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The future of Toronto Maple Leafs star forward Mitch Marner will be one of the top storylines when NHL free agency opens on July 1 — and the Los Angeles Kings' new general manager could try to bring him to California.
Ken Holland, who has been in his new role for just a week, told The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun that he plans to go big-game hunting to help get his team over the hump in 2025-26.
“I plan to be aggressive,” Holland told LeBrun on Wednesday. “Ownership is prepared to go to the cap. The goal is to put a competitive team on the ice and, at the right time, be aggressive to try to make the team better and more exciting.
“Whether that happens in the next six to seven weeks or next year at the trade deadline or next offseason … but certainly the plan is to be aggressive at the right time.”
LeBrun speculates that, in his goal to bring Los Angeles back to Stanley Cup glory, he will take a long look at Marner if the 28-year-old hits the market.
“I would be surprised if the Kings didn’t enter the Mitch Marner sweepstakes, for example, if the pending unrestricted free agent is indeed available July 1,” LeBrun wrote on Thursday.
Marner has struggled under the spotlight in Ontario, and after another disappointing playoff exit with the Leafs, it's widely believed he will leave his home province this summer. Although that isn't confirmed, there will be a ton of interest in the 100-point scorer if he does become available.
Kings reckoning with another early postseason exit
This season was supposed to be different for the Kings, who looked like a completely transformed team with Darcy Kuemper between the pipes in 2024-25. LA finished second in the Pacific Division and sixth in league standings with a terrific 48-25-9 record.
Once again facing the Edmonton Oilers in Round 1, the Kings jumped out to a 2-0 series lead, and were one period away from taking a 3-0 stranglehold on last season's Western Conference champions.
Instead, the Oilers came back to win Game 3 before racking off three more victories to stun Kings faithful and send them out in the first round for the fourth consecutive year.
It's not bold to say that this was the best version of the Kings that has faced off against the Oilers in any of the last four years. But again, Los Angeles was left looking for answers, watching as Edmonton drove on yet again.
Despite that, Holland said he isn't planning on making any changes in leadership.
“I’m going to keep everybody,” Holland told LeBrun. “They had 105 points. They’ve gone through a retool. It was a wonderful job by Rob Blake and all the people around him. I mean, they’ve made the playoffs the last four years in a row.”
The 69-year-old is confident that all the Kings need are a few tweaks to return to the level that saw the franchise win two Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014.
“It’s a good team,” Holland said. “There’s good veteran leadership on the team. There’s some good young kids that are on the come-up. It’s L.A.; it’s got a great history; it’s a great brand; it’s an entertainment capital. Hopefully I can make a few decisions, and we can convince a player or two to come join us like we were able to do in Detroit and able to do in Edmonton.”
It'll be interesting to see if one of those players is Mitch Marner.
