The NHL offseason is a rush of activity over roughly a two-week period between the NHL Draft and free agency. It was even more challenging for general manager Ken Holland as he stepped into the role with the Los Angeles Kings only a few weeks prior.
Even with the flurry of activity, the first offseason for Holland seemed to fall flat for the LA Kings as they saw some key players leave this offseason, most notably Vladislav Gavrikov. The Kings appeared to take the approach of quantity over quality, and it is hard to make the case that the team is better now going into next season.
Recently, ESPN put together their offseason grades for every NHL team and surprisingly gave the Kings a grade of B-.
"Was it a more prudent use of salary cap space to sign two free agent defensemen while knowing an additional $1.5 million per year could have prevented Vladislav Gavrikov from signing with the Rangers instead?
This is one of a few questions facing Kings GM Ken Holland following his first offseason in charge. Holland used the Kings' cap space to essentially buy in bulk, adding five players to reinforce their bottom-six forward group, their defensive options and a backup goalie."
Some moves were good, including the signings of Joel Armia, Corey Perry, and Brian Dumoulin, as well as the re-signing of Andrei Kuzmenko (which wasn't listed by ESPN). The re-signing of Kuzmenko was arguably their best move this offseason, as he signed a one-year deal after a promising end to the season.
However, the contract offered to Cody Ceci combined with the return they got in the Jordan Spence trade should be enough to bring that grade much farther down.
Are the Los Angeles Kings better positioned for the playoffs?
As noted by the ESPN article, the big question is how the Kings are set up for the playoffs. They have now had four straight first-round exits, and it appears the moves made focused primarily on building a deeper roster that can help manage the minutes in the playoffs.
One of the big criticisms for Jim Hiller after the Kings got up 2-0 on the Edmonton Oilers was how he shortened the rotations and leaned heavily on his Top 9 forwards and Top 4 defensemen. This increase in ice time showed up late in games as they struggled to keep pace with the Oilers.
That will ultimately be the test for what the LA Kings did this offseason and if they are able to advance, then the grade feels fair. However, another first-round exit or missing the playoffs entirely will just emphasize the questionable decisions made.