Thoughts on the Kings
Posted 8:03 PM ET | Comments 0
So the Kings lost out on Kovalchuk (unless now they get back in it with this recent fiasco).
But do they need to add someone of this significance to their roster? No. Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, Ryan Smyth, Wayne Simmonds, Jarrett Stoll and Justin Williams are all capable top six forwards, and signing Kovalchuk would have done nothing but hamstring the Kings a year from now when they need to resign RFAs Simmonds, Drew Doughty, Jack Johnson and Jonathon Bernier, whom I believe will be firmly established as a number one goalie by then. Doughty and Johnson have to be the focus for this team, along with Kopitar and Bernier if he proves to be the number one goalie he has the potential of becoming.
Doughty and Johnson are the cornerstones of a great young defensive core, and when you have 2 young guys like that on the blueline its crazy to build your team around any other area. This doesn't mean they have to be a defensive team, quite the oppposite in fact because these two guys are both great offensive defenseman. They also have young, mobile Colten Teubert and Thomas Hickey in their system and in a couple years time they would make up a top 4 that would unquestionably be one of the best in the league. Of course, if they would have signed Kovalchuk it would be next to impossible to keep a group like this together once their rookie contracts all expire.
Kopitar and Brown are both signed for the forseeable future, and these two players can anchor the 1st and 2nd lines for the Kings for a long time. Brayden Schenn should be on the team this year, or next at the latest. The core of young talent on this team is remarkable and signing a player of Kovalchuk's magnitude (read: contract demands) severely diminishes the chances of keeping this core together. Look at Chicago: too many high-priced high-talent players and they are currently in salary cap hell, diminishing their roster because the signings of Campbell, Huet, and Hossa among others have left them with no choice. And when this team wins a Cup in the next couple years, which it will, they don't want to spend the days after the win dismantling the roster that got them there.
But do they need to add someone of this significance to their roster? No. Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, Ryan Smyth, Wayne Simmonds, Jarrett Stoll and Justin Williams are all capable top six forwards, and signing Kovalchuk would have done nothing but hamstring the Kings a year from now when they need to resign RFAs Simmonds, Drew Doughty, Jack Johnson and Jonathon Bernier, whom I believe will be firmly established as a number one goalie by then. Doughty and Johnson have to be the focus for this team, along with Kopitar and Bernier if he proves to be the number one goalie he has the potential of becoming.
Doughty and Johnson are the cornerstones of a great young defensive core, and when you have 2 young guys like that on the blueline its crazy to build your team around any other area. This doesn't mean they have to be a defensive team, quite the oppposite in fact because these two guys are both great offensive defenseman. They also have young, mobile Colten Teubert and Thomas Hickey in their system and in a couple years time they would make up a top 4 that would unquestionably be one of the best in the league. Of course, if they would have signed Kovalchuk it would be next to impossible to keep a group like this together once their rookie contracts all expire.
Kopitar and Brown are both signed for the forseeable future, and these two players can anchor the 1st and 2nd lines for the Kings for a long time. Brayden Schenn should be on the team this year, or next at the latest. The core of young talent on this team is remarkable and signing a player of Kovalchuk's magnitude (read: contract demands) severely diminishes the chances of keeping this core together. Look at Chicago: too many high-priced high-talent players and they are currently in salary cap hell, diminishing their roster because the signings of Campbell, Huet, and Hossa among others have left them with no choice. And when this team wins a Cup in the next couple years, which it will, they don't want to spend the days after the win dismantling the roster that got them there.