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Player Evaluation: Willie Mitchell

August 29, 2014, 11:37 AM ET [2 Comments]
Jason Lewis
Los Angeles Kings Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Miss the eval on Martinez? Take a look right here.

Wille Mitchell #33
Age: 37
Contract Status: Departed


Stats:



Other stats:

On-ice Corsi: 11.45
Corsi relative: -4.08
Off. Zone start/finish - 51.8/51.0%
Avg TOI: 16:20
Blocked shots: 128 (led team)

His season

Mitchell had an all-around average season, but when you look at how the Kings were paying and playing Mitchell you can understand why he is no longer on the roster. Compared to years past, Mitchell was much less effective in both the offensive and defensive areas of the game. No doubt this has to do with age catching up with him a little bit. The nice thing to see this year was No. 33 staying healthy. He has had his fair share of injury problems with the Kings but has stayed relatively injury free for the last two seasons which is great to see. He led the Kings in blocked shots and was a major fixture on the penalty kill team. This is probably where Mitchell was at his best overall. His defensive play and thinking of the game is still top notch, but when it came to laying out the big hit or pushing the play up ice he was a bit behind. The Mitchell of old may have been able to do that, but not the Mitchell of today. Aside from that, he was indeed a big special teams force for the Kings and put in some decent minutes on the second pairing.

His pairing of with Slava Voynov was one that definitely struggled at times throughout the year. Part of that had to do with Voynov, part of it had to do with Mitchell. Whatever the case may be, the duo looked incredibly exposed at times this year both in terms of speed and decision making. The cohesiveness of before wasn't quite there. It seemed like when one pinched in or got deep in the O-zone the other wasn't ready to cover or wasn't capable of covering. There was a feeling that neither guy was comfortable with the other at times. The speed of the game also hurt Mitchell more than usual this year (along with Greene and Regehr) and he was often exposed by speed out wide.

Again though, for a middle pairing it wasn't the strongest season from Mitchell, but it could have been much worse. His possession stats aren't all that pretty, his age and contract demands weren't pretty either, and he has found himself a new home for the next couple of years. His service to the Kings this year and for the entirety of his tenure in L.A. is admirable. You probably won't find a more friendly guy with the media. Always ready with a story, a funny remark, and a smile, Mitchell brought a solid attitude to the Kings locker room. No doubt his presence was one that was very much appreciated in the dressing room. This was definitely one of those seasons where you saw age catch up to a solid defenseman. It's inevitable in the sport. He still came up with some great plays throughout the year and is still probably a good third pair defenseman for a team like Florida.



(Willie Mitchell's point shot)



Moving forward

Mitchell priced himself off the Kings by wanting a longer term and a little more money than the team was willing to offer. Instead of one year he was looking for two, and that really decided his fate on the Kings. With the entire defensive group locked up aside from Mitchell there was simply no space for the aging veteran. Especially when you consider the waiver status of Brayden McNabb. Mitchell makes way to Florida to theoretically finish out his career. It would be surprising to see him play past his two-year deal with the Panthers, which will take him up to age 39.

Hard to put the emotional sentiment aside when grading Mitchell considering his strong service with the Kings and his battles with injuries. For the 2013-14 season though, tough to give him higher than a B in my opinion. He was passable for most of the year. Not spectacular and not horrible. He's a fighter, a worker, and a mentor. Hopefully he can bring that down to Florida where he will be mentoring a very talented young defenseman in Aaron Ekblad.

Final Grade: C+

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