When captain Anze Kopitar retires at the end of this season, the Los Angeles Kings will have a hole in the middle of their alignment. Kopitar has been the team’s go-to center for over a decade, and the organization will have to turn to another middle man to fill the void.
One of these candidates for the next offseason was removed from Los Angeles’ list of potential targets on Wednesday. It’s because Utah mammoth Center Nick Schmaltz has signed a contract extension with the club, removing his UFA status for this summer.
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Schmaltz signed a $64 million deal over eight years with the Mammoth. He will be the third highest paid player on the roster next seasonearning $8 million per season through the 2033-34 campaign. The 30-year-old will be 38 when this contract expires.
This year, Schmaltz has scored 24 goals and 59 points in 65 appearances for Utah. Last season, he recorded a career-high 63 points, but he’s on pace to shatter that personal best by the end of this regular season.
For Los Angeles, it’s another UFA off the free agent market for this summer. The options for the Kings to find an outside candidate to help fill their lack of depth in the middle next season are disappearing.
Four centers the Los Angeles Kings can pivot to in the off-season
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Potential targets remain, but only in the commercial market. As for pending UFA centers, none would be a suitable candidate to play in the Kings’ top six for many years.
In the commercial market, there are a handful of players who could work and are available to continue their work.
Vancouver Canucks Center Elias Pettersson could be a potential player to pursue. Not long ago, he was a scorer of 89 and 103 points for the Canucks. The tricky part is that Pettersson wins $11.6 million for the next six yearsand hasn’t lived up to that standard in recent times. Not to mention it looks like Vancouver won’t keep part of his contract.
Robert Thomas of St. Louis Blues was heavily dangled from teams at the NHL trade deadline. While he has five years left $8.125 million AAV contractthere have been reports that Price asked by Thomas was extremely high.
Nick Schmaltz (Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images)
THE New York Rangers» Vincent Trocheck was another option that was floated to the NHL at the deadline. Reports indicated that he preferred to stay in the Eastern Conferenceexcluding Los Angeles. However, this does not mean Kings general manager Ken Holland I can’t make another effort for him this summer.
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However, obstacles block each of these potential marriages. If Holland can’t make a notable addition at center this summer, Quinton Byfield will need to step up if the Kings want to stay in playoff contention.
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