Habs and Kings at TDL

Ummmmmm. No. So we need to wait until the TDL, give you our 1st round from this past year and a future 2nd for a few months of Patches?

I'm just thinking that most GM's are already happy with their lineups for the fall, and won't see the value of this type of addition until the TDL when they realize they have a window for a playoff run again and want to add proven depth. The trade has less risk for LAK at the deadline, since by then they will see (1) Max is productive again and his knee is fine (2) If Kings are considering this move, they know at worst the draft pick will be middle of round 1 because they are fighting for a playoff spot.

Another way to look at it from LAK point of view is whether current core have much left in the tank for playoff runs beyond next 2 years. By the time Vilardi and Kupari are contributing 2-3 years from now, the current core will be 3 years older (Quick 35, Kopitar 33, Kovalchuk 38, Carter 36, Martinez 33 etc.). If it looks like this team is competitive fro a playoff run as of late Feb 2019 they may decide to go for it and sacrifice some futures.

The MaxPac value might be OK -- assuming he has a great season -- but why would the LAK be trading for him if there's a risk they'll be a lottery team?