LA Kings Mid-Season Report Cards

So after playing hosts to a fun and successful NHL All-Star weekend and NHL 100th anniversary celebration in and around the city of Los Angeles, the Kings and the rest of the NHL are back in business to play the second half of the 2016-17 season. Since we are around the half way point, (more or less) it is time to grade the Kings’ players and head coach on how well they have played (or have not played well) and contributed thus far, in what has been a complete roller coaster of an injury epidemic season. And here we go!

*Note – The players are being rated in alphabetical order.

Andy Andreoff – B

And right off the hop, this report card grading system is controversial and people are picketing the CaliSports News headquarters with pitch forks and torches, but hear me out here. Yes, Andreoff doesn’t provide much offense, but to be fair, most of the Kings’ players don’t provide much offense. What Andreoff does do well, is provide some strong energy and strength on the “fourth” line, when Coach Sutter selects him of course. Sadly, Andreoff has been a healthy scratch for far too many games this season. Andreoff is a hard worker and a player that is extremely hard to play against, which is a plus for the Kings. He is also 60.7%  in the face-off circle, which is better than some players that get chosen over him on the roster. Sutter simply just needs to play him more and someone else less, but more on that later.

Dustin Brown – C   (Sadly, the “C” is his grade and not for “Captain.”)

The decline of Brownie’s overall game and the removal of the captaincy from him is already well-known and documented. Still struggling this year as he had in the past 2 seasons, there were some bright spots when Brown showed some strong chemistry and productive play when paired with Nic Dowd on the “third” line. But after a few defensive mishaps and some teammates getting injured, the duo were separated and both haven’t been their same productive selves since. Brown has then been placed back and forth with Anze Kopitar and Marian Gaborik and with Jeff Carter and Tanner Pearson instead. That “70’s & Brown” line combination do have some promise, especially considering Carter’s All-Star form this year, which hopefully can help Brown pick up some more points and confidence. Brown and Kopitar of course have a long and successful history playing together, but if none of these match ups work for “Brownie”, then he will sadly not reach the double-digit mark in goals for the first time in his career, since his rookie season of 2003-04. Which looks horrible when you remember that his annual cap hit is $5,875,000 and until 2022. Whatever that chemistry with Dowd, (who just returned after being off with an injury) was, then they need to be reunited immediately. (If it ain’t broken, then don’t fix it Sutter!)

Peter Budaj – A

The new unsung hero of the team. Despite still being prone to letting in the odd fluky goal or two, Budaj has been a “Jedi Knight” for the Kings in absence of the legendary “Jedi Master” Jonathan Quick, after he suffered a season (long?) groin injury. With experience, a hunger to play in the NHL and a strong mindset, “Boods” is making the absolute most of this opportunity. Just look at these numbers – 23 wins (his first 20 win season since 2009 with the Colorado Avalanche), a 2.06 goals against average,  5 shut-outs and a .920 save percentage. The only real travesty is that Budaj wasn’t selected to participate in the All-Star Game this year. (Damn you Mike Smith, damn you!) Budaj is the NHL comeback story of the year!

Jeff Carter – A+

What more can be said about “El Jefe?” He’s second in the league with 24 goals and leads the entire NHL with 8 game winning goals. He is a leader for the Kings both on and off the ice, (who could forget the epic “STATE OF THE UNION” address he did after the debacle against the Sabres!), is 53.3% in the face-off circle, plays on the power-play AND the penalty kill, (his back-checking defensive skills have been nothing but ON POINT this year), and was selected as an All-Star by the NHL! He was even selected to play for Team Canada in the “Best on Best” World Cup of Hockey back in September as well, but had to bow out due to a lower body injury. Carter is elite and along with Budaj, has been carrying this team on his back all season long. Because of that, the “A” on his jersey should be changed to an “S” for Superman.

Kyle Clifford – B

What you see is what you get with good ‘ole “Cliffy.” He isn’t going to score you much goals, but he plays with his heart on his sleeve and always gives every game 100%, even while playing injured.

Drew Doughty – A

Doughty has had a slow start to the season, (because of the World Cup of Hockey maybe???), especially in comparison to his Norris Trophy winning season last year, but he has been improving progressively which each passing game. Still the team’s “IRON-MAN” (not Robert Downey jr.) by playing an average of 27:14 of total ice time, and an NHL All-Star, even when not playing at an A+ (yet) level, he is still one of, if not the best overall defenseman playing in the NHL today. He is currently having a 5 game point streak.

Nic Dowd – C

Had a strong start to the season when paired with former team Captain Dustin Brown (read above) but has struggled with his overall game after the pair was spilt. Like Andreoff, Dowd has been a healthy scratch quite a few times but needs to play more. (I’m shaking my head at you Sutter!) A reunion with Brown on the “third” line could be the medicine that both of these players need now since Dowd has just returned after missing some games due to injury. Also needs to work harder on his face-off skills.

Derek Forbort – A

A pleasant and welcome surprise, Forbert has been nothing short of impressive so far this year. Sure he is usually paired with Drew Doughty which doesn’t hurt, but still Forbort is proving to the world (and Sutter) that he belongs in the NHL. He is defensively strong, gets the puck out of the zone, perfectly backs up Doughty whenever “Dewy” decides to go on an offensive adventure and he does it all by keeping things short and simple. Forbort is here to stay.

Marian Gaborik – F

The one thing that had me worried about the World Cup of Hockey, was the exact thing that happened to “Gabbo” during the semi-final game that he played in, where he broke his foot while blocking a shot. There is nothing worse than one of your players from your favorite team getting injured in an international game. (Remember Gretzky with Team Canada back in 1991??? Damn you Gary Suter! Damn you!) So to be fair, Gaborik was missing for most of the season due to that injury and then had to return and try to get back into game shape and form and that of course takes time. Sadly, Gaborik has been back now for 27 games (as of this writing) and only has 5 goals and 11 points to show for it. Ouch! Hopefully “Gabbo” can remain healthy and turn up the gears for the second half of the season, especially considering he has an annual cap hit of $4,875,000.

Tom Gilbert – D (The “D” is his grade, not for “Defenseman”)

The Kings are famously (or infamously) strapped with the salary cap and because of that, they couldn’t afford to splash on acquiring big name free agent players last summer. One player they did get was veteran defenseman Tom Gilbert. Gilbert hasn’t really provided much of anything to the team, but also no one was really expecting him too. I can see him either getting traded around the trade deadline or be allowed to pursue other teams when he becomes an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. That would free up $1,400,000 of cap space for GM Dean Lombardi to play with.

*As this article was about to be published, the LA Kings’ have announced that they placed Gilbert on waivers.

Kevin Gravel – B+

Like Forbert, Gravel is showing the world (and Sutter) that he also belongs in the NHL. With less offensive upside than Forbert or Brayden McNabb, Gravel has shown to be completely solid defensively and isn’t afraid to be mean and aggressive when doing so. He’s still prone to make a rookie mistake or two, but that’s to be expected. Overall he has been impressive, and with he and Forbort making waves, (and are both cheaper to keep), I wonder if this means Jake Muzzin could be moved around the trade deadline as Jack Johnson was back in 2012??? Time will tell.

Matt Greene – D

Greene is a Kings’ legend and has been a warrior for this franchise ever since he first put on the Kings’ armor, without a doubt. Sadly, his best days are long behind him and he has become injury prone due to his long time aggressive physical style of play. Green hasn’t been entirely bad this year though, as he has had some good games, moments and made some strong plays, but those games are just too far and in between. Now that the Kings have just announced that Greene has been placed on the IR again, but this time not with a lower body injury or an upper body injury, but with MULTIPLE injuries, which probably means for yet another season, Greene is being completely shut down. Retirement could be just around the corner for the Greene monster.

Dwight King – D

Not sure exactly what King is doing out there on the ice these days. It also baffles me when Sutter puts King on the top lines with Kopitar or Carter. He doesn’t really do much or contribute much anymore, or in other words, Kings has become the Jordan Nolan of 2014 to 2016. (Ouch!) I can see him as trade bait at the deadline.

Anze Kopitar – C  (Sadly the “C” is for his grade and not for what is on his chest, sigh)

Even with his seriously disturbing poor offensive production during the first half of the season, (he only has 6 goals in 44 games), the Captain is still one of the best defensive forwards in the NHL today. Not only did “Kopi” play (and lead as Captain) for Team Europe and led them all the way to the World Cup of Hockey Final in September, but before that tournament even started, he was also leading his home nation of Slovenia to qualification of the 2018 Winter Olympics! That is a lot of high level hockey that he was a major part of before the NHL season even started. Also if we factor in that Kopitar has been battling with two injuries so far this season. First it was his wrist that made him miss some games and now his current shoulder injury that is only now starting to feel better, and the fact that the Kopitar’s also welcomed their new-born son, Jakob into the world, it is no wonder that the phenom is struggling with some aspects of his game. Still it is Anze Kopitar we are talking about here, so one can never truly count him out. If he can stay healthy, look for a stronger second half of the season from him. He is so far on track to do that and has beeen gaining momentum after getting 14 points in the last 12 games, including a goal and 2 assists recently against the Coyotes, to place him in second on the team overall in total points.

Trevor Lewis – B

The usual unsung hero of the Kings, Lewis right now has more goals (7) than Anze Kopitar does! Like Kyle Clifford (read above), Lewis wears his heart on his sleeve and always puts out a 100% effort on that ice. And like Clifford, and despite his best intentions, he isn’t going to score a lot either. Still, he is a leader on this team and the type of role player that any successful team must have. (And don’t forget that goal he scored on Carey Price where he deked him out! Whaaaaaat?!?!?!)

Alec Martinez – A

The Stanley Cup and Western Conference Final hero has had nothing but a strong and productive season so far offensively, (he was second in team scoring for the longest time) but has struggled at times defensively. Still “Marty” has been one the Kings’ more consistent players during such an inconsistent season. Keeping up this work rate while tidying up some small flaws can only provide more positive results for our Kings, well, unless he gets traded at the deadline or in the summer, or is exposed in the Vegas Expansion Draft instead of Muzzin of course. (Don’t you DARE Lombardi!)

Brayden McNabb – C+

Injured for most of the season, McNabb has finally returned to the regular roster with mixed results. And with the impressive play of Forbort and Gravel, one has to wonder where McNabb is now on Sutter’s overall defensive depth chart? McNabb is still young at 26 to improve the frustrating flaws in his overall game, but Sutter and company may not have the patience to fully find out.  A healthier second half can or may answer most of those questions soon enough.

Jake Muzzin – D

Oh boy, where do we start? Once an analytical darling to those that live and breath by advanced hockey stats, Muzzin is having a season to forget. Still making the same mistakes that he would make as a rookie, that draw the complete ire of Kings’ fans, (especially on twitter), and not having the numbers that had helped him become one to watch around the NHL, Muzzin’s days as a King may be numbered. With his overall poor play and annual $4,000,000 cap hit, and the improvements and promotion of both Forbort and Gravel to the main defensive roster, (like I said, they’re cheaper to keep), Muzzin might be left out to dry as the trade deadline and the Vegas expansion draft gets closer and closer. But still, ya never know. Stranger things (not the show) have happened. He did score the game winner against Arizona last night, but also bumbled the puck all night, which ended up costing the Kings a goal against in the second period. Vintage #Muzzkill.

Jordan Nolan – A

This one hurts me to admit but here it goes. This is the BEST hockey Nolan has played since the 2012 playoffs. After season after season of Nolan being entirely invisible on that ice by playing with no passion, heart or reason, it was frustrating for me and others to see him constantly get a roster spot while guys like Michael Mersch are still floundering in the AHL. I made those complaints loud and clear on an early season episode of LA Kings Road Talk Radio, but admittedly as soon as I said that on air, his play has been outstanding, or as outstanding as a Jordan Nolan can possibly get, (because obviously, Nolan listens in to the show and is doing this just to spite me! Damn you Nolan, DAMN YOU!!! … but yeah, keep up the good work!) He is hustling, he is crashing and banging and he is even scoring on breakaways! Dwight King is now the “Jordan Nolan” of the team while Nolan has become one of the Kings’ best forwards this season. What a world we live in now.

Tanner Pearson – A

Playing on a contract year where he will be a restricted free agent this summer, and on a line with All-Star Superman Jeff Carter, Tanner has been reliable and a solid contributor to the cause, so far scoring 15 goals and 26 points this year, with 3 game winning goals and is a plus-14. With Tyler Toffoli also in line for an expensive contract upgrade, but with Tanner contributing reliably and has been the healthier of the two this season, Lombardi will have a lot of deep thinking to do before this season is over and done with, because due to the serious cap issues, the Kings are probably not going to be able to afford to keep and upgrade both players. Yikes.

Teddy Purcell – F

I have two questions. One – Did anyone really expect Purcell to fit in to Sutter’s super-defensive system? And two – Does anyone else remember Teddy playing 12 games with the Kings this season??? Because I sure don’t! A bust of a free agent signing last summer, the only positive that has come out of this, is Purcell has fit in very well with the Ontario Reign by doing good things down in there in the farm. So at least there is that, right?

Jonathan Quick – N/A

My thoughts on Quick’s absence all season, (that first game doesn’t count) due to injury are best summed up by this pic of John Cusack from the film, “Say Anything.”

 

Devin Setoguchi – D

Things started out great with “The Gooch” early on in the season as he made a triumphant return to the NHL after taking some years off due to alcoholism and the demons they provide. It could have been the “feel good” story of the year too but since then, Setoguchi’s productivity has been minimal at best. Props to him for taking one for the team though when he recently got painfully hit in the ear with the puck (Ouch!), got it stitched up and returned to play in the game, but he really needs to pick up his overall game if he wants to continue to be a part of this Kings’ roster. Especially with Mersch, Adrian Kempe and Jonny Brodzinski breathing down his neck.

Nick Shore – F

Oh Shore, where did it go wrong? Disappointing only explains the half of it. Shore needs to improve in all facets of the game. He lacks some serious offense. He needs to improve his defensive play. He is quiet as a mouse out there and he has been below average in the face-off circle (45.8%), which was supposed to be an area that was his strength! (Think Jarret Stoll). Nic Dowd has already leaped over Shore on the roster depth chart for the team with Andreoff threatening to be next. I can see Shore being moved in the near future.

Tyler Toffoli – B

Despite sporting some fine stats, it has been a frustrating and tough season for Double T. A lower body injury has claimed a huge chunk of the season away from him in a contract year and he has been inconsistent at times when playing. Still, when he’s on, he is ON and can score and contribute with the best of them. With Pearson having one heck of a year, and both men being restricted free agents this summer, things are going to get painfully interesting for us Kings’ fans down the line. Ugh.

Jeff Zatkoff – F

This was not the Zatkoff we were hoping for in his return to the Kingdom when he signed on as a free agent last summer. Despite only a few very brief positive moments, (like very, very brief), his play this year has been a complete disaster. Thankfully Budaj “the Jedi” was around to bail the Kings’ out from this mess.

Darryl Sutter – C

I like Sutter, I really do. I will always respect him for leading the Kings to two Stanley Cup victories and three straight Western Conference Finals. But I am frustrated at his constant stubbornness of playing players like Setoguchi or Shore this season and benching more deserving and contributing players like Dowd and Andreoff. I still don’t understand the reasoning of breaking up Dowd with Dustin Brown, as together they were wrecking havoc on opponents and creating scoring opportunities. Plus, it helped “Brownie” play the best of hockey he has played since the 2014 playoffs! I also don’t like how the Kings haven’t called up players like Mersch, or Kempe or Brodzinski or anyone to try to help the offense by replacing some of the dead wood on this team, but that could be a Lombardi call and not Sutter’s so I won’t blame him for that. I will give him credit though for keeping with Forbert and Gravel on the main roster and not sending them back down to Ontario (or in Forbort’s case, through waivers) when the injured McNabb returned, so not all is bad this year. It sometimes takes Sutter a bit to wise up to certain players (think Alec Martinez who used to be a regular in Sutter’s doghouse), so hopefully he does that before it’s too late during the second half of this season.

Dean Lombardi – ???

This is going to be controversial of me to not grade Lombardi’s general manger performance so far this season, (oh the agony of those free agent signings), but I’m doing it anyway. I have a gut feeling that Lombardi is up to something. I can feel it in my bones. That is why he hasn’t made any trades (well, except the minor Michael Latta for Cam Schilling one), or brought anyone up from the Reign since Kevin Gravel earlier in the season because he .. is .. up … to … something! A plan is forming in that “mad scientist with a law degree” brain of his! What is it? Who knows?! Maybe he isn’t bringing up Mersch (before he was injured of course), or Kempe or Brodzinski etc, has something to do with the upcoming Vegas Expansion Draft? Maybe he wants to protect those players so they’re not exposed? I can only speculate, but “Deano” is definitely up to something, so because of this gut feeling I am having, I’m going to hold judgment on his performance for now until the end of the season, or after the dark cloud of the Expansion Draft. But you will be judged Mr. Lombardi, oh yes you will. That time is coming … so whatever you truly are up to … MAKE IT GOOD! Please?

*As this article was about to be published, the LA Kings’ have announced that they placed Tom Gilbert on waivers and are calling up defenseman Paul LaDue.

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So what did you think of my report card grades for each LA Kings’ player and coach Sutter? Do you agree with my choices, do you disagree? What are your grades for each of them? Let us know in the comments below! Either way, let’s bring on this second half of the season and cheer on our beloved Los Angeles Kings to a playoff position! So until next time … I’m out of here!

GO KINGS GO!!!

 

Stay with us at Calisportsnews.com as we will keep you up-to-date on all things Los Angeles Kings and the rest of the LA sports teams! All Cali, all the time!

 

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One Comment

1. 

   westcoasttom

   February 3, 2017 at 6:35 am

   I concur with your article. Dwight King is disappointing and I do not understand why he gets so much Ice time. Too many times he gets the puck and throws it away. Setoguchi is one of those guys who looks flashy at times on the ice but cannot finish because he gets knocked off the puck too easily. #gkg