TA: 10 Players Who Need to Turn the Page on 2023

[PuckinUgly57]

Color me shocked, PLD made the list:

3. Pierre-Luc Dubois, Los Angeles. In some ways, you can ask the same question about Dubois as you would about Lindholm – who is he exactly? – though you might not get the same positive answers. Last summer, Dubois did the thing Lindholm hopes to do now – sign a big-bucks contract that will secure his financial future. Dubois entices teams because physically, he’s the prototype of the center you think you need to win in the NHL. Big, strong, and when his head is in the game, someone willing to play a hard physical game. Teams saw that briefly in the bubble playoffs – when he played for Columbus – and have clung to the hope ever since that he can duplicate that level on a more regular basis. Instead, he has become the epitome of inconsistency and so far, while showing glimpses of the player the Kings hoped he’d be, there’s been a lot more bad than good. The chemistry they imagined would develop between Dubois and Kevin Fiala never materialized. Instead, Fiala is thriving playing up the lineup beside Phillip Danault and Trevor Moore, while Dubois flails a little, beside rookie Alexis Laferriere and Arthur Kaliyev. And he’s lost his spot on PP1 to Quinton Byfield. So, there is a lot of room for improvement in the second half.

Others include Kaprizov, Huberdeau, Tkachuk, Rackell, Kuznetsov, Johansen, Lindholm, Gaudreau and Laine.

 

[Kings4OT]

He never really played with Fiala at all has he? Seems like an unfair read to me. I dont expect more than 60ish points from him....hes not a big point guy imo

 

[PuckinUgly57]

He started the season with Fiala, L2 was Moore Dunno Arty Retardy. Fiala didn't mesh with him and vice versa on L3, Retardy doesn't seem to mesh well anywhere he plays so they made that move to swap 22 and 34 after about G10. Fiala has done well there but at the cost of L3.

I'd like to see them put together again, Fiala seems more suited to have PLD as his center as opposed to Dunno when you think about skill but that's not how it works out (remember Tomas Vlasak? Penciled in as LW1 all summer and camp 2000 with Stumble and Palffy to start 2000-01, lasted 10 whopping NHL games, there was zero chemistry between he and those two, out of the league literally after October 2000. But individually all 3 were exceptionally skilled). PLD just seems like a better fit but that didn't net any positive results.

The issue there though is if Fiala is pulled off L2, who takes his place? Kaliyev is useless, and Grundstrom can move up and down the lineup but isn't a legitimate LW2 to stick long term. Kaliyev's lack of anything really inhibits taking Fiala off that line, 91/46/61 is solid as L4 so moving Grundstrom would ding that line as well. So the damage is limited to just one line not producing (L3) vs two not producing (L2 and L4) with Fiala on L2.

In order for all 4 lines to be effective as was envisioned everyone needed to do their part and that's what brass banked on - Arty Retardy screwed that up which is why Fiala didn't last long with PLD.

 

[Kings4OT]

So, arvidsson is the great white hope

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Crazy how that midget makes everything work.

 

[Kings4OT]

I kinda thought Fiala wasnt playing well with anyone right off, maybe i miss remember that

 

[Kings4OT]

Crazy how that midget makes everything work.

I really like the way he plays when healthy, if he had more than 80lbs on him he would be a beast