RFAs, arbitration, etc.

Hey Rich, awesome work man. You wanna be our blogger at hockeybuzz.com??

Rich, first of all thanks for all the work you do to make this the best hockey blog West of the East Coast Bias!

I was wondering if there is any news on the Lubo contract negotiations?

Wow... no rest for the weary! Don't you ever sleep? j/k Thanks for the update. Do you anticipate any problems with signing Cammelleri or Visnovsky (especially with regards to his interview in Slovakia where he seemed to be less-than-thrilled with certain aspects of the team)?

Also, any news on Scott Parse's 'official' signing yet?

Hope to see you at Prospects Camp next week.

Thanks again!

I didn't see but did you answer that guy about who Dean was talking about adding a "most recent former player" in a couple years? When I first saw that line I thought immediately of Norstrom. 2 years younger than Blake so he can fill his spot when he retires. Correct?

This leads to my main question. Since Dean has talked about looking at cap space for 2-3 years out who would be available? Do you know who are the likely big free agents that will be out there next year or in 2 years? I mean non-current LA guys.

Basically we could be in the same spot the Ducks/Carolina were with a good young core of guys needing just a couple of big veterans to lead us all the way. Who are those possible guys? Anyone know?

Rich-
Thanks for representing Kings fans in the third estate.
My question is about the McCauley fiasco. I think he had limited service in 10 games for us last year. We have bought out his contract. Is he healthy enough to ever play again? If he isn't, why didn't we try the Lou Lamerillo ploy of declaring hin an candidate for long term injury comensation? His millions would come off our cap for the next two years if he was LTI. Can you shed some light on this anomally? THX guz

First off thanks for the all the great info. It's been fun to get all the behind-the-scenes interviews with Lombardi. I'm really pumped for next season.
Any idea what's going with Lubo and Cammi from their perspective? Just wondering if they really want to stay with LA or if they're a little unhappy over money or other issues. Also any chance of getting any interviews with these guys (although I'm sure they won't be nearly as candid as DL is).

Thanks

really the only questions i have now are regarding Lubo and Cammy.........How are those going ?

Hell of a job Rich.
I was going to put "Hammond" on the back of my jersey but what number should I put??....lol....that was a joke Rich. I'm not the stalker that you were hoping for.

DL has done a great job. Solid group coming in. I really think he has out done any other GM. IMO.
Looking forward to this season. Hope there is some room left on the roster for some of the boys down in Manchester. I'm really hopeful of Boyle and Sully getting some ice time with the big club.

Thanks for the Hockey fix...
and Thank JEDI MASTER DL for us.
A NEW HOPE.....

I thought Lundmark looked pretty good when he came over late last year. Is it a definite that he is a goner? Am I the only one who liked this guy's game?

Mark,

Given that "the very recent past d-man" wasn't for this season, but for a future season, I think it is Gleason, once his contract is up with Carolina.

As for Parse, I read somehwere he is officially signed, and that it was supposed to be announced on Monday.

Some answers...

Tantrum...thanks for the offer, but unless they figure out the whole human-cloning thing, my days are pretty much occupied...

As for Visnovsky's contract talks, it's too early to characterize them as good or bad. Really, they just started. I was surprised how forward Lombardi was in saying that he wanted to get Visnovsky re-signed. He considers it a top priority so I think something will get done, especially now with Handzus and Nagy aboard.

Mark...As for Cammalleri, I wonder how these seven- and eight-year contracts will impact his thinking. Either way, he will be a King next season but it will be interesting to see if there are some chess games played, as far as whether one side or the other thinks it's better to wait. And I'm not sure why they haven't announced the Parse signing. Probably just caught up in other things.

JB...you know I can't name the defenseman, of course! Ha! But I did answer his question, a couple times actually. As for next summer's free agents, there's no list yet, but if you're really into it, you can go to nhlnumbers.com and look at each team's page. It will give you every player's status.

David...as I understand it, there's no salary-cap relief from LTI players unless a team is in danger of going over the cap. The Kings aren't anywhere close to that. Plus, they would have had a difficult time claiming LTI status for McCauley. By the end of the season, he was simply a healthy scratch. His knee needed to get stronger, but it's not as though he needed surgery or anything.

Ethan...the fact that Cammalleri showed up at the draft party tells me that things are OK and that there's no bitterness or big problems there. If things calm down a little I might try to get in touch with him.

As for adding more players, I don't see how that's going to happen. I've sketched out the probable lineup and there's just no room, unless O'Sullivan goes to Manchester or Ivanans, who signed a one-year deal, doesn't play.

Slow?

Last July 4th there were 14 deals. We signed Brian Willsie! And the poor slobs known as the Coyotes actually signed JR.

Hnidy, another 6'2 210 pound D-man is going to the Ducks according to Ek.

Questions? If Tverdovsky IS coming back, is he playing the entire year in Manchester? Or do he and Modry fight for most hated King 07-08?

All my best to Tom K and his family. He'll love it in Montreal - Who takes his place?

Oh, happy 4th of July Rich.

Rich, you are the hardest working reporter (along with Rick Sadowski) in the history of hockey! You asked for questions, here are a few of mine:

1-Like someone before me, I wonder if Norstrom might be coming back?

2-Do you think Blake would make a good coach when he's ready to retire? Once the players grow weary of Crawford?

3-What about goalies? Can we pick up another before training camp? Lundqvist?

4-Who will be the "grit" guy this season now that Kostopoulos is gone?

5-Will Ivanans be the "enforcer" next season? Or will his ice time evaporate?

6-Is the low-key confidence that the organization spews out about Cloutier really genuine, or are they trying not to hurt his possible trade value by telling everyone what they really think?

7-Are the players excited about opening the season in London? Or are they quietly dreading the situation since it could hinder being able to get off to a good start? (Of course, being that far away from home could work the opposite and becoming a bonding experience for all the new faces as well?)

8-Do you think the Kings will ever hold a "Fan Fest" similiar to what the Angels do (Tip A King is nice, but I'm thinking they can do something in the preseason on a much larger scale)? That kind of interaction with the fans really spurs excitement about the team and is a great marketing tool. Most of the Big League Baseball teams have these things every year before the season starts. I am surprised the Kings, Lakers, Ducks, Clippers and Dodgers have not picked up on this yet!

9-Which of the "young" Kings do you think will surprise us next season by his immediate impact or improvement on the ice?

10-Do you miss your days as a high school stringer at the Orange County Register or those Friday nights taking high school football scores at 625 N. Grand in Santa Ana?

That is all I have (and quite enough) for now, but you have me hooked as a reader of your blog ... I always knew you would be a big hit as a sportswriter and wish you even more success in your career!

Ex-SW...thanks for the compliment. Rick is certainly one of the most-respected guys out there.

1) Norstrom's return certainly wouldn't surprise me. Blake found his way back, right? I'm sure the Kings will watch Matty this year to see if he still has something left.

2) I had never thought about Blake as a coach. I'm not sure if he has enough of a take-charge personality. If we're talking about current Kings, I might see someone such as Armstrong as more of a future coach.

3) Doubtful. And Lombardi says he would like to see Ersberg in the minors for one season. It doesn't mean it will work out that way, but that's what he hopes.

4) Zeiler would be my guess. Both Lombardi and Crawford really like him.

5) I do think Ivanans will fill that role. By default, if nothing else. Kevin Westgarth isn't ready yet.

6) Honestly, I wouldn't use the word ``confidence'' to describe what they've been saying about Cloutier. I think they're just saying, ``He's healthy and we're going to give him a chance but nothing is promised.'' I haven't heard them try to inflate Cloutier, at least not to me.

7) Nobody will say it publicly, but I don't think there's much excitement about the trip. I'm sure Kopitar is thrilled, but from a hockey standpoint it's rough. Look at the teams that started their season in Europe/Asia in recent years...it's ugly.

8) I don't know of any plans, but I personally think it's a great idea to have a FanFest at the end of training camp in El Segundo. Hockey players are great to their fans and Lombardi is a great communicator. They should take advantage of that.

9) I think Dustin Brown is ready to take that next step. You could see it starting to emerge at times late last season, and he might be ready to break through.

10) I think holding that job actually COST me money. I probably spent more on gas than I made in salary every week. I was actually an oh-so-important ``news assistant,'' so I was out covering games on Fridays. I really miss taking fish counts...yikes. It's a good paper though. I enjoyed working there.

CBGB...I highly, highly doubt that Tverdovsky would play a single game for the Kings next season. I think the prospect of playing in the AHL will ``encourage'' him to seek a deal overseas. And a happy Fourth to you also!

Excellent reporting, Rich! And a fine job done by DEAN-O!!!!! I admit I was really worried by the lack of Day 1 UFA activity by the Kings, but Dean-O has surprised and made a true believer out of me. It's sad to see TKO go to the Habs, but I guess I can't have my cake and eat it, too. . .

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/article/20070704/CPSPORTS01/70704066/1006/CPSPORTS01

GREAT JOB DEAN-O!!! Soon come, October!!!!!!

Ask Dean which players are comparable to Cammalleri and Lubo for salary purposes. And what would justify paying Lubo less than Timonen?

Rich, Did the Kings hold a conference call regarding the Stuart signing. Do they plan one? I have not seen any quotes from Dean or Stuart regarding the signing. Particularly curious why he signed with LA and why it is only a one year deal. Thanks.

JB,

In regards to current UFA in '08, here is a list of interesting names:
Heatly, Marian Hossa, Sakic, Marleau, Demitra, Naslund, Bryzgalov, Draper, Legwand, Fischer, Redden.

In '09 there are Lecavalier and Gaboric.

Interesting RFA's? How about Crosby in '08 and Ovechkin and Semin in '09?

Something to chew on.

I think Tverdosky has Modry beaten hands down for "Most Hated"... after all, Modry was an All-Star for us once.

any reason to expect a big-time free agent next year, like hossa? next year would be better to make this type of move... deano's moves were a good fit for this year though.

best of luck to kosty... his autographed dog bowl is sitting in my living room right now! thanks for the hard work...

rich hammond > LA Times

Hey Joeball, you 'aint the only one who liked Lundmarks game, I'm just as puzzled as you are.

about O'Sullivan, does the coaching staff and DL have him pegged at Left wing, center, or are the going to play him in both.

Thanks for the best sports blog I've ever kept track of.

I wonder which of the "kids" does he get inquiries about the most from other GMs regarding trades with other teams? Which prospect are you most anxious to see play?
Working on a holiday? You are the hardest working man alive. Thanks

Eric,

I think you're right about the Kings trying to save their salary cap ammo until next year. That must be the main reason why Dean-O is offering & signing so many one year contracts like Stuart, Nagy & Modry. . .

RIch,

Your interviews with Lombardi are amazing, keep them up.

One thing I'd love to see (if its even possible), is interviews with our new Kings players.... talk about the reasons they signed here, what they expect, and so forth.

Rich,

I don't have a question, but I just wanted to tell you how impressed I continuously am by this blog. I found it leading up to the NHL draft, and I'm checking it out and reading old entries and stuff constantly. I'm not even a Kings fan, but it is phenomenally cool to read a blog that has such close access to the team's GM, its really incredible. You do an excellent job with this blog, and its very enjoyable to read. Hell, I think I'm going to end up becoming a Kings fan, as much as I'm learning about the franchise from this blog. Keep up the great work, I really wish other GMs would give bloggers this kind of access.

Gee, Danny, let's give poor Rich a chance to eat dinner, take his wife to a movie and watch the fireworks on the Fourth of July! There will be more time for interviews with the new Kings ... the season is still a ways off! Thanks to Rich for his devotion to his work!

Gotta warn you Hasek, once you go Kings, you'll never go back. Being a Kings fan means going down with the ship, as we all have for quite some time now. Hopefully, with DLs' rather impressive work so far, things will get better for us. My only concern is, why is Cloutier still here? Oh yeah, it was a 2 year contract.

The rumors of Hasek coming to LA for 2 years seem so ridiculous to me. We can't really be looking to get Dom, are we? With our pipeline set up like it is, resign Burke for peanuts each year and let Clouts play in Manchester for a year until Bernie is ready. I think Barbs is ready. He's gonna make heads turn. 6' 3" 230 w/ good reflexes, he's gonna do some damage. I'd like the scoop if Deano is planning to add a goalie or not. I'm hoping not.

Just remember, no matter ho good of a service you provide, it'll never be enough for some. If you're doing what you love, it won't matter anyway. We're lovin' this and it's been a long time comin'. Keep it up, we appreciate it.

It would be great to get some player interviews. Players still hanging around this off-season regarding the last couple days events is something we don't get in the local papers.

Thanks for keeping us in the loop.

Hey Rich, I hope you enjoy your so called break. He,he. Let's see if you can go over 24 hours w/o posting a new one.

Honestly, I think you do an amazing job in getting the information out to the fans, but I think the fans expect a little too much in this new "information age." That being said, I'd really like to know more about the plans for O'Sullivan. Honestly, I think the guy has skills that rival virtually anyone on the team, but so far, he's only shown a glimpse of his upside. There was a period very early, prior to his demotion, when EVERYTHING he tried went wrong, though he was one of the only guys on the team trying ANYTHING. I thought he really got the shaft during the first go round. Now, I just wonder if they believe in him as much as I do.

Also, Dallman... seems to be the #7 guy again, but there's enough talk about No-Hit Harrold that I wonder if the guy is even in their plans at all. I think they'd be throwing the baby out with the bathwater if they dump Dallman too soon. This guy has a LOT of offensive upside. Just don't do that stupid "move him to Center" nonsense. The guy has been a defenseman in the NHL, and should fill a role as a powerplay guy and spelling the big 4 during even strength periods, but again, not much is EVER said about him.

So, those are my two big question marks.

And, yes, the moves of the past couple days make this team much more palatable, but not yet contenders. Right?

Dallman is terrible. I honestly don't know what you see in him. He's like a really, really, really poor man's Joe Corvo. Joe Corvo is barely passable as a defenseman (he's decent-ish on offense) as it is, Dallman is nowhere close. If you're going to get a 7th guy, it may as well be Weaver since he isn't a complete bonehead on defense. There are plenty of offensive weapons on defense (Preissing, Stuart, Visnovsky, and to a lesser extent JMFJ and Blake).

I don't think they're contenders in the sense that they won't be a favorite to win the cup. They might challenge for the 8th spot though. They really weren't that far off this year, and more steady goaltending fixes the 06-07 team dramatically. The goaltending is still a huge question mark, but there's at least some hope for Labarbera.

Marc... I'd peg them as maybe a 7 seed this year. that didn't turn out so bad in 2001, though...

yeah, contenders maybe on '08 or '09.

Hey Rich, later on this week when you get some time, could you post a "Depth Chart" by position so we can have an expert's look at how the roster might break down next season (based on current roster)?

That would be great, thanks ...

hey Rich , You are doing a freaking awesome job. I don't know what these other reporters are thinking, but they need to take some notes from you and step there game up. you have set the bar high for so cal reporting YOU ARE THE MAN !!!

for my question.

Do you think there is any chance for you to get interviews with the new players ? Handzus ,Preissing , Nagy , Calder , and Stuart.

I agree with Marc

the moves definetely make the team more attractive but then...it was a decent team before we broke everyone up and sold to the highest bidder..

We may have a different team with different nuances but lets not kid ourselves...at best we'd make the playoffs

now if we could get JUST OOONNEE big name player...OOOONNEE PPUULEEEEZZZ???

Nice work as always Rich. Your blog is a god send.
I agree with your comment on Dustin Brown. I got a feeling this guy is gonna breakout BIG time.
Keep up the good work, we all appreciate it.

Rich, I'm so happy we have someone like you now to relay all of this info to us! Keep up the good work, thanks!

Here's a question. If a RFA chooses arbitration can they accept offer sheets from other clubs?

All ways interesting to read what the OUTGOING team has to say about the players they just cut loose....

Here's Michigan Live dot com regarding calder...

"Calder was terrific after arriving from Chicago for Jason Williams on Feb. 26, providing some much-needed grit. But his performance declined rapidly in the playoffs, and not because of an injury."

The wings apparently wanted nothing to do with him next year....hhhmmmm

ALSO..

From the Detroit Free Press RE: HASEK

"The Wings have about $8 million left to spend, which Hasek's camp obviously knows. Hasek isn't going to get that much, of course, but given the successful season he just completed, he's certainly shooting for much more than the $750,000 he made in base pay in 2006-07, which grew by $900,000 in playoff bonuses."

If it's true that we just offered 10mil over two years... that's quite a tasty offer considering what he was making... the next few days should be even more fun!

Ok this is the last one but ... for all of our patting ourselves on the back for day TWO of free agency... it might be sobering to see how the rest of the world sees us...

from the CBC :

"After missing out on Gomez, Drury and Briere, Lombardi basically told The Los Angeles Times he hated building through free agency anyway. Then, he went out Monday and spent $36 million on Michal Handzus, Tom Preissing, Kyle Calder and Ladislav Nagy.

I have an idea what’s happening there. Kings president Tim Leiweke is the guy who brought David Beckham to MLS. Lombardi would rather build properly through the draft, but it’s not going to work in that organization – particularly with the Ducks waving a Stanley Cup in your face.

Now, the Kings have three guys – Nagy, Calder and Preissing – who were benched by their teams in playoff elimination games. Nagy and Calder didn’t get long-term deals, at least. I love Handzus, but four years is risky for a guy who can’t stay healthy."

from mediocrity to mediocrity

You guys who want interviews with all the new players need to get a grip. Most of them probably aren't even in this country right now, and they want to be with their families, away from hockey, and away from reporters.

Besides, Rich already has enough work on his hands, just getting Lombardi to talk and following up on the REAL NEWS there is happening.

You guys don't know how hard a job it is that Rich has covering the Kings. Plus he probably does about a hundred other things for the Daily News besides his Kings beat and this blog.

Give the poor guy a break already! We don't want to kill him off!

Marc, Eric, and everybody else talking "contenders" right now:

Do you folks remember that the Kings finished 28 POINTS out of the playoffs last season!!!

As a lifelong Kings fan (30 years-plus!), I would be happy if they are the No. 8 seed in the West next year.

Kings had 68 points in 2006-07. 13 teams finished ahead of them in the Western Conference alone! Only Phoenix and Philadelphia has worse records in THE ENTIRE NHL!

To just MAKE the playoffs next year would be a huge step forward. I am expecting that, in fact, and would hope for no less than the 8th seed.

But to even mention the word "contenders" in the same sentence with the Kings next season ... not a chance.

Remember, I bleed purple (and throwback Fabulous Forum "gold") every season. So I am not criticizing you or the team - it's just that we need to have reasonable expectations and goals for 2007-08, otherwise we all will be griping again next April.

Baby steps, gang, baby steps ...

Rich,do you know if Lombardi/Crawford plan on bringing in any tough guys to push Ivanans? Crawford in Vancouver brought in John Craighead to push Mike Brown and I was wondering if they were gonna bring in some young guys just to keep Ivanans on his toes.

Thanks
Earl

Some of these media-slams that Lombardi has got in relation to the signings are hilarious.

So what if he convinced Drury to sign, then what? We would be better off right now? Before July 1st, Lombardi stated he had 8 holes to fill. Just because he signed these 5 guys to fill some of the holes means he's no longer building a team through the draft? Hey idiots, LOOK AT THE YEARS ON THESE CONTRACTS! Yeah, thats right, no 7-8 year deals here. DL is STILL building this team, surrounding the future core with guys that will compete and hopefully get a few more wins. Nothing wrong with bringing some confidence back to this team. Sounds GOOD to me.

Hey Rich,

Are you going to be commenting later tonight about Cammalleri's decision to either go to arbitration or not?

Dear Ex-Sportswriter,

Just to refresh your memory, here was my sentence regarding the concept of the Kings being "contenders" ---
***
And, yes, the moves of the past couple days make this team much more palatable, but not yet contenders.
***

So, don't go lumping me into a group of cockeyed optimists :)

Marc

Marc (Anonymous), I totally concur. It was a different Marc (Nathan) who voiced unabashed confidence that this team would do a complete-180. I agree with you, the team is better today than last week, but it still has a long, long ways to go. Thank goodness we can still watch Kopitar skate around the defense, deke the goalie and score! He really is something special.