The Los Angeles Kings have failed to make the playoffs two of the last three years. The one year they did make it, they lost in the first round. Is the Los Angeles Kings “dynasty” done?
The Los Angeles Kings won two Cups in the last six years. That’s more Cups than some franchises that have long histories. But in the last three years, the Kings have missed the playoffs twice. The one time they did go, they lost in the first round.
Does this mean the Los Angeles Kings’ cup window has closed? Should LA fans worry about their team going forward? Can the Kings’ core, as currently assembled, win again? Can they even make the playoffs?
Los Angeles Kings Troubles
The core group of the LA Kings as currently assembled is Cup worthy. In fact, of the Los Angeles Kings considered core, all of them have two Cups. That core: Jeff Carter, Anze Kopitar, Tanner Pearson, Drew Doughty, Alec Martinez, Tyler Toffoli, Jake Muzzin, Trevor Lewis.
Of this core, though, four of them are going to be thirty or older next season. Six of those players (plus goaltender Jonathan Quick) cost the Kings 38 million dollars a year. That’s without Pearson or Toffoli, who are restricted free agents and due sizable deals.
That’s still a good core. But the Kings and Dean Lombardi haven’t been able to surround it with other talents. Their youth is depleted. They’re near the cap limit. The Kings moved for one of the best goaltenders in the league at the deadline, instead of focusing on what was really important: offense.
And the Kings have Marian Gaborik on an unmovable 4.875 mil deal. Add in that the Kings have nine free agents (either unrestricted or restricted), this team is in a lot of trouble.
Los Angeles Kings Prospects
Like I said, the youth of Los Angeles have been depleted. The prospects that Hockey’s Future says are the best in LA’s system are either now in Tampa Bay (Erik Cernak) or already playing with Los Angeles. That includes Kevin Gravel, Nic Dowd, Paul LaDue, Derek Forbort, and Adrian Kempe.
There are some positives in this group. Forbort is playing top line minutes with Drew Doughty. LaDue has played twenty-one games and scored eight points. Dowd has played sixty-eight games with the team, including twenty-one points.
Gravel couldn’t stay with the team. On a line with Jeff Carter, Kings’ leading scorer, Kempe hasn’t been productive. It’s not good signs for the Kings.
The Kings have most of their draft picks, but if I’m a Kings fan, I’m starting to panic. This is a team about to enter rebuild mode, with a team not set for that mode. The Kings don’t have the youth that Edmonton had or that Calgary had. They’re going to have to wait a few years for that youth to come together.
Add in the fact that Dean Lombardi keeps selling off prospects like Cernak, the Kings troubles just increase.
How to Fix This: Free Agency
The Kings have a very path to follow to fix this team. They need to go into rebuild mode, including selling off valuable assets (namely Carter) and signing younger players to longer term contracts (Toffoli, Pearson). Let’s take this step by step.
This offseason, the Kings need to hope and pray that the Vegas Golden Knights select Dustin Brown. His 5.875 million is a joke, and if it costs a second round pick, the Kings need to get him off
their team for the future.
They also need to focus on re-signing their free agents and let the other teams make moves. They need to keep Toffoli and Pearson around, and maybe Nick Shore as a depth option. Everybody else on offense can walk.
Defensively, the Kings need to keep everybody around until the pieces fall into place. Luckily, everybody here is a restricted free agent. Except for perhaps Forbort, nobody overplayed a million dollar contract.
How to Fix This: Trades
The Kings then need to make a few trades. The first is selling off Jeff Carter for a few key pieces. As a 60 point player, and 30 goal scorer, Carter is going to bring in an excellent trade return. Because the Kings are going to need to suck for a while, they can afford to part with Carter.
They’re also going to have to trade off one of Muzzin or Martinez. This is the one that is going to hurt the Kings. Both of these defensemen were critical to their cup runs, and still, have a lot of playing time left. But like Carter, they will bring in good returns. That will get the Kings back on their feet sooner.
Plus Forbort has replaced these guys on the first pairing and is a lot younger. Forbort’s got time and could be a valuable piece for the Kings in the future, especially after the rebuild. Drew Doughty has to stay because the LA Kings still need leadership, and he and Anze Kopitar are the absolutely must not move players.
Should the LA Kings Rebuild?
Do the LA Kings fans want to win a Cup again? Or do they want to be the Detroit Red Wings for the last few years, struggling to get into the playoffs? Once there, the Kings have a shallow run, and won’t be a Cup threat. Then they rebuild when it’s too late and there are no options left.
Or, the Kings can win one more Cup for Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty in three-five years. That’s probably the preferable option. Both of them are still relatively young, and the Kings do have the first few steps towards a Cup in those three-five years.
Forbort could develop into an important player. Toffoli and Pearson are still just 24. The Kings have LaDue and Gravel, who could be good depth defensemen. Jonathan Quick is signed through eternity.
The Kings just need to draft scoring forwards and trade players like Muzzin, Martinez, and Carter for good returns. It’s an easy rebuild.
Oh, by the way, the Kings need to fire Dean Lombardi. You can see why, right, LA? He didn’t get the Kings to the playoffs and failed to address a very pressing need. He traded for Ben Bishop when the Kings were doing fine in net, and desperately needed offense. His offensive solution was a significantly aged Jarome Iginla. Yeah. Move on.
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So, Can the Kings Win A Cup?
Not as currently assembled. This team can’t even make the playoffs, and their offense was trash. But if the Kings can rebuild, focusing on recreating their offense, they can come back stronger than ever.
There are logical steps to be taken, and the Kings have the pieces to build around, it’s just about making sure they do it quickly and do it properly. That begins with letting go of a GM holding on to glory days. That GM also ruined US Hockey, by the way.
So yeah. The Kings can’t win a Cup right now, but they can be the Detroit Red Wings, with a worse playoff success rate. Or the Kings can get back to their roots and win again later. If I’m an LA fan (I’m not, by any stretch of the imagination) I want Door #2.