Penner Reflections
by Quisp on Jun 2, 2011 7:54 PM PDT
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Lombardi not fan of our Dustin Penner, either | Edmonton Journal
If Dustin Penner thought he and Craig MacTavish were a marriage made in hell here, how about Los Angeles Kings’ GM Dean Lombardi, who was so unenamoured of Dustin’s play in the playoffs he took a major rip at the one-time Oiler winger. [the beer league comment from several days ago.] The Lombardi shot sounds worse than MacTavish throwing up his hands in November, 2008, when he asked about sitting out Penner, in the second year of his five-year $4.25 million a season deal.
"We thought his contract was the starting point. He believes it’s the finish line. He’s never been fit enough for us. I can’t watch him for another two and a half years," said MacT. MacT was exasperated, but Lombardi’s level of frustration has grown much faster than the former Oiler coach’s.
As it turned out, MacT was gone after the 2008-2009 season. Pat Quinn coaxed the best year of Penner’s NHL life out of him. Last year, coach Tom Renney liked Penner, and spoke highly of his compete level, but the team traded him after 62 games for Colten Teubert and a No. 1 pick this June (No. 19). He had two goals in 19 league games and a goal and an assist in six playoff games when he sometimes found himself on the fourth line. He has one year left on that $4.25 million a year, and he is at the crossroads as Lombardi says.
Make no mistake, Penner has lots of ability. He is a big man, over 240 pounds. He is a handful, when the spirit moves him. He could be like Johan Franzen in Detroit, but he has to look in the mirror. The question is this: he is 29 years old in September. Can a leopard change his spots? He’s not a kid any longer. That $4.25 million won’t be there in 2012-2013 if he struggles next year, too. [...] When your new GM is already calling you out, a few months after sticking his neck out to trade for you, that is not good, Dustin. Like I said, it’s a shame, because Penner has soft hands for a big guy, he can win face-offs when called upon, and when he’s engaged in the battle, he’s tough.
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I remember when Lombardi called Kopitar out for his work ethic. He later let him leave in free agency. No, wait…
by RudyKelly on Jun 2, 2011 8:41 PM PDT via mobile reply actions
Dustin Penner started reading this
But then got distracted by counting his money…
"Parte il tiro, RETE! RETE! RETE!"
Barca Blaugranes- SB Nation's FC Barcelona blog
240 lbs! Forgot he's that big...
Wow, if he acquires a big time work ethic/conditioning change in the offseason, watch out! Another 30 goal campaign? 40 maybe?
Wait a sec…With TMs system though, effort (defense too really) is what Lombardi should be looking at with Penner’s game next year. If Penner gets into much better shape, he won’t necessarily be scoring more goals than he has in the past (or even the same amount for that matter), unless of course Murray opens things up at some point.
I’m sure Lombardi was well aware of T-Mac’s frustrations/comments (as well as others)on Penner prior to the trade, so I have to believe Lombardi feels Pen’s will pick it up next year by getting into great shape. Perhaps Lombardi’s beer league comment was part of his plan… or maybe DL is simply like most of us on this site; optomistic, with our fingers crossed big time…
A somewhat different picture from the one Zona painted for us.
Are Teemu Selanne and Melanie Griffith Twins?
not really though; the truth is somewhere in-between
as rudy said, lombardi is not shy about commenting on conditioning issues. kopitar, doughty and penner…that’s pretty good company, really. it’s about expectations; DL expects him to play at that level.
meanwhile, the numbers are the numbers. penner is an excellent player. did he play well for the kings? for a couple of weeks. and then not. but it’s hard to know what to attribute that to. i assume, penner being human, that it’s true he has a problem with his weight — i have seen him in street clothes and he is huge and looks like a body-builder, but being muscle-y and being fit are separate issues — and the kid is getting to his late 20s…metabolism changes, etc., so anyway, weight issues, linemate issues (injuries to the rest of his line), coaching/system issues (finding the niche — not screwing up defensively in a defensive system while still being required to score — was this even possible under the circumstances? who knows), new team, new expectations, change, etc..
i’m not making excuses. i just don’t think it’s one thing or the other.
but i know for a fact that a super-fit 240 pound giant skilled forward with soft hands is not exactly what you want to see if you’re a defenseman in front of the net.
Wait till this year.
Not so much the circumstance as the mental
Of course circumstance have prevented a fair assessment of the mental aspects of Penner’s game. The man should be a major asset if he’s given consistency and puts his mind to it.
More to my thought. I felt Zona spent considerable time pointing out Penner making others better and just don’t recall Zona elaborating on player-coach personality issues.
I do recall Zona focusing upon fans expecting a more “direct” impact while not appreciating the positive indirect impact Penner’s presence made upon his line mates.
All in all I am looking forward to a season of a skilled line with Penner on the wing.
And I was quite pleased to see the team come together so quickly after the injuries to put up a very good (at times) showing against a fast Sharks team.
Are Teemu Selanne and Melanie Griffith Twins?
Not surprised
Penner was chastised by the Oilers shortly after they got him from the Quacks. He has always reminded me of one of those soft Russian-types (fill in your choice of names) who have all the talent in the world but have no drive or intensity; except at contract time. He was this year’s version of that spit-and-polished, beautiful used car sitting on the show room floor that out shined all the other makes. Then you get him home and find out that he was a bit POS. Like that ’76 Cutlass I bought back in ’81 that fell apart on me on the drive home. UGH!!!
Interesting radio interview
with Rod Brind’Amour. He doesn’t mention Penner, but the fitness guru had some interesting thoughts on player who aren’t in great shape: http://www.wralsportsfan.com/hurricanes/audio/9679699/
www.prosportsblogging.com
by Great Ice-Pectations on Jun 3, 2011 1:12 PM PDT reply actions
What kind of writer leaves out the most important quote from his story?
Dean Lombardi doesn’t like Penner? He said something bad about him?? Wow I can’t believe he would say anything publicly! I’m so curious now! I’m going to read on to hear what he said!
“That beer league comment from a couple days ago.”
Thanks.
So what did he say exactly?
"Dustin is at the crossroads of his career," Lombardi wrote in an email to Sporting News. "He can choose to use his athletic ability to either become a dominant power forward in the National Hockey League or be a dominant number four hitter for the El Cid Lounge in a men’s softball league — the choice is his."
The whole quote was posted days ago.
www.prosportsblogging.com
by Great Ice-Pectations on Jun 3, 2011 3:37 PM PDT up reply actions
sorry didnt mean to be harsh
was half joking. it was annoying it not being there but its fine. i figured it was posted a few days ago i just couldnt find it.
how do you think penner will react to this? if he hates penner’s attitude so much why did he trade for him? is this really the best strategy by lombardi? also cant they just force a team physical trainer on him over the summer? or if not over the summer, cant they just make him do his own physical training program during training camp and during the season? like the canucks, they have individualized fitness programs for their players. why not just do that for penner, and make it a really hard workout? the kings are paying his salary, isnt part of his contract that he has to go to all the practices and do the training the team wants him to?
by jacktheboxboss on Jun 3, 2011 4:05 PM PDT up reply actions
I think the consensus here is a) Lombardi’s comments aren’t that big a deal. b) the Kings have had this issue before with Kopitar and Doughty and both came back to the team in better shape. If Penner gets some help from the rest of the team, pushing him to get into better shape, he’ll be fine.
www.prosportsblogging.com
by Great Ice-Pectations on Jun 3, 2011 4:12 PM PDT up reply actions
how do you think penner will react to this?
He’ll probably be fine or indifferent to it. If he wasn’t… does it really matter? He’s not going to try less hard because Lombardi was mean to him.
if he hates penner’s attitude so much why did he trade for him?
Because he’s good at hockey.
is this really the best strategy by lombardi?
It’s not a strategy, it’s a statement.
also cant they just force a team physical trainer on him over the summer?
If you aren’t trying hard at your job, your boss can’t make you stay later on your off-time to fix it. He can either make you work harder when you’re being paid or he can fire you.
or if not over the summer, cant they just make him do his own physical training program during training camp and during the season?
They probably will.
like the canucks, they have individualized fitness programs for their players. why not just do that for penner, and make it a really hard workout?
They probably could, but won’t because that would probably make Penner less effective during games.
the kings are paying his salary, isnt part of his contract that he has to go to all the practices and do the training the team wants him to?
I’m sure he’ll show up to all the practices and training sessions they want. Will he work as hard as they think he should be? Maybe. Will working hard in those practices and training sessions mean he’ll work hard in games? Maybe. Will working hard in games necessarily mean he’ll score more? Maybe.
I’m looking into the future. I’m seeing articles being written about how Penner worked out all season with Jarret Stoll, Matt Greene and Dustin Brown and now he’s in the Best Shape Of His Life. I’m seeing people getting really excited about how good Penner looks. I’m seeing Penner getting off to a slow start to the season and everyone calling him lazy. I’m seeing Penner ending up with 50-ish points next season and everyone arguing about him.
Yes, hello Rudy
I’m quietly considering whether I like your comments better or your dog. I must reflect on it and when I make a decision I’ll get back to you.
Because he’s good at hockey.
This is something I see getting a bit lost at the moment. The assumption is that he didn’t score for the Kings because he wasn’t in shape. But he scored all those goals with the body type he has now.
He is big and slow. We knew that. I assume they did too. It worked when his job was to complement Williams and Kopitar. But to be a faster, backchecking, hustling type, well — that is going to take work. Changing his style of game wasn’t going to happen overnight.
In Dinglebarn We Trust -- JftC
If you followed the Kings closely, you’d understand the context of a couple of earlier comments to the effect that Lombardi has also prodded Kopitar and Doughty (among others) about their conditioning, and by no means is it a sign that he ‘hates their attitude.’ Physical conditioning is just a really big thing with Lombardi.
Also, if you have experience with Lombardi’s pronouncements, it’s fairly clear that he’s challenging Penner. And just because he challenges you, it doesn’t mean he doesn’t like you. Instead, it’s one of life’s little tests: He wants to see if you’ll respond by working hard to improve yourself and maximize your potential, or if you’ll sulk. A test of character, if you will. If you work hard, you’ll improve yourself and help the team; if you sulk, you’ve just shown him that he doesn’t want you on his team anyway. Either way, it’s up to the player to show the kind of guy he is. Dean may be colorful in how he says it, but in spirit it’s really an objective exercise.
"Prepare your bladder for imminent release!" — Invader Zim
makes sense
no need for the kigns jab though. Ive followed them. I remember Lombardi saying something about Penner after the Kings were eliminated too. But i dont ever remember anything quite like this being said about Kopitar. Challenging them is one thing, behind closed doors, but calling him a fat softball player in the media? Won’t this just make Penner angry at Lombardi? And even if he does get in good shape, he may not want to re-sign with the kings because the GM made attacks on his character in public. I’m not saying i wouldnt have said the same thing in his shoes, I’m just saying im not sure i would have. Thats why i asked what you guys thought. Instead of an answer I get back this snarky “its not a strategy, it’s a statement.” I guess he’s never heard of a strategic statement. Politicians make statements all the time that are political strategies. There are obviously a couple of strategies you can choose from to get an out of shape player to start working harder. That’s why I asked if this was the right one. So yes, it is a strategy. Calling a player out in the media is a strategy. No need for the snark, especially when you’re not even being snarky about something I got wrong. I was completely right in calling it a strategy.
by jacktheboxboss on Jun 3, 2011 4:51 PM PDT up reply actions
no need for the kigns jab though. Ive followed them.
This was not a “jab,” this was a statement. While it’s possible to follow the Kings without having heard this story, it was in a national news outlet, and quickly picked up by LA Kings Insider, as well as this blog and Battle of California (and probably a lot of other Kings blogs that i don’t read). I’m pretty sure the LA Times picked it up. None of the other commenters here needed the same clarification as you. I think it’s a reasonable assumption that you don’t follow the Kings as closely as we do, which is what I actually implied — not that you are completely ignorant.
Same with Lombardi’s statements about Kopitar’s fitness, and Doughty’s fitness. He’s gone on record. We’ve seen the quotes, even if you haven’t.
Challenging them is one thing, behind closed doors, but calling him a fat softball player in the media? Won’t this just make Penner angry at Lombardi?
Dean shaped the statement as a conditional, not an insult. Not what is, but what could be.
Perhaps you do not buy the point that I already made, because I thought I made it clear: Namely, that if Penner reacts negatively to this, then he’s the type of player (and perhaps, person) whom you don’t want on your team anyway because he’s pissy and reacts badly to challenges.
Thats why i asked what you guys thought. Instead of an answer I get back this snarky "its not a strategy,
Pot. meet kettle. You’re the one who began his very first post on this blog with what certainly seemed like an slam directed at the main writer. Perhaps you like to dish it out, but are not so good at taking it, hm? I’m sorry, but I have little respect to spare for someone who is quick to throw out insults — even “half-joking” ones — but is even quicker to find offending snark in simple statements.
"Prepare your bladder for imminent release!" — Invader Zim
That’s a good rundown of the context. I just thought of something to add.
To be fair to people who raised their eyebrows at this, Lombardi wasn’t as sarcastic about Kopi or Drew. I wish he had just given a more colorless quote — the basics of that sharp challenge minus the El Cid. It would be classier. Plus, it seems like the Kings are making it an ongoing project to scare away every other left wing remaining in the universe.
I feel like Dinglebarn can’t help himself sometimes with those zingers.
In Dinglebarn We Trust -- JftC
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