Game #36

LA KINGS

20-12-3

43 pts

5th in Western Conference

vs

PHOENIX COYOTES

14-15-6

34 pts

13th in Western Conference

7:00pm, Jobing.com Arena

Glendale, AZ

FSW, NHLN-CAN

ARE THE LA KINGS IN THE PLAYOFFS?

Look, I'll be the first Los Angeles Kings fan to admit that I haven't watched a lot of Buffalo Sabres hockey over the past 2 years. (Well, except for that one time overseas. ) In fact, when I'm not watching the LA Kings play hockey... I can guarantee you that I'm certainly not watching the Buffalo Sabres play hockey. So when I heard the news that Buffalo Sabres defenseman Robyn Regehr was traded to the LA Kings... I did what any person does when they want an unbiased and thoughtful opinion on a player in the NHL... I went to Twitter!

Right... maybe that was a bad choice. So instead... I turned to the experts. And by "experts" I mean people who were forced to watch Robyn Regehr play for their favorite hockey team on a nightly basis. First up is Chris Ostrander from the great Buffalo Sports blog, Two In The Box.

"Robyn Regehr will soon be donning silver and black after being acquired from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a pair of second round draft picks. Regehr should bring that level of pugnacity and physical play that may have been missing since Matt Greene's injury.

When the Sabres acquired Regehr he was widely accepted as the physical, stay-at-home veteran the Sabres were looking for two summers ago. There was also the small bonus that he kind of looks like Shrek."

"He won't be mistaken for a puck moving player who will provide offense off the back end (even though he only has one less goal than Drew Doughty), but he will bring a steady physical presence each night.

Regehr is one of those defenseman who has all the intangibles than non-fancy stat hockey minds value. He will block shots, lay body checks and bring leadership whether or not he's wearing a letter. I think the Kings will benefit from having him in the lineup. He and Scuderi will provide plenty of jam while LA's plethora of puck movers can provide supplemental offense."

Ok... well it seems like our friend in Buffalo thinks that Robyn Regehr might be a good fit for the LA Kings defense. Now Regehr only spent 1 1/2 seasons in Buffalo... so what do our friends from up north in Calgary have to say about their former alternate captain? I'm sure Kent Wilson from Flames Nation has got something awful to say about Robyn Regehr, right? RIGHT?!?

"There was strong evidence he was on the downslope when he left Calgary. The spirit was willing, but his general immobility and difficulty handling the puck was exacerbated by advancing years and perpetually bad knees. Regehr could still hit - can still hit, no doubt - provided the target isn't too fast."

Go ahead... you tell him that he's too slow.

"The underlying numbers from Buffalo suggest Regehr is done as an NHL defensemen, at least one who can face anything above third or fourth liners. So on the ice, he's not going to help the Kings much unless he's carefully sheltered.

That said, I think Reggie is valued as much around the league for his dressing room presence as for his play. When I went to the draft in Minnesota I happened to talk to Brian Skrudland about the Regehr trade to Buffalo (Brian was an ex-Flame was working for Florida at the time). He shared that the Panthers had also made an offer for Regehr, in no small part because he was a strong leader and quality person off the ice. Listening to Regehr's interviews over the year, it's clear he is a consummate and cerebral professional who thinks seriously about the game and how to win. It wouldn't surprise me if he becomes a coach at some point."

Um... okay. I think Kent Wilson is one of the best hockey bloggers out there... and even he thinks Robyn Regehr could be a solid addition for the LA Kings, at least in the locker room. Well... I'll turn to my friend, Calgary Flames' blogger, Book Of Loob. I'm sure he'll have some AWFUL things to say about Robyn Regehr and surely call this the worst trade in LA Kings history!

Regehr is the one positive thing the Flames salvaged from the Theo Fleury trade , and considering the guy recovered from a horrific car crash where he obliterated his legs, he rebounded quite nicely and became the Flames premiere shut down d-man in his day.

And he was the best! He had big ears and a big body. One of those two things he used to paste Ales Hemsky into the boards every game whether the Flames were playing the Oilers or not.

He was one of three or four reasons as to why an admittedly mediocre Flames team made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2004. But players age, and times change. A not so nimble Regehr became expendable in the "New NHL", and as time went on, he was unable to adapt to the newer, skilled NHL forward.

Still though, he plays consistently against the opposition's top forwards, always has, and coming to LA where he won't necessarily be called upon to play that role, he should find a nice little mini revival with the Kings, so I hope you all enjoy him enough that you stop laughing at our pain in Calgary.

Never stop laughing.

Well there you have it. 3 hockey fans that watched Robyn Regehr play nightly for their favorite teams... and nobody is saying what a huge mistake the LA Kings just made. One interesting sidenote in the Robyn Regehr trade... Regher was traded in 1999 with Rene Corbet, Wade Belak and a 2nd Round pick from the Colorado Avalanche to the Calgary Flames for Theo Fleury and Chris Dingman. With that 2nd Round pick, the Calgary Flames drafted Jarret Stoll in 2000. When the Flames were unable to agree to a contract with Stoll, they traded him to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Leafs then signed Stoll but... in a move that will catch any hockey fan by complete surprise... the Maple Leafs didn't fax the contract to the NHL before the June 1st deadline and Jarret Stoll re-entered the NHL draft in 2002. He was then selected 36th overall by the Edmonton Oilers. So I guess what I'm saying is that if Robyn Regehr wasn't traded to the Calgary Flames... us LA Kings fans probably would have never seen this:

"You're the prettiest."

"Nope. You are the prettiest."

"No, you are."

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