Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2015 16:26:44 GMT
In the 24 hours leading up to the Global Hockey League deadline on Thursday, the Los Angeles Kings made a major splash with three trades, undeniably improving their team more than any other.
The Kings, currently first in the Western Conference and third in the GHL, are gearing up for a deep playoff run. They helped their cause immensely with the acquisitions of forward Shawn Matthias and defencemen Braydon Coburn and Luca Sbisa.
Los Angeles made it clear in recent weeks that they were looking to improve their blueline. Having already acquired Niklas Kronwall and Dennis Seidenberg this season wasn't good enough for them. They still wanted to add at least one top four defenceman.
"We kicked tires and went back and forth on just about every defenceman in the league we thought could help," said GM Josh Lewis. "We had discussions with 15 or 20 teams this week about defencemen. Sometimes we were told the player wasn't available, or would require a bigger return than we were willing to give up. Sometimes the negotiations went on for a long time and we just weren't able to make a deal.
"Ideally we would have liked to add a legitimate top pairing, shutdown defender with some offence. At the risk of tampering charges, we certainly inquired about Tyler Myers from Winnipeg, and Dan Girardi from the Rangers. Even Mark Giordano. That kind of defenceman would have been ideal."
In the end, the Kings settled on Coburn, who will play on their second pairing, and Sbisa, who will be a depth player for the third pairing.
To get Coburn from the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Kings gave up 21-year-old left winger Nikolai Prokhorkin, who is projected as a top-six forward, and a third round pick.
"We certainly didn't steal Coburn by any means. We gave up at least a fair return if not more than fair. But we were desperate to get a good shutdown defenceman to play in our top four. We have a fairly good blueline, and an excellent top pairing, but we don't have as much defensive shutdown ability on that back end as we would like. And Coburn isn't a rental. He's 29. He'll most likely be on this team for at least the next three or four years," Lewis said.
Coburn has two goals and 21 points in 69 games with the Lightning this year, along with 39 penalty minutes. He has thrown 105 hits and taken just 42, and has blocked 53 shots.
The Kings were primarily looking for help on the back end, but their next trade was for a two-way forward. They acquired Matthias, 27, from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for a first round pick in the 2018 draft. They also received a 2015 fifth rounder from the Canucks.
"We paid a heavy price to get Shawn Matthias. We didn't want to give up a first rounder. We've already traded two first rounders for James van Riemsdyk and Niklas Kronwall. But team defence is incredibly important in this game. Matthias can put up points and he is also very responsible defensively. He has improved his game rapidly this year and if he can keep doing that, this could be a steal.
"Right now Matthias will play at left wing on our third line. But he has the potential to be a second line centre. He's very versatile and we can plug him in wherever we need him. This is a huge piece of the puzzle for us."
Lewis said the fact that the first rounder is four drafts away helps soften the blow.
"Four years is a long time. We could be rebuilding by then, if we win a Cup. Anything can happen in four years. By 2018 we could have four first round picks in that draft. Who knows? We're very happy with this trade."
Matthias has 17 goals and 41 points in 69 games this year.
Finally, looking for another defenceman, the Kings acquired Sbisa, 25, also from the Canucks. They gave up a third round pick in 2018.
"I'll be honest, even after getting Coburn we were still looking for that dominant shutdown guy. We weren't looking necessarily for a depth #6 or #7 guy at all. Right now, on this team, Sbisa is our #6 guy. Still, he's an upgrade and he's young. And you can never have too many defencemen going into the playoffs. We still have Andrej Sekera as our #7, and Jeff Schultz, who has been sent back to the AHL," Lewis said.
Sbisa has some offensive ability as well, having scored 25 points in 69 games with Vancouver this year.
After acquiring these players, the Kings tried hard to move out some extra bodies before the deadline, but couldn't strike a deal. As a result, Mike Santorelli and Schultz have been put on waivers, with the purpose of sending them to the AHL.
The Kings have also put in a waiver claim on Minnesota Wild goalie Josh Harding, and once that goes through, current backup Reto Berra will also be headed to the minors.
"Harding isn't that much better or different of a goalie than Berra. We just feel he's a veteran, he's got lots of experience, he *is* a bit better than Berra, and that can come in handy. You never know when your starter might get hurt or go into a bad slump. This is a long-term move, and Harding will likely be starting 15-20 games a year. If you have a bad backup and lose 10 of those 15 games, that hurts you badly. I'm not saying Berra is a bad backup at all - he's been solid for us - but we feel Harding is an upgrade."
Meanwhile, after the deadline passed, the Kings decided to call up 19-year-old left winger Valentin Zykov from the AHL. As a result, veteran grinder Ryan Jones is also headed for the AHL if he clears waivers.
"We signed Jones last summer and he's been OK for us in a depth role. He's only played 40 games, but he's been OK. It's just that Zykov, in less than a season in the AHL, is improving like wildfire. At this point we feel he's an upgrade on Jones and Santorelli and a couple other guys, and he's not fully developed yet.
"Obviously we'd like to get fourth or fifth round picks for these players we're sending down, especially the ones with expiring contracts. But you do what you have to do to improve your team.
"We're very happy with the team we're icing going into the playoffs, and our expectations are nothing less than a Stanley Cup."
************************************************
Here is the Kings' current lineup:
Van Riemsdyk - Kopitar - Toffoli
Gaborik - Carter - Brown
Matthias - Richards - Dupuis
King - Stoll - Zykov
Extras: Lewis, Kelly
Kronwall - Doughty
Coburn - Seidenberg
Muzzin - Sbisa
Extra: Sekera
Quick
Harding
Berra
The Kings, currently first in the Western Conference and third in the GHL, are gearing up for a deep playoff run. They helped their cause immensely with the acquisitions of forward Shawn Matthias and defencemen Braydon Coburn and Luca Sbisa.
Los Angeles made it clear in recent weeks that they were looking to improve their blueline. Having already acquired Niklas Kronwall and Dennis Seidenberg this season wasn't good enough for them. They still wanted to add at least one top four defenceman.
"We kicked tires and went back and forth on just about every defenceman in the league we thought could help," said GM Josh Lewis. "We had discussions with 15 or 20 teams this week about defencemen. Sometimes we were told the player wasn't available, or would require a bigger return than we were willing to give up. Sometimes the negotiations went on for a long time and we just weren't able to make a deal.
"Ideally we would have liked to add a legitimate top pairing, shutdown defender with some offence. At the risk of tampering charges, we certainly inquired about Tyler Myers from Winnipeg, and Dan Girardi from the Rangers. Even Mark Giordano. That kind of defenceman would have been ideal."
In the end, the Kings settled on Coburn, who will play on their second pairing, and Sbisa, who will be a depth player for the third pairing.
To get Coburn from the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Kings gave up 21-year-old left winger Nikolai Prokhorkin, who is projected as a top-six forward, and a third round pick.
"We certainly didn't steal Coburn by any means. We gave up at least a fair return if not more than fair. But we were desperate to get a good shutdown defenceman to play in our top four. We have a fairly good blueline, and an excellent top pairing, but we don't have as much defensive shutdown ability on that back end as we would like. And Coburn isn't a rental. He's 29. He'll most likely be on this team for at least the next three or four years," Lewis said.
Coburn has two goals and 21 points in 69 games with the Lightning this year, along with 39 penalty minutes. He has thrown 105 hits and taken just 42, and has blocked 53 shots.
The Kings were primarily looking for help on the back end, but their next trade was for a two-way forward. They acquired Matthias, 27, from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for a first round pick in the 2018 draft. They also received a 2015 fifth rounder from the Canucks.
"We paid a heavy price to get Shawn Matthias. We didn't want to give up a first rounder. We've already traded two first rounders for James van Riemsdyk and Niklas Kronwall. But team defence is incredibly important in this game. Matthias can put up points and he is also very responsible defensively. He has improved his game rapidly this year and if he can keep doing that, this could be a steal.
"Right now Matthias will play at left wing on our third line. But he has the potential to be a second line centre. He's very versatile and we can plug him in wherever we need him. This is a huge piece of the puzzle for us."
Lewis said the fact that the first rounder is four drafts away helps soften the blow.
"Four years is a long time. We could be rebuilding by then, if we win a Cup. Anything can happen in four years. By 2018 we could have four first round picks in that draft. Who knows? We're very happy with this trade."
Matthias has 17 goals and 41 points in 69 games this year.
Finally, looking for another defenceman, the Kings acquired Sbisa, 25, also from the Canucks. They gave up a third round pick in 2018.
"I'll be honest, even after getting Coburn we were still looking for that dominant shutdown guy. We weren't looking necessarily for a depth #6 or #7 guy at all. Right now, on this team, Sbisa is our #6 guy. Still, he's an upgrade and he's young. And you can never have too many defencemen going into the playoffs. We still have Andrej Sekera as our #7, and Jeff Schultz, who has been sent back to the AHL," Lewis said.
Sbisa has some offensive ability as well, having scored 25 points in 69 games with Vancouver this year.
After acquiring these players, the Kings tried hard to move out some extra bodies before the deadline, but couldn't strike a deal. As a result, Mike Santorelli and Schultz have been put on waivers, with the purpose of sending them to the AHL.
The Kings have also put in a waiver claim on Minnesota Wild goalie Josh Harding, and once that goes through, current backup Reto Berra will also be headed to the minors.
"Harding isn't that much better or different of a goalie than Berra. We just feel he's a veteran, he's got lots of experience, he *is* a bit better than Berra, and that can come in handy. You never know when your starter might get hurt or go into a bad slump. This is a long-term move, and Harding will likely be starting 15-20 games a year. If you have a bad backup and lose 10 of those 15 games, that hurts you badly. I'm not saying Berra is a bad backup at all - he's been solid for us - but we feel Harding is an upgrade."
Meanwhile, after the deadline passed, the Kings decided to call up 19-year-old left winger Valentin Zykov from the AHL. As a result, veteran grinder Ryan Jones is also headed for the AHL if he clears waivers.
"We signed Jones last summer and he's been OK for us in a depth role. He's only played 40 games, but he's been OK. It's just that Zykov, in less than a season in the AHL, is improving like wildfire. At this point we feel he's an upgrade on Jones and Santorelli and a couple other guys, and he's not fully developed yet.
"Obviously we'd like to get fourth or fifth round picks for these players we're sending down, especially the ones with expiring contracts. But you do what you have to do to improve your team.
"We're very happy with the team we're icing going into the playoffs, and our expectations are nothing less than a Stanley Cup."
************************************************
Here is the Kings' current lineup:
Van Riemsdyk - Kopitar - Toffoli
Gaborik - Carter - Brown
Matthias - Richards - Dupuis
King - Stoll - Zykov
Extras: Lewis, Kelly
Kronwall - Doughty
Coburn - Seidenberg
Muzzin - Sbisa
Extra: Sekera
Quick
Harding
Berra
i'll be doing it all on friday as its teh only day off I have at the moment. Sorry, we are down people and its long late shifts at teh moment. 