Kings GM Lombardi takes a shot at the NHL over Voynov suspension!

Every Kings fan knows by now the Los Angeles Kings have been put in a terrible position by the NHL due to the Slava Voynov domestic abuse investigation. The NHL has issued an indefinite suspension for Voynov despite the fact that he remains innocent until proven guilty. What does this mean for the Kings? They are without Voynov, but he continues to coutn against their cap, resulting in the Kings having to play short a man on multiple occasions this season. NHL commissioner GaryBettman commented on the situation yesterday when speaking to the O.C Register:

"Every team has to manage its salary cap, right? It’s just the way it works. … The integrity of the game requires teams to comply with the salary cap.”

Thanks for that wonderful insight Gary. It didn't fall on deaf ears however, Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi spoke out about the situation, and his statement echoed what a lot of Kings fans are thinking:

“As this case makes clear, we must now do one and/or two things. We must build in a cushion in case one of our players is a bank robber, kleptomaniac, etc." “The seemingly better alternative is, we have to do a better job of educating our players and, in particular, monitoring our players away from the rink. While monitoring them away from the rink may have the Orwellian connotation of `Big Brother’ oversight, that is the nature of the sports business in the cap era.”

Lombardi makes an excellent point, players on the Kings roster who are not Slava Voynov are being indirectly punished because of his alleged actions. Drew Doughty continues to play ridiculous minutes, over 30 minutes on some nights, something that the Kings are understandably very upset about. It doesn't appear that the Kings will have a resolution anytime soon, but good on Lombardi for speaking up.