Quoting: tryger
I worry about Blake taking on too many of these project players with decent cap hits (Maata last summer). Kings already have like 9-10 F spots locked up, every contract we sign (and it was already unlikely Wagner would be guaranteed a spot next season anyhow) is another Ontario player who has to wait. And in that group of 9-10F I still don't see legit top-line players other than Kopitar. Kings need to take a swing, RNH signing cheap means the Kings can make a legit push to get a good player to fill that role.
Now TJ could work with the team, but I would want more of a low risk / high reward free agent signings, like Galchenyuk, acquiring Nolan from Philly, or maybe stealing Taranseko away from the Blues while he has injury concerns. If the Kings can't get competitive this year, not sure why they kept the vets around.
Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, Blake has shown that he's going to take his sweet time getting the prospects up to LA. He's not going to open roster spots just because the fan-base and media are clamoring for a return to legitimacy. As far as next year, I think Byfield is the only rookie forward from the prospect pool that makes it full time. Kupari will likely get shots as JAD or Tkachev need to be rested/rotated. And Turcotte/Kaliyev will probably get an extended look when Byfield goes off to World Juniors, if he does. Other than that... Look for another year of waiting as vet contracts like Lizotte and Lemieux come off the books.
I'm with you in that I'm not a fan of the extra contracts. I get the Blake Lizotte signing was mostly for expansion draft purposes... but his time in LA has to be over. JAD has proven he's more dynamic in the lineup, and the Kings won't send Quinton back to OHL, so I'm still not a fan of the signing. As far as Tkachev, I can't comment on him till I see him on the ice, but that was out of left field, especially with the thoughts that LA wanted to get Kaliyev some time on the wing in the NHL.
I'm not necessarily opposed to going after Nolan or Tarasenko instead. But for both of those you're looking at giving up assets, which is what I was trying to avoid. I'd be fine if the price was right, though. And even then, they both come with significant risk, in my opinion, not low. They've both been injured and out for extended periods of time the past few seasons, and there's no guarantee that they'll be the same type of players they were (Tarasenko) or were projected to be (Patrick).