The NHL Trade Deadline is only a few hours away and the Los Angeles Kings are still waiting to make their first impactful trade of the season. It remains to be seen if they will be able to pull off a deal however other teams in the West like the Edmonton Oilers, Minnesota Wild, and Colorado Avalanche have done so and if the Kings want to compete in the playoffs it feels like one or two moves are going to be necessary.
Over the past few weeks, the Kings have been rumored to be interested in a number of players and with the deadline set for 3 PM EST, these are the six players the Los Angeles Kings are most likely to trade for before the end of the day.
Ranking players most likely to be traded to the LA Kings before NHL Trade Deadline
6. Mikko Rantanen
The biggest name currently rumored to be available is Mikko Rantanen of the Carolina Hurricanes. He has already been traded once this season as the Avalanche sent him to Carolina but with the Hurricanes unable to reach an extension they are seeing what they might be able to get by moving him again.
While the Kings certainly would be interested in, it seems highly unlikely that they could offer a trade package that would interest Carolina enough to move him. There is also the additional question on if they can agree to a contract extension, which seems also unlikely.
Right now, the front-runner looks to be the Dallas Stars, who appear to have had discussions with Rantanen about a contract extension, but as of Friday morning, nothing has been finalized.