Its kind of fun having an off ice matter take away the pain of this dreadful season. Maybe we should bring Avery back

What did you expect them to say?

"Yeah, we let him play hurt - what do we care"

[Tried posting this last night but I guess it didn’t go through. In the light of today’s news, you can tell Clout’s is in full Terrell Owens mode.]

This is from the LAT (sorry, there were no updates here):

"A couple little mistakes cost us again," Cloutier said. "We keep repeating it, and now it's been almost two years with the same bunch of guys."

Interesting. At least we know that the players get it. Really what he is saying is that this group does not work well. They may like each other and have wonderful beachside BBQ's but the on-ice product is not netting results.

I see this as a problem. This is a corollary of DL's fascination with draft picks. Picks should be seen as assets, to be used to acquire greater assets. So far DL has been content acquiring more draft picks.

I know it is a process, this rebuilding, but after 22 months we should have better than this. With all the picks DL has cobbled together in the past couple years I think he should pull off one or two big deals for world-class defense men (I know, I know, at the draft...) That would not only help us win next year but would aid in the development in our talented young players (Kopi, Brown, Sully, Harrold, Boyle, Purcell, Bernier, et al.)

Also, there is the issue of a GM managing perception. A good GM does his best to get the other 29 GM's to think his team is fine and great and wonderful and has an abundance of worthy players/prospects. That is because all GM's must deal from a seat of (perceived) power, not desperation. With that in mind, why the hell is DL continuing to "hint" that he wants to use his pick this June for a D-man? Shouldn't he be "hinting" that he desperately needs Stamkos? That way, if they do get the No.1 pick, and DL still secretly feels he wants to go D, he can fleece a team like TB or TO for that pick.

If you have followed my posts in the past you will notice a change in my attitude. I like DL's approach to prospect hunting but I feel his touch for assembling a championship caliber hockey team may be under-developed.

Good post DANIEL. What a lot of fans don't seem to
understand is just how good the western conference
is and how good it can be in the next couple of years. If DL does not make some moves this team is just going to be in the same position next year and
looking to draft a few more
"assets." I think players
like Moulson and Boyle would have been better served finishing the year up here. The losing culture excuse used by DL
just does not cut it since
Manchester is losing too.
If there is so much talent
in the system why is Manchester struggling as well?

I'm sorry, but that Vancouver article about Cloutier was...well, SORRY. Rich, I'm not even a journalist and I could see how poorly that was written. Did you get the same impression that I did? In the first part of the article, the guy attributes all of these statements to Cloutier without actually quoting him. Then when he does quote him, it's mostly the same stuff we've heard. Very sensationalistic, and really trying to stir the pot, I think. I would have gotten a C- if I turned that in for my college English class.

In response to Daniel's piece, I really hope this coming draft is going to answer all the questions of whether this plan of DL's is on track. From my perspective, DL is putting all his eggs in one basket, as we have traded all our past tradeable assets to gear for this draft year specifically. Are we going to draft defensemen who we will soon see cemented in our lineup for years to come? We already have JJ, Hickey and Harrold as possible locks for the future. What about some size now? Do the defensemen in this draft fit the bill of what we need or will we have to make trades to get them? Defense and LW depth seem to be the most glaring weaknesses on our team. Hopefully this will be DL's time to shine and fill those holes, because if now's not the time, I don't know when it will be.

Also, DL has noted that he needs the cupboard to be full prospect-wise to be able to wheel and deal, but when is it full? Is it even close? Will it ever be? I personally think all we need is some youthful toughness/size in our lineup (especially on defense), and that will make a big difference. I don't think we've had a young shut down defensemen since Matty!

Do you "know-it-all" guys have any suggestions of possible trades? Lets play a little fantasy game here...which trades would you like Kings to make?

Do we really need to get a new goaltender? Or is LaBarbera/Ersberg/Bernier working next season? Can we give up some of our talented forwards for some big veteran defensemen?

Bring it on! Give me any suggestions! I want names! ;)

Hope Dan felt comfortable at the Super 8 Motel because next season, that may be where he has a job. Doubtful anybody in the NHL is looking for a washed-up, has-been goaltender. I mean, if he can't play for the Kings, who have the worst goaltending in the National Hockey League, what makes him think he can play for anybody else?

If it were up to me, I'd suspend Cloutier with pay for the rest of the season. You can't have morons like this infecting the attitude of the young players on the club. And while you're at it, buy this overpaid moron a new washer and dryer so he has no further reason to air his dirty laundry in public.

Rich
How much of this do you think was taken out of context? I'm not much of a Cloutier supporter (actually not at all), but everytime I've heard him speak (or quoted) he's been very professional and "positive". Or has he done something like this before that I'm not aware of?

daniel--
two points of response to your fine post.
1. you siad, "I think he should pull off one or two big deals for world-class defense men (I know, I know, at the draft...)." that would be great, but those kinds of deals won't be there. lombardi has given every indication of going after young, high-end defensemen who could fit in with the group of forwards the team has, and he hasn't been able to do it. that tells me that either (1) the prices are too high, or (2) more likely, in my opinion, those deals just aren't there. it's pretty easy for fans on message boards and blogs to sit around and say "our team should just trade for so-and-so, why doesn't he do that?" it doesn't work that way. other teams aren't willing to deal great defensemen for picks and prospects. and, since the kings basically suck, the only things of value this team is capable of collecting are draft picks and prospects. since those cannot be used to acquire the desired top-notch defensemen, the kings have to draft, develop, and hope for the best.

2. you said, "A good GM does his best to get the other 29 GM's to think his team is fine and great and wonderful and has an abundance of worthy players/prospects. That is because all GM's must deal from a seat of (perceived) power, not desperation." when you're dead last in the league, that's a pretty tough proposition. and the idea that such a transparent strategy could could is pretty ludicrous. sure, there are crappy gms, and sometimes they make crappy deals. but hatching such a scheme to fool the rest of the league? don't count on it.

marcus--
unless you want to deal one of frolov, kopitar, brown, bernier, or johnson, forget it. if you're willing to deal those players, then yes, some top-end talent could be coming back. cammalleri and a pick isn't going to get it done.

Youre an absolute moron if you expected to see any real on-ice progress by now. This team was razed and is being rebuilt, its a process that takes time. If this is an issue with you, head down the 5 to anaheim. That is all.

All,

Having an opinion does not make one a "know-it-all."

Dave Fouser & Anonymous, I believe two years ago we saw Anaheim trade for a world-class defense man - Chris Pronger. Burke sure seemed to get Lowe to think Lupul was worth it. Whereas Dean did not have the perception that trading away Kopitar was worth it.

Also, Anonymous, I think the majority of the fans and sports writers actually thought the Kings had improved significantly over the summer. The management thought the team was much improved. This wasn't supposed to be a rebuilding year. The results of this year is a disappointment to everyone - from Barry Melrose all the way down to myself. So, keep the 'moron' descriptions to yourself.

pronger is 33. that's a good ten years older than most of the rest of the core of this team. he would be well past his prime (if he's not already) by the team kopitar et al. reach their peaks. trading for him would not be a wise move, and trading a 20 year old top-line pivot, something this franchise has lacked conspicuously for years, would be a pretty bad move. burke was able to do that trade because he had a good stock of young players and picks. sure, lupul is a decent young player, but the ducks also have getzlaf, perry, and bobby ryan. nevermind that they already had a playoff-caliber team to add pronger to, with people like the niedermayers, pahlsson, selanne, and beauchemin. in other words, that was a great trade for the ducks, because they were in a position to "win now," and they had to assets to improve themselves in the short term and possibly win. which they did. the kings are not close to being in that position.