Younger.
That has been the mantra of many Kings fans heading into this offseason.
The Kings needs to get younger. The Kings need to give more young players a chance. Even right here on this very blog we stated that the .
Kings deviated from a plan that normally incorporated young players this year . However, that had more to do with an internal supplement of players versus an external supplement of players, which by nature would always have been younger versus more proven.
Nevertheless, the cry has been made since the Kings elimination at the hands of the Sharks: People want to see a younger Kings team. This idea likely went hand in hand with a reinvigorated interest in the Kings AHL affiliate, whose movement to Ontario California gave fans a live, first hand look at the likes of Nic Dowd, Michael Mersch, and Kevin Gravel on a weekly basis. Along with the struggles of some choice veteran players who did not play up to snuff this season.
Dean Lombardi loves development and loves building internally, through the draft, and with astute free agent signings and trades (See Martin Jones, Kurtis MacDermid, Brayden McNabb etc.). He has done a darn good job of it over the years. However, by design that development and internal growth has always been, not at odds, but pushed and pulled by the need for maintaining success.
Lisa Dillman wrote a brief piece about this topic late last season. Lombardi was quoted saying:
"It's the classic case. Play good, give me more ice time. Play me more and I'll play good. If you can figure that out, let me know. It's always the case. It usually goes hand in hand."
He would later add
"All these guys have an upside and they're going to have to become consistent. Not change their game but add to their game. They're a critical part to the identity of this team and they're taking another step."
While that idea seems to be at odds with Darryl Sutter in regards to ice time distribution, it is easy to forget that the Kings are not really in a position to thrust players like Dowd or Mersch into top six roles. It is very much a process, and like it or not you have to earn a place and a spot within the roster. Is Darryl Sutter perhaps unnecessarily stingy at times? Of course, just look at the healthy scratches of players like Pearson, Shore, and Tyler Toffoli over the past two seasons. However, he has also been incredibly even handed. His integration of players like Alec Martinez, Tyler Toffoli, and Jake Muzzin have been fair, positive, and ultimately beneficial to the team and the players. We all love a good rookie story, and we all want to see "The Kids" get their chance. But the truth is there is a balance that needs to be in place. Sutter has done a great job in keeping that balance.
So Tanner Pearson or Nick Shore was playing well and got scratched. It can be bizarre and frustrating, but it happens, it is not the end of the world.
We seem to say it every year, we said it last year, we probably said it the year after the Kings won the cup. This season will be a pivotal one for the young players on the Kings.
This year, however, it holds an even heavier truth as these young players have to step in and solidify themselves as legitimate roster players and pieces of the core. Nic Dowd, Michael Mersch, Kevin Gravel and Derek Forbort may all have huge seasons in front of them as they search for a place on a roster that needs some pieces to step in from within.
However, we forget that a large number of Kings players have already begun that process and are doing quite well with it.
Not to go full Morpheus meme here, but what if I told you that Tanner Pearson is only three months older than Michael Mersch? Or that Brayden McNabb is only a year older than both Kevin Gravel and Derek Forbort? Or that Nick Shore is still only 23? Or Clifford just turning 25. What if I told you that Nic Dowd is older than all of them? (No knock intended on Nic Dowd. Collegiate route!)
It is a strange thing, this "Development" process. We as fans can easily forget how young these players truly are once they step in and become NHL regulars. It seems that once they take the ice in the NHL they are no longer "Young guys" they are "NHL players" and they should have it figured out. That is never the case. Tanner Pearson being the ripe age of 23 (24 in August), was a fairly startling realization while mulling over the various stat sites. It may have been the most important stat of them all to be fair. And like we discussed with Brayden McNabb a few weeks back, all of them have seen progress in ways you really want to see it.
AKA more ice time, increased numbers (Or decreased depending..), more detailed usage, less protection, and overall better results.
Just for a brief rundown of some solid improvements
Nick Shore
Nick Shore, 23, will be 24 in September.
2nd pro year, first full pro year.
- Increased his ice time from 11:05 last year to 12:24 this year.
- Improved possession metrics from 51.3 CF% -> 57.4%
- Improved possession metrics while seeing a near 10% increase in D-zone starts (39.7 -> 48.9)
- Improvements in shot suppression metrics (SA60 24.88 - > 22.18). League leading numbers
- Expected Goals For % (xGF%) saw massive improvement (48.20 -> 59.47)
Tanner Pearson
Age 23, will turn 24 in August.
First full healthy season in the NHL (42 games in 2014-15, 25 in 2013-14)
- Incremental improvement in icetime (10:49 - 13:18 - 14:28)
- Stability in Ozone/Dzone starts (53.5/46.5 - 55.4/44.6 - 54.2/45.8)
- Stability in an
already top 5 points per 60 on the team (1.44 - 1.83 - 1.68), with increased ice time that means higher PPG.
- Better shot suppression (28.80 -> 24.54) and xGF% (54.06 -> 56.69)
Tyler Toffoli
Just turned 24 in April
- Near 3 minute jump in ATOI (14:35 - 17:19)
- 31 goal, 50+ point player
- 31 goals with a career average shooting percentage deviation of only 2% (12.2 v 14.6)
- Increase on career average CF% (59.3 versus 58.4), and a CF Rel of +3.5
- Stable, high xGF% (57.5% the past three years)
Brayden McNabb
Got you covered already!
Andy Andreoff
Turned 25 in May
First full season in the NHL (18 games in 2014-15)
- Minor positive increases in average ice time, zone starts, team relative possession metrics.
- Better xGF% (47.19 -> 50.42)
- Major points per 60 increase (0.79 - 1.16) and goals per 60 increase (0.40 - 0.93)
- Improved penalty differential, although still not good ( -14 -> -8)
- 50% face off player
- Positive 5v5 xGF trajectory
View post on imgur.com
Oh yea, and....
Clifford, Muzzin, Doughty, and King are all under 26 or younger.
So now look at your supplement of Dowd, Gravel, Forbort, Mersch, and maybe the 2016-17 dark horse to make the Kings roster, Justin Auger (Age 22). Project in two years with maybe Amadio, MacDermid, Kempe and whoever else you want to toss in the mix making a leap.
Is it the sexiest group in the world? Maybe not, but it is certainly a group that has had a very positive upward trajectory both in the AHL and in the NHL.
There will be gaps, holes to fill, and deficiencies of one form or another along the way. There will be struggles with the cap and older players who do not perform up to expectation. No roster can be perfect, but to say the Kings aren't young and still growing might be something of an oversight. It is easy to agree with the common assertion that the Kings "Can get old very fast", but they do have a good young group making strides.
Development does not just stop at the AHL level. Players develop in the NHL as well, and the Kings have had a positive trend from almost all of their young players. Next year will likely bring another young crop up to the NHL to prove themselves, and if history is any indicator things will go pretty smooth.
Missed the last piece? Check it out now
Kings Nearing Dangerous Territory with the Milan Lucic Extension
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