Who Is the Most Improved King?

Lucky?  I think not.

      Things are looking up for the Los Angeles Kings and their fans.  The last two weeks have brought some needed changes to the team, and it doesn't appear to be happenstance.  It seems that both Lucky and Big Rob know this team, its strengths, its weaknesses and are not only willing to make moves to get better, but doing so in a manner that demonstrates knowledge and skill.
      Acquiring Phaneuf, and to a lesser extent Thompson, was much bigger move than anyone in the media seems to understand.  I would guess that because Phaneuf hasn't had a great year, much like the Ottawa organization themselves, not much was made of the trade.  My initial response was tepid with a side of let's wait and see.  A little over a week in, I have become a convert.  Phaneuf has brought experience, scoring, and a physical presence that the team desperately needed on the blue line.  He will be a major difference maker.
     Any time a trade is made, however, there is a cost.  Nick Shore, despite his Ron Duguay like lack of scoring touch, has been a consummate professional for the Kings.  He was a good skater, strong in the corners, and rarely made mistakes on the ice.  In addition to Nick Shore, somehow, Lucky convinced the Senators to take Marion Gaborik.  At first, I was trying to figure out how this trade made sense to the Senators.  The only thing that I can think of is that the Senators desperately need to clear cap space for an attempt to hold on to Karlsson.  Gaborik has a cap hit of about $4.8 million, while Phaneuf has a cap hit of about $7 million.  $2.2 million dollars isn't chump change, but it isn't changing the world money either.  From the Kings perspective, they won this trade hands down.  The Kings were spending nearly $5 million dollars a year to get nothing from Gaborik.  For and extra $2 million, they get a top level defenseman that was desperately needed.  The cost benefit ratio is infinitely higher with Phaneuf over Gaborik.  This move could prove to be a key move in the near future.

     Not too long after the Phaneuf trade, feeling about as satisfied as a ravenous dog that has tasted blood, the boys in the front office demonstrated that they weren't done.  As I have written before, Darcy Kuemper has been strong, really strong in net for the Kings, but, the number one goaltender job rests squarely on Quicky's shoulders.  Kuemper was like unanticipated equity.  That equity, to Kuemper's benefit as well since he tripled his salary, was just cashed in for a cost effective up and comer, Tobias Reider.  This young man adds speed, and the potential to be a mid level scorer.  I hate that Kuemper went to a divisional opponent.  I still hate seeing Jonesey play for the guppies.  However, with free agency looming, and the fact that Kuemper deserves a shot a being a number one, a chance that he will never get in LA, this is a truly intelligent move.  Once again, the team has been made immediately better, with no long term detriment.
     Lucky and Big Rob are making solid, well thought out moves that make the team better.  These aren't desperate attempts to appear to do something.  These were real, opportunistic improvement based moves.  The front office appears to be demonstrating a level of skill that almost equals that which they demonstrated on the ice for all those years.  I hope it works out.