NHL Trade Grade: Los Angeles Kings start rebuild with Jake Muzzin trade

The latest NHL trade saw the Los Angeles Kings begin the purging of their roster by trading defenseman Jake Muzzin to the Toronto Maple Leafs. 

The Los Angeles Kings came into this season with everyone knowing they had a “best if used by” date. Just like a gallon of milk, this date was coming sooner rather than later. What everyone didn’t know is the date has likely already come and gone. The Kings are among the worst teams in the league. They began what might well be a purging of their roster by trading Jake Muzzin to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

This is a rare trade which makes sense for both sides. Both sides could wind up being the winner here. Let’s take a look at how each team did.

Kings

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Overall, the Kings did very well in this trade. They got an extra first-round pick for Muzzin, which is something they wanted all along. If you ignore J.T. Miller, Vladislav Namestnikov, and a conditional draft pick, the Kings basically got the same return the New York Rangers got for Ryan McDonagh in 2018.

The first prospect they got in the deal is Carl Grundstrom. He’s a skilled guy who plays with a lot of grit. Grundstrom is similar to Brad Marchand, in that he’s a pain in the butt to play against. He loves to agitate and get under his opponent’s skin. Grundstrom, though, was going to be at best a top-nine forward for the Leafs. Certainly not a top-six forward. With the Kings, he might be able to be a top-six forward.

They also received right-handed defensive prospect Sean Durzi. It’s worth noting he’s an overager, which is why he went in the second round of the 2018 NHL Draft. That said, Durzi’s numbers this year have been pretty darn impressive regardless of his age. He has 28 points in 26 games combined between the Guelph Storm and Owen Sound Attack.

Ultimately, the Kings didn’t get one of the Leafs big prospects, so this trade is a tad bit disappointing. But Grundstrom and Durzi are two really nice prospects who have NHL potential. What they do with their extra first-round pick will determine how this trade is viewed in a few years.

Grade: B+. Might be willing to raise this to an A- depending on what other deadline trades get.

Maple Leafs

Hats off to Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas. He got his team the defenseman they desperately needed at a relatively low cost. All fans have heard is how it would cost the Maple Leafs someone like William Nylander, Andreas Johnsson, or Kasperi Kapanen to get a huge upgrade to their defense. Dubas did it without giving up any roster players or even top five prospects.

If you really want to get nitpicky, Muzzin isn’t right-handed, so the Leafs now have five left-handed defensemen. That said, give me five really good left-handed defensemen over four really good lefties and a merely OK rightie.

What’s important is Muzzin can play on the top pairing and on his offside. Both he and Morgan Rielly have experience playing on the right side. The Leafs have major issues on their right side, so it would make all the sense in the world to have one of those two guys on the right side.

Grade: A

Verdict

Ultimately, the Leafs appear to be the winners here. They got Muzzin without having to pay an asinine price. However, the Kings still got a nice return for him. In fact, it was better than I thought it would be. Most of my concerns about the trade are really nitpicky. And if you have to get nitpicky to hate on a trade, that’s a good sign it’s a good trade for both sides.