The Hockey News: Double OT: Double OT: Patience will pay off for Kings

Double OT: Patience will pay off for Kings

Scott Thornton, Anze Kopitar, Jack Johnson and Dustin Brown wait on the ice as the officials review a play. (Photo by Noah Graham/NHLI via Getty Images)

Mike Brophy
2008-07-23 12:18:43

When the 2008-09 season kicks off in a few days, or weeks, whatever, my eyes will be on the Los Angeles Kings.

It’s not that I have high expectations for the Kings next season; I just like the direction the team is going. By building mainly through the draft, GM Dean Lombardi has ensured that when the Kings get good, they’ll be good for a long time.

I have no doubt there are Kings fans upset about the slow pace in which the team is rebuilding and wish Lombardi would sign a couple of veterans to get his club into the playoff hunt. But if he did, he might as well rename the Kings the Toronto Maple Leafs.

It takes patience to build a winner.

When The Hockey News Yearbook comes out in late August, it will come as no surprise we have picked the Kings to miss the playoffs for the fifth straight season. Let’s be honest, the Western Conference remains very competitive and even if they improve, it is hard to imagine the Kings passing enough teams to make it into the post-season.

That said, you have to like a defense that will one day include Jack Johnson, Drew Doughty, Thomas Hickey and Colten Teubert. Also, the acquisition of banger Matt Greene from Edmonton gives the Kings an authority figure in their own zone. With the departure of veteran Rob Blake, Doughty should have an opportunity to step right into the NHL from junior and be an impact player.

Up front, center Anze Kopitar remains one of the NHL’s deep, dark secrets despite the fact he finished 23rd in league scoring with 32 goals and 77 points in 82 games in his second season. The crafty 6-foot-4, 220-pound pivot has the potential to be a top 10 scorer in the league and it might just take that kind of output to get him the recognition he deserves.

Alexander Frolov remains a consistent high scorer for the Kings, while Dustin Brown enjoyed a 33-goal breakout season this past year and should score at that level for years to come.

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I love the addition of Jarret Stoll, a skilled center who possesses a big shot and can kill penalties, from Edmonton. If the game gets boring, you can always turn your attention to his girlfriend, Rachel Hunter, who is sure to be sitting in the stands.

Goaltending remains a question mark for the Kings and until they find a bona fide starter, wins will be hard to come by. Of course that could change if Jonathan Bernier rises to the occasion next season.

Some wondered about the signing of Terry Murray as the team’s new head coach, but not me. Murray has had success at the NHL level and I am convinced he’ll be behind a number of players drastically improving their plus-minus rankings.

Having tied for last with the fewest points this past season, it isn’t a stretch to suggest the Kings will improve next season. Enough to make their fans happy? Probably not. But if I’m Lombardi, I stay the course.

Remember Kings fans: Be patient.

Mike Brophy, the co-author of the book Walking with Legends, is a senior writer for The Hockey News and a regular contributor on THN.com. His blog appears Mondays and his column, Double OT, appears Wednesday.

For more great profiles, news and views from the world of hockey, Subscribe to The Hockey News magazine.

COMMENTS (84)

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daniel Posted
(2009-04-30 06:43:51)

they are definetely waiting to see what happens from the monarchs. i have been saying how much youth they have in that organization it's rediculous. it is just a matter of who is gonna be the three to five guys who step up to the big boys and can somewhat produce at the NHL level. the kings are in a long overhauling process again. this time your right they are doing it the right way. it's just unfortunate for a kings fan like you and me to hear that word rebuilding again. the word is so redundant with this organization it's just getting old. although they will be fun to watch come october and i am looking forward to who is gonna be on the roster and looking forward to see the young talent that we have and watch them develop into maybe something spectacular. it's gonna be fun to watch win or lose. they do need that veteran on the D-lines though. it's gonna be interesting to see who they pick up, if they pick up anybody at all. i'm hoping they pick up zhitnik. even though he is on the decline and the last of his years, i think he would be a great addition and he would sign for cheap. even if it's a one year contract for 1.5 million, that would be great cause the kings can afford something like that in the position they are in right now. they could literally afford anybody. they have almost 28 million to spend why not get a good veteran D-man. another thing they need is another 2nd line center in my books. handzus is good and overpaid, but there can be room for improvement. to me handzus should be on a stopper unit rather than a scoring unit. he is a great offensive defensman that can help the blueline therefore should be on the 3rd line. they need to pick up a fedorov type player. one that can control the play for o'sullivan and calder. calder is alright if he can just have someone to play with. he was great in chicago playing with eric daze and amonte at the time he was there. i think he just needs an added boost and he will pan out. but as for this time in kings need he doesn't have anybody to help him out. he was playing with handzus last season and it seemed like they didn't really have any chemistry together. so like i said it will be interesting to see who is on the roster come october and it will be interesting to watch. win or lose, patience can pay off.

stilts Posted
(2009-04-30 06:43:43)

Daniel, I think that maybe the Kings are waiting to see who from the Monarchs will step up and make an impact on the team. Boyle, Purcell, Moller... then fill in the needed holes. I kind of like the idea of guys like Murray, Syd, or Zhitnik coming back if they come cheap. Murray might be able to put in 25 goals. Syd or Zhitz might be good for 22:00 a night. The D needs a vet to help guide Johnson and Doughty. Either way, win or lose, I just love the possibilites. Hope spings eternal.... Later.

daniel Posted
(2009-04-30 06:43:42)

point well taken stilts and totally agree. the kings always had that nack for getting the washed up veterans onto the team for players that they missed out on greatness through a draft. lombardi is doing the right thing. but AEG is horrible. they would rather pay a soccer player 50 million dollars for 3 years than give the kings a try. the kings have great young talent coming up from the minors, but who do they have that will support the young kids. michael handzus, derek armstrong??? come on. they need to bring somebody in with great experience, skill, and leadership. they have a lot of skill with the young guys but you need the experience and the leadership. something which the kings do not have. now the big mistake in my mind was letting andy murray go. that was horrible and not needed, but some people thought it was right for some reason. he was picked up right away to st. louis and literally turned that franchise around himself. but yeah you are right they need that steadiness in a coach and i do think they have found the right guy in terry murray for that. he has experience with coaching the young players not like crawford did. going back to someone they need though. i was telling cristobal this a few comments back, that they need that D-man veteran leadership and I was thinking bout Alexei Zhitnik or Daryl Sydor. I think one of those two guys can help and even though they are in there last years of there NHL carreer. Why not retire with the team you started with you know. as for a forward I am hoping they bring back Glen Murray or maybe make a trade for a Mike Knuble type player. someone big upfront that can get into the goalies vision play in the corners and get gritty. I was hoping they would of signed Bertuzzi for that but lombardi hasn't done anything for free agency this season. something that he made mistakes with last season and I think he is scared now. they need a skilled, experienced forward to help the young guys develop more. if they don't get that type of player. Brown, Kopitar, Frolov, O'Sullivan, are either gonna be the same as last season or maybe a drop in points is gonna happen. they won't get better. So it will be interesting to see what they can do to help along there development as players. But I am for sure that they need that leadership in order to get it going. the kings have almost 28 million to spend. I'm sure they could use it for somebody.

stilts Posted
(2009-04-30 06:43:06)

Daniel, that was kind of what I was getting at in regards to Bourque and Housley. That's why I put "drafted" in quotation marks. They got drafted by BOS & BUF but only because the Kings made horrible trades. That was my point to Cristobal about having to stick with our plan to re-build through the draft. I mean REALLY stick to it. The Kings have missed out on soooo many great players becaused they trade youth for veterans who were past their prime. If the Kings hadn't traded those picks it is still not certain that they would have picked Ray or Phil, BUT THEY COULD HAVE. I think they're finally doing the right thing. Say all you want about AEG or Lombardi but I think the front office/ownership stability is desperately needed and long overdue. Now if we could keep one coach for more than 4-5 seasons....

daniel Posted
(2009-04-30 06:43:06)

hey stilts. bourque was once kings draft pick. this is right out of the wikipedia you told me about. After a stellar junior career with Sorel and Verdun of the QMJHL, in which he was named the league's best defenceman in 1978 and 1979, Ray Bourque's NHL debut came in 1979 after being drafted in the first round, 8th overall, by the Bruins, with a first round draft choice obtained from the Los Angeles Kings in a 1977 trade for goaltender Ron Grahame, whose son John would be a future teammate of Bourque's. so basically your right in a way. it was the kings first rounder that was involved in the trade for the kings to get goaltender ron grahame. as for housley, housley was a draft pick of the kings originally, but was traded for rick martin during the entry draft. he was 6th overall in the 1st round. that was the kings original position in the 1982 entry draft that year. but yeah it was great playing with gauthier and sterling. those were the fun days for me. i traveled all over california, nevada, arizona, canada, went to north carolina for junior olympics in 98. it was a fun 2 years. and to play with and against somebody of that calibur was great fun and competition. i wish the best for gabe. he was a class act even at the age of 15-18 years old. i knew and talked to him occasionally until he went to college. i believe he went to Denver if i remember.

stilts Posted
(2009-04-30 06:43:00)

DANIEL & CRISTOBAL. Hey guys, I used to skate Friday night pick-ups at Easy St. Rink in Simi Valley. Also @ Culver City rink. I'm from the San Fernando Valley (Reseda) originally but now I live about 6 miles from the Coyotes Rink (Jobing.com). I actually skate in a good pick-up game out here now. One of the guys, Josh (don't know last name), was on some traveling roller hockey team from the S.D. area. That dude also skated with Gauthier. It's good to hear that you two also play the game. Also, Daniel, in one of your comments regarding my mention of Housley you said that the Kings had drafted him and Bourque before trading both away. Not true. Neither were "drafted" by the Kings. On some of these the Kings had traded draft picks that the other teams used to get guys like Barrasso. The Kings traded to get Rick Martin from the Sabres French Connection line. The following draft BUF chose Barrasso. I seem to remember something similar with Housley, I could be wrong. Just use Wikipedia and you can get tons of info about drafts/players. One last thing... in the '70s my dad was a jeweler. He had some Kings players as clients. I got to meet players like Butch Goring and Bob Murdoch. He used to bring home Dionne , Goring, Murphy, Murdoch, Hutchison sticks. My older brother and I would play tennis ball hockey. When I got mad I'd break the sticks and ask my dad to get more next time he saw the players. What an idiot I was!!! What those sticks would be worth today.... I enjoy all of the back-and -forth with guys. Keep it up. Later.

daniel Posted
(2009-04-30 06:42:58)

dude i don't know man. vegas is cool for vacation. but anything else is not even worth it. you live to learn you know. man did i learn the hard way. yeah i was just throwing out there for a trade with handzus. personally though i don't think they should even get rid of handzus. they might as well keep him just for the salary and try to ship off calder in the mix somewhere. then again though it's always a weary feeling when you know lombardi is looking for a trade. it's like who you gonna get, and you gonna get anything worth it. chances are he ain't gonna get nothing for anything. just judging by his past decisions about transactions. but he has almost 28 million to play with. maybe he might pull something out of his asss. it will be interesting to see. a guy like kovalchuk or gaborik on the same line with kopi would be marvelous to watch every game. even if they do lose. but i believe the kings will do better this season. granted tavares sounds good and nice and all, but you always wish better for the team that you or i, have been rooting for for the whole 24 years of my life. it will be fun to watch the young talent to develop and if they can get a guy of that calibur in the mix, it would just make them more fun to watch in the upcoming season. so i am a hopeful. but reality tells me that we are just gonna have to enjoy watching the young guys develop into there own. it was fun watching what o'sullivan did this past year and i hope they give him a 5 year deal or something around that nature. in my mind he was definetely worth trading demitra for.

cristobal Posted
(2009-04-30 06:42:40)

I'd love to see the Kings commit to building around Kopitar. It just seems they don't really understand how incredible a player he is. I'd love to see Kovalchuk with Kopitar, though i know there's not a snowball's chance in vegas of that happening. Why vegas? I never liked that place.

daniel Posted
(2009-04-30 06:42:33)

yeah i am 24. i played out of the oxnard ice rink the past 6 years. but recently moved to vegas and looking to play somewhere else. man i miss california though already. i suggest if you go to vegas make sure it's just a vacation. it sucks to live out here. too hot for me. it's a lot cheaper to play hockey out here though. bout $400 dollars cheaper. i saw on the that site you gave me a couple comments ago on the salaries and you right. 4 million a year and the highest paid player on the team. how does that happen? i think he will play better this season, but hopefully they get someone for him in return. lombardi's transactions are wierd. but i think maybe they should look for a good second line center. if not, how bout handzus, calder, and a couple minor leaguers for gaborik. there has been rumors of him leaving the wild, it would just be nice if lombardi offered something like that. sounds way far fetched, but it would be nice to see gaborik and kopitar on the same line with brown. it's the triple crown of the modern day era of hockey. that'd be great. awwww if only. lol

cristobal Posted
(2009-04-30 06:42:32)

cheers, daniel. i play out in simi although i haven't in the past year. much older than you, i think, at 38.

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