In today’s edition of ’32 Thoughts’ on Sportsnet, Elliotte Friedman spoke briefly about the Los Angeles Kings’ priority leading up to the trade deadline. Friedman unsurprisingly shared that the Kings’ are engaged in the markets for right-handed scoring forwards.
The news is unsurprising for a few reasons. The Kings have a lethargic offense, especially for a playoff-bound team. Out of every team positioned in a divisional playoff spot, Los Angeles has the lowest goals-for-per-game, powerplay percentage, and shots-on-goal amount.
They also lack handedness diversity among forwards. Of the nine Kings’ forwards with 10 or more points on the year, winger Alex Laferriere is the only right-handed shot.
It’s unlikely Los Angeles would be willing to move Anže Kopitar or Quinton Byfield out of their roles as top-six centers, indicating the Kings will move toward the market for right-handed wings. Furthermore, with cap space being a limiting factor, Los Angeles should find themselves in the rental market.
Those assumed components narrow down the field of available wingers. Kyle Palmieri of the New York Islanders, Joel Armia of the Montreal Canadiens, and Justin Brazeau of the Boston Bruins are the only pending unrestricted free agents right-handed wingers with double-digit or more goals not on teams currently holding onto a playoff spot.
Palmieri should be the ideal candidate given he’s only one year removed from scoring 30 goals and has moderate playoff experience. If the Kings acquired Palmieri today, he would become their third-highest goal scorer and rank sixth in shots on goal.
The other two have scored 10 goals each this year and would cost less than Palmieri. Still, after being eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers in the first round of three straight playoffs, Los Angeles may want to target more of a game-changing talent.
It seems a lot of teams are looking for right-handed scorers. It’s actually surprising how many more left-handed shooters there are compared to right-handed shooters in the league. It’s kind of odd really when there is more right-handed people in the world then there are left-handed.
In most of the world, kids are taught to shoot with the dominant hand at the top of the stick so righties shoot left.
In much, but not all, of America we just wander into sporting goods stores and see the R or L.
Every lefty I knew shot left, every righty shot right.
US would probably win every tournament if half the country didn’t learn the wrong way.
Interesting. I play most sports LH (racket sports RH for some reason) but I write and eat RH. Maybe that’s why I’m all screwed up!
I’m the same way! I shoot left-handed in hockey but throw/bat/swing righty in baseball and golf. It’s an interesting phenomenon.
Surprisingly, I have never heard that before of kids taught to shoot with the dominant hand at the top of the stick so righties shoot left. That seems odd in IMO.
If you’re a righty, you shoot with your right. If you’re a lefty, you shoot with your left.
I’m ambidextrous but I think of my right hand as my dominant hand primarily because I use it for writing & little things like that.
Top hand is called the “control hand,” so using the dominant hand makes sense. Bottom hand is the “speed hand.” I’m American so learnt it I backwards self my too.. d’oh!
The answer to this is simple: Baseball. If you grow up swinging right handed, you naturally use a hockey stick facing in the same direction.
Waiting on Rob.
If we can’t get Tuch or another higher end option, Palmieri seems like a good choice. The other two don’t seem like an upgrade much.
Hope Blake doesn’t overpay, trades have not been a strong point for him.
Kings don’t have much cap space! Just get a forward that can score! L or R. Since they will be FA anyways! Donato is a good fit and can play on Kopitar’s left! We need to get the PP going!
How would the Kings like one handsome Brock Boeser?
Should have signed Toffoli
Should coulda woulda
More ripple effects of that awful Dubois trade
It’s going to go down as one of the worst trades in the modern era. They got a disappointing 40 point season and a 34-year-old goalie for a quality 2nd liner with upside, quality 3rd liner, one of their better forward prospects, and a high pick. LA was just like, “poof, here’s another asset you can have to round out your roster”.
Thank goodness we got 3 years of Kuemper and dumped that Dubois albatross contract!
I have to admit, that’s a great recovery to turn it into something that’ll help the team. But it’s still terribly poor asset management. I think you could have had Kuemper for a 3rd.
Well not surprised that a canadien is on this list.
Rackell From the pens
How about this. Make a quick call up to Seattle. Grab McCann and salary retention. For a 2nd a 4th and one of the GK prospects