Sheng Peng: Is Iginla Fit to Be a King? What does Iginla have left? How should the Kings optimize him?

In the last blog's comments, someone called this the last act of a desperate man, but I wouldn't call it that. This is a calculated move and very Lombardi-esque. He's made a trade like this almost every trade deadline for the last 4 years. It's a trade for a veteran that the other players can rally around and try to help win either his first Cup or first in a long time. He did this with Regehr, Gaborik and Lecavalier, and each was successful to a degree.

Lombardi isn't sitting there crossing his fingers that Iginla will have a rejuvenation and produce for the Kings. He's sitting there crossing his fingers that this will wake the rest of the team up and that they'll each put in a little more effort for Iginla's sake. In other words, he's hoping that this sparks the improvement from within that he said would be necessary a few days ago.

Helping Iginla win his first Cup is likely not going to happen, but the players are going to feel that they let him down if they don't at least help him get to the playoffs one more time. For that reason, the strategy may well work. Whether it's enough is the question, but keeping King, instead, wouldn't have sparked anything from the rest of the players. Even if their stats are identical so far and would've been going forward, Iginla should have a more positive impact on the team than King would've had, so, to me, it's a definite upgrade (if only psychologically).

In the last blog's comments, someone called this the last move of a desperate man, but I wouldn't call it that at all. This is a calculated move and very Lombardi-esque. He's made a trade like this almost every trade deadline for the last 4 years. It's a trade for a veteran that the other players can rally around and try to help win either his first Cup or first in a long time. He did this with Regehr, Gaborik and Lecavalier.

Lombardi isn't sitting there crossing his fingers that Iginla will have a rejuvenation and produce for the Kings. He's sitting there crossing his fingers that this will wake the rest of the team up and that they'll each put in a little more effort for Iginla's sake. In other words, he's hoping that this sparks the improvement from within that he said would be necessary a few days ago.

Helping Iginla win his first Cup is likely not going to happen, but the players are going to feel that they let him down if they don't at least help him get to the playoffs one more time. For that reason, the strategy may well work. Whether it's enough is the question, but it certainly wouldn't have been a possibility with Dwight King. Even if their stats are identical so far and would've been going forward, Iginla will have a more positive impact on the rest of the players than King would've had.
- Osprey

Sure we can all talk about how slow he is now. But I do think Iggy is a fit in LA more than with the AV's. Id rather have kept King and let him walk a free agent and moved another bottom 6 guy like Clifford if possible.

In the last blog's comments, someone called this the last move of a desperate man, but I wouldn't call it that. This is a calculated move and very Lombardi-esque. He's made a trade like this almost every trade deadline for the last 4 years. It's a trade for a veteran that the other players can rally around and try to help win either his first Cup or first in a long time. He did this with Regehr, Gaborik and Lecavalier.

Lombardi isn't sitting there crossing his fingers that Iginla will have a rejuvenation and produce for the Kings. He's sitting there crossing his fingers that this will wake the rest of the team up and that they'll each put in a little more effort for Iginla's sake. In other words, he's hoping that this sparks the improvement from within that he said would be necessary a few days ago.

Helping Iginla win his first Cup is likely not going to happen, but the players are going to feel that they let him down if they don't at least help him get to the playoffs one more time. For that reason, the strategy may well work. Whether it's enough is the question, but keeping King, instead, wouldn't have sparked anything from the rest of the players. Even if their stats are identical so far and would've been going forward, Iginla will have a more positive impact on the rest of the players than King would've had, so I don't share the belief that the moves cancel each other out.
- Osprey

I was the one who said it was the last act of a desperate man, and I am not far from the mark there. The only thing the team needs to rally and get all supernatural to make a deep run is to rally around Bob Miller. If I were a leader in that room I would be reminding the boys at every turn what Bob Means to the organization and looking to teammates after every neutral zone turn over, every board battle lost, every blown coverage in the D zone, every shanked shot and saying "you playing for Bob or what?"

this is a zero sum trade, I am glad to see King go, was hoping at the very least we would see Brodzinski get a whiff but I am guessing Andreoff and Nolan are going to be the bottom six plugs.

so lets move onto what our lines look like now?

Toff Carts Pears
Gabo Kopi Iggy?
Brown Dowd Lewis
Nolan Shore Kempe/andreoff?

I have no clue how this shakes out

I was the one who said it was the last act of a desperate man, and I am not far from the mark there. The only thing the team needs to rally and get all supernatural to make a deep run is to rally around Bob Miller. If I were a leader in that room I would be reminding the boys at every turn what Bob Means to the organization and looking to teammates after every neutral zone turn over, every board battle lost, every blown coverage in the D zone, every shanked shot and saying "you playing for Bob or what?"

this is a zero sum trade, I am glad to see King go, was hoping at the very least we would see Brodzinski get a whiff but I am guessing Andreoff and Nolan are going to be the bottom six plugs.

so lets move onto what our lines look like now?

Toff Carts Pears
Gabo Kopi Iggy?
Brown Dowd Lewis
Nolan Shore Kempe/andreoff?

I have no clue how this shakes out
- MikeOxbyg

I believe Brodzinski will get a shot. At least that's what I thought before getting Iginla. Don't the rosters expand at some point?

I was the one who said it was the last act of a desperate man, and I am not far from the mark there.
- MikeOxbyg

FWIW, I originally wrote my reply to you in the previous blog, but, when I saw this one and decided to post it here, instead, I left your name out of it out of respect. I didn't expect you to step forward and claim credit .

Not intending to trash talk or anything like that, but damn that forward corps looks problematic. Saddling Kopitar with two sturggling old wingers isn't doing him much of a favour. Aside from Kempe, who else do you guys figure will push the anchors (again, no offense meant) out of the lineup? Any word on Dergachyov? Is Mersch still in the plans?

FWIW, I originally wrote my reply to you in the previous blog, but, when I saw this one and decided to post it here, instead, I left your name out of it out of respect. I didn't expect you to step forward and claim credit .
- Osprey

hey, you know damn well I hold myself accountable for what I say here, I have no problem with you calling me out.

Not intending to trash talk or anything like that, but damn that forward corps looks problematic. Saddling Kopitar with two sturggling old wingers isn't doing him much of a favour. Aside from Kempe, who else do you guys figure will push the anchors (again, no offense meant) out of the lineup? Any word on Dergachyov? Is Mersch still in the plans?
- MaximumBone

Mersche just got back from an injury and Dergachyov I believe hasn't even made it to ontario yet.

as for what to do with Iginla?

I would say third line with dowd and Kempe

let Kopitar limp along with Gaborik and Lewis

Not intending to trash talk or anything like that, but damn that forward corps looks problematic. Saddling Kopitar with two sturggling old wingers isn't doing him much of a favour. Aside from Kempe, who else do you guys figure will push the anchors (again, no offense meant) out of the lineup? Any word on Dergachyov? Is Mersch still in the plans?
- MaximumBone

Yeah this teams scoring abilities are abysmal. Lombardi thought he could hit his way into the playoffs this year. I never expected this team to go far In the playoffs at all, IF they make it at all now.

The year Kopitar and gaborik are having doesn't help matters either. Along with the injury to Toffoli that happened.

This team needs to get faster, with more guys who can actually shoot.

Here is hoping Iginla makes the dance, and both Wild Cards come from the Pacific.

He will bring more than stats, and this is clearly his last ride (and prob D Sutt too). Get him to the dance and we will see what happens. 3rd line with 2 PP duty could be a nice spark. Sutter knows how to use him. This is an improvement on King.

Just need more 3 pt games to make sure both Calgary and LA make it. Hoping for the best

Another factor that I'm sure matters to Lombardi is that it's just good for young players to be around veterans like Iginla, if only for a few months, to get tips or see their professionalism, work ethic, perseverance and attitude.

You never know what a guy like Pearson, Toffoli or Kempe might pick up from Iginla that he may not use right away, but which he might use down the road. It doesn't have to be on-ice tips, but just the attitude that you maintain off the ice. I know that Peter Forsberg had that effect the short time that he was with the Preds, and Jagr has had that effect on a number of teams. Blake probably passed on tips that helped Doughty as a rookie.

Even when your body is broken down and you can barely play anymore, there's still a lot that can be passed along or rubbed off. Why would you not acquire a guy like Iginla for virtually nothing to at least give a chance of one of your young players being positively influenced by him?

Another factor that I'm sure matters to Lombardi is that it's just good for young players to be around veterans like Iginla, if only for a few months, to get tips or see their professionalism, work ethic, perseverance and attitude.

You never know what a guy like Pearson, Toffoli or Kempe might pick up from Iginla that he may not use right away, but which he might use down the road. It doesn't have to be on-ice tips, but just the attitude that you maintain off the ice. I know that Peter Forsberg had that effect the short time that he was with the Preds, and Jagr has had that effect on a number of teams. Blake probably passed on tips that helped Doughty as a rookie.

Even when your body is broken down and you can barely play anymore, there's still a lot that can be passed along or rubbed off. Why would you not acquire a guy like Iginla for virtually nothing to at least give a chance of one of your young players being positively influenced by him?
- Osprey

Good points. I still think t hat Iginla is a good piece. No matter the outcome of our season. With King likely to of not been resigned. And with Iggy likely retiring and the chance we do miss the playoffs. Costs nothing really. If we make it in. Its well worth it.

I'm hoping he brings his heart and soul to the team to give him and the team one more big push before it's over.

23 - 11 - Iggy
70 - 77 - 73
12 - 21 - 22
71 - 26 - 15

kempe gets returned to ontario, and perhaps comes up when ontario is out of the playoffs along with brodz and mersch.

12-21-22 was an effective line two games ago, not sure why it was thrown into the blender again against CGY.

not sure how iggy will get mostly offensive zone starts if he's on kopi's wing, unless they swap em on the fly all the time...

23 - 11 - Iggy
70 - 77 - 73
12 - 21 - 22
71 - 26 - 15

kempe gets returned to ontario, and perhaps comes up when ontario is out of the playoffs along with brodz and mersch.

12-21-22 was an effective line two games ago, not sure why it was thrown into the blender again against CGY.

not sure how iggy will get mostly offensive zone starts if he's on kopi's wing, unless they swap em on the fly all the time...
- hiway39

I dont see how we dont see Gabby Kopi and Iggy right out the gate. Unless Toff is thrown with Kopi and Iggy is with Carter. We def see him in the top 6. We have to. Nobody else really works outside of when Carter is hot.

In the last blog's comments, someone called this the last act of a desperate man, but I wouldn't call it that. This is a calculated move and very Lombardi-esque. He's made a trade like this almost every trade deadline for the last 4 years. It's a trade for a veteran that the other players can rally around and try to help win either his first Cup or first in a long time. He did this with Regehr, Gaborik and Lecavalier, and each was successful to a degree.

Lombardi isn't sitting there crossing his fingers that Iginla will have a rejuvenation and produce for the Kings. He's sitting there crossing his fingers that this will wake the rest of the team up and that they'll each put in a little more effort for Iginla's sake. In other words, he's hoping that this sparks the improvement from within that he said would be necessary a few days ago.

Helping Iginla win his first Cup is likely not going to happen, but the players are going to feel that they let him down if they don't at least help him get to the playoffs one more time. For that reason, the strategy may well work. Whether it's enough is the question, but keeping King, instead, wouldn't have sparked anything from the rest of the players. Even if their stats are identical so far and would've been going forward, Iginla should have a more positive impact on the team than King would've had, so, to me, it's a definite upgrade (if only psychologically).
- Osprey

That's a good theory but I'm sure Lombardi is just trying to fill a void like in the Sekera trade. It sounds like Iggy wanted to be a King for whatever reason and that is why he is here.

I dont see how we dont see Gabby Kopi and Iggy right out the gate. Unless Toff is thrown with Kopi and Iggy is with Carter. We def see him in the top 6. We have to. Nobody else really works outside of when Carter is hot.
- poisondhearts37

i had brown - kopi - iggy as the top line with gabbo on the third with shore and lewis...they looked great the other nite.

although i could see if they're trying to protect his minutes, having iggy with someone like dowd isn't out of the question...dowd is far more creative than shore, and if he can have chemistry like he did with brown earlier in the season, that could be a decent bottom 6 line with some offensive pop against likely lesser competition. throw in some PP time for iggy and maybe that's the solution (but doesn't solve the issue of scoring void wingers for kopi)

i had brown - kopi - iggy as the top line with gabbo on the third with shore and lewis...they looked great the other nite.

although i could see if they're trying to protect his minutes, having iggy with someone like dowd isn't out of the question...dowd is far more creative than shore, and if he can have chemistry like he did with brown earlier in the season, that could be a decent bottom 6 line with some offensive pop against likely lesser competition. throw in some PP time for iggy and maybe that's the solution (but doesn't solve the issue of scoring void wingers for kopi)
- hiway39

I can only dream that the newcomer would have the nerve to tell Brown to give the (frank)ing puck up instead of skating it into a turnover every time he touches it!!

From Jon Rosen: "88-11-12, 70-77-73, 22-21-23, 39-26-13; 24-8, 6-38, 3-27. 15/53 appear to be extras. No 71."

I think he has Iginla & Gaborik mixed up -- Iginla should be RW. He was in a video of practice that I just saw.

From Jon Rosen: "88-11-12, 70-77-73, 22-21-23, 39-26-13; 24-8, 6-38, 3-27. 15/53 appear to be extras. No 71."

I think he has Iginla & Gaborik mixed up -- Iginla should be RW. He was in a video of practice that I just saw.
- Sheng Peng

again I gotta ask, how has McNab maintained a slot anything higher than 7 and how does Davis Payne still have a job when the power play is so terrible?

again I gotta ask, how has McNab maintained a slot anything higher than 7 and how does Davis Payne still have a job when the power play is so terrible?
- MikeOxbyg

Hard for the PP to score when only 2 guys are scoring.

Hard for the PP to score when only 2 guys are scoring.
- poisondhearts37

Point taken but still, the movement is strangled by their own design. the zone entry works for the most part but everything after that is a mess