Thoughts From Blake & Robitaille's Press Conference

usatsi_10012860

In a time when good news is far between, Team President Luc Robitaille and General Manager Rob Blake met with the media today to discuss the current state and what the future may uphold. The Los Angeles Kings have lost in three straight seasons to the same team within the realm of depreciating in value (for all you economists out there). That’s not new news. It’s also not news that many heads were expected to roll.

That wasn’t the case. Their press conference confirmed he would return as Kings general manager next season. With Luc joining him, it all but cements the notion that ownership stands by their current and past choices. Robitaille ever seemed to be in true danger, but Blake had several questions looming about his future.

Blake addressed the most giant elephant in the room, outside of his job security, with the subject of Pierre Luc Dubois. Dubois was brought in to get the Kings over the hump, or rather, get past Edmonton in the first round. With their failure, and the inability of Dubois to make an impact in the series outside of a deflected goal off of Darnell Nurse in a thumping defeat, all eyes were on the discussion of a potential buyout of Dubois. The age of Dubois made it rather tempting to proceed with the buyout option since his age made it 1/3rd the total price.

Blake dismissed the idea of a buyout and also added that the coaching staff needs to do a better job in his overall deployment. Blake and the company still see the upside in a player who has produced well at different points in his career. As covered before, Dubois could reinvigorate his reputation with a move to wing, but as he stated in his presser with the media, he believes he is a center. The Dubois era is still upon us, and the No Movement Clause affirms the difficulty level for the franchise moving forward if he continues to sour into curdled milk.

40 Points in 82 games for a player that makes the second most on the forward roster isn’t a good look. Does the 1-3-1 impact that at all? Or is it the usage and linemates? Kevin Fiala and Adrian Kempe spoke candidly about the defensive alignment and touched on the difficulty of being the forward on the half wall, stagnantly waiting for the puck while the opposing team is in full motion.

Blake and Luc discussed that discussions about changing the 1-3-1 have ensued but neglected to confirm that it was out of the door. Most of the chatter regarding the offensively woeful 1-3-1 came out after a hard-earned victory over Vancouver late in the season. Most of the Kings’ defense corps sat at the very bottom of the league in breakouts, and with a possible change of system, could that help their defenseman break the puck out more efficiently? Or does an aging star defenseman who produced excellent results in a 1-3-1 struggle with a new alignment?

The problem is that the Kings D corps needs more high-end defensemen. Complain about their lack of breakouts, but understand that they lack high offensive ceilings throughout the corps.

This brings up the most significant point of Blake’s presser, the youth. Blake expects Akil Thomas, Alex Turcotte, and Brandt Clarke to be infused into the lineup next season.

The prospect pool has taken a sour turn for the worse, as top-flight prospects have been traded (Vilardi, Faber, Kupari), wallowed in the mire (Turcotte, Kaliyev), and, at worst, claimed through the waiver process (Bjornfot, to a lesser extent Anderson-Dolan). If you are Blake, all chips go on your most ready and available prospects, pointing to the trio above.

The coaching situation is very fluid. Jim Hiller is still firmly in the mix, but no confirmation was given that a change would or wouldn’t occur. The first-year coach, Hiller, was a respectable 21-12-1 but failed to manage an inconsistent team down the stretch. The team never found its footing until game four in the playoffs, a bit too late following two blowouts.

The franchise has chosen to stick with its current assets, which could be problematic. The Kings spent to the cap under Blake last year and will likely depart from the Roy, Arvidsson, and Talbot contracts. Given the pending new Quinton Byfield contract, there is still some room to get a 4-5 million dollar goaltender, though the market might not be as sterling as hoped.

The youth will have to lead the charge for next year and follow the Dallas Stars model of success. Blake and company are here to stay but are on the knife edge with little to work with. They can walk from their expiring contracts and attempt to chase a less-than or adequate tender, play the youth, change the system, deploy Dubois to the wing, and still fail to capitalize on the final years of their two cornerstone player’s careers.

The Kings now head into a balancing act of cataclysmic outcomes. All eyes will be on Blake and the staff to find a way to move this forward.