The Los Angeles Kings couldn't buy a goal last year.
They didn't ante up this off-season either, inking only UFA Mike Cammalleri to a one-year, $1 million dollar flier. Cammalleri is a seven-time 20-goal scorer -- who's also 35 and injury-plagued. He was their sole veteran signing up front.
Instead, Los Angeles is counting on philosophy to answer their scoring questions. But Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle are not walking through that door -- new head coach John Stevens and assistant Pierre Turgeon are.
Stevens has emphasized more offense going through the slot. 500-goal scorer Turgeon has promoted working from behind the net. We have seen flashes of this methodology throughout the pre-season.
But does more offense equate to less defense? Adding 20 more goals doesn't amount too much if you allow 20 more.
Encouragingly, the Kings can look to themselves as a model for how small tweaks can make a big difference. Just five years ago, a newly-hired Darryl Sutter gave his players a little more freedom and they brought home a Stanley Cup.
Of course, Anze Kopitar isn't 24 anymore. After team scoring, the captain headlines my next big Kings question.
Is Kopitar Key to Re-signing Doughty?
It's February 2018. The Kings are once again treading water in the standings. And Kopitar is once again producing at a 2C clip.
If you're Drew Doughty -- of recent
"I want to win Cups" "I don’t give a s--- where I play" fame -- is this a Cup contender?
Almost certainly not. You're not challenging for a Cup with a $10 million dollar second-line center, especially when you're already saddled by Dustin Brown and Marian Gaborik's millstone contracts.
So if you're the Kings -- at this hypothetical point -- isn't this possibly the peak of Doughty's trade value?
As if there wasn't already enough riding on the big Slovenian this year.
How Much Will Depend on Quick?
Dean Lombardi made this cogent point when he acquired Ben Bishop last February:
I think the days of playing Jon Quick 70 games, like we did two years ago, make no sense in terms of not only letting him play at his best, but also making sure that you have a player of his caliber extending his career and not wearing him out. (LA Kings Insider)
So it might have been of some surprise when Rob Blake settled on Darcy Kuemper as Quick's back-up, instead of more experienced options like Ryan Miller, Jonathan Bernier, Antti Niemi, or Ondrej Pavelec.
Now this isn't Jeff Zatkoff -- last year's backup signing -- in terms of reps. From 2013-17, Kuemper has logged 96 appearances, which doubles Zatkoff's 48. The ex-Wild netminder was also briefly anointed as Minnesota's starter in 2014-15, before being supplanted by Devan Dubnyk.
He isn't a netminder who has ever carried the starting load for a significant and convincing stretch. Considering Quick's multitude of injuries over the years, Kuemper certainly wasn't the most secure insurance policy available.
That said, if LA's traditionally airtight defense holds, it may not matter much who's manning the pipes. Not so long ago, they made do with Ben Scrivens and an unproven Martin Jones behind Quick.
Are the Kids Alright?
Since 2014, the Kings' most impactful youngster has been Derek Forbort. No offense to the late-blooming defender, who has shown the talent to be a stalwart down-low for seasons to come -- but that's not good enough for a fast-aging contender to keep up.
This year's crop of youth, like previous seasons', offer as many answers as they do questions:
• Will the uber-talented Adrian Kempe ever become detail oriented enough to be a championship-caliber middle-six forward?
• Can the inexperienced Alex Iafallo step in immediately? LA could certainly use a puck hound with soft hands in the line-up.
• Does Jonny Brodzinski have the ability to regularly find the soft spots at the highest level to unleash his million-dollar shot?
• Can Nic Dowd get much better? The at-times brilliant 27-year-old playmaker might need another gear and a more consistent two-way game to really make his mark on the league.
• How will Paul LaDue recover from his surprise demotion? Can he put together the flashes of poise and puckmoving that we saw last year into a complete package?
• Can the long, mobile Kevin Gravel gain that firmness in his game to earn the trust of Stevens?
• Does the gritty, hard-working Kurtis MacDermid have a future beyond an NHL bottom pairing?
• Will Oscar Fantenberg's calm, puckmoving grace carry over from the pre-season to the regular season? And can he handle a steady diet of the world's best forwards?
To improve significantly from last season, Los Angeles will probably need at least a couple of these youngsters to emerge as consistent, high-leverage depth contributors.
There's a lot of talent here, but frankly, not a lot to trust, not yet.
More Questions Than Answers
Indeed, it's fair to say that the whole team is more questions than answers. Some other biggies:
• After five straight seasons of more or less third-line 5v5 production, is Brown ready to come back as a 20-goal scorer? I will take the under on the 32-year-old.
• Will Jake Muzzin enjoy a bounceback campaign? A return to the form that earned him a spot on Team Canada's 2016 World Cup roster will go a long way to giving the Kings two rock-solid defensive pairings.
Anyway, enough of the questions.
Here's some good news: 32-year-old Jeff Carter looked as fleet as ever this pre-season and Tanner Pearson might be busting for a breakout. As recently as April 2016, the team looked like a Stanley Cup contender. And a resurgent Kopitar and Doughty and Quick can match virtually any F-D-G trio in the league.
It's February 2018. The Kings are topping the standings. Kopitar has regained his two-way form. Kempe and Iafallo and LaDue have matured enough to consistently provide key minutes. They're also flush with cap space, at least for one big run.
Five years ago, it was Carter. Three seasons ago, Marian Gaborik. James Neal, anyone?
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This will be my last Kings post, as I have chosen to concentrate full-time on the Golden Knights beat for HockeyBuzz.
Vegas has offered a generous amount of coverage opportunities, which I truly appreciate.
Regardless, this is something of a bittersweet announcement for me, as I've followed the Kings for so long.
Thank you so much for reading my work. Through the good times and the goalless times, it always made me happy to know that somebody was reading.
I'll still be writing for LAKings.com, so look for my work there. Also, I'll still be watching my hometown team, so I'm sure to share an opinion or two about them on Twitter. So let's keep the conversation going over there!
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