|
Being part of the Bloguin network is great, because I get ACCESS. Not access in the way certain Wild bloggers have paraded around with in the past few weeks, but access to other bloggers. Particularly, very knowledgable and passionate bloggers from all over the country. So far I've dropped the ball in organizing collaborations with other Bloguinites, but I forget how fun these are to do. Let me know what you think of this feature, and you'll likely see more of it in the feature.
The Wings are in Los Angeles tonight, so, conveniently, I'm sitting down with the resident Kings blogger, Chris from The Royal Half. Chris is a diehard Kings fan -- having held half season tickets for the past seven years -- seven years that have not been kind to Los Angeles. In my eyes, the Kings are the most overlooked franchise in the NHL. Even being in the Western Conference, I just don't feel like we play Los Angeles as much as we do other times, though in fact we do. The Kings have been one of the major surprises in the NHL in the first half, and, being the investigative journalist that I am, I wanted to find out why. Here's my half of the interview located at The Royal Half, and here's what I found out through my intensive questioning:
1) Anze Kopitar. In my mind, the best player that nobody's talking about. A hot start this season, but cooled down a bit since then. He's still young, but talk about where his game is at right now and whether you think he should start being named alongside the NHL's elite.
Anze Kopitar burst onto the scene as a speedy, big center with tremendous offensive upside, scoring 61 points his 1st season and 77 his 2nd. But last season, Coach Terry Murray sacrificed some of Kopitar's scoring potential in order to teach him some defensive responsibility. And it's made Kopitar a better overall player. This season, Kopitar has looked more confident than ever, even during his scoring slump. Because he's so mobile, you forget that Kopitar is 6'4", the same size as Mario Lemieux. Now, there is no way that I think Kopitar will be as offensively explosive as Mario was... but Kopitar is able to use his body in the same fashion. Anze bulked up over the summer and it's made him nearly impossible to knock off the puck in the corners and along the half-wall. He's also been more confident in driving to the net this season than years past. The chemistry between him and Ryan Smyth was there from day one and is starting to slowly return now that Smyth has returned.
I think Kopitar needs to work on his consistency in order to be truly considered part of the NHL elite. I think he can be the type of player he was earlier in the year when he was leading the league in scoring but the knock on Kopitar is that he's SO passionate about his game... and he's very hard on himself and his play. Once Kopitar learns to balance the mental part of his game... he's going to be an elite NHL forward for a long, long time. At least 7 years with his new contract.
2) We've talked in the past briefly about Jonathan Quick. From what I've seen this season, his confidence is sky high and he's really been more consistent than last season. Talk about what has been the difference in his game this season (if any) and where you think his long-term place is in the organization with a prospect like Jonathan Bernier in the system.
This is what I like to refer to as a "rich white girl problem." The Kings have two excellent young goaltenders who are full of potential. Considering that we've gone from Kelly Hrudey to Jamie Storr to Stephane Fiset to Yutaka Fukufuji to Dan Cloutier... having Jon Quick and the possibility of Bernier... is a pretty good place to be. Quick is locked up until the end the 2013 season at 1.8 million a year while Bernier is on an entry level contract until the end of 2011. I think GM Dean Lombardi is smart enough to not trade Bernier for a playoff-rental Kovalchuk-type player this season. Next year, Bernier becomes the backup and the Kings have a 1 and 1a for a season or 2. Then they can trade one or the other and then Jeff Zatkoff or Martin Jones becomes the hot new young goalie for the Kings. After nearly a generation of failed goaltenders, the future in net finally looks good for the Kings. And don't forget, all these goalies are great chips to be used in trades as well.
3) Wings fans are familiar with the evilness of Rob Scuderi. His goal line save in Game 6 prevented that game from going to OT -- where the Wings could have possibly clinched the series. Worst of all, he plays such an honest game and he's just such a quiet player that he's impossible to hate. That's why so many Wings fans hate him. Has the veteran experience that guys like him, along with Ryan Smyth and Justin Williams been what has put the Kings over the top?
I love that 3 dudes aged 28, 31 and 33 are considered veteran leaders. That is the beauty of professional sports. For Smyth, Williams and Scuderi... It's all about the Stanley Cups. All 3 have been to the Finals and Williams and Scuderi have walked away with a day spent with the Cup. Rob Scuderi's been through this before in Pittsburgh... being a part of a young team that is figuring out how to win and dominate games. He was such a great pickup by GM Dean Lombardi over the summer. Sure, Lombardi overpaid a little bit but the beauty of Scuderi's game is that you don't notice it. When Scuderi was out for a few games early in the season, you could see the affect on the Kings defense. Smyth is everything you could hope he'd be for the Kings and Williams was showing that he was completely past all his leg injuries... until he injured his leg. As a fan... you can look at this team and see that they have a lot of chemistry and actually enjoy playing on the ice together. And the best part of having young veteran leaders is that they can stick around for a few more years.
4) Dean Lombardi has been adamant that this team should be built the right way, and as someone who follows prospects, I've been impressed with the depth they've accumulated over the past few seasons. Which young players, either on the Kings currently or up and down to the NHL/AHL, should Wings fans be looking to as players who are going to make a long-term impact with the Kings?
I talked about goalie Jon Bernier earlier but there really are some great prospects in this organization. On the current NHL team, Wayne Simmonds and Oscar Moller are the 2 forwards with the best potential to be impact players for the Kings. (Although only 20, with his Olympic selection, Drew Doughty is no longer in the "prospect" category) Simmonds is that rare complete player... he can hit, play defensive and also score. He's only 20 and I can't wait to see where he is in the next few years. Oscar Moller is a player in the Paul Kariya mold... he's little but very talented with stickhandling and has great offensive instincts. But, he's built like a Swedish Beanie Baby and has been getting tossed all around on the ice this year. The past few games Moller has been getting some time on the 2nd PP unit and he's been making the most out of it with a few points. But he may not truly excel at the NHL level until he puts on some pounds.
At the AHL level, Thomas Hickey has been projected as a future NHL defenseman with great leadership qualities but his first season as a pro has been disappointing, since he's been out with an injury. Viatcheslav Voynov is another talented defenseman playing in Manchester that has a bright future. In Juniors, Colten Teubert is a mean, nasty defenseman that can also score. I guess what I'm saying is that the Kings have a lot of young defensemen in the pipeline. Also, many Kings fans are excited about #1 draft pick Brayden Schenn who is still playing in Juniors but signed a 1-game contract and played against Vancouver with the Kings during a rash of injuries. He almost made the team out of training camp and I'd imagine he'll be playing in Manchester when his Junior season ends.
5) Drew Doughty is making headlines after being the youngest player named to Team Canada, over the likes of Jay Bouwmeester, Dion Phaneuf, and Mike Green. Do Kings fans feel that his game has already come this far, or is he just getting a taste for the future? What does he bring to the team, and where do you think his future will take him?
Kings fans are already chanting "Dreeeewwww!" each time he touches the puck in the same fashion that they screamed "Luuuuuc!" each time Hall of Famer Luc Robitaille was on the ice. That should tell you all you need to know about how Doughty's been embraced by the fans. We have yet to see the best of Drew Doughty. You really can only compare this guy to someone like Ray Bourque... he can score, he can hit and he cares about his defensive game in a way that a lot of other offensive defensemen don't. He's way smarter than Phaneuf... better on defense than Green... and actually looks like a hockey player unlike Bouwmeester. But the difference with Doughty is his skating ability. I've never seen anyone skate like him. He can spin on a dime, he can be so deceptive with his speed through the neutral zone and when he dives to poke a puck away... he looks completely in control.
Sure, everyone is all aflutter with Doughty now... and you can thank the Olympics for that. No... not his recent selection to the Olympic team... but because of the Olympic break, the Kings took their yearly 3 game trip into Western Canada in December instead of February this season... allowing the Canadian press to start ogling over Doughty early in the season. It can be used as a cliche when it comes to hockey, but there is no doubt in my mind that Doughty would have been getting much more attention if he played for a Canadian or East Coast team. Doughty will be a consistent Norris Trophy finalist in the mold of Nick Lidstrom... and this team hasn't had that since Rob Blake's first tour of duty with the Kings. Oh, and he's only 20 years old.
|
Bloguin is the revolutionary blog network specifically focused on helping bloggers get the most out of their websites. We're currently working on building a large network of online communities and hope to expand our blogging coverage to include a wide range of topics. 
The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.
The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. We're specifically looking for blogs in the sports, entertainment, and video games field, but are open to adding any type of quality site. If you're a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.
The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account! 