I don't think Edler will play with Doughty. They're not going to break up the Anderson/Doughty pairing. I suspect he'll line up with Matt Roy.

I think Grundstrom, JAD, Moore will be the 4th line. They looked really good together last season.

Vilardi will be moved to RW, not LW. Turcotte is likely going to be moved to LW.

Aside from that, I agree.

The Edler move was made to ease minutes on Anderson, I believe Anderson will eventually win that battle but I can see Todd going with Edler for the first few games. I can't even remember the last time Doughty was the junior partner on a pairing.

4th line is really perplexing, we need a physical player (Lemieux), we also need a player who can just hog the puck away offensively (Lizotte), the balance of the two is Grundstrom but statistically, he is a disaster every time he gets on the ice. There is also a chance JAD goes back to the AHL so we don't lose Grundstrom or Lemieux to waivers.

Agreed, I believe Turcotte and Vilardi are now seen as wingers for this team.

I think they brought Edler in to provide veteran leadership to the otherwise youthful left side. He's not a big minutes guy anymore. He can't handle top pairing minutes anymore. Doughty praised Anderson incessantly at the end of last season. I don't think McLellan will break them up.

I honestly don't think Lemieux comes back to LA. He'll be given a shot to make the team in September, but I suspect he'll be traded after training camp.

JAD is a mainstay on the Kings. He's not going to play another minute in the AHL. He has earned his spot on the roster.

Grundstrom has had his ups and downs, but he looked really good when lined up with Moore and JAD. They had a quality stretch during the middle of the season before the entire team took a crap. Lizotte and Wagner will be the extras that can slot in for injuries or to cover for poor performance.

With AA signed, I think that’s it for Wagner. His slot will be filled by the Ontario flavor of the week. I pretty much agree with everything else I see. Clague and Maata are going to flip with Maata going to Ontario. I think Lemieux will get another good look. He’s better than what he showed last season. Hopefully he can make it work.

Good work by Blake. Danault might not be a huge goal scorer, but he was the one guy I saw available that could actually make the rest of the team better. I’m going to enjoy watching a lot more than I did last season.

I'm ok with that, Anderson looked better every game although I don't see him as a permanent fixture on the top line he has played well enough to stay there.

As for Lemieux, I think a big takeaway from last season is this team can be pushed around. I hope they take strength and conditioning to another level for the younger guys and come back with a chip on their shoulders. If that isn't the case, I think he has to stay.

I hope you are right about Grundstrom, he's like a mini-Brown, but he has a lot to clean up, I feel like Moore and JAD are the engines on that line. I agree he deserves to stay up, just bringing it up as an option.

Agreed, Wagner is likely off to waivers barring an exceptional camp performance. That fourth line is going to be the biggest mystery until camp cuts, Kaliyev, Kupari, and Byfield could all impress enough to make the team and that's not even considering Tkachev is 25 and been playing against men for years.

Also refreshing to hear someone liking the Danault trade, I think the term is 2 years longer than I'd like but he's basically our next Stoll, able to play 2nd line for a year or two and then transition to a 3rd line checking/shut down center. Byfield needing to surpass 2 Selke candidates to take over the top line is probably my favorite part.

I forgot about Tkachev. Without a trade, we’re going to lose someone on waivers. I think any of Wagner / Lizotte / Grundstrom / Lemieux would get claimed. It’s a nice problem to have. Blake’s got a little more roster work ahead.