LOS ANGELES — The presence Wednesday of the Colorado Avalanche at Staples Center highlighted the start of the silly season, when the NHL rumor mill gets cranked up to full throttle as the trade deadline approaches. The Avalanche are expected to be one of the league’s top sellers.
It remains to be seen whether the Kings are buyers or sellers at the March 1 deadline. A great deal depends on their standing in the Pacific Division and the Western Conference. They were in the thick of the wild-card playoff race after a victory Tuesday over the Arizona Coyotes.
The Kings haven’t been healthy and at full strength for even one period this season. Marian Gaborik (broken foot), Jonathan Quick (groin) and Tyler Toffoli (lower body) have been sidelined for extended periods. Gaborik was the only one of the three in the lineup Wednesday.
So, it’s been difficult to gauge whether the Kings are a contender or a pretender. Mostly, the Kings have been a middle-of-the-pack team, hovering around fourth or fifth place in the Pacific, performing a playoff dance: one foot in, one foot out.
Kings general manager Dean Lombardi made two minor moves Wednesday, placing seldom-used defenseman Tom Gilbert on waivers and recalling defenseman Paul LaDue from the Ontario Reign of the American Hockey League.
The league’s other 29 teams have until 9 a.m. Thursday to claim Gilbert, who had one goal and five points and a minus-five defensive rating in 18 games. The Kings can reassign him to the Reign if he clears waivers and isn’t claimed. LaDue had six goals and 18 points in 36 games for the Reign.
The Kings began a pivotal stretch of six games with a hard-earned victory Tuesday over the Coyotes, last in the Pacific Division. The Avalanche, last in the Central, are the only team to visit Staples Center during the six-game span. The Kings begin a four-game trip Saturday in Philadelphia.
Colorado could be a trading partner if Lombardi decides to be a buyer at the deadline. The Avalanche took an eight-game losing streak (0-7-1) into Wednesday’s game against the Kings, and the consensus around the league was that they could trade standout forward Matt Duchesne.
“I’m open to it,” Duchesne told the Denver Post last week.
It’s no secret the Kings could sahabet giriş use additional scoring depth for the stretch run. Duchesne, or Avalanche teammate Gabriel Landeskog, could fit the bill. Colorado could use help on defense. The question is: Do the Kings have what it takes to complete a trade?
Stay tuned.
Around the rink
Toffoli skated during the Kings’ optional morning workout in El Segundo, but was not activated from injured reserve. He sat out for the 20th consecutive game because on a lower-body injury suffered in a Dec. 20 game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. … Anze Kopitar had surprisingly low totals of six goals and 30 points in 44 games before the Kings faced the Avalanche. Kopitar, the Kings’ leading scorer for nine consecutive seasons, was on a hot streak, however. He had three goals and 13 points in 10 games going into Wednesday.
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