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Kings Reports as Unrestricted Free Agency Opens

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Happy July 1, Insiders!

Not exactly the July 1 we’ve come to expect over the years and I wonder if that is a sign of things to come as the landscape around the NHL changes.

Trades around the league were notable over the last week or so, with big names being moved in various moves. Still a few on the board and those moves could come after July 1. The Kings have not been in that mix thus far and that isn’t all that surprising. Could always change.

The crop of free agents today certainly leans more towards depth roles. There aren’t very many game changers available but there are players who could fill certain roles on the Kings next season and beyond. The Kings need a third-line center and there are several on the market this morning. They potentially need a couple of players in that range. The Kings need a different profile of defenseman to potentially change the makeup of their blueline or at the very least provide an option that wasn’t there last season and those players could be available as well. The fourth line isn’t a known commodity for the Kings right now and you could see some additions there as well.

Will have longer writeups regarding the players the Kings sign, as they come, but sharing updates here as a live thread, with reports from around the NHL.

– Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported interest in the Kings potentially signing forward Erik Haula as a third-line option, linked HERE. Friedman said that the Kings had interest in Haula around the trade deadline as well before ultimately acquiring Scott Laughton. Frank Seravalli confirmed the same type of report this morning, so there seems to be some traction there.

– Henrik Sjoberg from Hockey News SE has reported that the Kings are working with defenseman Erik Gustafsson on a one-year contract for the 2026-27 season. Gustafsson has 517 career NHL games but spent the bulk of last season in the AHL. He’s a different profile of defenseman from what the Kings have now but this feels like more of a depth role, maybe as a seventh defenseman with a different profile to what is here or a potential AHL option.

– ESPN’s Emily Kaplan has reported that the Kings are closing in on forward Mats Zuccarello on a one-year contract. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun added that it’s expected to be a one-year contract with bonuses. Zuccarello had 54 points in 59 games played last season in Minnesota and although he is an older player, he’s a player who has remained productive deep into his career.

– Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman has a reunion between the Kings and forward Corey Perry. It’s a much smaller commitment than last year, with reported terms coming in at just $1,000,000. The Kings picked up a second-round pick for Perry at the trade deadline, as he went back to Tampa Bay, and they bring him back to fill a similar role here going forward. It’s a very low-risk deal for a player who had spurts of impressive offensive production last season.

– Another defenseman into the mix – Scott Perunovich. Fits the profile of something different. He spent the 2025-26 season in the AHL in Tucson but was on NHL rosters before that, despite not really establishing himself as a regular. The Kings need different and Perunovich is an undersized puck mover. Perhaps slotted for the AHL but the two-way terms here are interesting. A $650,000 guarantee is very hefty, so he’s one to watch for coming into camp with a chance.

– A depth signing – The Kings, per Elliotte Friedman, will add Lane Pederson to the mix. He’s a high-caliber AHL player who has produced at that level over the years. The two-year deal is something the Kings have given out in the past with higher-end AHL players who they see having a shot at cracking the NHL mix. Jeff Malott in the summer of 2024, Cole Guttman last summer. Pederson is that kind of player, who you’d project in Ontario with the potential of some untapped NHL opportunity as well.

Will update this thread as the day goes along.

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