HAS THE CROWN BEEN RESTORED?

Evan Davis

The LA Kings have just been eliminated from the playoffs in seven games by the Edmonton Oilers. The Kings exceeded expectations by making it to the playoffs, but taking Connor McDavid and the Oilers to seven games was another accomplishment within itself.

The Kings were without #1 defenseman, Drew Doughty, and second line winger Viktor Arvidsson, and were still able to pull away three wins in the playoffs. I was thoroughly impressed with rookie defenseman, Sean Durzi, and second year defenseman, Mikey Anderson, who were both able to limit Connor McDavid’s offensive chances. Yes, McDavid had 14 points in the 7 games, but without Durzi and Anderson, McDavid could’ve easily had 21 points in this series.

Another standout for the LA Kings was newly acquired centerman, Philip Danault, who signed a 6-year $33 million deal this past offseason. Danault was a huge factor in this series as he was first on the Kings in +/- with a +6, while also being second on the team in points with 5. He had the responsibility of slowing down Leon Draisaitl throughout the entire series, and he did a phenomenal job doing so by limiting Draisaitl to two even strength goals during the series.

The Kings are in a great position moving forward, as they have a ton of cap space moving forward to go along with a plethora of prospects. With the Kings not making moves at the deadline, I expect them to be uber aggressive in the offseason in an attempt to put the team in a “win-now” mode.

Now there are two players that immediately come to my mind as to who the Kings should target in the offseason, Jakob Chychrun and Filip Forsberg. Chychrun was on a ton of teams' radars this prior trade deadline, but wasn’t moved due to the fact that he was dealing with a lower body injury. The LA Kings were one of the many teams interested in Chychrun and they do have the pieces in order to make a move for the left handed defenseman.

A few names that come to mind that could be shipped to Arizona include Gabriel Vilardi and Tyler Madden. Vilardi was a highly anticipated prospect whose career has been decimated by injuries, but he is finally getting back to being healthy. Tyler Madden was acquired from the Vancouver Canucks when the Kings made the trade involving Tyler Toffoli. Madden had 31 points in 48 AHL games and could definitely make an impact with the Tucson Roadrunners/Arizona Coyotes.

I do believe that the Kings can offer the best package in order to acquire Chychrun given the numerous prospects/picks they can offer. He can slot in right with Drew Doughty or even with Sean Durzi/Mikey Anderson. He provides PP1 minutes and will also be effective in the PK and provide some offensive numbers.

The next player I can see the Kings targeting is Nashville Predators forward, Filip Forsberg. Forsberg just put up a career high in goals, assists, and points, but was unfortunately very ineffective in this year's playoffs. He was making $6 million a year with the Nashville Predators and is most likely expectating an upgrade in salary. If the Kings were to sign Forsberg in the offseason I could see him receiving a contract of 6 years carrying an AAV close to $6.5 million. The reason why I don’t see Forsberg getting $7 million a year with a lot of years is due to the fact that Forsberg is entering age 28 season and if he wants a contract with security, a team wouldn’t want to pay a 34/35 year old $7 million.

Forsberg is a solid winger, don’t get me wrong, but I view $7 million players as point per game guys and Forsberg isn’t that guy. He does put up 25+ goals each season, which is why I could see him getting upwards of $6.5 million a year. The Kings ran into a similar situation with Dustin Brown when they signed him to an 8 year deal back in 2014. If Forsberg were to sign in LA, he would be reunited with former teammate Viktor Arvidsson, which could possibly be enticing for the young winger. He would fit in right away with Arvidsson on the wing, and with Kopitar at center. His 25+ goals a season will grow even more with centers like Anze Kopitar and Philip Danault by his side.

This one is a hot take but one player I could see the Kings attacking in the offseason is Calgary Flames star forward, Johnny “Hockey” Gaudreau. He will be 29 heading into next season and is in line for a big pay day. Gaudreau was in the final year of a 6 year/$40,500,000 deal with the Flames and wasn’t able to come to an agreement with the team prior to the regular season ending. This is a tricky one, with a player of his talent heading into his 30s, it will be hard to predict what AAV he receives from a team.

After netting 100+ points this past regular season, I could see Gaudreau getting anywhere from $7.5-$8 million a year for 6 years. The Flames have a lot of UFAs coming up and I just don’t believe the Flames can have them all. We saw this come true when the Flames couldn’t come to an agreement with the star forward prior to the season starting and even during the regular season. It will definitely be an interesting offseason for Gaudreau and the Flames. If Gaudreau ends up in LA, then I am very curious to see how the Kings handle their top two centers.

The Kings are built for the future and I am excited to see how they handle what could be a pivotal offseason for the team. They have the cap space and they will make a push after a very impressive regular season + playoffs.