LA Kings reportedly sign Arthur Kaliyev but could still trade him

One of the biggest outstanding questions for the Los Angeles Kings was what to do with restricted free agent Arthur Kaliyev. The two sides had yet to reach an agreement after he reportedly asked to be traded over the offseason.

Considering that the Kings are less than a week away from their first preseason game, there was something that had to be done. According to David Pagnotta with The Fourth Period, that first step appears to have been completed as the two sides agreed to a one-year deal.

However, Pagnotta does note that Kaliyev still prefers to be traded and I would even suggest now that he has a contract it makes a trade a little easier. While the Kings could have traded Kaliyev as a restricted free agent the team trading for the forward would have had to negotiate a new deal.

Could Arthur Kaliyev agreeing to a contract make a trade easier for the Los Angeles Kings?

Now that the contract is finalized, teams might be more willing to make a trade and view Kaliyev as a one-year rental. While Kaliyev is a talented player, he still has plenty left to prove. After back-to-back seasons with double-digit goals, he took a step backward with only seven goals and 15 points this past season.

The change at coach could have played a factor as Kaliyev wasn't involved much in the offense once Jim Hiller took over midway through the season. This is another a reason that the Kings should be motivated to get a deal done as he doesn't seem to fit into Hiller's plans.

The fact that a trade was completed over the summer, made it clear that this was really only going to be the path forward. It will be interesting to see how quickly a trade gets done or if the Kings try to find a way to make Kaliyev a bigger part of their offense this season.