An Opportunity for Friesen?

Rudy beat me to the punch, but yes, Torrey Mitchell is out for two months. That's pegging his return in late November. This will muck things up a little bit but this gives an opportunity for Jeff Friesen to grab a roster spot.

I'm guessing this won't affect Todd McLellan's top two lines, but the current would-be third line of Mitchell with Marcel Goc and Mike Grier on the wings is obviously mucked up. Goc, however, is a natural center and shifting him over would make sense for the time being. Who takes the spot on the wing?

Well, of course Tomas Plihal could work in there, or they could experiment with Devin Setoguchi for a little more offensive punch. (Setoguchi remains a wild card as the lineup shakes out) However, if we're looking at this to be a defensive unit based on speed with some scoring ability, that's what the old Friesen used to specialize in. He obviously didn't really do that in his stints in Washington and Calgary, but let's just assume things go well for Freeze (he's looked pretty good in camp so far) and they've gotta slot him in somewhere.

It makes sense, though it'll obviously create a logjam of forwards when Mitchell returns. Still, it's better to have too much depth than not enough.

Besides, wouldn't it be cool to see good ol' Freeze in teal?

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

My newly minted favorite non-King, Torrey Mitchell, looks to be out for 8 weeks after breaking his leg during practice. At about the same time my favorite prospect, Marc-Andre Cliche, hurt himself after awkwardly falling in the aftermath of a Denis Gauthier check. I feel like Wyatt Earp after Virgil and Morgan were shot.

In other news, the Kings released their split-squad rosters for the game tomorrow in LA and Kansas City. LA gets Brown, Kopitar, Johnson, Frolov, Jason Labarbera, and Brian Boyle, while Kansas City gets... Wayne Simmonds and Drew Doughty. Hahahahahahahahaha.

Also, Matt Greene has been partnered with Jack Johnson for most of training camp so far. That's a pretty good defensive unit, but it makes our 2nd pairing Tom Preissing and... Alec Martinez? We need another defenseman.

Random Pacific Questions: Who's Your Langdon Alger?

I love my team. I've been following the Kings since before I could tie my shoes (I've got it down to where I get one loop; where do people get the other one?) and I've hated the Ducks and Sharks since snap bracelets were cool. Still, I admit that I sometimes look longingly over at the other side and have dark dreams about one of their players. It's never someone like Joe Thornton for me (although I would go to the south of Spain with him if he asked me); I always enjoy the quiet boy in the corner that enjoys puzzles. I love the Langdon Algers of the world. This season, my Langdon Alger is Torrey Mitchell.

Let's go to Paris.

I'll be honest, I don't really know why. I mean, he's a good young center, but he's not the kind of person that should make my pants tight. I think (from my limited viewing) that Mitchell is a pretty good defensive center and he and Mike Grier did a good job shutting down opposing scorers last season. Mitchell can't really score or anything like that, but I'd say he's one of the Sharks most important players. Plus, he's only 23. (What's with the Sharks having great young defensive players?) I was silently hoping that the Kings would sign him to a $3 million dollar offer sheet this off-season, but Lombardi was content to give that money to Jarret Stoll. If the Sharks put Mitchell with Grier and someone like Ryan Clowe, I just may have a wet dream. It's crazy, but I dare say that Mitchell may eventually become the best defensive forward in the Pacific pretty soon. Like, this season. Suck it, Pahlsson.

I mean, watch this:


How can you not love this guy?

So who do you guys have an irrational love for? Can't be someone on your own team, but it can be someone that was on your team but has since moved on.