LA Kings prospect Linden Vey chirps Toffoli, talks Crosby

Linden Vey at Kings camp (photo: C. Ikiri)

Linden Vey was drafted by the Kings in the fourth round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, coming off a season in which he scored 24 goals and 48 assists for the Medicine Hat Tigers in the WHL.

There's nothing wrong with those numbers. They just don't scream of a future offensive powerhouse.

A statement that was confirmed the following year when he posted near identical numbers, 24 goals and 51 points.

However, he was on MayorsManor immediately following the Super Series in November - a prestigious junior hockey event that pits Canadian players against a team of Russian all-stars. Midway through that interview he said "I don't think you ever stop improving at any part of your game."

It wasn't just some cliche, throw away answer to another interview question. He meant it. And backed up his words by going on to score 46 goals and 70 assists. His 116 point total last season was better than any other player in Canadian junior hockey.

“Last summer, I spent a lot of time training with Tim (Adams, the Kings' strength and conditioning coach) here in Los Angeles. I think that was one of the things that benefited me the most," claimed Vey. "I've always struggled a little bit, conditioning and strength wise. Last year, I think I took big strides in that department, and it really helped me to be more consistent throughout the whole season.

"I could play each and every night. When we would have three games in three nights, I could play at a high level each night, whereas a couple seasons before, I would have a good first game and then I'd have to take the next couple games a little bit slower," said Vey. "I think when you're in condition, you can play more consistent throughout the whole season."

Despite posting staggering numbers though, sites like HockeysFuture still don't have him ranked among the top ten prospects in the Kings pipeline.

Compounding the perceived lack of respect, along with fellow Kings prospect (and OHL scoring champion) Tyler Toffoli, he was left off the Team Canada squad at last winter's World Junior Championship.

LA Kings center Anze Kopitar - What if? And what's next?

March 23, 1994 will forever be remembered as the night Kings captain Wayne Gretzky passed Gordie Howe to become the all-time leading goal scorer in NHL history.

I'm not so sure March 26, 2011 will have the same staying power over time. But, for now, it's the date that Kings players, fans and management can't erase from their minds.

When Anze Kopitar went down with an injury that afternoon it instantly created numerous 'what if' scenarios.

Perhaps, if he hadn't damaged his leg, we'd be talking about the second round today, instead of next season.

Thus, rightfully so, GM Dean Lombardi and coach Terry Murray brought him up several times during our recent de-brief meetings...

Lombardi on Kopitar's defensive improvement - "Over his first couple of years in the league...he was free-wheeling and it looked great on offense, but he was not a great defensive player. I think, this year, he became one of the best defensive players in the league. You've got a guy here now that has has already done the Yzerman, Sakic transformation. It usually took those guys until 25, 26 (years old) before they figured out how to be a complete player. This kid has done it at an early age. I think that's huge, particularly when you’re dealing with big bodies like San Jose down low. But that’s the irony of it. We all looked at it and thought missing his offense (would be an issue in the series), but we end up missing his defense."

They also missed his compete level - "I remember, during the season, the way he (Kopitar) competed with one-goal leads, the way he played at the ends of some games. It said, 'We're going to win this game.' You could just see where this guy said, 'We will not lose this game.' So, that stride is huge."

The Science of Hockey - interview w/ former NHL coach

The links between the LA Kings and Edmonton Oilers are strong - from the Miracle on Manchester in '82 to Wayne Gretzky being traded in '88 to the current trio of former Oilers now with the Kings.

In fact, the last time the Kings made the playoffs another former Oilers captain was wearing black and purple, Kelly Buchberger. And that 2002 team was coached by Andy Murray, a guy who had a reputation for working players hard in practice. Murray's Kings teams even set the NHL record for man games lost in a season.

Interestingly, Buchberger went on to become the strength and conditioning coach in Edmonton for awhile before moving on to become the team's assistant coach. By the time the Oilers made a run to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2006 - with a team that featured Ryan Smyth, Jarret Stoll and Matt Greene - their strength and conditioning coach was Dr. Chad Moreau. The older brother of Oilers captain Ethan Moreau, Chad is an LA based specialist who previously had worked with the Long Beach Ice Dogs of the ECHL.

After the disastrous season the Oilers had this year - including losing a franchise record 530 games to injury - people are looking for answers...and one area being looked at closely is the fitness of the players.

This is actually an issue facing all teams, including the Kings. So, we sat down with Chad to talk about the science of hockey. In this exclusive MayorsManor interview he responds to criticism form Oilers coach Pat Quinn, tells some interesting stories about Chris Pronger, speculates on what the next generation of fitness will be like in the NHL and goes into quite a bit of detail about what it's like trying to balance the needs of the players and the demands of management.