Could Trevor Lewis join former LA Kings forward Tyler Toffoli in Vancouver?
Saturday brought finality to the Trevor Lewis era with the LA Kings. The 33-year-old was informed that he wouldn’t be back next year and is free to sign with whomever he chooses in the offseason. Lewis has never been a big-time goal scorer throughout his career, but he does a lot of the little things right.
In 12 years, Lewis has a 52.2 Corsi-for percentage. He’s a good puck-possession forward that exudes physicality, consistently atop the Kings’ leaderboard in hits. Perhaps most importantly, for his next team, Lewis is a leader with an excellent veteran presence for a contending team.
The LA Kings are in the midst of a youth movement, with key members from their Stanley Cup-winning squads traded away for assets over the last two years. Outside of the top five core, Lewis is likely the last veteran to exit, depending on how Seattle’s expansion draft plays out.
Lewis wants to join a contender and adds that geography isn't a factor, he's open to moving East if that's the best opportunity. https://t.co/lQ2axqnkVK
— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) September 26, 2020
He can still play at a high level and figures to be a relatively inexpensive sign. Let’s look at three contenders that could be good fits.
Vancouver Canucks
The LA Kings north of the border. Trevor Lewis could join former teammates in Tanner Pearson and Tyler Toffoli and would fit well on the Canucks third line. He’d be an improvement over 31-year-old Brandon Sutter, who has recorded a sub-50 Corsi-for percentage in each of the last four seasons.
The Canucks, as a team, finished in the bottom half of the league in puck possession, and Lewis could be a nice complement to J.T. Miller and Tyler Motte in the hit department. Of course, that would mean he’d face his old team quite a bit.
Philadelphia Flyers
Similar to Sutter, Tyler Pitlick has finished with sub-50 Corsi-for percentages in four consecutive seasons. The Flyers were generally a good team in terms of puck possession, but they have just two players over the age of 33.
A younger team that had aspirations of making a deep postseason run but fell short of expectations. Lewis could slot in well on the Flyers’ third line. Philadelphia has approximately $8M in cap space this offseason and adding Lewis on a team-friendly deal would be a good sign.
New York Rangers
The Rangers’ top-six are a formidable bunch, highlighted by Hart Trophy finalist Artemi Panarin. The same cannot be said about their bottom-six lines, with both lines falling in the bottom five of their respective rankings last year. Greg McKegg is the oldest player among this group at 27, and the unrestricted free agent is unlikely to return next year.
Lewis would bring a strong veteran presence to the Rangers, who have only one player over the age of 33. New York also lost some physicality when they dealt Brady Skjei to Carolina, which could be replaced with the addition of Trevor Lewis.