At the beginning of 2024, the Los Angeles Kings were four points off the lead in the Pacific Division sitting comfortably in a playoff spot in the Western Conference. Six weeks later, the Kings are fighting for their playoff lives and that could change their tune on how they approach the March 8 NHL trade deadline.
The Kings have four wins in their last 17 games, a stretch that not many teams can overcome in the middle of the season to get back into championship contention. This brutal run was amplified by a 7-0 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday. Where does that leave LA? Potentially as sellers at the deadline with one eye on next season.
“If you watched that game (in Buffalo), that was a non-competitive team. They have a crucial stretch of seven games where if they go 2-5, with all the talk about being a Stanley Cup contender, they should sell,” Dennis Bernstein of The Fourth Period said.
Contending for a Stanley Cup was always a bold expectation for the Kings this season, though the team looked poised for a run after winning 19 of its first 30 games while allowing a league-low 73 goals in that span.
LA's defensive record still stands well with the sixth-fewest goals allowed even after the seven put past it on Tuesday. Sloppy play is becoming too consistent though, and a drop out of playoff contention completely over the next two weeks might see the Kings answering more trade calls than they anticipated earlier in the season.
The Kings haven’t won a playoff series since claiming the Stanley Cup in 2014. That record is in danger of reaching a decade if LA doesn’t turn things around and cement itself in the playoff conversation by the end of February.
There's no guarantee either way, but several names could be leaving LA if the Kings' freefall continues.