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Kings Sign Andrei Kuzmenko To One-Year Extension

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The Kings will be keeping their trade deadline acquisition away from the open market.  The team announced they’ve signed winger Andrei Kuzmenko to a one-year extension worth $4.3MM.

The 29-year-old took the NHL by storm in his first season in 2022-23, notching 39 goals and 35 assists in 79 games with Vancouver.  However, there was a bit of a red flag considering that his shooting percentage came in at 27.3%, well above the NHL average and a rate that wasn’t going to be sustainable.  Unable to agree on a long-term commitment, the two sides eventually settled on a two-year, $10MM bridge deal to keep him in the fold with the Canucks.

Unfortunately for Kuzmenko and Vancouver, his second season didn’t go anywhere near as well as the first.  After a quiet first half, he was included as salary ballast in the trade that sent Elias Lindholm to the Canucks.  With a bigger opportunity in Calgary, Kuzmenko made the most of it, putting up 25 points in 29 games down the stretch with the Flames, providing some optimism that he could be a key contributor for them heading into 2024-25.

But things didn’t go that way this past season.  Instead of picking up where he left off, Kuzmenko languished, notching just four goals and 11 assists in 37 games to start the year, resulting in him once again being included as salary ballast in a swap, this time to Philadelphia as part of the move that saw Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee go to Calgary.  Kuzmenko did well in seven games with the Flyers before being flipped again, this time to Los Angeles at the trade deadline in a move aimed at giving the Kings some extra scoring.

Kuzmenko was indeed able to provide that, tallying five goals along with a dozen assists in 22 games down the stretch before averaging a point per game in six playoff outings.  That performance was enough to land him the 19th spot in our Top 50 UFA ranking but instead, he won’t test the open market and will stay in a spot where things went well over the last few months.  Perhaps with a full-season performance like he finished 2024-25 with, Kuzmenko will be in better shape to command a longer-term pact on the open market next summer.

With the signing, the Kings are down to a little under $20MM in cap space, per PuckPedia.  As things stand, GM Ken Holland will be set to try to make a splash either in free agency or the trade market although that number could still come down if he’s able to work out an agreement with pending UFA blueliner Vladislav Gavrikov in the coming hours.

Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images.

Free Agent Notes: Marchand, Gavrikov, Provorov, Granlund, Faksa, Pezzetta

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If the Panthers can’t get a deal done to keep Brad Marchand in Florida before the market opens tomorrow, Darren Dreger of TSN expects the Bruins, Mammoth, and Maple Leafs to be his most aggressive suitors in free agency.

A Boston reunion would be surprising given there’s been no change in the front office that wasn’t willing to match Marchand’s cheaper requests for an extension during the season, resulting in the Bruins trading their captain to the Panthers at the deadline. Nonetheless, it’s a financially feasible move for them and one that would address their rather significant need for top-six forwards. The club still has $12.74MM in cap space after getting extensions done for names like John Beecher, Morgan Geekie, and Henri Jokiharju in the last 24 hours, per PuckPedia. Marchand would likely command a contract in the $8MM range annually if he hits the open market.

While Utah has seemed to dial back its rhetoric of making a significant free agent splash, instead placing complete trust in its young core and opting for more youthful pickups via trade, like JJ Peterka, Marchand might make more sense on a shorter-term contract. They still have nearly $15MM in cap space and enter 2025-26 with one of the youngest forward groups in the league – their only forwards 30 or older are Alexander Kerfoot and Liam O’Brien.

The Leafs also have their cap flexibility for Tuesday dialed in after getting rather affordable extensions done for Matthew Knies ($7.75MM) and John Tavares ($4.38MM AAV) in the last few days. They’d presumably be one of the more appealing fits for Marchand to remain both with a contending team and in a top-six role, potentially even seeing top-line minutes in place of the departing Mitch Marner.

Here are a few more rumors from around the NHL ahead of the official start of free agency on Tuesday:

  • Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic relays that the Kings are making a last-ditch effort today to reach an extension with defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov. While general manager Ken Holland said over the weekend he expects Gavrikov to test the market, L.A. still hasn’t heard back from Gavrikov’s camp on their final offer.
  • While things were quiet on extension talks between the Blue Jackets and defenseman Ivan Provorov for weeks, they re-engaged in negotiations yesterday, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports. They presumably decided getting yesterday’s extension for Dante Fabbro done, ensuring they retain depth on their weaker right side of the blue line, was a priority over Provorov’s talks.
  • Center Mikael Granlund and the Stars continue to have mutual interest in an extension, according to LeBrun. It still looks unlikely something will get done before tomorrow with the Stars having just $980K in projected cap space for next season, but they could reach a handshake agreement if Dallas is confident they can move out other contracts to make Granlund’s money work. They’ve already been successful in retaining vets Jamie Benn and Matt Duchene on below-market-value deals.
  • Depth pivot Radek Faksa will have plenty of options tomorrow if he reaches the market, given the lack of centers available, but there’s still the possibility he stays with the Blues. The two sides remain in extension talks, says Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic.
  • The Maple Leafs are among the teams expected to have interest in Canadiens enforcer Michael Pezzetta, assuming he hits the market tomorrow, reports LeBrun.

Kings Expected To Sign Hughes

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  • The Kings are expected to sign prospect Jack Hughes to an entry-level contract, Mayor’s Manor reports. The 21-year-old (who has no relation to the New Jersey center with the same name) was a second-round pick by Los Angeles in 2022, going 51st overall.  Hughes had 25 points in 40 games in his senior year at Boston University and could have become an unrestricted free agent in mid-August if he waited a little longer to sign.  Instead, he’ll become the sixth player from the Kings’ 2022 class to sign a contract, assuming he puts pen to paper on a deal in the coming days.

Vladislav Gavrikov Expected To Reach Free Agency

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The Kings are not expecting to get an extension done with defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov before he reaches unrestricted free agency on Tuesday, general manager Ken Holland told reporters Saturday (including John Hoven of Mayor’s Manor).

The news doesn’t rule out Gavrikov returning to L.A. if they dole out the most competitive offer for him on the open market, but it does understandably significantly decrease the likelihood of him remaining in a Kings uniform next season. They’ve had continued discussions with Gavrikov’s camp on a new deal this week, but still aren’t close, Holland said.

The silver lining for Los Angeles is that Gavrikov has a limited number of teams he’s considering signing with this summer, the Kings obviously being among them. The other presumed frontrunner for his services will be the Rangers, where there have been strong indications of mutual interest, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period said last week.

If Gavrikov departs, that’s now two defense slots L.A. needs to replace on the open market or via trade. The team also traded young righty Jordan Spence to the Senators during today’s draft.

Replacing Gavrikov directly will be a struggle. The 29-year-old is understandably looking to cash in following the best two-way season of his career, averaging over 23 minutes per game while posting 30 points and a +26 rating in 82 appearances for the Kings.

There’s no one available who checks all the boxes of Gavrikov’s strengths as a puck-mover, penalty-killer, and shot-blocker with a big frame. Some names could at least help them recoup a big chunk of Gavrikov’s value.

Ivan Provorov is one, and it looks like the fellow Russian lefty will be available next week with no extension looming with the Blue Jackets. He doesn’t match Gavrikov’s defensive skillset but could produce better possession impacts in an insulated L.A. system, and he has plenty of experience logging the type of deployment Gavrikov managed for the Kings this season. He’s also one of the more durable players in the league and has three straight 82-game seasons under his belt.

Matt Grzelcyk, Ryan Lindgren, and Dmitry Orlov round out the next tier of available lefties after Provorov, all of which present a more significant projected downgrade on the value Gavrikov brought to the Kings’ blue line last season. Among trade targets, there could be an informal swap with the Rangers in the cards. Los Angeles has kicked tires on New York’s K’Andre Miller, a pending RFA, according to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period. A speculative sign-and-trade that sees Gavrikov head to Manhattan while the Kings acquire Miller’s signing rights could be feasible.

That would, of course, leave the Kings looking to pursue a more defensively responsible righty to replace the puck-moving Spence. That’s not exactly the skillset Miller provides, and in order to get the most out of his all-around value, he’d need something of an anchor partner next to him on the right side. Top open-market righties include Aaron Ekblad – although that likely won’t work under the salary cap if they’re already bringing in a speculative mid-priced asset in Miller – along with Cody Ceci, Henri Jokiharju, and Dante Fabbro.

Canucks, Golden Knights, Kings Interested In Bowen Byram

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After sending high-end winger, JJ Peterka, out West a few days ago to the Utah Mammoth, the Buffalo Sabres are reportedly working the phones on another one of their younger roster players. According to TSN’s Darren Dreger on the Barn Burner podcast, the Sabres are receiving consistent interest in defenseman Bowen Byram from the Vancouver Canucks, Vegas Golden Knights, and Los Angeles Kings.

For the former two teams, it’s apparent that Byram is being viewed as an option on his off-hand. Operating on the assumption he’ll be in any acquiring team’s top-four, the Canucks already have Quinn Hughes and Marcus Pettersson on the left, while the Golden Knights have Shea Theodore and Noah Hanifin.

Meanwhile, the Kings may view Byram as a sufficient replacement for Vladislav Gavrikov should the defensive blue liner depart in free agency. Byram isn’t nearly as good as Gavrikov in the defensive zone, but would bring far more offensive pressure and could create a quality pairing with fellow youngster, Brandt Clarke.

For context, there’s no trade close at the time of writing, but it’s become apparent that the Sabres are making a concerted effort to balance out the handedness of their defensive core. The team has already found one quality right-handed option in Michael Kesselring, and is likely seeking one more after moving Byram.

Unfortunately for Buffalo, it’s challenging to ascertain Byram’s value on the trade market. He has not made many significant strides since his time with the Colorado Avalanche, recording a 0.46 PPG average over the past three years, despite an increase in average ice time since arriving in New York.

Still, despite his billing as an offensive-minded defenseman, Byram can hold his own in the defensive zone, racking up 313 blocked shots in 246 career games, with a 90.1% on-ice save percentage at even strength. It’s also important to note that, unlike many of his peers in Buffalo, Byram has postseason experience and had his name put on the Cup in 2022 with Colorado.

Senators Acquire Jordan Spence From Kings

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The Ottawa Senators are reportedly getting close to acquiring defenseman Jordan Spence from the Los Angeles Kings, per TSN’s Bruce Garrioch. The Los Angeles Kings will receive a 2025 third-round pick – 67th-overall – and a 2026 sixth-round pick in return per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The move has been confirmed by the Senators.

In the minutes leading up to the start of draft day two, Ottawa has pulled off yet another lucrative deal. They acquired the third-round pick moved in this deal from the Nashville Predators on Friday, as part of a package with the 23rd-overall pick to move up to Ottawa’s 21st-oveall slot. The Senators went on to select Logan Hensler at 23, landing a heavy-body and poised defender who should fit perfectly ahead of Spence in the Senators’ future lineup. That makes this acquisition of Spence all the sweeter for Ottawa. For the net cost of 21st overall and a sixth-round pick, they’ll land a top prospect in Hensler, and a high-upside puck-mover in Spence.

Spence climbed into a hardy role in the Kings lineup over the last two seasons, on the back of confident play-driving and gradual improvements to his game away from the puck. Last season marked his first full year in the NHL, and he marked it with 24 points, 12 penalty minutes, and a plus-five through 71 games played. Not to be outdone, Spence returned to the NHL full-time this year and improved his stat line to 28 points, 16 penalty minutes, and a plus-23 in 79 appearances. He’s a crafty and quick defender, though one often undercut by his 5-foot-11, 180-pound frame.

That size has kept Spence an unheralded player for much of his hockey career. He was originally drafted by the Kings in the fourth round of the 2019 NHL Draft, following a year where he scored 49 points in 68 games with the QMJHL’s Moncton Wildcats. He continued on in the QMJHL for the next two seasons, and didn’t reach point-per-game scoring until he managed 40 points in 22 games of the shortened 2020-21 campaign.

It was on the heels of that surge to scoring that Spence opted to turn pro. He played through his rookie AHL season, and fell one game short of his rookie NHL season, in the 2021-22 season. That year was marked by a productive 42 points in 46 AHL games, but just eight points in 24 NHL games. He returned for much of the same in the following year – netting 45 points in 56 AHL games but just one point in six NHL appearances.

Now, Spence seems firmly set as a routine, full-time NHL fixture. That fact made him a tough asset for the Kings to hold onto, with Drew Doughty and Brandt Clarke holding firm roles in the lineup above Spence. The Senators should be able to reward him with much more playing time – with their right-side only blocked off by Artem Zub and Nick Jensen, two options who move the puck far less than Spence. That setup could be the makings of a breakout year for the flashy defender, though just how well his all-three-zones playmaking will hold up at the NHL level is yet to be seen.

Senators Expected To Show Interest In Tanner Jeannot

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With the Kings not expected to offer winger Tanner Jeannot a new contract, he’s expected to hit the open market on Tuesday with teams looking for extra grit being likely to show interest.  It appears that the Senators will be one of those as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that Ottawa is expected to pursue Jeannot in free agency.

Jeannot was one of the bigger surprises in the NHL back in 2021-22.  In his first full NHL season, he wound up collecting 24 goals and 17 assists along with 130 penalty minutes and 318 hits in 81 games, earning the 28-year-old a seventh-place finish in Calder Trophy voting.  All of a sudden, it looked like Nashville had a key power forward of the future in the mix.

But things didn’t go anywhere near as well the following year as his output dropped to just 14 points in 56 games.  Nonetheless, Tampa Bay still believed in him, sending the Preds draft picks in the first five rounds (including the 23rd pick last night, one that was moved in a trade-up swap) to acquire Jeannot’s services.

The change of scenery didn’t boost his scoring prowess as Jeannot had just four points in 20 games down the stretch in 2023 and then followed that up with just seven goals and seven assists in 55 outings in 2023-24.  While the physicality was still there, the offensive touch certainly wasn’t.  Needing to clear cap space last summer, the Lightning moved Jeannot and his $2.665MM contract at the draft last year for second and fourth-round picks.

Once again, the change of scenery didn’t yield an increase in production as Jeannot posted seven goals and six assists along with 89 penalty minutes and 211 hits in 67 games while logging just 11:01 per night.  As a result, he’s going to be entering the open market with teams now viewing his breakout year as the outlier, not necessarily a sign of things to come.

After that 24-goal rookie year, Jeannot has managed just 20 in the three seasons since combined, making him more of a fourth liner than an impactful middle-six piece.  As a result, he didn’t earn a spot on our Top 50 UFA list.  After playing on a bridge deal the last two seasons, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Jeannot effectively get another one as it would be difficult to see a team making a longer-term commitment to someone whose production has been so limited lately.  But with a lot of teams looking for added grit, Jeannot should nonetheless have a solid group of suitors next week with the Sens appearing to be one of them.

Pittsburgh Penguins Acquire 24th Overall Pick, Select Will Horcoff

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According to a team announcement, the Los Angeles Kings have traded the 24th overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft to the Pittsburgh Penguins for the 31st and 59th overall selections. Using the pick, the Penguins selected Will Horcoff from the University of Michigan.

Horcoff, the son of longtime Edmonton Oiler Shawn Horcoff, had a split season during the 2024-25 campaign. He began the year with the United States National Team Development Program in Plymouth, MI, scoring eight goals and 14 points in 28 games with a +5 rating.

After making the short trip to Ann Arbor, MI, for the second half of the season, Horcoff finished his first year with the Wolverines with four goals and 10 points in 18 contests. He also performed well on the international stage, scoring two goals and four points in seven games for Team USA at the U18 World Junior Championship.

Unfortunately, few believed that Horcoff had the necessary offensive talent to warrant a first-round selection, with several mocks projecting him to fall to the second round. Still, at 6’4″, he’ll immediately add size and physicality to the Penguins system, and is arguably one of, if not the best, defensive forward available at this year’s draft. At any rate, it’ll be a few years before Pittsburgh sees the value in this pick, as Horcoff is expected to return to Michigan in the fall.

Teams Interested In Kings' Alex Turcotte

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  • Multiple teams are interested in trading for Los Angeles Kings’ forward Alex Turcotte, per Mayors Manor. While speculation has been ramping up surrounding defender Jordan Spence and forward Trevor Moore, Turcotte is an interesting name to monitor. While Turcotte, a former first-round pick, has underperformed so far in his career, he’s coming off a career-high 68 games played and 25 points, and he’s still just 24. The fifth-overall selection in the 2019 draft could benefit from a change of scenery.

Rangers Among Vladislav Gavrikov’s Preferred Destinations

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If Vladislav Gavrikov reaches the open market next week, there will be a high level of mutual interest between him and the Rangers. His preference remains to iron out an extension with the Kings, but if he’s unable to do so, New York is on a “short list of teams he is interested in joining,” writes David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period.

Gavrikov has already been tagged as one of the Rangers’ top free-agent targets as they look to reshape a blue line that’s already undergone major surgery since the beginning of 2024-25. If signed, he would presumably come at the expense of pending RFA K’Andre Miller’s signing rights being traded elsewhere. New York has received strong interest on the trade market regarding the young defender, and with Gavrikov projected to command nearly $8MM per season on a long-term deal, they’d only have around $5MM in cap space left over after signing him with RFA winger William Cuylle in need of a new deal as well.

While Gavrikov’s puck-moving ability may be a step back from Miller’s ceiling, the veteran has been far more consistent over the past few years and offers greater defensive upside. That two-way presence – this past season was his second time hitting 30 points in his NHL career – combined with spectacular impacts and a willingness to get involved in the play physically would give Adam Fox the bona fide No. 2 defenseman and potential long-term partner he’s missed over the last few years with Ryan Lindgren’s decline and subsequent trade.

The Rangers would obviously end up paying a premium for Gavrikov’s services coming off a stellar platform year, but they’re in a position of need. There’s nothing resembling even a fringe first-pairing lefty in the organization, particularly if Miller isn’t re-upped, and Gavrikov has a highly desirable track record with his combination of heavy deployment and good two-way play over his six-year NHL career. Poor possession play has plagued the Rangers throughout the past few seasons, so much so that it may make more sense for new head coach Mike Sullivan to deploy Fox, who routinely boasts above-average possession impacts regardless of who his partner is, on a separate pairing from Gavrikov if he’s brought in.

Still, a long-term agreement with Gavrikov isn’t something the Rangers should rush into. They’ve had to make some undesirable cap dumps in the past few months because of similar moves. They already have two lengthy contracts on the books for defenders – Fox’s rather desirable $9.5MM cap hit through 2029 isn’t much of an issue, but William Borgen’s $4.1MM cap hit through 2030 could be a tricky one if he can’t manage to hold onto a consistent top-four role on the right side with the younger, more dynamic Braden Schneider breathing down his neck entering a contract year.

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