The LA Kings must prioritize Vladislav Gavrikov
John Hoven of Mayors Manor and Kings of the Podcast: Hoven writes the Los Angeles Kings and GM Rob Blake must sign Vladislav Gavrikov. The Kings have been looking for a stay-at-home defenceman for years. They finally got one in Gavrikov at the trade deadline.
NHL Rumors: Los Angeles Kings, and the Seattle Kraken
Gavrikov will be an unrestricted free agent on July 1 and will most likely get paid if he hits the open market. If you look around the league one of his comparables is MacKenzie Weegar of the Flames, whose new deal will carry an AAV of $6.25 million a season.
The Kings are up against it, but if the dollar amount is less than Weegar on a long-term deal then Blake has done his job. But don’t forget the Kings like most teams have other players to sign and have to play within the rules of the salary cap.
The Chicago Blackhawks are looking to move up at the NHL Draft
Charlie Roumeliotis of NBC Sports Chicago: As Roumeliotis writes, the Chicago Blackhawks struck gold when winning the NHL Draft Lottery where they will select number one and the highly touted prospect Connor Bedard.
But that is not the only pick the Blackhawks own as Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson talked about on his recent radio appearance in Chicago 670 The Score’s Mully & Haugh, Davidson said that trading up in the draft is “definitely something we’re exploring.”
NHL Rumors: Blackhawks, Kane, Maple Leafs, Penguins, Rangers, and the Devils
The Blackhawks have four second-rounders and two third-rounders, and it also helps that they have an additional first-rounder from Tampa Bay at No. 19 overall. This gives Chicago options with the draft capital they have.
A couple of options include using the pick to draft a player that will help them now or they can package the 19th overall and another pick to move up and go after a team that has less draft capital. Not to mention they can use some of the later-round picks to get back into the late first round as it is a deep draft this year.