FREE AGENCY RECAP: Grading the LA Kings’ free agent signings

July 1st is the day free agency starts. It’s a day when every fanbase has its wishlist of players they hope their general manager signs, and they await breaking news. General managers shop within a budget (salary cap) to fill needs and make their teams better. After all the signings occur, media members and outlets give their analysis of the signings in a day filled with much frenzy.

LA Kings general manager Ken Holland did his shopping with roughly an $11 million budget. With that budget, Holland was able to come to terms on a contract with eight players.

Erik Haula

Contract: 2 years, $3,600,000 AAV

ANALYSIS: A short-term stopgap as a third-line center for Erik Haula isn’t a bad idea. In 81 games with the Nashville Predators, the 35-year-old posted 14 goals and 24 assists for 38 points. The money the Kings forked out for him if they get that production isn’t a bad idea, considering the free agency market for centers was pretty much non-existent. Haula can play center and wing and should see time on the penalty kill. My biggest gripe is that while he plays on the penalty kill, he sure takes a lot of them himself.

GRADE: B

Mats Zuccarello

Contract: 1 year, $1,000,000 AAV 

Bonuses: $5,000,000 for 10 games played, $250,000 for winning round one, and $250,000 for winning round two

ANALYSIS: To see the notification that Mats Zuccarello signed with the Kings was a shocker for me. The 38-year-old played in 59 games and recorded 54 points, playing primarily on a line with Kirill Kaprizov. Zuccarello won’t play alongside Artemi Panarin, but if he can get 35-40 points or more on the contract he signed, it could be a huge steal for the Kings.

GRADE: A

Corey Perry

Contract: 1 year, $1,000,000 AAV

Bonuses: $500,000 in playoff success (details to be determined)

ANALYSIS: Welcome to Los Angeles (again), Corey Perry! For 20 years, Kings fans despised Perry when he was a member of the rival Anaheim Ducks, but have seen him ink one-year deals with the Kings back-to-back summers. If you put the personal vendettas aside here, Perry was a key contributor for the Kings early in the season when the injury bug hit the Kings before he was traded for a second-round pick at the trade deadline. As a fourth-line player, I don’t have an issue with the Perry signing at all.

GRADE: B

Scott Laughton

Contract: 3 years, $3,500,000 AAV

ANALYSIS: In a free agent market that was slim pickings at the center position, I was fully prepared for Scott Laughton to sign elsewhere for a higher price. What I expected didn’t occur. Seeing the term of the contract being three years at a reasonable price is a big win for the Kings. My only complaint is we could see him or Haula stapled as the second-line center.

GRADE: B

DEPTH SIGNINGS:

Lane Pederson

Contract: 2-year 2-way contract, $875,000 AAV (NHL salary $850,000; AHL salary $650,000) (Year two AAV is $900,000 one-way)

ANALYSIS: After the organization lost Glenn Gawdin, the Ontario Reign’s first-line center from the last two seasons, to the New York Rangers in free agency, they quickly pivoted to Lane Pederson. Pederson, 28, is a left-shot center, can play on the power play and penalty kill, and has scored 20+ goals twice in the last three seasons with the Bakersfield Condors and Lehigh Valley Phantoms. A solid replacement for Gawdin’s production on the Reign.

GRADE: A 

Jan Jenik

Contract: 1-year 2-way contract, $850,000 AAV (NHL salary $850,000; AHL salary $300,000)

ANALYSIS: I predicted Jan Jenik wouldn’t re-sign with the Reign. When I saw the Kings re-signed him to a one-year, two-way contract, I didn’t like the move after his two-game stint with the Reign. I know it’s a small sample size and he could prove me wrong, but I expect him to be a depth piece for Ontario.

GRADE: C

Erik Gustafsson

Contract: 1-year 1-way contract, $1,000,000 AAV

ANALYSIS: A puck-moving left-handed defenseman? That’s what the Kings are getting in Erik Gustafsson. Gustafsson spent most of the season on the Detroit Red Wings’ AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins, and recorded 37 points in 39 games. As of now, he could be positioned to be Ontario’s seventh defenseman and has experience playing in Peter Laviolette’s system. If he does play in games, I expect him to be on the third pairing.

GRADE: A

Scott Perunovich

Contract: 1-year 2-way contract, $850,000 AAV (NHL salary $850,000; AHL salary $650,000)

ANALYSIS: Scott Perunovich was another left-handed defenseman the Kings signed on day one of free agency. Perunovich is 27 and has had a tough time cracking an NHL lineup, but had an efficient season in the AHL with the Tucson Roadrunners (Utah Mammoth AHL affiliate). In 64 games with the Roadrunners, Perunovich recorded nine goals and 40 assists for 49 points. His 40 assists were second, while his 49 points placed him third among AHL defensemen. A good depth signing who should help out on offense for the backend in Ontario.

GRADE: B

OVERALL THOUGHTS: The Kings did well enough in a thin free agent class. I have to give Ken Holland props for bringing in Haula, Perry, and Zuccarello on a combined $5,500,000 AAV, and didn’t hand out any outrageous contracts. The Kings should improve slightly on the margins at forwards, but none move the needle to label them as a Stanley Cup contender in the Western Conference.

With the Kings wanting to play more of an up-tempo style under new head coach Peter Laviolette, the team did get older. There is still a hole at the second-line center spot and work to be done to fix the defensive group. We’ll see what happens there.

Featured image credit: Gary A. Vasquez/Getty Images

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