Marleau stays in San Jose « LA Kings Insider

Marleau stays in San Jose

Posted by Rich Hammond on 24 June 2010, 8:36 am

A potential Kings free-agent target is now off the board, as the San Jose Sharks have re-signed forward Patrick Marleau to a four-year contract. The Sharks announced the signing at the same time they announced the re-signing of restricted free agent Joe Pavelski to a four-year contract. Reports have Marleau getting $6.9 million per season and Pavelski getting $4 million per season.

Comment (RSS) | Trackback | Permalink

133 Comments

Sydor25 says:

June 24, 2010 at 8:38 am

Good…Kovalchuk > Marleau

[Reply]
Scott P. says:

June 24, 2010 at 8:40 am

Good. There are better options for the money.

[Reply]
mattmonforton says:

June 24, 2010 at 8:42 am

Good Work, Rich!
You beat tsn, espn, yahoo and most other major sports networks to releasing this info!
That’s why you are the best!

Kovy > Marleau!
Go Kings!

[Reply]
hockeysureshot says:

June 24, 2010 at 8:42 am

Let’s make Kovalchuk happen! If Marleau got 6.9 per, Kovalchuk is probably in the 8 mil range I would assume.

[Reply]
PakiFro Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:28 am
@hockeysureshot,

Too rich for my blood. I’m not sure one guy would help. I like the idea of adding two solid players at about $4M compared to one $8M. Not sure who’s available as a UFA or trade, but I’d certainly prefer depth over a one man wrecking crew.

[Reply]
Dan H. Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:39 am
@hockeysureshot,

He turned down 10 mil a year from ATL. He’s high priced but also a perennial loser.

[Reply]
tantrum4 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:09 am
@Dan H.,

That doesn’t mean he is looking for a $10 million contract, it just means he didn’t want to stay in Atlanta for any money no matter what the number was. And Kopitar and Doughty would be perennial losers too if they played their entire career in Atlanta. Kovalchuk won’t be a loser here in LA.

[Reply]
Lucky says:

June 24, 2010 at 8:47 am

All this means is DL will not have to act like he wanted to sign Marleau

[Reply]
NOW IMPRESSED Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:40 am
@Lucky, LOL, TRUE!

[Reply]
flex Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 3:03 pm
@Lucky, 100% !!!!

[Reply]
nykingfan says:

June 24, 2010 at 8:51 am

I acutally would have liked Marleau.

Intertesting that the contracts were in the short term variety (4 yrs) and not front loaded.
I would hope this is a trend that continues in the NHL.

[Reply]
number 6 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:12 am
@nykingfan,
see your post below reply to anthony

[Reply]
nykingfan Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:31 am
@number 6,

what happened to it?
I didn’t think I said anything out of line.

[Reply]
Bob Bobson says:

June 24, 2010 at 8:55 am

Marleau at $6.9MM/yr for 4 years. No thanks.

Pavelski at $4MM/yr for 4 years. Nice.

[Reply]
Belexes Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:38 am
@Bob Bobson,

Agree with this viewpoint.

[Reply]
Sam says:

June 24, 2010 at 8:58 am

Want no part of PM @ 6.9 million/year.

[Reply]
Jammers says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:00 am

Kings fans around the world can console themselves by thinking about Heidi in her white dress at the NHL awards ceremony last night.

[Reply]
Lloyd Christmas Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:45 am
@Jammers,

No red sweater this time?

[Reply]
Kingsfanone Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 4:00 pm
@Jammers,

Heidi sure was a lookin, wasn’t she? Wonder if Drew went with?

[Reply]
the Kings Need to Get Tough and Drop the Gloves says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:02 am

No thank you to Marleau. Another overpaid player…

I hope DL signs Boogaard. Boogaard would look great in a king jersey, not to mention he would be a fan favorite.

[Reply]
RenoKingsFan Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 12:42 pm
@the Kings Need to Get Tough and Drop the Gloves,
I’d love to have Boogaard. I think this is the first time we’ve agreed on anything. But Boogard in my opinion is the best enforcer in the league.

[Reply]
Belexes Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 1:22 pm
@RenoKingsFan,

Boogaard would be a HUGE addition to this club (no pun intended)

[Reply]
TB says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:03 am

Pierre LeBrun posted a funny tweet regarding the signing: “Marleau off the market – Ray Whitney’s never been happier”

If Kovalchuk doesn’t sign here, (crossing my fingers, going to church, and throwing hundreds of pennies into my local wishing well hoping that he does sign…) I’d expect Ray Whitney to be the next best option.

[Reply]
number 6 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:17 am
@TB,
Personally I don’t love the idea. We need SPEED not AGE. Yes, I should talk, but I’m not an athlete. Whitney will be 40 in I believe a year or two. Result, don’t imagine him flying around the ice at that age. Scoring yes, flying, no.

[Reply]
oldthunder says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:07 am

I’m glad Marleau got his $ and we were not paying him. This leaves only 1 marquee player on the FA list this year. Unless you count Nabokov. Makes you wonder what/where Kovalchuk will sign for.

[Reply]
number 6 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:14 am
@oldthunder,
You know, I’m still gonna be surprised if he ends up in LA. I mean on one hand I could see it happening, but on the other, if the demands are too steep, we all know that DL won’t be held hostage and will just walk away.
But a real sniper on this team does sound appealing…. another playoffs of not scoring 5 on 5 sounds less appealing.

[Reply]
oldthunder Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:33 am
@number 6, I agree, if he is asking >8 million plus a year DL may take him on 4-5 years, but a 10 year über contract at 8-9 per i doubt he will do that. I think rejecting the 10 mil per from ATL was because he wanted out, not because he wanted that much money. No GM would pay him more than Ovechkin or Crosby no matter how desperate they are for scoring.

[Reply]
54FIGHTING Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:54 am
@oldthunder,

I would like to see DL make a similar deal with NJ as we had last year with Detroit for Hossa. Maybe a conditional pick for the right to talk with Kovalchuk before July 1.

I’d also like to see us move up to #15/#16 tomorrow – but who knows.
nki says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:11 am

Frolov is now the second best UFA forward, mind = blown.

[Reply]
concussionman02 says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:18 am

Not sure I believe it but one of those rumor sites says that the Kings have aquired or are close to aquiring the “rights” to Kovi.

Also said that last year we aquired the rights to Knuble but nothing came from it and it was never reported.

Again, not sure I believe it but it is interesting none the less.

[Reply]
54FIGHTING Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:56 am
@concussionman02,

You can see my comment above about Kovalchuk. They did do this last year with Hossa and DL did mention that they wanted Knuble but he wanted to stay in the East. I don’t have a link though. Too lazy to look.

[Reply]
KingMe20 says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:24 am

Damn. I think he would have been a great addition. Here’s hoping that Kovalchuk works out.

[Reply]
KOHO says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:24 am

DL just signed for 2 years which means the pressure is on him to get this team to the Cup yesterday.
Bring in the snipers and this team will be ready to compete.

This is what I’ve been waiting for since DL was named the man.
Put up or shut up AEG this is the time to show the Kings fans how serious this
orgainization really is.

[Reply]
Bob Bobson Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:29 am
@KOHO, Not sure what you want AEG to do right now to demonstrate how serious they are but if you think we should spend to the cap for Kovalchuk for 10 years or something and leave little room to re-sign guys like Doughty or Johnson, then I disagree.

[Reply]
KOHO Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:54 am
@Bob Bobson,

AEG hasn’t won anything yet Bob. Just because we made the playoffs once in 8 years isn’t proof to me that they’re willing to go for it. They were able to buy time in this rebuild but now they need to push the envelope. Having players to sign should never be an excuse for trying to do more.

[Reply]
Bob Bobson Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:41 am
@KOHO, You are correct that AEG has not won anything and I agree that they should be willing to do more than they have in the past. However, I will have to disagree with your last sentence specifically. CHI got into the trouble they are in now because they overspent on guys like Campbell and Huet. Kovlachuk is a step above those two, but I would still hesitate to potentially lose a guy like Doughty just to get him.

Dominick Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 7:07 pm
@KOHO, DL,and AEG have made it clear that DL has never been turned down on financial backing for a player,or would he be.I believe the discision is completely DL’s to make with the complete backing of AEG,either way.

Kingfish Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 1:17 pm
@KOHO,
Im pretty sure DL has the green light from AEG to sign Kovi for $$ because they want some star power. Its DL who is hesitant to throw too much money his way. DL is right to be cautious, because it could screw the team in the future. Im sure DL will do the right thing if he is asking too much, walk away and trade for a few forwards. But I hope we can get Kovi for a reasonable price/term.

[Reply]
KC23 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 3:51 pm
@KOHO,

AEG has no control of the salary cap.

[Reply]
raunq12 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:32 pm
@KOHO,

I couldn’t agree with you more buddy

[Reply]
Ravens says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:26 am

Leiweke wants Kovy Bad. The further we get along without any trades, makes me think they have a pretty good idea Kovy may be leaning Kings. I think we get it done no matter what, it’s worth it to even over pay a free agent then to trade away talent such as Quick, Bernier or Schenn, as long as we are able to sign Doughty. Maybe I’m a conspiracy theorist but maybe the reason we don’t see some of our Russians in Development camp is because they are going to be on the roster with a fellow Russian. and Maybe there was a second shooter beyond the Grassy knoll (LOL)

[Reply]
Dan H. Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:41 am
@Ravens,

I sure hope that the GM isn’t listening to LIEweekly. That didn’t turn out so well for the team when Taylor had to listen to him about hockey decisions.

[Reply]
txkingsfan Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:00 am
@Ravens, hmmmm .. ok I’ll be the one to ask: (1) “Liewieke wants Kovy bad” – could you please provide any evidence of this? newspaper, quote, etc? (2) “The further we get along without any trades, makes me think they have a pretty good idea Kovy may be leaning Kings” – not following your logic here – please elaborate. so the fact that we have not heard anything means that the Kings are the default? Interesting logic. (3) “Maybe I’m a conspiracy theorist but maybe the reason we don’t see some of our Russians in Development camp is because they are going to be on the roster with a fellow Russian” – maybe, just maybe, they go home to Russia – or the handful of other former Soviet bloc nations, during the off-season and want to spend time with their families before leaving them for the entire year. Or you could be right: Russians don’t like to play next to one another until the season starts.

[Reply]
Ravens Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:21 am
@txkingsfan, REALLY, now I have to spend the next two hours finding the article I read at the end of our playoff run about how Tim Leiweke had expressed how much interest he had in aquiring Kovy??? And by the way txkingsfan, all these people can repeat what they read on line and I don’t see you asking them for every shred of evidence, I thought it was pretty common knowledge that Tim Lieweke (the HUGE kigs fan) had interest is getting Kovy to the kigs, as far as the Russian angle I thought I made it was pretty clear I was just having fun drawing conclusions

[Reply]
txkingsfan Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:29 am
@Ravens, I know you were, just messing around. I am curious to see Liewieke’s comments though.

quisp Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:27 am
@Ravens, @tex

I do recall Leiweke making a comment around playoff time that could be interpreted (and was) as “LA likes stars” or something like that. Nothing as specific as “I love Kovy, bring on Kovy.” But a real comment, nonetheless.

re loktionov and voynov

loktionov missed dev camp last summer. i don’t think they would want to go play in that horrible league. i would be devastated. but that’s not why I think it.

re no trades yet = likely to sign kovy

uh, maybe, i guess. but lombardi is as likely to be active in trading as in UFA market. i would be willing to bet whatever happens contains some surprises.

54FIGHTING Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:00 am
@txkingsfan,

Are you in Texas? Just curious since I’ll be moving there next month – but only for a year and then I’ll be back in San Diego.

[Reply]
txkingsfan Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:15 am
@54FIGHTING, yes, live in Austin, originally from Santa Monica.
Bob Bobson says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:27 am

Marleau – $6.9MM/yr for 4 years is not good. Glad he is stayed with SJ.

[Reply]
Ersberg says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:27 am

Man, I should have bet people he was staying in SJ, oh well.

[Reply]
Dan H. says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:38 am

Good for Marleau. He’s been with the Sharks or a long time so it’s fitting he gets his reward from them. I wouldn’t want the Kings to pay that much for him.

If Kovi turned up his nose at 10 mill a season I hope that DL isn’t seriously thinking of giving him anything near that. It sure worked out well for NJ.

[Reply]
KC23 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 3:54 pm
@Dan H.,

Kovi turned up his nose at 10m IN ATLANTA … not just 10 mil.

History is littered with players who took a lot less less to go somewhere they wanted to go.

[Reply]
Kevin Y says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:38 am

I really wanted Marleau…

But not at that money. If we have to shell out that much cash, Kovalchuk is the better option.

Marleau’s off the board… but this may be an opportunity in disguise.

[Reply]
Cynic says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:41 am

Well…I think we have 2 options:

1- Kovy for a hossa type contract (10-12 yrs w/ cap hit of 7mil/year)

OR

2- Poach Bobby Ryan from the Ducks with an offer sheet for about 4.3mil/year for 3-4 years and force their hand to match. If they match the offer sheet, The Ducks will have tons of holes in their defense, weakening a rival in our division. If they don’t we give them (3) 1st rounders for Bobby Ryan, which I’d do in a heartbeat, considering I don’t expect those first 3 rounders to be very high anyway.

Usually I’m not up for poaching, but we need a high scoring LW that is reasonably priced so we can pay DD & JJ longterm. This does the job perfectly. DL could call the Ducks GM and inform him of his intentions beforehand if he wants to initiate trade talks, but this situation is like playing poker, being on the river, and knowing what your opponet has and that you can win. IMHO of course.

[Reply]
Kevin Y Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:47 am
@Cynic,

That Bobby Ryan situation is rather intriguing.

But I thought DL doesn’t like offer sheets. Especially, if you do it to a rival, then they’ll do it to you later. Remember the Brian Burke/Kevin Lowe situation between ANA/EDM?

And besides, they’re already gonna be weakened next year w/ no Niedermayer and possibly no Selanne. I don’t think we need to weaken them further

[Reply]
NOW IMPRESSED Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 9:49 am
@Cynic, I don’t think Dean will part with 3 first round picks for Ryan. And I wouldn’t either.

[Reply]
54FIGHTING Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:04 am
@Cynic,

I’d trade Trevor Lewis, Thomas Hickey and Colten Teubert for Ryan (3 former 1st rounders)

Don’t think DL does this for the reasons above. It would require more of a Kessel type trade to get it done but I don’t see the Ducks looking at trading him. They are just playing hardball with the contract talks.

[Reply]
Cynic Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:22 am
@54FIGHTING,

I would have no issue with that trade either. I think that’s why if DL were to inform the Ducks GM of his intentions before he did it, it would give the Ducks GM a chance to get more value than 3 1st rounders. That would be honorable to say the least.

With the immense reported problems their contract talks are having, it may not be as bad. Bobby Ryan stated he is not looking for Corey Perry/Ryan Getzlaf money, so he could be had under 5 million I believe. Give him 4.5mil over 4 years, let Fro walk and we’re good.

[Reply]
sstephen17 Reply:
June 25th, 2010 at 10:52 am
@Cynic, I’d love to get Ryan. Some skill, speed, and an edge to his game. Stealing him from a rival is just an added bonus.

[Reply]
Kevin Y says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:45 am

Then again… that price is somewhat striking to me.

I can’t help but think SJ may have paid more than they wanted to in order to keep him away from LA.

Not that they didn’t want to retain him, but I’m surprised at that salary. The Kings’ interest has to be a factor.

In other words, the Kings MIGHT’VE been able to get Marleau at a cheaper price. But SJ knew how bad it would be if he came here, so they paid more.

[Reply]
DLB Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:33 am
@Kevin Y, that’s what I was thinking.

[Reply]
James says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:46 am

I’m still pretty sure that DL won’t sign an offer sheet to a RFA.

It’s not his style

[Reply]
NOW IMPRESSED says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:47 am

I’m surprised that the press hasn’t suggested Kovi signing with the Ducks. They have a lot of cap space and asking Kovi to play on the same line with Getzlaff would sound good to him. All the more reason for Dean to sign Kovi. To have him sign with the Ducks would be a bummer.

[Reply]
Kevin Y Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:09 am
@NOW IMPRESSED,

Eklund has…

[Reply]
Joel Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:18 am
@NOW IMPRESSED, The Ducks are in the market for Defensemen more than anything. They were terrible on defense last year, and it’s now compounded with Niedermeyer retiring.

You also have to remember that they have to sign Bobby Ryan. They’re having a real difficult time with that because Ryan is asking for a lot.

They don’t have the cap space to throw at Kovi.

[Reply]
PakiFro Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:34 am
@Joel,

Actually, Ryan recently said in the OC register he’s not looking for Getzlaf or Perry type money, which is only about $5.5M. So worst case for the ducks is they sign him for $5M, which still leaves them a lot of cap space.

[Reply]
NOW IMPRESSED Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:15 am
@Joel, Actually the Ducks have more cap space than the Kings do. The Ducks have 20 guys signed for $39.1 mil. and the Kings have 16 guys signed for $44.7 mil. I bet the Ducks will sign Anton Votchenkov away from Ottawa.

[Reply]
Joel Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 5:19 pm
@NOW IMPRESSED, Unfortunately I agree with you. Volchenkov’s the guy I see going to Anaheim. My point is that with a need for a defenseman and a sizeable raise coming to Ryan, they’re not going to be huge players for Kovalchuk.

I actually think the Ducks will sign two defensemen. Their blue line is pathetic. Their 1-2 is now Visnovsky and Wisniewski? Um… A Kovi signing might be about 3rd priority on that team. Anything is possible, but I don’t think it would be likely.

HBFan Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:41 am
@NOW IMPRESSED,

The Ducks need to bolster their defense. If they signed Kovi they would have nothing left over to sign quality D-men and they would end up with one of the worst defensive corps of all time. Plus that franchise is going the wrong way for Kovi. Down.

LA’s three future champions Kobe-Kopi-Kovi

How can it not happen?

[Reply]
NOW IMPRESSED Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:19 am
@HBFan, The Ducks have enough cap space to sign Ryan, Kovi, and UFA Anton Volchenkov.

LA’s three future champions Kobe-Kopi-Kovi
I like that.

[Reply]
variable says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:49 am

not a big marleau fan as a fit for this team…and especially at nearly $7 mil per…

and i’m not a fan of signing kovy at $9/10+ mil per either….

i agree w/everyone here that said “no” to marleau at that price…

[Reply]
Matt George Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 4:52 pm
@variable,

Agreed with yur agreement.

Also … I just was never into the whole Marleau idea so this was all good in my eyes.

[Reply]
Michael G says:

June 24, 2010 at 9:51 am

Lets go after ‘Cowboy’ Bill Flett.

[Reply]
KC23 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 3:57 pm
@Michael G,

Pffft.

Eddie Shack or nothing (that is what the 23 is about after my name).

[Reply]
USCG says:

June 24, 2010 at 10:00 am

man…the Kings better start making some trades/hitting up the UFAS Fast! Ugh…

[Reply]
Kevin Y Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:11 am
@USCG,

Kings can’t do anything anyway. They can’t sign any UFAs but their own.

And just because of the Byfuglien, Arnott, Hamhuis, and Halak trades coming early, that doesn’t mean much. Most trades are gonna come on draft day (like Pronger last year, or Cammalleri the year before).

[Reply]
mckinggolf says:

June 24, 2010 at 10:05 am

Let them sign Kovi to that big contract. Then they will really a bunch of holes to fill. I prefer multiple signings for about the same money. This will make us much stronger long term.

[Reply]
tantrum4 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:15 am
@mckinggolf,

How so? That’s what they’ve been doing since Gretzky left, how’s that worked out so far? Time to finally get an elite scorer in here, spend the money Dean. Give him $10 million for all I care, it’s not my money.

[Reply]
David Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 12:37 pm
@tantrum4, Right, then lose Doughty and JJ.

[Reply]
tantrum4 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 3:53 pm
@David,

No they won’t. They’ll have enough money to resign those guys. Trust me.
jammer06 says:

June 24, 2010 at 10:06 am

I think you guys are looking at PM the wrong way. I think this is DW’s hometown premium, not discount that we see. With the cap going up, making the decision on Nabokov the sharks have basically extended Marleau at a “fair” price within their structure for the time that he will be useful in their organization.
PM might have seen larger overall numbers if he hit the market, but in 4 years he wouldn’t have seen more than this money.

[Reply]
txkingsfan says:

June 24, 2010 at 10:19 am

I got an idea: let’s spend a couple grand to get this website fixed so that we can actually post comments!

[Reply]
Jammers says:

June 24, 2010 at 10:22 am

Can someone please post a picture of Heidi in her white dress from the NHL awards show last night? She was unbelievably hot.

[Reply]
oldthunder says:

June 24, 2010 at 10:23 am

The only problem if we sign Kovy at 10 per year, the beer prices at staples will go from $10 to $15…

[Reply]
Kevin Y Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:43 am
@oldthunder,

I’m 19.

If that’s what it takes to get Kovalchuk, I’m all for it. (But only front-load it for the next two seasons, until I turn 21!)

[Reply]
oldthunder Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:06 am
@Kevin Y,
Amen!

[Reply]
Ravens Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 2:05 pm
@oldthunder, Drink before and after the game at home, also saves on DUI expenses

[Reply]
Matt R says:

June 24, 2010 at 10:27 am

The rumor is that Kovi wants to come to LA. If that’s true, then Deano knows it. If he knows that, then he can use it in negotiations. Obviously Kovi knows he’s not getting more than $10mil, so I agree with the guys who earlier said that he wanted out of ATL. I’m guessing Kovi is willing to accept less money to play here. It might be expensive, sure, but you know Deano won’t mortgage the farm to get him. He’ll leave room to sign DD and JJ.

Kovi would be the most exciting and dynamic player we’ve had since Gretzky. He’d be great for the team, and great for the city. Pull the trigger Deano!

[Reply]
txkingsfan Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:55 am
@Matt R, can we please start providing documentation for these “rumors” (website, publication, etc).

[Reply]
Matt R Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:07 am
@txkingsfan,

I read that back at the deadline in several places and don’t remember any specifically so I’m not going to search back that far to provide “documentation” for what is a comment in a discussion among fans. I am not a reporter and am not required to provide sources. Just relax and enjoy the conversation. If you don’t like my lack of documentation, move on to the next comment.

[Reply]
txkingsfan Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:27 am
@Matt R, easy tiger! nobody was calling you out. I was just curious because I don’t recall hearing that Kovi wanted to come here. In fact, my “sources” tell me that he would rather play on the east coast. And, yes, some of those sources play on the east coast and their anonymity will be protected because I too do not have to reveal them. don’t get me wrong, I’d like to have Kovi and not sell the farm to get him but I doubt it is going to happen. There are still factors besides money (travel, market, proximity to family / girlfriend / mistress, familiarity) that weigh on a player’s decision to change teams.

Matt R Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:40 am
@txkingsfan,

Sorry, seems like lately every time I post something someone jumps all over me so I was getting a little testy.

Dominick Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 6:49 pm
@txkingsfan, There are still factors besides money (travel, market, proximity to family / girlfriend / mistress, familiarity) that weigh on a player’s decision to change teams.

These factors didn’t seem important enough to keep him in Atlanta,and unless he got a new girlfriend in New jersey,I think we have a shot.

[Reply]
Goring 19 says:

June 24, 2010 at 10:28 am

Who’s the next best UFAs our there for our money? Anyone? Anyone? Beuller? Beuller?

[Reply]
tantrum4 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:30 am
@Goring 19,

Frolov..

[Reply]
txkingsfan Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 10:57 am
@tantrum4, Frolov had his chance. We don’t need a $5-6 million player that only gives us 70%. Hell, DL wouldn’t even give Sully a raise and look what happened to Cammalleri. Its about character and work ethic.

[Reply]
Dan H. Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:34 am
@txkingsfan,

Well if you’re looking for a 30 goal scorer that is defensively responsible, who’s your pick then?

spidey35 Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 1:56 pm
@Goring 19,
I did’nt know Bueller was available………just kidding. Probably the best lines in that movie

[Reply]
Paul From Oxnard says:

June 24, 2010 at 10:54 am

So with Marleau off the market does that mean Thornton is now on the block? If so do the Kings go after him if they don’t think/can’t get Kovalchuk (which I don’t think they can do)?

[Reply]
David Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 12:40 pm
@Paul From Oxnard, Why would they trade Thornton?

[Reply]
DLB says:

June 24, 2010 at 11:11 am

Dean should just say: “Hey, Kovy, if you want to roll in Hollywood with some great young contenders on the rise, just lower your asking price a bit. It’ll be fun, I promise.”

[Reply]
Newf Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 11:44 am
@DLB, I would say something more along the lines of “Come to LA, we’ll let you spend some time with Luc, it’ll be fun, I promise”

how could anyone in their right mind turn down hanging out with Luc??

[Reply]
DLB Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 1:59 pm
I sure wouldn’t!

[Reply]
Dominick Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 6:37 pm
@DLB,
It should go more like”Come to LA where your children will have the best Schools,health care fascilities,and amusement parks anywhere.Luc will show you around”.

[Reply]
WWAMD says:

June 24, 2010 at 11:37 am

Great news! I know how much Dean was interested in this guy. We will all see his performance this year, which I predict will be lackluster.

Also this speeds up the Kovy chase and Dean is solely focused on getting Kovy.

You want to read more details about Kovy coming to LA and other news around the league.

You can hear it first and exclusively at twitter.com/WWAMD

[Reply]
Dan H. says:

June 24, 2010 at 11:52 am

Please fix the site! I’m back to viewing in phone mode while in IE. It’s horrible to try and read!

[Reply]
Matt George Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 5:39 pm
@Dan H.,

yur problem there is yur fone sonny

[Reply]
Ciccarelli says:

June 24, 2010 at 12:44 pm

I’ve been asking them to fix the site for months now. I want to access the RSS feed through My Yahoo, but it doesn’t work. And my emails just get ignored. Thus, why I haven’t been commenting in a while.

It took 8 years for Ciccarelli to get into the hall, maybe Rich’ll fix this site sooner than that.

[Reply]
Adam Michel says:

June 24, 2010 at 12:54 pm

The Sharks will not keep Marleau again because he is a free Agent and is Marleau’s choice and not Joe Pavelski’s choice that Marleau will sign 4 years with the kings as a free Agent

[Reply]
Dan H. Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 2:13 pm
@Adam Michel,

huh? You do realize this thread is because it was announced that he ALREADY signed for 4 years.

[Reply]
JB says:

June 24, 2010 at 2:31 pm

What’s scarry is the damn Ducks have the cap space now to really make a run at Kovalchuck too. Not sure they have the balls to make him an offer for a long term contract but they wouldn’t be a bad fit. With the big bodies they have Kovalchuck could find a lot more room on the ice to operate.

As a Kings fan that would kill me if the Ducks landed him! Hope DL doesnt’ get cold feet.

[Reply]
Dan H. Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 3:08 pm
@JB,

They may do it but the Ducks have MAJOR issues on Defense, not forward. They have a good core of young forwards that can bury the puck.

I think the Ducks have Lubo and…Eminger on the blue line? I think they’re more likely to be looking on the back end.

[Reply]
Kevin Y Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 3:25 pm
@JB,

Yeah, the Ducks have the cap space to sign Kovalchuk, but with Niedermayer retiring, and no more Pronger, their defense is: Lubo, Eminger, Brookbank, Festerling, A. Ward (UFA) and Wisniewski (RFA).

Lubo is good, but nobody else is threatening. With Ward a UFA, I expect them to make a replacement. They might allow Wiz to leave for another upgrade.

I think Anaheim might want to get in on Paul Martin (NJ), or maybe try to get Ruslan Salei back from COL. More expensive than Ward and Wiz, yes, but they have the cap space to take that on.

[Reply]
JB Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 3:35 pm
@Kevin Y,
They got space, $20 mil, so they can get Kovy and a good D-man. Of all the teams w/ most space LA and Washington make sense if he’s looking to join a team poised for playoff success that has balance up front and on back end.

Makes me rethink again that Washington w/ that Russian connection and on the East Coast is most likely.

[Reply]
Kevin Y Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 3:48 pm
@JB,

Haven’t heard Washington yet in these rumors…

Because of Ovechkin and Semin’s Russian-ness, they’d make sense… but that’s too many huge contracts. Too many huge, LONG-TERM contracts.
Dan H. says:

June 24, 2010 at 3:05 pm

Chicago got rid of Colin Fraser today. Looks like another 700k free.

[Reply]
mckinggolf says:

June 24, 2010 at 3:08 pm

Trade Stoll, free up more money. Move up in the draft for Etem. With the extra money sign Kovi.

Kovi/Kopi/Williams
Smyth/Schenn/Brown
Simmonds/Zeus/Etem
Westgarth/Moller/Clune

=Championships

Go Kings!

[Reply]
Dan H. Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 3:22 pm
@mckinggolf,

Trade Moller if that’s where he’ll be. You can’t put a guy his size on the 4th line and expect him to bang bodies and be a physical guy.

He needs to be on the top two lines to be successful.

[Reply]
mckinggolf Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 4:26 pm
@Dan H.,

I forgot about Richardson. You can insert him in the Moller slot.

To JJ4Pres; I believe Etem could make the team and play on the lower lines.

[Reply]
JJ4Pres Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 4:00 pm
@mckinggolf, as much as I want to draft him, Etem will not make the Kings his first year.

[Reply]
rick Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 4:21 pm
@mckinggolf, Seems like you forgot about a guy named Brad Richardson.

[Reply]
mckinggolf Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 4:27 pm
@rick,

Yes, I did. I added him to my reply above.

[Reply]
ringo Reply:
June 25th, 2010 at 2:21 am
@mckinggolf,

kovi/kopi/smyth

simmonds/schenn/brown/ what a banger line!!

zeus/richie/mollar/(parse)

clune/elkins/ /parse/
/loktinov/ /mollar/
/lewis/
/cliche/
/westgarth/

throw in on the third line maybe the boogie man with a trade. use williams and stoll as trade bait. we need a top 5 d man and a top twenty d man. the heck with fro, not worth the money.

[Reply]
KC23 says:

June 24, 2010 at 4:07 pm

Kovi would be smart to go lower on his price and go to the Kings. They’ll be some endorsement cash once the Kings start winning consistantely.

[Reply]
GO KINGS! says:

June 24, 2010 at 4:47 pm

Now that Marleau’s gone and Chcago’s making cap space by trading players perhaps to keep Sharp… If by chance the Kings can get Kovi,trade Stoll,Williams,Tuebert,maybe Moller,Lewis and Ummmm Quick or Bernier… Then we could after players like Carter,Hartnell,Speeza.. Signed a named goalie..

[Reply]
Dan H. Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 6:27 pm
@GO KINGS!,

Anyone on the Kings you want to keep?

[Reply]
Kevin Y Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 6:44 pm
@Dan H.,

Randy Jones!

[Reply]
jet Reply:
June 24th, 2010 at 7:09 pm
@GO KINGS!, ovi and cros for depth?

[Reply]
Starlight Reply:
June 25th, 2010 at 1:37 am
@GO KINGS!, I wouldn’t mind trading Williams, Stoll or Teubert at all, but does anyone want them? Maybe Stoll, but I don’t think there are many takers for Williams, and Teubert would be padding in a bigger deal if anything at this point.

I keep hoping that Möller will break out because he has that nice scoring touch, but at this point you’re starting to wonder if he will ever properly adapt to the NHL. He still has the chance of course, but the question is whether the Kings think that he will accomplish it still.

I could maaaybe see Quick get moved, but I doubt it – not this summer. They’ll put Quick and Bernier in to fight for supremacy, if Bernier wins the job they might trade Quick after the season (or they might not, he’s obviously a good goalie and signed for cheap even as a backup).

[Reply]
McDonalds says:

June 25, 2010 at 1:04 am

I would have liked Marleau for sure. and 6.9 million isn’t that bad of a cap hit for what he brings.

So i guess it’s Kovalchuk or trade? Don’t want Ilya for any more than $8 mill though

[Reply]
LMAO says:

June 25, 2010 at 11:12 am

I know I’m not the only one LMAO at the posters who were drooling over the possibility of a Marelau signing in LA, and now that it didn’t happen are pretending that he wouldn’t be a good fit.

No wonder the Kings are known as the laughing stock of the NHL!

[Reply]
adam Reply:
June 25th, 2010 at 12:34 pm
@LMAO,

Laughing stock of the NHL? From what I hear and see, the Kings are regarded as one of the up and coming Elite contenders.

I think the Sharks are more of the laughing stock of the NHL with all of there play-off failures with unbelievable rosters. SJ can keep.

[Reply]
LMAO Reply:
June 28th, 2010 at 11:01 am
@adam, keep telling yourself you are up and coming elite contenders….bwaaaahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!

[Reply]