Coming into the season, the Los Angeles Kings weren't really on the radar as a potential playoff team. Halfway through the season, however, the team still has a legitimate shot at earning a spot in the postseason.
After their win over the St. Louis Blues yesterday, Los Angeles now sits just three points back from the Blues for fourth place in the West Division, with one game in hand. St. Louis is on a five-game losing streak right now and if they can’t snap out of it quickly, the Kings could take advantage.
A lot has gone into the surprising season. Anze Kopitar has been excellent for the team and despite his age, he’s showing no signs of slowing down. Adrian Kempe has had some success in a larger role as well, while Dustin Brown had an extremely hot start, before cooling off a bit as of late. Alex Iafallo has been consistent and Gabriel Vilardi is also developing fairly well, while Andreas Athanasiou has provided a boost to the forward group.
On the back end, Drew Doughty is having a huge year and rookie Mikey Anderson is already playing top-pairing minutes, while facing tough matchups. In net, Cal Petersen has been great for the Kings, posting a .922 save percentage in 16 games. He’s forced to make some key saves that he shouldn’t be tasked with in just about every game but he’s managing to get the job done.
The success leaves the team’s deadline plans up in the air. Do they want to add or should they look to sell once again? I don’t think there’s a clear answer.
I think if the Kings look to add, it certainly shouldn’t be a rental. But if they’re able to acquire a younger player with some term or someone who will still be a restricted free agent, why not make the move? If they sell instead, however, who could they move and how will the expansion draft factor in?
It was reported that general manager Rob Blake was looking for a high-end defenseman under 25 years old, so we know he’s looking to continue to accelerate the Kings’ rebuild. But it’s still hard to tell just what point the Kings are at and how close they could be to taking another major step, which makes it somewhat difficult to make any major roster moves.
The somewhat unexpected success raises questions about how the team should proceed from here. That said, the Kings are certainly on the right track and a winning record halfway through the season points to the fact that the team is progressing well.
***NOTE: We've launched a HockeyBuzz Kings Twitter account! For anyone interested, you can follow @HB_LAKings for updates on articles, Kings news, etc.***
Heading into the trade deadline, the Kings should:
Los Angeles Kings Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»