Kevin King: Mailbag Q&A

IamMOOSE · June 22, 2020

What goals does Kevin King have for his VHL career?

King: “It’s been a long road to get here. I had some injury troubles that I had to put behind me, I had to find that place to get back to where I knew I could be competitive. I look at where I’m at now, playing in a great league with some great talent and I still have that drive to do more. The short answer is to get into some VHL games and rack up as points as I can and just enjoy the ride. The long answer is always to be the top of the food chain. I think where I’m at now I’d like to Center some top lines in the VHL, but the ultimate goal is to be champion. If I could end my playing career a champion and maybe parlay that into a front office role, I think that’s definitely the route I’d like to go.”

What tpe-level do you think FO (faceoffs) should have for a VHL centerman to be considered elite?

King: “85. It’s a lot to throw into a non-formula skill but we’re talking elite here. I think faceoffs are vastly underrated. It’s the start of every play and you can have all the talent in the world but not starting with the puck puts you at a disadvantage every time.”

What VHL player(s) do you model your game after, if any?

King: “I share some size similarities to Alex McNeil, or a Kevin Brooks and I’d love to follow in either of their footsteps as Hall of Famers in this league. I’d love to model myself towards Aleksi Koponen. Continuing on that last question regarding faceoffs, I think any Centermen that can average 62.3% on the draw should be looked at as a benchmark of where you’d like to be a Center in this league.”

If you had to choose a VHL team to NOT be drafted by, which team would it be and why?

King: “I don’t like to leave anyone off the table. It may be the pedestrian answer but of teams I’d love to be a part of, definitely the newly branded Chicago Phoenix, a team like the D.C. Dragons, or even Aleksi’s home of Helsinki.”

Do you know @twists is also from Michigan? Do you know any other VHL/VHLMers from Michigan?

King: “I did actually *lol* and while I haven’t talked to Twists about that yet I imagine we’ll both discuss it somewhere down the line.”

What is your desired career path, are you a one-team guy or would you like to experience different locker rooms and teams?

King: “I appreciate loyalty from both sides. I understand it’s a business, so things happen. It’s nice to stick it out for the long haul though, help build a franchise or keep one going. If I had to say, I think with my late start and role, it’s too soon to tell how things will progress.”

Preferred general route: current expansion team (full on grow with the team), team from the last few expansions (Prague/DC/Malmo, to a lesser extent Moscow - write some of your history into that of the team but also they're semi-established), established team but rebuilding (Van just entering one, Toronto just exiting one, Helsinki with just about enough left to have seemingly avoided that fate?), or established team but contending (Calgary, Seattle at the top right now - Davos climbing, Riga seemingly pretty sturdy from year to year, and NY finally look to get in).

King: “Well, to dissect this a bit. I like the idea of helping a team that’s ready to go to that next stage on a rebuild. In my current role, I understand I’m more a piece of a rebuild rather than the face of that rebuild. As answered previously, I like the idea of Chicago as the expansion team that hasn’t gotten a lot of love so far. I think they have major surprise potential and could be in a brilliant spot if put together right. I’d love to be a part of Helsinki, continue that lineage of great Centermen. I think anyone would love to walk into a situation where their team contends. It just comes down to where I go in the draft.”

I'd like to thank these fine people below for submitting these questions and more for this mailbag Q&A!

- @SweatyBeaver

- @gorlab

- @OrbitingDeath

- @diamond_ace