This week is one of the busiest of the year for the Los Angeles Kings and the rest of the NHL with free agency to start at noon on Tuesday July 1st. It will certainly be a big test for general manager Ken Holland as he was brought in specifically to improve the Kings roster and help build a Stanley Cup contender.
However, with one trade already done and some key players almost certainly leaving in free agency, there are some big issues starting to develop. Ahead of free agency, it might help to get an understanding of what the current lineup looks like and where the holes might be.
Los Angeles Kings current forwards
Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
Anze Kopitar | Adrian Kempe | |
Kevin Fiala | Quinton Byfield | |
Warren Foegele | Phillip Danault | Trevor Moore |
Samuel Helenius | Alex Turcotte | Andre Lee |
There are two notable names missing from this chart in Andrei Kuzmenko, who is an unrestricted free agent, and Alex Laferriere, who is a restricted free agent. Last week, Ken Hollands gave positive updates on both and it seems like they should both return.
The question is if they do return, has this offense improved from last season when they were middle of the league in goals scored after averaging 3.04 goals per game.
It will be interesting to see if the Kings stick with roughly the same group or add a top free agent like Mitch Marner or Brock Boeser.
Los Angeles Kings current defensemen
Left Defense | Right Defense |
|---|---|
Mikey Anderson | Drew Doughty |
Joel Edmundson | Brandt Clarke |
Jacob Moverare |
The Kings had one of the best defenses in the NHL last season but with one player already gone (Jordan Spence) and another seemingly certain to leave (Vladislav Gavrikov), this might be the part of the roster that Ken Holland has to put most of his effort.
In terms of players under contract, there is certainly a scenario where the Kings could move Joel Edmundson up to the second pair with Brandt Clarke. This would open ice time for Jacob Moverare and they only need to add another right defense to replace Spence.
However, this doesn't make the defense better, and they really need to find a player who can effectively replace the ice time vacated by Gavrikov's expected departure.
Los Angeles Kings Goaltenders
Goaltenders |
|---|
Darcy Kuemper |
Erik Portillo |
While there were some rumors that the Los Angeles Kings might be looking to add a veteran goalie to backup Darcy Kuemper, they don't necessarily need to do that. They have Erik Portillo currently under contract, and this could finally be the season that he is elevated and is a full-time NHL player after a number of seasons in the AHL.