So, apparently Simon Gagne has waived his NTC for a trade to LAK. The Kings may be using this trade as a replacement for Kovy, but Jay smartly posited that it might be a move used to bait Kovy into lowering his asking price to come to a stocked team.

Think about it, Jay may have hit this nail on the head. Right now, the Kings look like this:
Smyth/Kopitar/Brown
XXXXX/Handzus/Williams
XXXXX/Stoll/Simmonds
XXXXX/XXXXX/Parse

Doughty/Johnson
Green/Scuderi
Drewiske/Harrold

Quick
Ersberg

I 100% expect Harrold or Drewiske to get sent out and Teubert to get promoted. I also expect Ersberg is getting sent to Manchester so the Quick/Bernier tandem can take the Pacific by storm. Maybe they bring Mair back for a cheapo 4th line center and pick up a scrub to play 4th line LW. But if they pull off a Gagne trade and then use it to sign Kovy, holy shit:
Kovalchuk/Kopitar/Brown
Gagne/Handzus/Williams
Smyth/Stoll/Simmonds
LW???/C????/Parse

Doughty/Johnson
Greene/Scuderi
Teubert/Drewiske-Harrold

Quick
Bernier

If Kovy could get brought down to $8M and one of Drewiske-Harrold gets sent away to make room for Teubert, the Kings would be able to afford trading for Gagne (esp if it's Drewiske or Harrold who goes to PHI for him) and signing a pair of scrubs for the 4th line.

Holy fuck.

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mechaphil

Kovy is too stubborn to drop his salary IMO.

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"Counting all the assholes in the room, I'm definitely not alone!" ~ Michael Poulsen, Volbeat, Still Standing.

Agreed, but IF he did...fuck.

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mechaphil

Kovy didn't turn down ATL's offer because of money. He turned it down because of the uncertainty of where the franchise will be in 5 years. If LA can trade for Gagne I could see Kovy taking 8mill to win a cup. If not than he truly is a douchebag.

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Driver of the Tyler Ennis Bandwagon, Ridin' shotgun on the Tyler Myers Bandwagon, chillin' on the Luke Adam Bandwagon


Eh

It would be DASTARDLY bad. DASTARDLY...


Fuckin' love that word.

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"Counting all the assholes in the room, I'm definitely not alone!" ~ Michael Poulsen, Volbeat, Still Standing.

If the Kings land both Kovy and Gagne, that team will win a cup in 2 years.

Quick is only getting better. Their only problem is when Doughty asks for his raise and Johnson also, and resigning Handzus, and Frolov this year.

Next year Johnson and Doughty are both RFA's. I think they could do it and keep the team together if they need to. We'll see though.

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Frolov is gone to Russia if LAK trades for Gagne and signs Kovy.

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mechaphil

I'm pretty sure LA has been waiting for Handzus' contract to expire as he is overpaid for what he brings. They'll let him walk and use that money towards Doughty.

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Driver of the Tyler Ennis Bandwagon, Ridin' shotgun on the Tyler Myers Bandwagon, chillin' on the Luke Adam Bandwagon


Eh

Even more of a reason that Kovy to LAK if he drops his asking price to $8M per makes sense

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mechaphil

I'm not a fan of Kovi. I'm really not.

But I am very curious to see how he'd perform on the west coast with a big pay day.

And yet, I don't know what people really expect out of this guy. He didn't take Atlanta anywhere, and then when he got moved to a solid team and had a chance to show the league that he was the type of player you could build around, they sank like a rock.

I'm just not that impressed.

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Wheelhouse

Well, he's got the second most goals since the lockout (230 to Ovi's 269) and has scored at least 40g and 76pts (avgs of 46g and 87pts) on flat-out terrible Thrashers teams. In Atlanta, the team was built around him scoring all day, so it worked to an extent...for him. In New Jersey, he didn't fit in with their system at all. I knew, you knew it, he knew it, Uncle Lou knew it, so I don't know why it happened. He'd fit in with LA, for sure.

I think he's an amazing player, but I don't think he'll ever be a team guy and I don't think he's worth league max.

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mechaphil

Good enough reason for them to sign him for sure.

LA is going to be great for the next few years for sure. I see them getting to the finals a few times in the next ten years for sure.

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Day-um. That would be unfair.

you dont score that much on a system alone. hes still a 30-40 goal guy on even the most defensive teams. he gave them a scoring threat, even if it wasnt the same clip as in hotlanta.

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That's true, but I was speaking more to the disparity between his playing style and NJD's.

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mechaphil

good point. i think new jersey wanted some scoring punch, and it didnt work out. give him a full season in new jersey, and his talent shows and he hits 35 goals no sweat.

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Which would be a career low besides his rookie season

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mechaphil

ill take that career low

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Ya know, it's plain to the human eye Kovalchuk plays like the one-man team his time in Atlanta molded him into, but he still puts up great numbers. If he could play on a decent team built for offense that he gelled with, he'd rival Ovechkin for the scoring title every season.

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mechaphil

Looks like the deal is off for LA http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=326611

Now I would say the Islanders are now the front runners for him

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just call me Brad

Twitter @BUrbanowicz13