Kings Make Blockbuster Trade!

Without going into much analysis, which I don't generally like to do anyway, I want to announce and welcome to Los Angeles center Mike Richards. The Kings traded one of the leagues top prospects, a grinding right winger and a draft pick for a top line center who was the captain of the Flyers and well regarded as a tough minded leader who can score, hit and play his heart out to get the job done. He plays both ends of the ice and immediately catapults the Kings into one of the top echelon clubs in the Western Conference. This is a huge trade that has put our rivals on notice. The Kings are here to win.

It's good to be a Kings fan today.

Here is a great video of the best of Mike Richards.

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And here is what Philadelphia likes to call "The Shift."

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(Pic Link: WikiCommons: Bridget Samuels)

GM Dean Lombardi talks about the trade.

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UPDATE:

Word now is that the Kings have traded Ryan Smyth. This provides the Kings with tons of cap space. Enough space for a big free agent pick-up (crossing my fingers- Brad Richardson?). Heck, maybe those other rumors about a 3-way trade possibly bringing Zach Parise to LA for Bernier and whatever we get for Smyth might be in the cards. Who knows? Details to be announced on Saturday.

Lelands: A Willard Mullin Drawing

This is not a part of the Sal LaRocca collection I featured earlier today. Here is a beautiful drawing done by Willard Mullin. Unfortunately, it is not dated, but I think it's safe to say it's from the early 50's. It features Dodgers and Giants managers Chuck Dressen and Leo Durocher shaking some team dolls. Written on the bottom are the words: "These kids are pretty good now... but that Casey is still the mix-master." Casey refers to Yankees manager Casey Stengel.

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Lelands: The Sal LaRocca Collection, Part 1

Lelands has once again put together a phenomenal offering that includes more items from the Sal LaRocca Dodger collection. There are a total of 74 items available from Sal, so go here if you want to seem them. The auction ends tomorrow evening.

Below is a sampling of some of the things that really stuck out to me.

It's amazing to have one autographed team Baseball, let alone a complete run from 1958 to 2005, but here it is. This auction item is for autographed team balls covering 47 straight years.

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This is a circa 1950 equipment bag that was once used by Duke Snider.

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This is a circa 1939-40 full Dodger uniform once worn by Leo Durocher.

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This is a huge team photo of the 1952 Brooklyn Dodgers that was once hung up at Ebbets Field.

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Daily Conlon: 55 through 63

Here are Daily Conlon cards numbered 55 through 63. I'm still waiting for a Dodger to show up in a Dodger uniform. Oh well, I guess Heinie Manush (located on the bottom row, far right) will do.

Heinie Manush didn't play for the Dodger for very long, only during the tail end of his career, where he spent his last season as a regular player. He batted .333 for Brooklyn in 1937 while knocking in 73 runs and scoring 57 times. Not to shabby for an old guy. Since he didn't spend much time with us I'll pass along a story from the 1933 World Series when he was a member of the Washington Senators. He was thrown out of Game 3 for an incident that, I dare say, would never happen today. This excerpt is from the SABR biography project that tells the story.

It was a thrill to be in the World Series, but Manush was terribly disappointed in his performance. During the Series, he took it out on the umpires. In Game 3, the Senators had the tying run on second with two out in the sixth inning, when Manush hit a ball past a diving Bill Terry that Howie Critz somehow grabbed and flipped to Hubbell to nip Manush -- that is, according to umpire Charlie Moran. It was an extremely close play, and an enraged Senators outfielder and his infuriated manager hotly debated the call! The home plate umpire finally broke up the fierce confrontation by ordering Cronin and Manush to take their positions in the field. While Cronin reluctantly sauntered out to shortstop, Manush gave Moran one more verbal blast on his way out to right field and was tossed from the game. It took all of Cronin’s strength to restrain his right fielder from attacking Moran. After being dragged off the field, Manush had to be physically restrained from throwing things at the first-base umpire. Washington fans showed their displeasure at the call by heaving hundreds of soda bottles in the umpire’s direction. Manush recalled the play years later. “It actually was more than an argument,” he said. “Moran had every right to chase me when I tell you what I did. I was too smart to lay a hand on Moran when I was arguing the call. But when he bellied up to me and asked me what I wanted to make of it, there was a temptation that was too great. Moran, like the other umps in those days, was wearing a black bow tie, the kind that comes with an elastic band. What I did was grab the tie and let it snap back into Moran’s neck. That’s when he gave it to me.”

Congrats Brownie!

The NHL held their Awards banquet yesterday evening in Las Vegas and Kings captain Dustin Brown walked away with the NHL Foundation Player Award. I know what your saying, so what... it's not for his accomplishments on the ice. That is true, but I think that's what makes it so important. The Foundation Player Award is given to the player that applies the core value of hockey- commitment, perseverance and teamwork to enrich the live of people in his community. In other words, he's a really good guy who finds ways to give back to the people, and for that I congratulate you on a job well done.

Congratulations Brownie!

In other SoCal hockey news, the hated one (at least by this Kings fan), Corey Perry of the Anaheim Duck won the Hart Memorial Trophy- which is equivalent to the MVP award. Damn, you! OK, I admit it... he had a great season, and without him they don't make the playoffs. Congrats. BTW, he's the first member of a SoCal team to win it since Wayne Gretzky in 1988-89.

Here is a video of Dustin speaking about winning the Foundation Player Award.

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