Tag Archives: LA Kings trade rumors

Is Rick Nash Our Joe Thornton Trade?

February 20, 2012 By in L.A. Kings News, Rick Nash Trade Rumors Tags: , , , , 42 Comments

“I’d like to play like Joe Thornton does right now. I try to mold my game around his. If you say four years, three years down the road, if I could be where he is, then I’d be pretty happy.” – Rick Nash.

I remember the Joe Thornton trade well. 2005-2006 season. Both the Boston Bruins and San Jose Sharks were at or near the bottom of the league. It was Thornton, then as he is now, a premiere power forward in exchange for Wayne Primeau (center), Brad Stuart (defense) and our short-lived friend, Marco Sturm (left wing). I don’t recall if any picks went the other way but each of the three players that went to Boston were former first round picks and each of them were fairly young. Joe Thornton was entering his prime.

What I had to look up were the salary numbers. Big Joe was making $6.6 million at the time and was signed for a few years. The three players that went the other way were making a combined $5 million.

At the time, the Sharks were struggling and trying to find their identity. Their Dean Lombardi years were 2 + years behind them and they needed to make a statement trade to get the franchise back on track. Continue reading →

Reading Dean Lombardi’s Mind On The Rick Nash Offers

February 20, 2012 By in L.A. Kings News, Rick Nash Trade Rumors Tags: , , , , , , 68 Comments

Dean Lombardi doesn’t want to change the defense and the “backend”. He just wants to add offense. “But to trade for Rick Nash, he has to gut the backend, right?” He doesn’t see it that way. Let me explain Lombardi’s thought process:

The most recent word is the following package is in play for Rick Nash – Jonathan Bernier, Jack Johnson, Andrei Loktionov & “more.” Break it down:

1. Jonathan Bernier is a talent. He has all the potential in the world to be a star goalie in the NHL. But Dean Lombardi would tell you he already has one of those in Jonathan Quick and he has waiting in the wings one of Martin Jones, Jeff Zatkoff & Christopher Gibson. Dean is not going to rely yet on one of those kids to take the number 2 spot. He will trade for that or Curtis Sanford will come the other way. Regardless, he looks at Jonathan Bernier as a hole he can fill before the trade deadline while the younger goalies develop and ultimately one of them slips into the number two spot. If one of them does not, a back up goalie is easier to find than a starter. Continue reading →

Your Reaction & Poll Answers To The Following L.A. Kings For Rick Nash Possibilities…

February 20, 2012 By in L.A. Kings News, Rick Nash Trade Rumors Tags: , , , , , , , 42 Comments

Please provide your reaction to the following trade scenarios involving the L.A. Kings and Rick Nash. As a side note, Curtis Sanford is on IR with an upper body injury. I bring this up because some of the trade scenarios involve him.

Continue reading →

Outside The Box Or Lunacy? Trade Nobody.

February 19, 2012 By in L.A. Kings News Tags: , , , , , 61 Comments

Panic is a poor catalyst for decision.

Under most circumstances and almost without exception, it is a bad idea to sell a good stock when its value is low.

I was told yesterday that if you take the last four seasons in aggregate, the L.A. Kings are 30th in 5 on 5 goals per game. I have not verified it but if it is not 30th, it must be close. That isn’t coincidence and, contrary to urban legend, offense doesn’t come to L.A. to die.

You currently have Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, Justin Williams, Mike Richards, Jarret Stoll and Dustin Penner falling below their career averages in goals and points. Simon Gagne was headed there before his head got in the way and ended his season prematurely.

Can the team wide illness be fixed by excommunicating one or more players from the roster and replacing him or them with others?

What happens when you bring a healthy person into a sick room? Continue reading →

No Kings Ransom For Rick Nash

February 15, 2012 By in L.A. Kings News, L.A. Kings trade rumors Tags: , , , , 98 Comments

I don’t want Rick Nash on the L.A. Kings…

“What!!??”

…because he will cost too much.

If Jonathan Quick is injured, do you want to put our goaltending faith into some scrub? I don’t. Jonathan Bernier is valuable and should not be traded. Update: Since writing this article, some have questioned what is so valuable about Bernier. I thought I would make a list of why I don’t let Bernier go:

1. Quick hasn’t proved anything in the playoffs; 

2. As much as Quick has been our MVP,  I am not presumptuous enough to say Quick is better than Bernier and Quick is this team’s number 1 in the long term. How many examples have you seen of goalies playing out of their mind one season and falling on their faces another? Continue reading →

L.A. Kings & Jeff Carter. A Match Made In…

January 31, 2012 By in L.A. Kings News Tags: , , , , , 70 Comments

The Jeff Carter saga has been an interesting one in Columbus. After he signed a long-term, cap friendly, career contract with the team that drafted him in 2003, 11th overall, he was shown little brotherly love from the Philadelphia Flyers. In that respect, his career path has paralleled that of his friend and fellow former Flyer, Mike Richards, although the latter, as we know, had the good fortune of coming here to L.A.

That is also where the similarities end.

While Mike Richards was upset at the trade but stepped up, accepted it and has been, in all respects that we as fans have seen, a pleasure to have on the ice and off, Jeff Carter went into hibernation, would not talk with anyone (I believe for weeks) and it finally took a trip by Rick Nash and (if I recall correctly) either Scotty Arniel (who has since been fired) and/or Scott Howson to finally come out of the cupboard under the stairs and accept the fact Philadelphia just didn’t love him anymore.

Fast forward to today.

Jeff Carter has only played 30 games with the Blue Jackets. He was injured from the word “go” early in the season and on January 9 suffered another injury - a separated shoulder. He is currently week to week. Still, in those 30 games, he has 10 goals and 7 assists. He is also a -9. Continue reading →

A Request & Message To Dean Lombardi About Trades

January 26, 2012 By in L.A. Kings News Tags: , , 47 Comments

This isn’t an open letter. I speak on behalf of myself although I suspect the great majority of L.A. Kings fans, especially the die-hard ones, will agree with me.

There is talk, rumors, probably bullshit for a variety of reasons, that Dean Lombardi has talked to the Tampa Bay Lightning about Ryan Malone and is dangling Jonathan Bernier as a return. A thanks to Matt Barry for bringing this rumor to our attention (although he did not originate it).

From said probable bullshit article, we get this:

Continue reading →

Trade, Tweak Or Is This Your Post Trade Deadline L.A. Kings?

January 18, 2012 By in LA Kings Hockey, Los Angeles Kings Trades Tags: , , , , 124 Comments

Left Wing:
Alexander Semin
Zach Parise
Andrei Kostitsyn
Ray Whitney

Right Wing:
Ales Hemsky
Teemu Selanne
Brad Boyes
Ales Kotalik

These are your “rentals” for potential top 6 wings. Selanne is crossed out due to the duh factor. I didn’t bother including Ryan Smyth. He is allergic to the L.A. lifestyle or at least his wife may be. Remove Boyes and Kotalik because they suck and you have a list that includes Semin, Parise, Kostitsyn, Whitney and Hemsky.

Slim pickings but good players in there.

Any of these players will cost at minimum a 1st round pick and a prospect. From there, Semin and Parise would cost more.

I don’t want Hemsky because Surly’s screams from 315 could cause Ales to pull a groin or separate a shoulder. Continue reading →

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