Thoughts on Captain Canada and what Kings should do next

July 8, 6:58 PMLos Angeles Kings ExaminerJonathan Moncrief

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(Courtesy David Zalubowski/USA Today) Smyth and Quick are now teammates

Dean creates fireworks but still needs to make one more move

So it’s been a few days since the Los Angeles Kings made two significant moves to improve their hockey club.

On July 2, they signed veteran defenseman Rob Scuderi, fresh off a Stanley Cup title in Pittsburgh that arguably doesn’t happen without his play in Game Six of the finals.

Then on July 4, general manager Dean Lombardi pulled the trigger on a significant trade, acquiring the services of all-star forward Ryan Smyth from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for defensemen Kyle Quincey and Tom Preissing, as well as a fifth round draft pick next year.

It’s taken me a few days to come around to the conclusion that these are two great moves for the team. I will admit that I was personally disappointed by the loss of Quincey, a diamond-in-the-rough kind of find by Lombardi last October when the club was in desperate straits on the blue line following the injury to Jack Johnson.

But to be fair, the Kings just traded someone they grabbed on waivers last season, another player who had, for whatever reason, become expendable and not part of the plan, and a low-round pick for a guy who can do so much more than shows up on a stat sheet.

To read the articles written by Helene Elliott in the LA Times, Gann Matsuda from Frozen Royalty, and even my fellow Examiner Brian Thompson, who expertly covers the Avalanche, you have to be impressed with Smyth’s attitude about waiving his no-trade clause and his excitement level about his new team.

Elliott wrote, “Ryan Smyth didn't have to accept a trade to the Kings…But the 33-year-old left wing recognized a chance to lend his leadership to a team that needs it…Being around the Kings might rejuvenate him.”

Matsuda opined, “(Dean) Lombardi has been preaching character, leadership, competitiveness and grit… and Smyth is definitely a skilled winger who has exhibited all of those characteristics… he will set a solid example for the young Kings… give Lombardi credit. He stuck to his plan by going after a player he believes is the right guy.”

Thompson told me that Smyth is, “…a high motor guy; a classic pit fighter who’s adept at scooping up and depositing rebounds… leaves it all out on the ice every night… a high character guy, he immediately provides leadership and passion. Plus he has a great hockey nose.”

The numbers tell a similar story from last season. He scored 26 goals and provided 33 assists for a total of 59 points, which would have placed him tied for second on the Kings. He fills a huge hole on left wing, but he can also take face-offs as well. Of his 26 goals, 10 were on the power play, which would have tied him for second on the club, and 17 goals were scored on the road, where the Kings struggled at times to find the net. He also scored 8 goals in 22 divisional games last season, so he understands the value of coming up big in big games.

His leadership skills and locker room presence will make for interesting line combination choices by head coach Terry Murray for the upcoming season. But his addition, and that Scuderi, means that there is the potential for as many as eight Kings participating in the 2010 Olympic tournament in February. So having quality depth will be a key factor for the Kings to break their playoff drought.

This is why I feel that, if he were to solicit my advice, there is one more move needed, not counting the securing of restricted free agents Jack Johnson and Teddy Purcell: sign Phil Kessel to an offer sheet. As fellow examiner Mark Marino, who covers the Boston Bruins, wrote recently, the B’s are too close to the cap to be able to match a significant offer for Kessel’s services.

Consider that Kessel led the Bruins in goals with 36 despite having missed 12 games. He only registered 16 PIMs for the entire season, scored eight power play goals, and defensively registered 42 takeaways, tied for second most on a team that had the best record in the Eastern Conference. Kessel also knows how to set the tone in a game – his seven first goal of a game tallies were only three off the league lead, and like Smyth, he scores important goals on the road, with 19 in games away from home (four off the league lead).

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Kings preseason schedule announced – Eight is Enough

The Los Angeles Kings will take part in eight pre-season contests prior to the start of the 2009-10 NHL regular season. The club announced the eight games on their website today.

Among these include two games at Staples Center: Tuesday, September 15, versus the Phoenix Coyotes; and Saturday, September 19, versus the Anaheim Ducks.

Also included is the continuation of the ‘Frozen Fury’ series at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on September 26 against the Colorado Avalanche. The club will also play host to the San Jose Sharks at Citizens Business Bank Arena, home of their ECHL affiliate the Ontario Reign, on September 17 in Ontario, California.

Other games include: a neutral site game against the New York Islanders at the Sprint Center in Kansas City on September 22; a split-squad game against the Coyotes in Phoenix on the same September 15 date as the home game here in Los Angeles; and road games in Denver on September 23 against the Avalanche and in Anaheim September 27 against the Ducks.

The official start for training camp has yet to be determined but will be announced soon.

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Questions?  We got answers to your questions!

Beginning next week, we’ll be starting a regular series called ‘Examine the Kings Examiner’. This will be an opportunity to answer questions from readers about: the current Kings team, the history of the club, and hockey-related topics across the league that may or may not affect the team.

During the off-season, we will keep this as a weekly feature – but will expand to twice per week when training camp and the season gets going. I’ll also reward one e-mail submitter per month as the best question of the month – that person will receive a $25.00 gift card to the Kings on-line store.

Send your questions to lakingsexaminer@gmail.com and look for our first series on Monday July 13.