The Kings have finally pared down the roster to a manageable number.

Out of everyone that’s been assigned to Manchester or their respective junior teams, the most surprising is that Teddy Purcell was sent down. He came to training camp looking like he bulked up—which he did, weighing in at 202 pounds.

I thought he had a solid showing. I never once thought he’d be assigned to Manchester before the season began. I’m not sure what he did exactly to warrant him being assigned, but I have a feeling it wasn’t just him.

If you couple Oscar Moller and Wayne Simmonds' fantastic camps with Purcell’s non-flashy performance, that might have been the kicker to give the former two a chance to prove themselves with some real NHL games. If they don’t last, they can easily be sent down and Purcell can be brought back up. If Patrick O’Sullivan and the Kings can come to terms, one of those two kids can also be sent down.

Quote from Terry Murray, courtesy of Inside the Kings: “With some guys, like Purcell, I tried to be specific in things I saw, and things I’d like to see a big focus on.”

Hmm, pretty vague.

Anyway, I had a preview up and running for later this week, but now that Purcell isn’t on the roster, I’m going to have to tweak it a bit. Stay tuned for another Kings World Podcast episode that you can grab up Wednesday morning, and a season preview in a few days. I originally wasn’t going to do one, but what the hell.

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