- Pierre LeBrun of ESPN: The next few weeks will determine if the Kings will be buyers or sellers.
Needs/Available: They could use a top-four defenseman, though a source suggested yesterday that it’s unlikely to happen. The Kings have to plan that there is the possibility that Slava Voynov potentially comes back from suspension. The Kings aren’t sure if the NHL would rescind his suspension. So, they have to keep the $4.1 million in cap space open in case he does.
The Kings would like to find a taker for Mike Richards and his $5.75 million cap hit. After attempts to get the Maple Leafs interested last month, things have gone quiet.If the Kings become sellers, they could look to move pending UFAs in Justin Williams, Jarret Stoll and Robyn Regehr.
Finances: Little room
- Damien Cox of Sportsnet: The Kings need to improve their blueline. There is Slava Voynov’s suspension and now they have Alec Martinez out with a concussion. Any deadline deal would cost the Kings prospects and/or picks. Maple Leafs Cody Franson could help them out, but Kings may not want to give up a first round pick or a top prospect. Oilers Jeff Petry could be a right-handed replacement for Voynov.
- Mike Morreale of NHL.com: Flyers GM Hextall on the deadline.
“Being X number of points out of a playoff spot won’t necessarily ,” Hextall said on a conference call Thursday. “That’s going to be part of the equation. The other part will be what type of price people will pay. There’s a lot of things that go into the decision-making, so as we close in we’ll gauge where we’re at and the prices, and we’ll make decisions.”
“If the right deal comes along for now and the future we’ll make it,” Hextall said. “If it doesn’t, we won’t, so we’ll do everything we can to get into the playoffs rather than selling off younger assets.
They could look to move Braydon Coburn, Mark Streit, Nick Schultz and Nicklas Grossmann.
Hextall on Kimmo Timonen.
“We’re not going to put Kimmo at risk or move his time schedule up so teams can see him,” Hextall said. “This is about what’s best for Kimmo. We’re not going to rush him for reasons that aren’t prudent.”
- Kevin Paul Dupont: “A Kessel-for-Joe Thornton swap, while a bit crazy, also makes some sense for SJS and TOR.”