Quote:
Originally Posted by SuperMatt18
Kings rebuild isn't looking as promising as it once did TBH.
Turcotte busted. Byfield might still be a top 6 center but doesn't look elite.
Vilardi, Kupari, and Kaliyev are great supporting pieces but not sure any are top line players.
They traded their 1sts in 2022 and now 2023.
So really the only piece of the rebuild that still might be a truly elite piece is Clarke.
Honestly it goes to show how hard it can be to get a rebuild right. In 2020/2021 the Kings were applauded for their drafting and had by far the best prospect pool in the NHL.
Now it looks good but not great. And as mentioned the people driving the bust aren't really people drafted during the re-build but pieces they added via trade and UFA, or kept through the re-build (Kopitar, Doughty, Kempe, Fiala, Arvidsson, Danault)
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Yeah, Byfield was described as a can't miss prospect. All draft picks are just guesses. 1OA is usually a lock, but not always and from there, every draft position has been historically hit and miss. 4 years later and the top of the 2019 draft isn't really making a huge impact. 2018 slightly better but not by much.