Edited Oct. 19, 2023 at 1:00 p.m.
People need to stop trying to trade a good goaltender to the Kings
1. They don’t value good goaltenders as a strategy. They are banking they are the exception team that secures above replacement level value for a cheap price. There are examples of teams where this has worked and examples of it failing miserably. Time will tell if it’s a good strategy.
2. They either overvalue high picks who haven’t performed up to expectation or believe in their development to the point where they are willing to give prospects more rope. It depends on your perception
They aren’t trading Byfield for Ullmark. I believe their asking price would value him as a number 2 pick in a deep draft rather than his play to date.
IMO, they are more likely to trade for Jack Campbell at 50 percent retention than for Ullmark. It’s just their MO. We’ll see if it’s right or wrong. Most likely it fails miserably at some point, but every team is going to have to have a weaker/riskier position.and only one team wins it all. They’ve made a conscious choice for it to be goaltending
The Kings have a plethora of really good bottom 6 forwards and fringe top 4 defenders. Probably more than most franchises and a few real gems that they aren’t going to trade.
At one point, I was focused on Francisco Pinelli because he was one of their few top 6 forward options who wasn’t a top pick. They seem to value first round pedigree regardless of production. I believe him and Turcotte are similar prospects, but one has a pedigree if you disregard his underachieving. I no longer believe the Kings will trade for a top 10 goaltender in the league with their current r leadership. They’ll pay fringe money and hope they get a Copley type performance again.