The Los Angeles Kings are keeping their books clean, and insider Elliotte Friedman says a run at Connor McDavid could be why.
Friedman said Friday the Kings are deliberately protecting cap flexibility so they're ready to pounce whenever a true difference-maker hits the market.
He floated two names that would change the league overnight, Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews, if either ever becomes available.
Los Angeles sits at 35-27-20 this season, good for 90 points, though they've dropped two straight and finished with a minus-22 goal differential.
Artemi Panarin leads the group with 84 points in 78 games, carrying an $11,642,858 cap hit that already eats a big chunk of the payroll.
The graphic behind Friedman's comments lays it out in black and white, a front office quietly building room instead of spending it all now.
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Ken Holland's cap strategy could define the next decade
GM Ken Holland has been in this seat before, and hoarding space for a superstar swing is a familiar page from his old Detroit and Edmonton playbooks.
Adrian Kempe's $5,500,000 deal looks like a bargain next to Panarin's number, giving Holland real breathing room as bigger contracts come off the books.
Betting on a McDavid or Matthews market opening is still a long shot. Neither player has shown a single sign of wanting out.
But building a war chest on the hope that a generational name slips loose someday? That's a bold way to run a franchise, and not everyone will love the patience it demands.
Doughty's $11,000,000 cap hit still looms on the books too, and how Holland manages that number next could say more about his real intentions than any rumor floating around this week.
Nothing here is close to happening. Still, once a GM starts clearing runway like this, teams around the league start paying attention.
Should the Kings really be building around a hypothetical McDavid or Matthews trade?
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