The Wizard plays the ultimate game of 'Where's Whitney?'

Where's Whitney...going? (photo: D. Sheehan)

This season, #WheresWhitney has become a popular hashtag on twitter among Coyotes fans, as they keep an eye on popular winger Ray Whitney. With the trade deadline approaching though, it's getting harder and harder to figure out where he just might be next.

"I haven't been rumored to go to some of the teams at the bottom of the league yet, like Edmonton." he said, when asked if there was a team out there he hasn't seen his name attached to. "It's been like that the last couple of years now - including my last season in Carolina and then with the rumors again this year."

Talks have cooled of late though, as the Coyotes have gone 5-0-1 in their last six games and enter tonight in the eighth playoff spot.

"Certainly if we would have kept going the way we were going, spiraling, it probably would have happened by now or the talks would have been even more. But, us being in a playoff spot changes that. As long as we're in it by the deadline, it will make things a little more interesting. in terms of what they're going to do. If somebody gives (Coyotes management) a good deal, you still have to think about life beyond this year. If there's a right deal, I'm sure they would do it."

Uprooting and moving his family was a major concern the last time he entered the trade deadline as a pending free agent (2010). And while his wife and three children are still a high priority, if he changes teams again, he has a plan this time around - at least for the short term.

"They'll stay in Phoenix, regardless of what happens, and that would be the tough part. If I do get traded, right to the end would be the best time to do it, on the last day. That would minimize the amount of time I have to be away. It would be hard on my wife and kids, but they also realize there's a looming lockout next year. If there is one, that would probably be the end of my career. So, I realize this could be the last chance for me to go get one."

Nicknamed the Wizard, for the amazing things he can do on the ice, Whitney says he'll eventually end up living back in Carolina once his playing days are over. But, he's far from being ready to become a homebody just yet.

In fact, Whitney would be so perfect for LA, it's probably too good to be true. He plays left wing - the position they need the most help with. His 16 goals so far this season would place him second on the Kings, one behind Anze Kopitar. And his 51 points would have him leading the team.

Oh, and how's this - what was he doing last night?

"I (met) my good friend Justin Williams and his beautiful wife for dinner in Manhattan Beach to shoot the bull a little bit and reminisce about the old days."

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves with a Whitney and Williams reunion though, there's still a game to be played tonight.

"It's a 'muck fest' when the two teams get together," he joked. "We're both defensive oriented teams. However, we realize they have the potential to be a big offensive team. For some reason, it just hasn't clicked this year."

No, it hasn't. But, a scoring left wing sure would go a long way towards solving some of the Kings' problems.

The Mayor
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Four Kings play Word Association with Coyotes leaders

Three games into the Kings' six-game season series with the Coyotes it's been exactly what you'd expect from two division rivals - tight, close battles. They split a pair of games in October, with the Kings shutting out the Coyotes 2-0 in the first contest and losing 3-2 in a shootout a little over a week later.

Both those games were in Phoenix. Then, the day after Christmas, Staples Center hosted game three and the Kings won 4-3 - getting two goals from their defensemen (Rob Scuderi and Willie Mitchell), a rare site this year.

With a look ahead to tonight's game, we asked a few of the Kings to play word association using the names of four Coyotes players they know well - long-time captain Shane Doan (a Kings killer throughout his career), Ray Whitney (leading the 'Yotes with 35 points...and 15 career goals vs. LA, his most against any Western Conference team), Keith Yandle (leads all Phoenix defensemen with 24 points) and Derek Morris (has played 63 career games vs LA).

Here were the answers...

from Dustin Brown

Doan - Physical
Whitney - Magical
Yandle - White stick
Morris - Big

Ryan Smyth on the almost-King, Ray Whitney

For the first time in...well, a really long time...the Kings were buyers at the NHL Trading Deadline last season - instead of the sellers the team had become the last five plus years.

Rather than trading away players for future assets, they acquired two rentals for a playoff push, Freddy Modin and Jeff Halpern. Neither were bad players, just not the player they coveted most. Ray Whitney, playing in Carolina at the time, was a key guy targeted by GM Dean Lombardi.

Fans in Los Angeles know him well, as he's spent much of his career in the Western Conference - having played in San Jose, Edmonton, Columbus and Detroit.

Tonight, the Kings will see Whitney's familiar face in Phoenix - where he signed a two year free-agent contract during the off-season. 

However, a few months before becoming a Coyote, there were many rumors floating around that a deal for Whitney was real close.

How close? Well, Kings forward Ryan Smyth played with him this summer on Team Canada's squad at the World Championships in Germany. Let's see what he heard...

MM: When you were with Whitney over in Europe, did the trade deadline rumors come up at all?

Storm Watch 2010 - Trade Winds Picking Up

The LA Kings have been downright maddening so far in 2010.

The problem has been known since last season - they need more offense.

Ryan Smyth may be back from injury, but he can't carry the top line by himself. Randy Jones may add some occasional offense, but he's usually a huge defensive liability. Alexander Frolov continues to...well, put it this way - he and Patrick Marleau will both be unrestricted free agents this summer. On guy currently leads the NHL with 35 goals and the other...well, continues to be Frolov.

The Kings need Frolov to put up those type of numbers, not be a solid two-way forward that chips in some goals only periodically. Wayne Simmonds has more goals right now than Frolov...and he's played three fewer games than Fro. That's unacceptable.

Much has been made about the team's restocking of the farm system over the last few years and their development of younger players. And while this isn't a knock on any individual player, the roster is filled with too many kids right now.

A trade for a top-six forward needs to be made now, not closer to the trade deadline. The points in the next 10 games are too valuable.

Take a look at how the Kings have been performing:

Last night's win came in the 50th game of the season. Breaking the season down into 10-game segments shows a rather consistent performance by the Kings:

1st 10 games = 12 points
2nd 10 games = 12 points
3rd 10 games = 13 points
4th 10 games = 10 points
5th 10 games = 12 points

Which leads us to the real question... Is that same level of performance (about 12 points in every 10 games) going to be enough? It could be, but probably not. Most other years it probably would be. However, this season continues to be filled with three point games by a lot of teams.

For the Kings, it's too risky a proposition to hold your breath and hope they have enough to reach the finish line.  The team has been largely hovering around the 8th seed all year. The time for a trade is now.

Yes, the Kings have been learning how to win. And they've been learning how to lose.

All the while, they've also been trying to raise their compete level (the trendy saying of the moment) and coach Terry Murray continues to preach his 'shot mentality.'

Yet, the bottom line remains, this version of the LA Kings is short on offense...and to win games they need more of it.

Here's a quick review of some of the names who might be available to help:

* Eric Belanger - solid, veteran center...other than Jarret Stoll, the Kings are terrible on faceoffs...he's an unrestricted free agent this summer, so could be a good rental player...when I asked somebody in the Kings organization about him recently they said 'He's been one of the best faceoff men in the league, he's still got a lot of speed'

* Raffi Torres - he certainly would follow the theme of the last few years, where LA picks up a guy who's had some recent injuries...all jokes aside, he plays wing - which is the most critical need for the Kings right now...he has 26 points in 49 games this season - more than Scott Parse, Brad Richardson and Teddy Purcell

* Ray Whitney - one of the better choices available...he's a proven top-six forward with a Stanley Cup ring...great character guy...rumor is, it would probably cost a second round pick...it's a complicated situation though because he has a no trade clause and reportedly loves playing in Carolina

* Tampa Bay Lightning - two years ago it was heavily rumored that the Kings were interested in Vincent Lecavalier - but, at this point, it just doesn't make sense with his big contract...the Lightning have three other players who might be better options, each with varying levels of probability when it comes to their availability - Martin St Louis (least likely, has a no trade clause), Ryan Malone (maybe) and Alex Tanguay (rumored to be available and would cost the least)...getting Tanguay would be interesting, as he was available last summer and Dean Lombardi passed on him

* Scott Hartnell - another player with a limited movement clause - however, this is the PERFECT guy for LA...some would complain that Dean Lombardi went after another former Flyer, yet that would be unfair criticism...Hartnell was drafted by and raised in the Nashville system...he plays on the top line in Philly and if you're going to move Frolov in a package, this is the type of guy you want in return

* Ilya Kovalchuk - of course, the Kings have been rumored to be in the sweepstakes for weeks...I just don't see it...Atlanta is going to want (and get) too much in return for a guy that will be unrestricted in July...plus, in the back of my mind I keep thinking about baseball (and we all know how much Lombardi loves baseball)...GMs there are often warned about taking the best pitcher on a bad team...I'd argue the same concern exists here with Kovi...an alternative from Atlanta might be Kozlov.

* Duck haters beware - two other possibilities include Teemu Selanne and Paul Kariya

To get something you have to give up something (or some things). Trading draft picks is fine. If the Kings can get what they need with that, great - it's just highly unlikely to be that 'inexpensive.' Trading Purcell isn't going to get you much in return either. They may need to use Frolov to fetch more than what a package of 'Purcell and picks' would yield.  However, would they really be better off swapping out his goals for those of somebody else? Not really - that sounds more like a replacement than an addition.

So, what's left? Prospects that still have high trade value.

Lombardi has commented that he probably waited to long to trade Brian Boyle. The Kings have several kids in the system that may still yield a high return. So, perhaps the time has come to part with some of the future. Thomas Hickey may have been the guy they wanted at that draft, but how many young defensemen can the Kings really work in over the next two to three years? They already have Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson playing in LA.  Having Hickey, Colten Tuebert and Viatcheslav Voynov in the system is at least one too many blueliners.
It's a good problem to have, for sure - but somebody has to go.

The future is now. As in right now, not in another month at the trade deadline. There are 32 games left as of this morning - a third of which will be played before the deadline on March 3rd.

Fans have been doing their part in LA, with several sellouts since Christmas.

Dean Lombardi, you're on the clock. What are you going to do next?

The Mayor
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