Here’s the second (and last) part of Don’s interview with Marc Crawford:
Continue reading “Crawford interview, Part 2” »

Kudos to Don Fulton for once again getting another great interview, this one with Kings coach Marc Crawford. Don asks some strong questions and gets some good answers. Here you go…
Continue reading “Crawford interview, Part 1” »

This is the last part of the Lombardi stuff I got a few days ago. To really understand this, you have to go back to last summer. Or, for those of you who were at the GM breakfast recently, you might have gotten a taste of this. Basically, it goes back to Lombardi’s grand scheme for the future, in which he pencils in what he wants the Kings to look like, long-term. Players he thinks are going to be around a while (Kopitar, Brown, Johnson, Bernier, etc) are written into roles, some other players are projected and other spots are left open. Those spots, such as for a second-line center or a third-line winger, are what Lombardi refers to when he says he has “boxes” he needs to fill. So here’s what he had to say, in regards to those boxes:

“When i look up and down, there’s a few more boxes filled. Ideally. they’re all homegrown players. There are still going to be some holes. Right now, Bernier and Quick are playing in Manchester. That’s exiting. The one thing that shows up (as a negative) is the darn backend. That’s a hard position to develop. That’s why you take the swing at Hickey. It’s thin down there. That’s the only part where its like, `OK, at least I can see the forwards coming.” I look at the D and there’s too many open boxes. There are a couple kids in college I think are ready to turn pro but it’s still an issue. Do i jump the gun and push a kid a little sooner? I’m not sure.

“We started with about 15 boxes open, then last year we were down to 12. Maybe now it’s down to six or seven, but the problem is most of them are on the back end. It is still thin. When I go to Manchester, we have a couple guys who maybe get to that 5-6 (fifth or sixth defenseman) level, but I don’t want to limit those kids. Unlike Purcell and Boyle at forward, we don’t have anybody knocking on the door there.”

Here’s Dean Lombardi, relating a recent incident that made him feel confident about the Kings’ future. He said:

“Little things tell you you’re headed in the right direction. When you’re in this stage, it’s about building a reserve list. I’ve always analogized it to a balance sheet. That’s the muscle and balance of your organization. The hard part of building is, you’re trying to keep an eye on your team but you’re also looking at how our reserve list stacks up against the competition. When the reserve list is built, it’s fun to be a fantasy GM and just think about trades. We’re not there yet.

“One thing that tells me we’re headed in the right direction is, at the trade deadline we were looking at a player. To make the deal, it would have required giving up a younger player who’s not on our team. The other team gave me four names that i don’t think anyone but our hardcore fans has heard of. That’s the first time, sitting in this chair, where somebody has said, `To make this deal, we need one of these four players.’ As your reserve list gets stronger, and other GMs start asking about your players, it tells you that your reserve list is stronger. That was the first time, other than with Kopitar, that somebody came to me and said, `We like this guy and this guy and this guy.’

“We’re more than happy with a kid like Simmonds. Hickey gets his team into the next round. These are all things that are positive to me. Watching Boyle compete and be a winner. These are all things that I’m looking for that tell me we’re headed in the right direction.”