The Los Angeles Kings will have enough cap space this summer to make some impactful moves with the goal to improve the roster enough to make a deep run in the playoffs. However, not all free agent signings work out and there are a lot of times it can set a franchise back.
For the Kings, they will need to be cautious in free agency and not just spend the cap space since they have the cap space. These are four players in particular that could make sense but they should stay away from.
Aaron Ekblad
There is not many defensemen available in free agency that could be considered top-pair caliber. That is one of the reasons that the Kings might have trouble re-signing Vladislav Gavrikov as he should generate plenty of interest and teams could be willing to make him one of the top paid at his position.
If the Kings lose out on Gavrikov, they are going to need a replacement and after Gavrikov the next best defensemen is considered by some to be Aaron Ekblad. The Florida Panthers defenseman has been a big part of their recent success and could win his second Stanley Cup in the next few days.
When Ekblad is on the ice, he can certainly make an impact and has averaged over 22 minutes per game in his career. The reason that the Kings need to stay away is that Ekblad has had trouble staying on the ice and has not played in more than 71 games in a regular season since the 2018-19 season. He also missed 20 games this season due to a suspension after violating the Performance Enhancing Substances Program.
For a player expected to get a sizable contract this summer, it is just too much risk for the Kings to take on.