Archive for September, 2009

More cuts. Technically I’m a bit behind on this “breaking news” but, since it’s not terribly surprising I won’t sweat it too much. Anyway, the following players have be reassigned: Andrew Campbell (Defense) – Manchester, AHLMarc-Andre Cliche (Center) – Manchester, AHLKyle Clifford (Left Wing) – Barrie, OHL Anyone with half a brain could figure out who that leaves left to fight out the last few spots on the team:Richard ClunePeter HarroldRaitis IvanansTrevor LewisBrad RichardsonBrayden SchennKevin Westgarth It’s probably a stretch to say that Harrold is legitimately fighting for a spot, since his versatility as a player who can play forward [...]

Here’s a halfway through preseason review. With eight total games on the schedule for the preseason, the Kings have now played five. I realize the math is a little off, and we’re a bit further than halfway through, but “Preseason Review – 5/8th way Through” didn’t have quite the same ring to it. Anyway, here’s how the games have gone so far: Kings 2 – Coyotes 4Kings Scorers: Wayne Simmonds (2)Coyotes Scorers: J. Vandermeer (1), V. Fiddler (1), J. Hoggan (1), D. Spina (1)Recap – With a few notable exceptions, the Kings played a reserve squad in this game, fielding [...]

A few more cuts today: Drew Bagnall (Defense) – Manchester, AHLGabe Gauthier (Center) – Manchester, AHLBrandon Segal (Right Wing) – Manchester, AHLJohn Zeiler (Right Wing) – Manchester, AHL Nothing surprising, except to say that Manchester is getting even better… Zeiler is a bit of a surprise, although nothing shocking. As we discussed previously, this means that the Kings have a fourth line that’s a bit more up in the air. Many analysts (myself included) assumed Zeiler would make the team as either a fourth-line player, or perhaps even as an extra forward. By my count that leaves the following players [...]

New changes are a-comin’ for the Los Angeles Kings. Pre-season camp players have suffered through the next set of cuts, although no terrible surprises have been forthcoming, with one possible exception. Without further ado, here are the players the Los Angeles Kings have cut from camp, along with the team they’re heading to for the upcoming season: Justin Azevedo (Center) – Manchester, AHLCorey Elkins (Center) – Manchester, AHLBud Holloway (Left Wing) – Manchester, AHLDwight King (Left Wing) – Manchester, AHLAndrei Loktionov (Center) – Manchester, AHLDavid Meckler (Left Wing) – Manchester, AHLJuraj Mikus (Center) – Manchester, AHLOscar Moller (Center) – Manchester, [...]

So today I finally made it down to pre-season camp, something I had been intending to do for several weeks now. In fact, I was hoping to make it to Rookie camp a while back, but real life interfered. Nonetheless, I made it to the Toyota Sports Center today to check out how some of the Kings are playing. As we know, the following players had already been sent back to their Junior teams:Jean-Francois Berube (Goalie) – Montreal, QMJHLNicolas Deslauriers (Defense) – Rouyn-Noranda, QMJHLMartin Jones (Goalie) – Calgary, WHLBrandon Kozun (Right Wing) – Calgary, WHLLinden Vey (Right Wing) – Medicine [...]

Up next, the top 5 Kings prospects in the system. We should point out that as a general rule we use Hockey’s Future criteria in deciding what made a prospect. Of course there could be an exception in the future, but there aren’t any at the moment. Now, on to the ratings:5. Colten Teubert (Defense) – Drafted 1st Round, 13th Overall – 2008Colten Teubert is the perfect fit for this spot on the list. Is he going to be an offensive superstar? No chance. He’s probably not going to win the Norris at any point (unless they start rewarding defensive [...]

In the excitement leading up to the start of the 2009-2010 Season, we’ll take a look at the top ten prospects in the Los Angeles Kings system, to see what we’ve got to look forward to for the future. As always these are my opinions, and you’re welcome and encourage to provide your own feedback in the comments section. We’ll start with 6-10 and continue with the top 5 in the next post. 10. Justin Azevedo (Center) – Drafted 6th Round, 153rd Overall – 2008Might as well start with a bang, this may be the biggest reach of the top [...]

ESPN is reporting that Patrick Marleau is heading to the Los Angeles Kings in a three-team deal between San Jose, Ottawa and Los Angeles. This significant shakeup would look like this: Heatley to San JoseFrolov and Stoll to OttawaMarleau to Los Angeles Reaction? I’m not pleased. Alex Frolov has been a key member of the Los Angeles Kings almost since he’s been drafted, and while Stoll is expendable this deal looks like a dramatic overpayment for a player who has repeatedly underperformed, if not outright disappeared in the NHL Playoffs. Here how the stats break down:To Ottawa:50G, 50A (32/27 from [...]