Quoting: Goose1227
Very impressive…good work. Like the trade. Was gonna ask you, what do you think Kings need to do? Defensive help? Another scorer? Are they happy w Q at LW or do they want to get him at C? Anyway, good trade man.
Short term or long term?
This season, I think Arvidsson was their main "trade deadline acquisition." Bringing him back doesn't leave much room to do anything else.
I wouldn't mind the Kings potentially bringing in another goaltender. I'm not talking about a big name guy like Markstrom, Gibson, or Saros, but a short term, inexpensive 1B guy like Charlie Lindgren or Kevin Lankinen. Talbot did really well to start the season, but with Copley not playing well, the Kings rode him too hard and burned him out. After an exceptional start to the season which earned him a trip to the All Star game and had him as a Vezina front runner, his play has taken a nosedive. He has lost his last 10 starts in a row. Rittich has since taken over as the starter, and Talbot hasn't gotten a start since the All Star break. If the Kings aren't confident enough to split the load with Talbot so they don't also burn out Rittich, then they need to waive Talbot and bring in a replacement that they are willing to rotate with Rittich. That's all I think the Kings can really do this season.
Longer term, the Kings main needs are a puck-moving LHD, a long-term starting goaltender, and some grit (preferably that can also produce offensively, not a goon).
As for Byfield, I think the long-term plan is to move him to center, but that's currently on hold right now with them trying to get Dubois to emerge. He's been noticeably better over the last 3 games, but he needs to keep it up for an extended streak. For now, I think the Kings will keep him on Byfield's wing. Eventually (not this season, maybe not even next season), they may do what they did with Richards and Carter and have them switch off, with Byfield taking over for center and Kopitar moving to the left. Once Kopitar retires, the 1C position belongs to Byfield.