The G&M's hockey dean, Eric Duhatschek, dices with Dean Lombardi; and dangles his deductions on the Kings' climb back towards competing for the crown.
KINGS MAKING THEIR MOVE
Eric Duhatschek, The Toronto Globe & Mail, July 9, 2009
For a team that has gone 44 years without a championship, the Los Angeles Kings are a fascinating study on so many levels. In their history, they've made just one trip to the Stanley Cup final (1993) and may have even won the thing if Marty McSorley hadn't been caught using an illegal stick, right at the point that they were about to take a 2-0 lead, on the road, against the Montreal Canadiens.
It's been mostly downhill for the 15 seasons since – 11 years out of the playoffs, three first-round exits, plus one memorable upset win over a 111-point Detroit Red Wings in 2001, with coach Andy Murray behind the bench.
One of the NHL's biggest issues during that down turn was how weak its teams were in the three major U.S. markets – New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. The iffy results in Boston, another attractive Original Six market, weren't great either.
But the Rangers have been OK for a few years now; the Bruins soared to the top of the Eastern Conference last year; and the Blackhawks possess one of the best young teams in the game.
So now it is just left for the Kings to execute their turnaround in the standings, a painfully slow process that some thought would be expedited this July in the unrestricted free-agent market. It didn't happen, but not for lack of trying.
The Kings ended up with one strategic signing – defenceman Rob Scuderi, off the reigning Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins – and one addition made via trade, acquiring former Oilers winger Ryan Smyth from the rebuilding Colorado Avalanche.
The Kings had been linked to the Ottawa Senators in a possible trade for Dany Heatley, but assistant GM Ron Hextall put an abrupt end to that talk during a recent season-ticket holder forum, noted that Heatley came with too many red flags for their liking.
Smyth, a left winger with a less impressive resume, but also less perceived baggage, became a more attractive second choice.
On the surface, it looked as if the Kings took on a fairly hefty contract with Smyth because of his annual $6.25-million (all currency U.S.) salary-cap charge.
However, a closer look shows it's not as bad as it may appear. For starters, the Avalanche took back from Los Angeles a player, Tom Preissing, who was earning NHL money ($2.75-million for two more years) in the minor leagues.
Kyle Quincey, the other player surrendered in the deal, was a decent contributor last year for the Kings, but he was acquired on the waiver wire from Detroit, so they didn't invest a lot of time or effort in his development.
Moreover, Smyth's original contract with Colorado was front-loaded, so the most expensive two years (one at $7.5-million, one at $7.25-million) have already clicked off the contract. What's left are the final three years at $6.5, $5.5 and $4.5-million.
It's not a great cap number ($6.25-million overall), but for a team such as the Kings, with cap room to spare, it's not as big an issue as it might be elsewhere in the NHL. They are still $7.25-million under the 2009-10 salary cap, with 20 players signed for next year.
In terms of cash out of the owners' pocket, the Smyth contract – minus what they were paying Preissing in the minors – is just about right for a player who scored 59 points in 77 games last season and meets the organization's primary requirement for depth at left wing.
Financially, the Kings would still be in a position to revisit a Heatley deal if they so desired, but according to general manager Dean Lombardi, they chose to go in a different direction with Smyth.
“The contract is good, but that's not the reason we did it,” said Lombardi, of the trade he completed last weekend,just ahead of the July 4 holiday in the United States and thus received minimal notoriety or attention.
“No. 1, (Smyth) is a heart-and-soul guy. We started down this path of building with youth and one of the quickest ways of getting off track is by trading your draft picks or trading young players or bringing in the wrong kinds of guys that don't stand for what you believe in.”
Lombardi acknowledged that when the Red Wings' Marian Hossa unexpectedly became available on the free-agent market, he soared to the top of the Kings' wish list.
“Our free-agent list was very limited. We were interested in Hossa, but realized we were out of that early. Mike Knuble was our next guy – he plays hard, he's a no-nonsense guy. As far as (Martin) Havlat and (Marian) Gaborik, the only thing we were interested in with them were one-year deals. And that was it. Then we were down to third-line guys and we were waiting.
“The thing is too, clearly left wing was our biggest hole. We still have holes in the middle, but we just could not – Hexy and I, as much as you're tempted and you're frustrated and you get hammered in blogs for not doing anything – we said, ‘nope, we're sticking with our convictions.' Fortunately, Ryan came around. The cap hit is high, but the cash made sense for us.
“The bottom line is, he's a heart-and-soul guy, plays the game the right way, goes to the blue (goal crease). He's not a highlight film, but he gets it done. So that's it.”
Last year, three of the Western Conference's long-time also-rans saw their rebuilding programs pay off when the Chicago Blackhawks, St. Louis Blues and Columbus Blue Jackets all made the playoffs after lengthy absences.
The Kings fell 12 points short of the 91 needed to qualify for the playoffs in the West. Still, their goaltending seemed to settle down with Jonathan Quick and Erik Ersberg, two youngsters, sharing the load. And highly regarded Jonathan Bernier, a former first-round draft choice, is waiting in the wings. Under coach Terry Murray, the Kings were vastly improved defensively, finishing a respectable 11th overall.
In addition to Smyth, they also brought in Justin Williams at last year's trading deadline, a key member of the 2006 Carolina Hurricanes championship team who has had injury issues these past couple of years. Murray and Williams have a history together from their Philadelphia Flyers' days. The belief is that Smyth and Williams will provide the veteran stability, and a little added offence, to help the Kings' youthful core mature and improve. But when might that happen?
“I've said this before,” answered Lombardi. “Regardless of our additions, it's not going to matter unless (Anze) Kopitar gets better; unless (Drew) Doughty gets better. (Wayne) Simmons has to get better. The kids within our system, unless those seven or eight key young players come back here in the summer and make themselves better, and then take another step next year, we're just spinning our wheels.
“That is first and foremost. It started last year. It's their team, so to speak, but it's not their team until they show me that they're willing to become the best they can be. And Kopitar is a huge issue. He has not been in shape yet his entire career. And that's normal. As we all know, so many top players have gone through this and they've got by on their ability. They don't realize there's another step they need to take to become great.
“Dustin Brown, for the first time, did it last year. Now, it's Kopitar's turn. And Doughty, last year, because he had to lose so much weight, was nowhere near a finely conditioned athlete. Jack Johnson – a whole slew of them have a lot to learn internally.
“For all the splash, or who you're adding (as free agents), the most important thing is that the kids get better. Then, it becomes important to add the right people – a Ryan Smyth, a Justin Williams, a character guy like Scuderi – and staying with the theme that we're not going for the sex, we're going for the meat.”
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[sort of]). Myers is having a great season for Buffalo, too.
He might be my pick of the whole group.