"And—a possibility many Kings fans will hate to hear—it’s entirely plausible to think owner Phil Anschutz will leave the current management team alone and that both Blake and Hiller will return because the regular season was so impressive. Both, of course, will insist they’ve learned from this experience and vow to do better. Exactly how many chances and seasons does Blake get to produce a team that can win a playoff round, let alone contend for the Stanley Cup? Quite possibly, more chances than he should reasonably get and more than eight years."
So running it back...again...again...again...again...aga...
EDM has Ginsu knived its way through 4 different goalies, 2 coaches, and a plethora of roster changes by the LA Kings yet Blake still can't find an answer. It will shock nobody when we hear the same old song and dance from LA's gray haired corporate bobblehead, Robitaille, come out and say "we were close" once again.
I can't wait to hear Blake tersely proclaim that they "have to get uncomfortable...again" for 45 min while one eye carefully glances at his phone for the surf report, while unconvincingly defending the indefensible in Hiller's idiotic coaching strategy.
I swear, this franchise man. I've been there with them since 86-87 but I am getting tired of watching a cap maxed team do the same damn thing over and over again only to fall flat on their faces to the same orange and blue cloaked demon from Alberta year after year.
"The Panthers allowed an average of 2.40 goals-against average in the first round (second among playoff teams) and allowed the fewest shots, 22.4 per game. "
Shouldn't that have been the Kings stat line, instead of an average of 4.90GA or whatever ugly number it ended up being?
Watching the last two series, extraordinary hockey by all four teams.... Dallas and Winnipeg, both with some serious key injuries, showed what it means to have heart, determination and all.
The Kings were missing that determination to not let Edmonton score in the third period of game four, regardless of what it was gonna take.
Phil Danault had a great series. Who else had a great series? Kempe but he didn't come through after the first four games iirc. The defense was sorely lacking. Who scored big goals from the backend? Brandt Clarke had two of them. But, he can't be trusted because he's a rookie so better to give those extra minutes to Doughty who was injured, and to Edmundson who was 'fine'.
How to not win a playoff series that you had every reason to win.
Lastly, as you mentioned, so much of this comes down to Hiller's poor coaching. The moment clearly got to him. (I liked him during the regular season, but his arrogance in answering questions really put me off). And of course, Blake barely gave him enough to work with given his eight years to work on putting a roster together. And unlike many of the other playoff teams, the Kings were actually healthy.
Fantastic read as always. My bracket had Tampa Bay in the final so never mind there ha ha ha…
Are we surprised that the Kings would appear to be dithering? Certainly not.
It is my expectation that they’ll just keep everybody as is, and have been waiting so the torches run out of fuel and the pitchforks are needed for the harvest.
According to John Hoven, Blake and Hiller will likely be back next year. I have to say Blake has shown little interest in updating fans on the state of the Kings over the years and I’m sure he feels no obligation to do it now. It should be an interesting summer for sure.
It’s not going to be pretty and they deserve answers. Lombardi used to give detailed answers and he didn’t talk down to the press and fans . That’s not the case with this management group and it’s frustrating.
Unfortunately that's exactly what I've come to expect from this franchise. It's such a pity because Dean truly did build a culture, and Blake seems to be breaking down what's left of it, piece by piece, and poor decision by poor decision.
I'll credit him for a pretty decent last off season. But clearly that wasn't nearly enough to fill in the gaps that are still there due to insufficient drafting and development. They have one player on the team from all of the second round picks they've made since Blake took over. That player is Akil Thomas. How do you expect to compete drafting like that?
I'm adding in one more post to what I posted below.
Blake is so damn reactive. Need to match up better against Edmonton > Trade two key players and a 2nd for PLD.
People say we're soft and easy to play against: get Foegele (actually a great pickup), Jeannot, and Edmundson (contract a bit too expensive and too many years imo).
Need scoring? Get a big contract for Kovalchuk.
Need goaltending. Great. We've got Cal. That turned into a calamity. He is always reactive.
That is not in my opinion how you build a team. You build a team with a clear vision as to how you want the team to play, what their personality will be, etc.
Dean had that down pact. Yes he eventually lost the plot, but in between we had two Stanley Cups and one WCF.
I read an article this year in the Athletic quoting GM's. One said that to build a team is like being an artist. You have a vision and develop it. Rob let how the team played dictate his vision. That's the opposite of how it's supposed to work.
"And—a possibility many Kings fans will hate to hear—it’s entirely plausible to think owner Phil Anschutz will leave the current management team alone and that both Blake and Hiller will return because the regular season was so impressive. Both, of course, will insist they’ve learned from this experience and vow to do better. Exactly how many chances and seasons does Blake get to produce a team that can win a playoff round, let alone contend for the Stanley Cup? Quite possibly, more chances than he should reasonably get and more than eight years."
So running it back...again...again...again...again...aga...
EDM has Ginsu knived its way through 4 different goalies, 2 coaches, and a plethora of roster changes by the LA Kings yet Blake still can't find an answer. It will shock nobody when we hear the same old song and dance from LA's gray haired corporate bobblehead, Robitaille, come out and say "we were close" once again.
I can't wait to hear Blake tersely proclaim that they "have to get uncomfortable...again" for 45 min while one eye carefully glances at his phone for the surf report, while unconvincingly defending the indefensible in Hiller's idiotic coaching strategy.
I swear, this franchise man. I've been there with them since 86-87 but I am getting tired of watching a cap maxed team do the same damn thing over and over again only to fall flat on their faces to the same orange and blue cloaked demon from Alberta year after year.
Great observations Helene.
Hopefully Blake,Robitaille and Hiller are gone.
Too many wasted years to produce another loser.
An Edmonton-Toronto final would be fantastic!!
McDavid should be hoisting a Cup.
Good morning Helene.
"The Panthers allowed an average of 2.40 goals-against average in the first round (second among playoff teams) and allowed the fewest shots, 22.4 per game. "
Shouldn't that have been the Kings stat line, instead of an average of 4.90GA or whatever ugly number it ended up being?
Watching the last two series, extraordinary hockey by all four teams.... Dallas and Winnipeg, both with some serious key injuries, showed what it means to have heart, determination and all.
The Kings were missing that determination to not let Edmonton score in the third period of game four, regardless of what it was gonna take.
Phil Danault had a great series. Who else had a great series? Kempe but he didn't come through after the first four games iirc. The defense was sorely lacking. Who scored big goals from the backend? Brandt Clarke had two of them. But, he can't be trusted because he's a rookie so better to give those extra minutes to Doughty who was injured, and to Edmundson who was 'fine'.
How to not win a playoff series that you had every reason to win.
Lastly, as you mentioned, so much of this comes down to Hiller's poor coaching. The moment clearly got to him. (I liked him during the regular season, but his arrogance in answering questions really put me off). And of course, Blake barely gave him enough to work with given his eight years to work on putting a roster together. And unlike many of the other playoff teams, the Kings were actually healthy.
That's all I got.
Fantastic read as always. My bracket had Tampa Bay in the final so never mind there ha ha ha…
Are we surprised that the Kings would appear to be dithering? Certainly not.
It is my expectation that they’ll just keep everybody as is, and have been waiting so the torches run out of fuel and the pitchforks are needed for the harvest.
Oh my, I am jealous of your ability to come up with that last phrase! Torches and pitchforks, indeed!
“blushing”
According to John Hoven, Blake and Hiller will likely be back next year. I have to say Blake has shown little interest in updating fans on the state of the Kings over the years and I’m sure he feels no obligation to do it now. It should be an interesting summer for sure.
Would not surprise me if that proves to be true. Wonder what kind of feedback they will get from season ticket holders. Probably won’t be pretty.
It’s not going to be pretty and they deserve answers. Lombardi used to give detailed answers and he didn’t talk down to the press and fans . That’s not the case with this management group and it’s frustrating.
Unfortunately that's exactly what I've come to expect from this franchise. It's such a pity because Dean truly did build a culture, and Blake seems to be breaking down what's left of it, piece by piece, and poor decision by poor decision.
I'll credit him for a pretty decent last off season. But clearly that wasn't nearly enough to fill in the gaps that are still there due to insufficient drafting and development. They have one player on the team from all of the second round picks they've made since Blake took over. That player is Akil Thomas. How do you expect to compete drafting like that?
I'm adding in one more post to what I posted below.
Blake is so damn reactive. Need to match up better against Edmonton > Trade two key players and a 2nd for PLD.
People say we're soft and easy to play against: get Foegele (actually a great pickup), Jeannot, and Edmundson (contract a bit too expensive and too many years imo).
Need scoring? Get a big contract for Kovalchuk.
Need goaltending. Great. We've got Cal. That turned into a calamity. He is always reactive.
That is not in my opinion how you build a team. You build a team with a clear vision as to how you want the team to play, what their personality will be, etc.
Dean had that down pact. Yes he eventually lost the plot, but in between we had two Stanley Cups and one WCF.
I read an article this year in the Athletic quoting GM's. One said that to build a team is like being an artist. You have a vision and develop it. Rob let how the team played dictate his vision. That's the opposite of how it's supposed to work.