Kings Could Flip Second-Round Pick Acquired In Danault Trade

The Los Angeles Kings have been kicked out of the top-3 in their division and recently traded Phillip Danault after things went south quickly. Danault has completely lost his scoring touch and has just five assists in 31 games this season (30 with LA).

The second/third line two-way center at least still has his defensive game, and that's why the Montreal Canadiens traded for him, but he wasn't adding to the offense that the Kings needed, in LA. The team reportedly turned down offers to get a player back, and instead settled on receiving a second-round pick in the 2026 draft instead. That pick is likely to be traded this season to address that hole in the Kings lineup now.

The Kings have 91 goals in 36 games this season, second-last in the league and only ahead of the Seattle Kraken who have 89 goals in 35 games. The Kings are strong defensively, as they always are, but if they want to be a playoff team and have a shot at going deep in the playoffs, they need offense as well, and Anze Kopitar is declining and retiring after the season.

David Pagnotta said, "They've been looking for offense. They're looking for a speedy guy who can put the puck in the net, and now they've got an extra second-round pick to play with along with a lot of cap space." Danault freed up $5.5 million AAV when the Canadiens took his entire cap hit off the books for this season and next, which worked out great for the Kings.

The Kings have just under $10 million to work with this season, and there will be plenty of options to add as the season progresses and teams, especially in the Eastern Conference are separated and all 16 teams aren't in the hunt for a playoff spot, revealing sellers. Ideally, the Kings would be looking for a top-6 center with term because they would be losing two in a matter of half a year. Those are available for the right price, but the Kings won't have it that easy improving the way they want to immediately.