This past season showed the Los Angeles Kings drop from first in the Pacific Division in January to tenth in the Western Conference and fourth in their division. The off-season was a time of change in the Kings organization. Several key players were signed, trades were made but still, the question remains: Will the Kings spend their post-season on the ice or the golf course? Forwards: The teams top line did not wreak much havoc over the NHL last season and will likely have a similar effect this year. However, overall offensive production was quite low last year (12th lowest in the league) and was very far from showing any signs of consistency. The highest goal-scorer, Mike Cammalleri netted only 26, a high that cannot possibly be repeated this season if the team is hoping to reach the playoffs. Talented winger, Alexander Frolov will have to work hard to improve on his eighteen-goal season along with linemate, Craig Conroy, who amassed 22 goals and forty-four assists in seventy-eight games last season. A bright light in the LA lineup is Anze Kopitar who is among the top point-getters so far with five points in two games. As the forward lineup strongly resembles last year?s, depth is going to have to be the answer if the team is going to rely on offensive capabilities. Youngsters Dustin Brown and Patrick O?Sullivan will have to mix with veterans like Derek Armstrong, Scott Thornton and Alyn McCauley who is recovering from off-season knee surgery. Look for improvements in offensive output. Defense: Going into the 2006-2007 regular season, this looks like it will be the strongest part of the Los Angeles Kings hockey club. The defense is solid and combines veterans and younger players well. Offensive production by L.A. defensemen has certainly gone up as Lubomir Visnovsky will be returning this year after hitting fifty points last year, one of the top point-getters among defense in the NHL. Signing unrestricted free agent Rob Blake, was a key move by General manager Dean Lombardi. Veteran Norris Trophy winner and captain, Mattias Norstrom will help to provide some much needed leadership and play a stabilizing role on the blueline. With help from former New York Islander, Brent Sopel as well as the strong presence of Aaron Miller, look for this defense squad to be among the most productive and consistent in both their offensive and defensive roles on the Kings. Goaltending: This is currently and will remain the largest question mark in the Kings organization. Mathieu Garon started sixty-one of their games last year, the other twenty-one being taken by youngster Jason LaBarbera. Garon hosted an unimpressive 3.22 goals against average and a mediocre .894 save percentage. Garon had thirty-one wins in his first year as a starter, spending his previous seasons backing up Jose Theodore in Montreal for as long as I care to remember. His first season was an unimpressive one and only hindered LA?s chances of making the playoffs. He will likely return to the backup position this season while Dan Cloutier will take the helm. Although I believe that he is a capable goalie, Cloutier has proven that he is inconsistent. It is likely that coach Marc Crawford orchestrated that trade as Cloutier also played for him in Vancouver. Cloutier is also recovering from a season-ending knee injury that he suffered after playing only thirteen games of last year. It will take a lot for him to prove himself on this Los Angeles team. Although inconsistent, goaltending should not be too much of a burden on the shoulders of GM Dean Lombardi. After all, if worse comes to worst then Lombardi can go shopping for a goaltender that might make a good fit. There is a plethora of capable goaltenders that GMs around the league are looking to deal with tandems like Ilya Bryzgalov and J.S. Giguere in Anaheim, Ryan Miller and Martin Biron in Buffalo and Vesa Toskala and Evgeni Nabokov in San Jose spotted all over the NHL. However, it is quite unlikely that anything of the like will occur in Los Angeles as the shaky goaltending has a strong group of blue-liners to protect them. The Front Office: Changes were aplenty in this department during the off-season. Dave Taylor was released from the position of General Manager and Dean Lombardi jumped in to fill the void. He is the GM as well as President of the hockey club. Another Kings executive to empty out his desk after last seasons dismal collapse in the latter half of the season was coach Andy Murray. To replace him, Lombardi brought in Vancouver ex, Marc Crawford. One will see how these changes will effect the organization in the long run. However, it appears as if Lombardi is not a lame duck GM and Crawford appears to be a good coach and a strong presence behind the bench. How can they be Successful: If there was one thing that would send the Kings straight to the playoffs, it would be the top line playing consistent hockey and working together to help as many pucks as possible find the back of the net. Alexander Frolov is probably the best player on the Kings if he tries to be. His eighteen goals certainly did not reflect his abilities and his strengths as a member of the team. A player of his caliber should easily pass sixty and should be shooting for up to eighty points. When it comes down to it, if Frolov does not produce, Lombardi should shop around and see what kind of consistent forward he would be able to get in return. Defense is certainly looking promising, but it remains to be seen who will play the best together. Offensive defensemen like Rob Blake and Lubomir Visnovsky would do best if on different defensive pairings. Goaltending will have to be more consistent than in past years or it will become necessary for one of the team?s two goaltenders to be dealt. Consistency, consistency, consistency. So, will the Kings make the playoffs? Yes. It all boils down to chemistry and it will remain to be seen if the Kings have it. I believe that with a blue line that is as strong as theirs and a young, talented group of forwards, this team can shoot for somewhere between sixth and eight in the conference. Don?t expect too much, but more than last year. As captain Mattias Norstrom said in a recent interview, ?It?s going to be a challenging start for us, but I like what I see so far.?