![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.prohockeyrumors.com\/files\/2026\/02\/USATSI_27941529-scaled.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nRecord<\/p>\n
23-19-14, 5th in the Pacific (55.3% playoff probabilty<\/a>)<\/p>\n Deadline Status<\/p>\n Buyer<\/p>\n Deadline Cap Space<\/p>\n $15.71MM on deadline day, 0\/3 retention slots used, 45\/50 contracts used,\u00a0per PuckPedia<\/a>.<\/p>\n Upcoming Draft Picks<\/p>\n 2026: LAK 1st, LAK 2nd, CBJ 2nd, DAL 3rd, LAK 4th, LAK 5th, LAK 6th, COL 6th, LAK 7th Trade Chips<\/p>\n The Kings have plenty of draft picks they could move in any deadline deal, but they aren\u2019t exactly stocked with quality prospects and have a farm system that would rank in the bottom third of the league in terms of quality and quantity. The team already dealt their top prospect, Liam Greentree<\/a>, for Panarin, but they do have other pieces if they want to make another splash.<\/p>\n Francesco Pinelli<\/a> was a second-round selection in the 2021 draft (42nd overall) and has not had a smooth transition to the professional ranks, struggling early in the AHL. He had 15 goals and 14 assists in 70 AHL games last season, and likely needs to size up if he hopes to break through to the NHL. Pinelli is a smart player who identifies open space for himself and teammates to create offensive opportunities. On the defensive side of the game, his instincts aren\u2019t as strong, and it is something he is working to round out in the AHL.<\/p>\n Another potential trade piece for the Kings is defenseman Henry Brzustewicz<\/a>. The 2025 first-round pick (31st overall) plays a safe, simple game and relies on moving the puck to a teammate rather than creating offensive plays himself. His defensive game is steady and effective, as he is adept at forcing opponents to the perimeter, protecting the slot, and containing them. Brzustewicz does have some offensive capabilities, but he isn\u2019t a play driver and likely won\u2019t be running a team\u2019s power play if\/when he makes it to the NHL. Brzustewicz could be a good piece of a bigger package if the Kings are looking to make another splash before the trade deadline.<\/p>\n Finally, we come to goaltender Carter George<\/a>, who might be the Kings\u2019 best prospect after the Greentree trade. George has had a decorated international career, representing Canada at the last two World Junior Championships, and he has also been terrific during his tenure in the OHL with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. The Thunder Bay, ON, native isn\u2019t overly big, but his puck-handling makes him a third defenseman, which can facilitate quick breakouts and transition play. In terms of his goaltending, he is technically sound and doesn\u2019t appear to wilt under pressure. If the Kings wanted to move a prospect whose value is inflated at the moment, George is probably the piece.<\/p>\n Team Needs<\/p>\n A Top Six Center:\u00a0Los Angeles desperately needs a center going forward. It\u2019s gotten to the point this season that winger Alex Laferriere<\/a> has slotted in at center in the top six, which is less than ideal. They have Anze Kopitar<\/a> for the rest of the season until he retires, and Quinton Byfield<\/a> is likely fine as the second-line center, although he\u2019s had a rough stretch this year. Beyond that, Alex Turcotte<\/a> has not reached the levels many expected, putting the Kings in a predicament this season and beyond. The Kings have cap space to acquire a center this year, but it\u2019s hard to say how strong the internal pressure is to acquire a pivot before the deadline. Los Angeles could let this year play out and chase a Nick Schmaltz<\/a>-type player in free agency, or they could look to the current available options, which would likely be Elias Pettersson<\/a> of the Vancouver Canucks, Shane Wright<\/a> of the Seattle Kraken, or Robert Thomas<\/a> out of St. Louis. There is always Vincent Trocheck<\/a> of the New York Rangers available as well, and given the ties to Panarin, there could be something to that one.<\/p>\n A Depth Forward:\u00a0No disrespect to Taylor Ward<\/a> or Jeff Malott<\/a>, but if Los Angeles enters the playoffs with those two taking regular shifts on the fourth line, that would be a problem against a team like the Edmonton Oilers. The Kings have dealt with some injuries, and the Kevin Fiala<\/a> injury is another obstacle to overcome, especially since the Kings don\u2019t have a ton of reinforcements who can play at a high level long term. Malott has been a fine replacement this season, but Ward has just 16 NHL games of experience and is a late bloomer, much like Malott. The Kings could likely find a reasonably priced depth forward on the trade market to insulate themselves against future injuries, which will no doubt happen as the NHL plays a compressed schedule down the stretch. A player like Erik Haula<\/a> might make sense coming out of Nashville, as the Predators aren\u2019t a playoff team, and Haula has an expiring deal. His market could be limited due to his $3.15MM cap hit, which the Kings could easily absorb at this time with any retention from Nashville.<\/p>\n Photo by Brad Penner-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With the Olympic break upon us, the trade deadline is under a month away. Where does each team…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":370117,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5126],"tags":[54005,5,186,1760,240,5303,793,145,5304,5302,4,697],"class_list":{"0":"post-461338","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-los-angeles-kings","8":"tag-deadline-primer-2026","9":"tag-hockey","10":"tag-kings","11":"tag-la","12":"tag-la-kings","13":"tag-lakings","14":"tag-los-angeles","15":"tag-los-angeles-kings","16":"tag-losangeles","17":"tag-losangeleskings","18":"tag-nhl","19":"tag-pro-hockey-rumors-originals"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116088495581872287","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/461338","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=461338"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/461338\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/370117"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=461338"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=461338"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=461338"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
2027: LAK 1st, LAK 2nd, LAK 4th, \u00a0LAK 6th, COL 6th, LAK 7th<\/p>\n