A busy opening day of free agency this past week for general manager Ken Holland and the Los Angeles Kings yielded pretty fruitful results for the team to upgrade the roster in key areas for new head coach Peter Laviolette and staff this upcoming season.
I think Holland and the Kings did a good job of making decisive and impactful signings in free agency this past week without sacrificing too much long-term flexibility or cap room beyond this upcoming season.
The Kings were able to address multiple roster needs in free agency, including getting a top-six playmaking forward in former Minnesota Wild winger Mats Zuccarello while adding more center depth by re-signing Scott Laughton and adding former Nashville Predator Erik Haula.
With roughly $2 million in projected cap space left, the Los Angeles Kings' next move may require creativity
The largest financial commitment Holland and the Kings made this offseason was the contract extension deal for 23-year-old defenseman Brandt Clarke, the only new deal that carried an average annual value of above $4 million.
According to PuckPedia, the Kings have around $1.8 million in current project cap space for this upcoming season after this offseason's free agent signings earlier this week. Of the over $102 million that the Kings have in cap hit for this upcoming season, only roughly $600K of that is dead salary from the Mike Richards buyout (which hits until 2031).
The Kings used up most of the roughly $11 million the team had in cap room in free agency and to re-sign defenseman Brandt Clarke this summer. The new contracts for the likes of Perry, Laughton, Zuccarello, Haula, and Clarke has brought the Kings just over the $100 million mark for the team's salary cap for this upcoming season.
But the fact that the Kings and Holland were able to get players like Zuccarello and Perry signed for no more than $1 million in base value is a testament to how well the front office did in free agency this offseason of getting quality impact players and proven veterans signed to very affordable contracts.
If Holland and the Kings want to make any additional roster moves to upgrade at positions of need going into the upcoming season, they'll have to move around some pieces on the current roster to make that happen.
While the $2 million roughly in cap space is pretty limited, it doesn't mean that Holland and the Kings can't make other roster moves this summer in free agency or on the trade block. Whether the Kings want to sign another inexpensive proven veteran or they want additional cap flexibility through a trade this offseason, the front office still has a few options before training camp and the preseason begins this fall.
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