second that he and Luc didn't discuss that prior to them retiring. Would have been a lot more difficult to bring Blake back into the fold and retire his number without him coming back for a 2nd tour to show how much he "loves" the Kings.

No chance in hell there was an extensive search to replace DL. Complete ignorance if you think Luc/Blake were surprised that they were named to their positions in the same press release announcing the firing.

The point is that these guys are part of a failed legacy of bringing in former Kings to run the team and, to an extent, even letting a roster player in Gretzky run the team. The Kings were notorious for being mismanaged--in large part to various meddling owners--but there is a reason ownership put these guys in place. AEG was trash with Taylor but finally decided to bite the bullet with Lombardi and it worked.

Lombardi spent too much of their money with rapidly diminishing results, including the atrocity that is paying players that aren't even on the team. Enter Luc and Rob to do as they are told, like Dave Taylor.

Then read this again.

Ask yourself this question. Do you think Robitaille or Blake would take a job as an executive or GM in Edmonton, Calgary, or Winnipeg?

If you are being honest in your response, then you know why they shouldn't be leading the Kings organization.

It should be pretty obvious. No one said former players always suck as GMs. People are saying these two were poor choices for the jobs they are in due to their past history and dedication to living on the beach in Southern California.

Robitaille and Blake aren't dedicated hockey front office professionals. They like collecting a paycheck in Southern California.

 

[funky]

The things I like about Blake is his willingness to go the college route, the fact that we now have a prospect cupboard and the fact that he is willing to not hang on to players because of sentimental attachment as he did trade Pearson to basically free up cap space next year. I also like that he has the cahona’s to try and make a splash even though his last one “Kovy” I am on the fence about. At least he shows he won’t sit on his hands if an opportunity presents itself. This may bode well for the future.

He has also got rid of Gabby, Andreoff, Folin, Kuemper and a host of other players that are either out of the NHL or playing as backups or bottom pairing guys. Now the Kuemper and Gabby trade may not have worked out as well as we would if liked but Blake was basically brought in with both hands tied behind his back salary cap wise and both trades no matter how the Kings PR tried to sell it were made to juggle pieces of strength for areas of weakness without adding salary a term. They could not have afforded to keep Kuemper for the next year and they must have known before hand that they were not bringing Rieder back but wanted him for a playoff push.

Blake took one big gamble with Kovalchuk and committing 6.5 million to a 35 year old winger. On one hand I could see his point as this team lacked scoring but on the other as many have said they overvalued the team they had and the core they were going forward with.

Blake kept Doughty in the fold but I am pretty sure the 11 mill a year to stay in wonderland on the beach was a pretty easy sell. At least we still have one of the best defenseman in the world.

Now I like everyone else am patiently waiting for him to trade. I just don’t think the market is ready. This might not be a bad thing as we have plenty of players that need to up their trade values and may be able to do so by the time the trade deadline hits. I believe it’s this trade deadline that will show us what Blake is made of and I am willing to wait until the deadline ends before I am harsh on Him. Right now he is a marketplace full of not so hungry people trying to sell day old sushi.

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

Read this:




Then read this again.



It should be pretty obvious. No one said former players always suck as GMs. People are saying these two were poor choices for the jobs they are in due to their past history and dedication to living on the beach in Southern California.

Robitaille and Blake aren't dedicated hockey front office professionals. They like collecting a paycheck in Southern California.

No, you literally said that, again, you do have a post history you realize that right? Just like you saying after 2015 you wanted to trade Carter, which was wrong, it was after 2017 but whatever, words don't matter right?

Again, bolding something that you literally have no idea about, I get it, you met Luc a few times, good job...I guess.....but saying they aren't dedicated front office professionals because they work for a team they used to play on, is idiocy.

Let me ask you this, is Yzerman a dedicated front office person? I mean he didnt work in Detroit, he's in the sun and fun in Tampa.....oh wait..that's different? How? Oh, because he never played for Tampa...interesting.

 

[KINGS17]

No, you literally said that, again, you do have a post history you realize that right? Just like you saying after 2015 you wanted to trade Carter, which was wrong, it was after 2017 but whatever, words don't matter right?

Again, bolding something that you literally have no idea about, I get it, you met Luc a few times, good job...I guess.....but saying they aren't dedicated front office professionals because they work for a team they used to play on, is idiocy.

Let me ask you this, is Yzerman a dedicated front office person? I mean he didnt work in Detroit, he's in the sun and fun in Tampa.....oh wait..that's different? How? Oh, because he never played for Tampa...interesting.

Why do I waste my time? Well, I won't be anymore. I should have just stuck with my first impression of you.

I think if you go back and research my post history you will find that on January 22, 2011 at 12:58 am I said sometimes ex-players make decent GMs and executives.

 

[BigKing]

Couple things.
1. I like that Blake is being careful and low key so far. See what you got, chip away at the salary cap, bring in some decent young free agents.
2. Keep the player development system humming along. Kings biggest strength.
3. Scouting/Drafting has to keep proving itself every year. Kings need talent plain and simple.
4. Doughty is thee untouchable. Brown stays because he is the heart and soul of the team. Everyone else is available.
5. Trade deadline makes room and minutes for the young guys. The NHL isn't a development league but all players have a rookie season. It's a start.
6. The new era has begun. Plenty of adversity so far and more to come. Good! This team has to forge it's own new identity.

This is actually his biggest mistake. He saw what he had, thought it was awesome and kept everyone while not chipping away at the cap but rather adding large dollars to a 35 year old question mark.

Keeping everyone allowed their value to seemingly crater.

UDFAs are a great idea. Not a stroke of genius, however. Easier to sign them when there are clear paths to playing time. Jury is still out on them except for Iafallo who I still maintain is a souped up Trevor Lewis at best. That's great for free, don't get me wrong. Peterson looks legit as well but we can't fully pretend that every goalie that rolls through here since 2012 looks awesome somehow. I have high hopes but there are no guarantees.

Kept his draft picks. Captain Obvious moment by the time he was hired. First draft pick has a pretzel for a back. Jury still out on all of them.

He's at the helm of a last place team that he kept intact and, on top of everything, added a large contract in an effort to go for it. I'd give him a break if he presided over a last place team his first year and blame it on Lombardi but this is Blake's team now.

I would of possibly punched someone in the face if they told me in 2017 that WD would be this team's coach.

He has not done one thing that is visionary or fitting of someone that supposedly needed to be hired ASAP so other teams didn't poach him. His best move is going to be this squad getting a Top 3 pick but that will be by accident and we all know that they will probably play their way into the 8th or 9th pick with a hot last 30 days to the season leading to talks of being a contender for 2020.

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

Why do I waste my time? Well, I won't be anymore. I should have just stuck with my first impression of you.

I think if you go back and research my post history you will find that on January 22, 2011 at 12:58 amI said sometimes ex-players make decent GMs and executives.

And yet here, because Blake has had what is it, 2 years on the job, you expect miracles, but not in the case because in your opinion, a thorough search wasn't done... seriously how do you live your life when you are a walking contradiction? I'd hate to go out to dinner with you, it would be 3 hours before you make up your mind what to order.....

I'm not saying Blake is good OR bad....I'm saying it's too early to make a judgement on him....and yet you are saying he sucks because he likes the beach....real solid insight there...no positively astounding, you should be at sportsnet with that analysis.

 

[BigKing]

And yet here, because Blake has had what is it, 2 years on the job, you expect miracles, but not in the case because in your opinion, a thorough search wasn't done... seriously how do you live your life when you are a walking contradiction? I'd hate to go out to dinner with you, it would be 3 hours before you make up your mind what to order.....

I'm not saying Blake is good OR bad....I'm saying it's too early to make a judgement on him....and yet you are saying he sucks because he likes the beach....real solid insight there...no positively astounding, you should be at sportsnet with that analysis.

You would order quickly and receive the wrong item with said item also being over or under cooked. You would then eat it anyways, not mention the wrong order and leave a normal tip because:

1. It could have been worse and a couple of the bites showed promise.

2. The staff is just trying its best. Have you ever worked at a restaurant? If not, you can't understand that mistakes happen.

More to the point, nobody is expecting miracles. It has been said countless times that a plan is expected and some sort of vision.

All we have so far is first standing pat, then misdiagnosing the roster--a roster that he saw for years as AGM--by adding age and cap hit while also tossing in a failed coaching hire.

We don't see a plan: all we see is keeping draft picks and adding flier prospects. That needed to be done, of course, but the results from that are not immediate nor are they expected to be. Giving him credit for doing the obvious doesn't fly with me. At the NHL level, he is a complete disaster so far and this is where the lack of vision comes in.

 

[DoktorJeep]

The Kings missing the playoffs because of losing Quick on opening night of the 2016/17 sunk Lombardi. He had dug too many holes to save himself and my guess is that his stubbornness kept him from replacing Sutter, who was past his expiration date. And Luc basically went to that hack Beckerman and sold out Dean by pointing to the star players unhappiness with grumpy old Darryl.

So Luc spins some plan where golden boy Blakey steps up, corrects Deans mistakes and things are back on track. I think to get the power, Luc and Blake had to peddle an optimistic forecast of the team to ownership. I’m sure they and Beckerman were thinking they could squeak into the playoffs every year and maintain a veneer of relevance as an nhl franchise.

 

[KINGS17]

You would order quickly and receive the wrong item with said item also being over or under cooked. You would then eat it anyways, not mention the wrong order and leave a normal tip because:

1. It could have been worse and a couple of the bites showed promise.

2. The staff is just trying its best. Have you ever worked at a restaurant? If not, you can't understand that mistakes happen.

More to the point, nobody is expecting miracles. It has been said countless times that a plan is expected and some sort of vision.

All we have so far is first standing pat, then misdiagnosing the roster--a roster that he saw for years as AGM--by adding age and cap hit while also tossing in a failed coaching hire.

We don't see a plan: all we see is keeping draft picks and adding flier prospects. That needed to be done, of course, but the results from that are not immediate nor are they expected to be. Giving him credit for doing the obvious doesn't fly with me. At the NHL level, he is a complete disaster so far and this is where the lack of vision comes in.

I am going to have the best Mexican food restaurant ever!!! Come out and try my chop suey.

 

[Herby]

Arguing just for the sake of arguing. There is simply no way anyone could think the Kings went through a thorough search for a GM, Coach, Asst. GM and Scouting Director. All they did was promote a bunch of guys who were terrible at their jobs the previous three seasons.

 

[Johnny Utah]

I'm fine with Blake EXCEPT the Pearson move. I listen to NHL network all day most days and every show host through out the day of that trade was like WTF was Blake doing.

I would have asked for a younger player or picks not an older player.

 

[BigKing]

I'm fine with Blake EXCEPT the Pearson move. I listen to NHL network all day most days and every show host through out the day of that trade was like WTF was Blake doing.

I would have asked for a younger player or picks not an older player.

Honestly think the move was done to shake the team up with Hagelin being able to contribute to what Blake still thought was a contending team, hence not trading him for a pick or prospect at the time.

 

[DoktorJeep]

Every move this season post Kovalchuk has stunk of scrambling desperation. Stevens firing, Pearson trade, Pit Boss Willy behind the bench.

 

[Sleeping Dog]

I'm fine with Blake EXCEPT the Pearson move. I listen to NHL network all day most days and every show host through out the day of that trade was like WTF was Blake doing.

I would have asked for a younger player or picks not an older player.

I’m ok with Pearson move as long as Hags gets dealt. He had to make room for Drew’s contract next year.
Pearson wasn’t scoring at all here, so I’m not sure what people expect Blake to get for him.

I would have loved more, but just unloading that contract is a big win in my viewpoint.

 

[BigKing]

I’m ok with Pearson move as long as Hags gets dealt. He had to make room for Drew’s contract next year.
Pearson wasn’t scoring at all here, so I’m not sure what people expect Blake to get for him.

I would have loved more, but just unloading that contract is a big win in my viewpoint.

Which is funny because two big, early feathers in Blake's cap were the Pearson and Toffoli signings.

Of course, $6MM added to the cap this past June doesn't help the cap situation RE: Drew's new money.

 

[KingsFan7824]

I'm fine with Blake EXCEPT the Pearson move. I listen to NHL network all day most days and every show host through out the day of that trade was like WTF was Blake doing.

I would have asked for a younger player or picks not an older player.

And if you don't get what you asked for, what do you do?

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

I'm fine with Blake EXCEPT the Pearson move. I listen to NHL network all day most days and every show host through out the day of that trade was like WTF was Blake doing.

I would have asked for a younger player or picks not an older player.

Pittsburgh wouldn't have done it, they didn't have the cap space to absorb Pearson by trading just a pick

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

You would order quickly and receive the wrong item with said item also being over or under cooked. You would then eat it anyways, not mention the wrong order and leave a normal tip because:

1. It could have been worse and a couple of the bites showed promise.

2. The staff is just trying its best. Have you ever worked at a restaurant? If not, you can't understand that mistakes happen.

More to the point, nobody is expecting miracles. It has been said countless times that a plan is expected and some sort of vision.

All we have so far is first standing pat, then misdiagnosing the roster--a roster that he saw for years as AGM--by adding age and cap hit while also tossing in a failed coaching hire.

We don't see a plan: all we see is keeping draft picks and adding flier prospects. That needed to be done, of course, but the results from that are not immediate nor are they expected to be. Giving him credit for doing the obvious doesn't fly with me. At the NHL level, he is a complete disaster so far and this is where the lack of vision comes in.

Well hell, for shits n giggles, let's see who else misdiagnosed the roster,

Sporting news, 11th in Power ranking, July 13th 2018

NHL offseason power rankings: Predators, Lightning still on top after dust settles

ESPN, 12th in power rankings, June 8th, 2018
Way-too-early 2018-19 NHL Power Rankings

The Score, 12th OA
NHL Preseason Power Rankings: Caps eye repeat, new-look Knights primed to prevent it

Sports Illustrated, 11th OA
NHL Preseason Power Rankings

Hockey Writers, no idea OA but 6th in Pacific with the caveat that it could go either way
https://thehockeywriters.com/nhl-standings-predictions-offseason-edition-2019/

As it stands, they are the closest ones besides all you closet GMs here decrying it after the fact.

Amazing how many of you aren't working in the league...just....flat out amazing.

 

[BigKing]

Well hell, for ****s n giggles, let's see who else misdiagnosed the roster,

Sporting news, 11th in Power ranking, July 13th 2018

NHL offseason power rankings: Predators, Lightning still on top after dust settles

ESPN, 12th in power rankings, June 8th, 2018
Way-too-early 2018-19 NHL Power Rankings

The Score, 12th OA
NHL Preseason Power Rankings: Caps eye repeat, new-look Knights primed to prevent it

Sports Illustrated, 11th OA
NHL Preseason Power Rankings

Hockey Writers, no idea OA but 6th in Pacific with the caveat that it could go either way
https://thehockeywriters.com/nhl-standings-predictions-offseason-edition-2019/

As it stands, they are the closest ones besides all you closet GMs here decrying it after the fact.

Amazing how many of you aren't working in the league...just....flat out amazing.

Let me know if these writers were part of the exhaustive GM search. If so, seems like they should have looked harder at the guy who said 6th OA in the division while going out on the limb of "could go either way".

For the last time: It is Blake's job to be right about the roster, not you or me. If I want to change my mind and/or I'm wrong, no harm done. If Blake is wrong, there is great harm done. Mind boggling that you somehow think Blake is sheltered from criticism because you can understand why he made the moves--or lack thereof--that he has. I fully get the moves Lombardi made but it doesn't mean I don't criticize them.

 

[GoldenBearHockey]

Let me know if these writers were part of the exhaustive GM search. If so, seems like they should have looked harder at the guy who said 6th OA in the division while going out on the limb of "could go either way".

For the last time: It is Blake's job to be right about the roster, not you or me. If I want to change my mind and/or I'm wrong, no harm done. If Blake is wrong, there is great harm done. Mind boggling that you somehow think Blake is sheltered from criticism because you can understand why he made the moves--or lack thereof--that he has. I fully get the moves Lombardi made but it doesn't mean I don't criticize them.

You should know, apparently you and K17 know exactly who was involved in the search,

I absolute LOVE how you completely skip over the point that no one really MISJUDGED the team, when you have what is that 4 publications all within 1-2 places of each other before the season starts, it's not a misjudged team.

The effort wasn't there, and it showed the first 20 games, if you want to say that was misjudged, Ok...I guess...I would argue that ANY GM would misjudge that...but your come back would be...but yea...BEACH like it actually means something.

 

[BigKing]

You should know, apparently you and K17 know exactly who was involved in the search,

I absolute LOVE how you completely skip over the point that no one really MISJUDGED the team, when you have what is that 4 publications all within 1-2 places of each other before the season starts, it's not a misjudged team.

The effort wasn't there, and it showed the first 20 games, if you want to say that was misjudged, Ok...I guess...I would argue that ANY GM would misjudge that...but your come back would be...but yea...BEACH like it actually means something.

If they finish 20th OA and these guys had them in the playoffs, is that not misjudging the team?

If four publications are wrong, somehow it is right?

Somehow, our GM should be held to the same standards as prognosticators?

Am I taking f***ing crazy pills?

 

[Reaper45]

If Hagelin isnt dealt at the deadline for a 2nd or 3rd, then that deal is terrible. Otherwise I'll understand it.

 

[LAKings88]

I thought they would be better. I thought adding Kovy would honestly help.

The team has been in decline since it’s last cup but Brown, Kopi, and Drew, looked good last year. Even Carter came back scoring.

That was a difficult series against Vegas. I also thought those games could have gone either way even with Quick having to stand on his head.

This year the scoring dried up and the special teams checked out. No real physicality and no real identity. They look bored. Change needs to happened painful as it will be. Blake will need to earn his paycheck and get the Kings some decent prospects.

LA is still good enough to beat mediocre teams. Can’t hang with upper eschelon teams tho.

 

[tomd]

If Hagelin isnt dealt at the deadline for a 2nd or 3rd, then that deal is terrible. Otherwise I'll understand it.

That is a really unrealistic expectation for Carl Hagelin. He was never worth that when he was good (see trades NYR-Anaheim and Anaheim-Pittsburgh). Expect a 4th or 5th and you won't be disappointed.