Breaking:Just In John Tavares has been suspended for serious misconduct

The 2023-24 season has been a tale of two halves for the Los Angeles Kings. After starting 16-4-3, the team has just nine wins in their past 28 games, pushing them back into the wild card race. For the Nashville Predators, they have found struggles in all aspects of their lineup and sit considerably back in that same wild card race. The Toronto Maple Leafs are well positioned to make a playoff run but still seek help defensively, especially with John Klingberg being on the long-term injured reserve (LTIR) and out for the season. With the three teams all in different mindsets approaching the trade deadline, they could become great trade partners to help each side

For the Kings, the reasoning for acquiring a goaltender is obvious. Having Cam Talbot and David Rittich be your goaltending tandem in the playoffs in a year you are expecting to make a deep playoff push is a risky move, and a trade for a goaltender seems inevitable. While Rittich has been great to start his NHL season, Talbot started his tenure in Los Angeles the same way before becoming an underwhelming starter as of late. They have the assets to make a trade work but are more likely to struggle to make the move work by fitting Saros and his $5 million salary under the cap. However, moving on from a key defenseman may be the best way to make a trade work.

Matt Roy has been a great defensive defenseman for the Kings in his six-year career, but his time may be coming to an end soon. A free agent at the end of this season and top prospect Brandt Clarke doing well in his short stints in the NHL, Roy may become a cap casualty to address a bigger need in the net

Jordan Spence is another name that could come up in trade talks in place of Roy, but making the cap space work would be more difficult. Spence and Clarke play a similar style of hockey, both benefiting from playing alongside a defensive defenseman. However, Spence is just 22 years old and is making $820,000 until the end of this season, meaning if he were to get moved, it would likely be as a restricted free agent this summer. However, if the cap space were to work in a trade with Spence, he would likely be a trade chip at this season’s deadline in place of Roy.