General manager Dean Lombardi confirmed this afternoon that defenseman prospect Thomas Hickey will undergo shoulder surgery and will be out for the next four months. Lombardi indicated that Hickey had been attempting to play through the injury for some time. Asked if Hickey would be able to return for the end of the Monarchs’ season, Lombardi sort of shrugged and said there’s an issue with Hickey needing to get stronger. Another blow for the Monarchs…
Bio
Rich Hammond has covered the Kings, on a full-time or part-time basis, since the 2000-01 season. He previously worked at the Los Angeles Daily News, was the beat writer for the entire John Torchetti era and has witnessed Bob Miller singing country music in a Nashville honky-tonk bar.
E-mail Rich at lakingsinsider@gmail.comABOUT THIS BLOG
LAKingsInsder.com provides in-depth, independent coverage of the Los Angeles Kings. Its content and reader comments are not subject to approval or review by team personnel.RULES FOR BLOG COMMENTING
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very dissappointing…
What a bummer.
Sucks for Hickey and the Monarchs’. The injuries have hit them hard.
Not sure using that high pick to take hickey is panning out…
that Lombardi shrugged and suggested he needs to get stronger indicates that it’s much less of a blow than you’ve suggested. The guy was rotating in and out of the ‘Narchs lineup when healthy.
I was wondering what was wrong with him. The worst thing is that his development would take a little longer of a detour for the main roster.
Here’s to a speedy recovery.
Still stings that the organization could have drafted Voracek with that pick. Just like it’s going to sting every year that passes, Tyler Myers gets better and better and Colten Teubert thinks he’s part of the WWE. Time for this organization to draft the best player available, not the player that interviews the best.
Rich, Sorry for the repost but want it to get to alot of people!
Lets see how many more times I can say this if you have Direct TV order Center Ice after a few days tell them that you dont get the games that are on VS.and call and complain that you do not have Vs and the game is blacked out. THEY GAVE ME CENTER ICE FREE! THATS RIGHT FREE!I have told 3 people that did it and it worked like a charm….tell them you are thinking about getting dish if they dont want to take care of you. Works like a champ!
Is it too early to say bust?
Hickey has some adversity to overcome. Clearly Voinov is ahead of him anyway but rather than write Hickey off I hope DL and the fans just view him as being a two to three year project. I have a good feeling about Hickey. He may be prove to be an asset though not one who is going to help immediately.
Unless injuries destroy his carear Hickey will help somebody win someday. There is something a little different about this player. Lombardi saw it on draft day. I hope his current dissapointment doesen’t cause him to forget that.
Bring back Gudas.
I agree CROWNROYAL, it took dan boyle and brian rafalski some time to develop and look at them now, sometimes the skill dmen take some extra time
Rich,
Did you delete my comment regarding DL drafting small players or is my computer playing tricks on me?
“Posts that continually express the same singular opinion will be deleted.”
If you refrain from posting the same thing, on every single post, no comments will be deleted. Thanks.
So, I have “continually expressed” that DL drafts small players?? And I “continually expressed” the drawbacks of playing two Russians on the same line? It seems as though you’re censoring for the King organization or you just don’t like my posts; either way, its wrong of you.
I’ve been more than patient with your “toughness” comments on every single post. You’re entitled to your opinion and you’re welcome to not comment here. The suggestion that I’m censoring for the Kings is tired and baseless.
Just a little note khanon, once you make the big league your already tough, keep that in mind………..next topic
The injury explains why Hickey got scratched so much this year. Even if injuries derail his career, that was a gutsy pick. IMO, Hickey turned out to be a pretty good player from what so far seems to have been a fairly thin draft. reasonable move by the kings under the circumstances I’d say. I was hoping the Kings would take the ill fated russian kid that year but in hindsight Voracek probably wld be the BPA available when the Kings picked. 2nd year in a row when Hickey had a serious injury requiring surgery–ankle and shoulder. That’s not so good as he plays so hard he injures himself. fun to watch while it lasts
IMO, the Kings are emphasizing grit over skill, so we got (I want to be a goon b/c that’s the best way to make the team) Teubs over (possible perrenial all star who does not fight because he’s too skinny) Myers. Buffalo 1 Kings a lesser number
Still, I’m on board with the (try) to build with the draft as I watched years of suckage going the other way. Need some luck with the kids!
And i had the luxary of watching hickey play a few times, this kid is a gutsy player and is tough as nails, in a few years he;ll be anchoring the kings power play logging 23 minutes a game
kingsfan2316,
Yes, and you could have also mentioned Kimmo Timmonen,originally a Kings property, who has had a pretty good run as a smaller, puck moving D-man. He may still win a cup before it’s all over.
Good example crownroyal, living in alberta i was able to see him play with seattle, also captained canada at the world juniors, along with colton teubert whos a poor mans phaneuf, bring along voynov and i like our defense in a few years especially if we could lockup doughty and johnson
Not a problem. But, since you are employed by the LA Kings, and this is a blog about the Kings, you should not censor anyone’s opinion, unless the opinion of course is offensive. I guess I will have to go directly to those above you and discuss my displeasure with the discrimination that takes place on this site.
What is up with all the Hickey bashing? Some of you haven’t even seeing him play and are talking nonsense!
I saw Hickey play with the Seattle Thinderbirds and from watching him I can tell you there is a reason he was Captain of the Thunderbirds and Canadian World Juniors Team. There is a reason he was a top draft pick. He just isn’t good, he is great.
Sometimes I wonder if it’s Barry Melrose who is posting in here with all this “toughness” talk. There are many kinds of Defensemen- stay at home, offensive, and so on. Yeah, some are tough grinders others are finesse players, and others are a mix. You can’t have them all be the same.
So before you all start bashing Hickey, watch him play.
Seattle757,
I agree that you cannot have all of the same D-men. The Kings have Doughty and JJ as their offensive D-men, adding Hickey and/or Voynov is going a little overboard with blue-line finesse, wouldn’t you say?
So, Hickey is a bust because he has gotten hurt a few times?
Really?
Seriously?
Do people think before they type?
Way too early to call the pick a bust. The end result is what matters. You get the sense of disappointment in DL’s comment
Way too early to call the pick a bust. The end result is what matters.
From What I saw in WJC, he looked like the real deal to me. Kind of a small sampling though.
I have to trust DL and what he saw in Hickey. He’s been right in just about everything else. Time will tell. Now’s not the time.
apologize for the poor cut and paste job
Just a quick updat montreal just jumped ahead of columbus 4-3!…..woo hoo!
Cristo- Gudas is not king’s property. Some peculiarities of the CBA prevented them from signing him as an undrafted player. He’s playing in the WHL now and doing really well (22 games, 7 g, 9 a, +22). wonder if the kings’ll draft him this year.
j- I hope so.
He impressed me greatly at the WJC’s.
Bad luck for Hickey but fortunately for the Kings we are deep on defense so Hickey and others have plenty of time to develop.
What we are desperately in need of is some beef on the 4th line that can play more than 5 minutes a game. Hopefully both players just called up can have some impact. We need 2 or 3 players watching from press box every game pushing the younger and even older players to step up or else. With such a young team I don’t understand why this is not happening. I don’t want anyone thinking they are too good that they can’t be scratched.
I saw an interview of Hickey a year ago on You Tube for his Jr. team, and I was very impressed with his maturity. So points are 1) He’s extremely mature 2) He obviously has capacities as a leader, otherwise there is no way they would have had him captain the Canadian Jr’s and 3) I remember Lombardi or a Kings scout saying the day after that draft that he had ‘wowed them’ with his skating.
To me that is three very solid points in Hickey’s favor and I think it’s WAY too early for people to start writing him off. If they had done that with Charlie Simmer who was I believe 25 or 26 before things took off for him, there never would have been a Triple Crown Line.
I hope Hickey gets well soon!
Hickey will be fine in the long run.
He is a legitimate talent, and
will be a good NHL defenseman in
several years or so.
This injury probably trashes this season, though.
Hopefully, he can come back & be healthy for
a few games at least, albeit very late
in the season or POs.
I love how Kings fans are always ready to label a pick a bust After a year or 2.
I wonder how its like being a has-been at 20.
I’m not so concerned with whether Hickey will pan out in the NHL as much as Dean taking him 4th overall. Kane and van Riemsdyk went ahead 1 and 2, but Sam Gagner sure looks good for the Oil and would’ve been a very good piece to add to this Kings team.
Btw, this organization and GM aren’t exempt from criticism. Hate to break it to some of you. If anything, it’s more ridiculous when you pledge blind allegiance to a GM who set this franchise back at least two years (if not three) when he brought in Crawford and Cloutier. He’s made amends, here and there, but there should be skepticism when a team comes apart b/c a middle aged left winger goes down for a month.
Seems people forget that the Flames and Flyers are still really good teams.
Btw, I highly doubt Crawford and Cloutier set this team back at all. Its not like they were the reasons we didnt make the playoffs those 2 years. lol
A few points… If everyone can remember, DL was thinking defenseman, and ONLY defenseman when he had that pick. So the talk of Vorechek and Gagner, that was never happening. At the time, the pick did sting, and I’ve always kinda kept an eye on Karl Alzner, taken a pick later to WASH, kind of a bruising D-man and rated much higher, but he seems like he’s kind of floundering. Since then tho, with what we saw in the WJC, captaining that team (and paired w/ Teubert), and the stuff you could find about him in Seattle, I have become a BIG fan. Better 2 way than JJ, the injuries scare me a bit, don’t know what he checks in at, but 170-180 isn’t cutting it. And, honestly, DL comments are a slight red flag.
But as we’re seeing w/ Bernier, there is no “this guy will be here when he’s 20 or 21, for sure”. Everybody was loving Schenn during training camp, and we feel pretty good about him being that pro’s pro down the road, but are we gonna crap all over him if he hits a couple bumps in the road? Look at what his brother is going thru right now. They’ll be fine, same with Hickey. He’ll fill out, and he’ll be that pro’s pro. Maybe next year, maybe not until he’s 23, but he’ll make it. I hope its with the kings.
A real blow for the kid Kings fans love to hate.
Here’s to a great 2010-2011 season for Hickey.
Rich
I didn’t think my post was that bad that it needed to be deleted, but it’s your blog, your rules..I’ll follow.
I was just calling out a misleading comment.
nykingfan… Honestly, it wasn’t THAT bad, but I’m trying to get away from these “you’re an idiot,” “you don’t have a clue” comments that seem to be getting progressively more hostile. Yours was not terrible, but I certainly know that you have the ability to make good points without having to insult others.
Gotcha Rich
Thanks..You’re right..I could have just stated my point, or rebuked the other point without getting personal. My bad!
To be honest Rich, I’d be happy to see you crack down more on the childish bickering on this blog. Just because it’s the internet and people post “anonymously” doesn’t give them the right to act like a spoiled 4 year old and throw a tantrum every time they write a post. Garbage like that is why I stopped reading other Kings related forums, and it’s gotten quite pervasive here as well.
It’s your blog Rich. Exercise as much discretion over what’s posted as you feel is appropriate and don’t worry about those who would accuse you of “censorship”.
Thanks for finally stepping in and doing something Rich. People have forgotten that this is a site to express opinions about the Kings and hockey, not to belittle and degrade people. Keep up the great work.
I think jayhay said it all. Good post.
Just my opinion, Rich, but there’s something a little off-putting about the deletion of some posts. I understand the need to do away with those laden with profanity or personal attacks, but deleting something just b/c that person may be repetitive or doesn’t provide the most elucidating point doesn’t make sense. They are visiting your site, after all.
With that said, you do a great job with your analysis and covering the team.
Well, we knew Hickey was a long term prospect. Hopefully it will work out and not be another Boyle.
J & Cristobal… and anyone else, I wrote a little piece with vids about Gudas the other day.
I love this guy. J, perhaps you can expand on why we couldn’t get him if you know more specifics. I thought that our system was full, but I may be wrong on that.
http://deepinsidethekings.com/2009/11/21/gudas-good/
Hey Rich – Keep up the great work and don’t worry about the posters that complain about you “censoring” their posts. I, for one, like that you have deleted posts from people that are basically saying the things over and over again. Those posters are like email spam, no body cares for them.
It’s fine to have your opinion but say it once and go on…no need to write something that has the same meaning/undertone about the player/coach/or organization over again in every new posts.
Hey wavesinair, about gudas hes got 16 pts in 22 gms this season with a whopping +22 and 63pim, im intrigued with this story now!
Waves –
Great little blurb.
I saw him during the WJC’s and he stood out to me (never got to see him in camp) and I don’t know why he went undrafted (as you said, maybe someone who knows more about the rules governing this stuff, like
J or Quisp will furnish some info).
Maybe Rich can get us some info from DL about him, too.
But, I hope he doesn’t become
Too hot a property and some other team slips in to steal him.
I’d really like to know what turned DL on to him in the first place.
Finally, it says something about hockey that we here in the states have so little exposure to this great game, that we know so little about players before they get to the NHL.
Thank God for great tournaments like the WJC’s, though, and our ever expanding ability to see them on the tube.
Cheers
Nobody could ever argue that this site censors or dissuades opinions that are critical of the Kings. Having read about 90% of every post and comments that have been posted here over the last several years, I’m quite sure I’ve heard it all, many times over. Epithets are not arguments (I mean arguments in the sense of an opinion that is supported by facts, countered by an opposing opinion supported by other facts). And I don’t think you can make a case that censorship has occurred when opinion x is expressed a hundred times and the last time it’s deleted. In fact, it would be easier to make the case that NOT deleting the endless repetition of the same point over and over again has the effect of oppressing the opinions of everyone else, simply by crowding the other opinions out. It’s a kind of bullying, really, in the way that spam is bullying, or the way a very loud OCD bore at a party makes it hard for everyone else to talk.
“If anything, it’s more ridiculous when you pledge blind allegiance to a GM who set this franchise back at least two years (if not three) when he brought in Crawford and Cloutier.”
Criticizing Crawford and Cloutier is realistic (and I’m on board with it.) Saying he set the franchise back at least two years ignores the fact that they were obviously meant to be placeholders until the talent Deano chose was available at this level.
WRT censorship, people need to look up the definition. It’s happening, but that doesn’t mean it’s not merited. Sometimes the term gets conflated with qualified terms such as undue or unethical censorship. Put bluntly, censorship is the purview of the property owner or the person given charge by the owner, but it’s also reasonable, from time to time, to ask for clarification if one believes his post was made in good faith.
As always, extremely well said Quisp. And I agree completely. However…
It’s not quite that simple. A site like this deserves a commenting system that’s worthy of it’s popularity and prestige. Now that we have some rules in place and posted, the next step is to have a system that allows for replies to specific comments, thumbs up/down, flagging, sorting, popularity, etc, etc.
It will make for a much more robust atmosphere with an ability to focus on certain debates between individual commenters.
Excellent post too Kenny.
I’m sure there are better tools out there, but this is the one I saw the other day. It looks pretty good to me.
http://intensedebate.com
There has to be plenty of resources over there at AEG Rich to make these kinds of programming changes. Please consider.
@ Waves (for the record, someone I don’t think kindly of haunts this place with the “kenny” moniker, but I took it you meant me)
I strongly agree with you on the need for a more robust comment system–or, a separate-but-related BBS that we’d be welcomed to discuss anything on, at least in a subsection. Discussions WILL come up, and it would be nice to be able to discuss things in an environment where you don’t have to worry as much about pissing off people (who just want to talk hockey) by having conflicting opinions unrelated to it and/or sharing knowledge about subjects which pop up. There’s also discussion of meeting up, and a million other things that don’t work well here.
I hope there will be an effort by AEG/Rich to address such stuff.
BTW, Waves, what’s the full meaning of your handle? Mine’s in reference to this (not what most expect):
http://www.ratherbiased.com/bizarre.htm
Search for “frequency.” Sorry the site’s someone else’s and poorly maintained.
What’s the frequency, Kenneth?
“but it’s also reasonable, from time to time, to ask for clarification if one believes his post was made in good faith.”
that’s what I asked for and that’s what he gave me. I have no problem with that at all.
It’s funny because your reply to Scaught was what I was also trying to say..just not as well as you put it.
KENNETH, i agree be nice if even once a day rich would say post an open forum just so the fans here could bring anything they wish to among the group even a get to know post where maybe the fans could get to know each other a bit, maybe curb some of the sour reactions and squibbling that occurs, watcha guys think?
KF2316, I’d say that’s a nice suggestion, given that the “real” solutions are a lot more complicated for Rich to handle any time soon.
NYKF, thanks, I agree.
Just thinkin, theres alot of us kingsfans all over north america on here and many different comments, i for one would be interested in getting to know and understand each other, Rich what would you think bout that?
Ahhh! Very cool song and origin. So if I call you Mr. Rather or Danny in the future, you’ll know I’m referring to you! No more kenny though…
Have you seen this old clip? Yep, that’s Dan Rather singing!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3vn_YQ1vTE
My handle, since you asked, is ironically not entirely dissimilar to yours. I came up with it many years ago and just kept it. It is about waves in the air. Both technologically and spiritually. How we’re all connected in some way or another. Microwaves, cellular waves, wireless waves, thought waves, sound waves… they’re all waves of energy constantly surrounding us… that and I’ve surfed since I was able to walk.
Guys,
If you really want a place to duke it out, get rude, yell, scream, offend, etc., it’s easy enough to make ur own blog and just let it be the “room” for all “off-topic” discussions. Or, alternately, we could just agree to take the fight to LGK.
Sort of a six degrees of photons, butterfly effect idea…that sounds interesting….
Waves- the way i understand it, even though gudas went undrafted, he was not eligible to be signed because he was ineligible to play in the league. He was ineligible because he did not play hockey in NA in the year prior to the draft and was under 22 years old (per CBA article 8.9 subsection b-iii). Elgibility is required for him to be signed as a UFA (article 10.1 subsection d-i).
Of course, this assumes that the kings indeed wanted to sign him.
@ Waves: I should have mentioned what wavesintheair originally made me think of. It made me think of a slapshot flying over the goaltender’s head and him waving at it, LOL! Then, I thought, well, maybe it’s an image of a friendly greeting….
scaught- maybe you’re newer around here so you’re unaware of some of the history, i don’t know, but guys like khanon have been posting the same thing over and over for years, and have been warned many times in the past to vary things up. I think i’ve personally read well over 1000 posts by khanon talking about how un-tough the kings are (and thats even with trying to ignore his posts). It gets old…
The thing is, posts like these have brought down the quality of discussions in the past and drove away visitors- many other posters, including some very knowledgeable contributors, just got tired of them and left.
Rich is very fair and has been more than patient.
-J,
I have commented far less than a 1000 posts, probably no more than 100. So what if I talk about toughness, its not like I am jamming the threads with numerous comments?
We are very spoiled to have this much in-depth access to our team on a daily basis; thanks again Rich!
What I fail to understand are the multiple sign-in names used by a select little group of posters here. Why is that allowed?
copper
the different identities are called sock puppets (put a sock on your hand and you have another little you) but are kept secret from everyone else. i’m sure people do it for a variety of reasons, most of which are flat out childish in my opinion.
it’s not allowed, but it’s hard to stop. this site doesn’t have a comment system in place to help limit that behavior. however, it’s almost impossible to stop completely on even the best systems. one thing that would help limit it is a robust registration process where personal information is required. that goes a long way.
the bottom line is Rich currently has neither the time nor inclination to implement such a system. hopefully he will decide to move ahead with improvements soon and have the AEG tech people make it happen.
J
thanks for the insight. yes, i remember now about the 1 year in NA prior to a certain age. but what about a limit to the number of signed players by a team? does that ring a bell?
Quisp
right, the whole off topic, BBS stuff is more than i envision for this site, but i suppose it could work if designed properly. however, the commenting and posting methods really need an overhaul. as you know, searching alone is a chore and a half.
waves- yes, there is a contract limit, 50. That could have become a factor if he would have been eligible.
The way I see look at gudas, the kings got a preview on a player they may want to add in this years draft. His play in the WHL may be turning some heads, but keep in mind that he’s 19 and will be 20 at the draft. He’ll likely be around in the later rounds so won’t cost a high pick.
Khanon/Khanon81/KevinWestgarth- perhaps 1000 posts on toughness is a little high, you’re right You do however, seem to bring it up any chance you get, even if it’s not really appropriate. At times it stimulates discussion- I remember you and I having one about toughness and cup winners many months ago. At others times, well…. I don’t know what your comment about hickey was, but seriously the kid has been trying to play through the injury (I’m assuming your post wasn’t deleted because you were praising hickey’s toughness)- what point could you’ve been trying to make?
We all know you’re into the rough side of the game and that’s cool. That’s you. Just like Quisp’s thing is stats and #’s, right? Unfortunately, instead of it being something that is endearing (sorry, i couldn’t think of a less wussy word), it becomes grating and negative with the repitition of themes in your posts. And whether or not you think that it’s repetitive, to others, it is. Personally, I think you’ve got a different interest/perspective than many who frequent here that could stimulate some good discussions, if you could work on conveying your position more constructively.
Was this thread about Hickey?
Hickey is a great skater. He is smart and he is a winner…. has been his whole career.
I just don’t understand the impatience with this kid. You know they are not robots. I for one will not count him out till he does himself. I don’t like DL’s comment as it stands, and would remind him to remember why he took a risk on Hickey.
Teubert to me seems about as smart as a box of rocks. We got him for a walking away Cammi so I don’t mind if he doesn’t pan out but why does he get more of a pass from all of you?
Just wondering.
Rich,
Have you asked DL what he thinks about Tyler Myers progress vs. Teuberts? It has always been a bit of a mystery why he liked Teubert over Myers in that draft. Would love to know what DL’s thoughts were on Myers when he made that draft day deal with Buffalo.
Also do you know how Teubert has been doing this year?