The LA Kings' playoff berth officially upgrades the Maple Leafs' return in the Scott Laughton trade
Photo credit: Griffin Hooper-Imagn Images
With their victory over the Seattle Kraken on Monday, LA punched their ticket to the postseason while also helping the Maple Leafs get a better return on investment.
As the NHL season winds down, the Pacific Division is still an arms race it seems, with several teams vying for the last potential playoff spot. The Los Angeles Kings are a team who desperately needed win on Monday to punch their ticket.
Thanks to a two-goal effort from Quinton Byfield, the Kings walked away with a 5-3 victory over the Seattle Kraken and the loss itself leaves the Kraken one point ahead of the Maple Leafs with one game left to go.
However the win from the Kings made something a lot more palatable for Toronto.
why the Scott Laughton trade condition hitting is a huge asset win for the Maple Leafs
In their postseason-clinching victory, the Kings' third-round pick they sent to the Maple Leafs for Scott Laughton turns into a second-rounder which makes the trade a lot easier to stomach going forward.
When the Maple Leafs traded Laughton to the Kings, it was seen as a mediocre return for a player who certainly could have gotten a lot more in return, but with a rushed deadline; Toronto took what they could get and gambled on the Kings.
Thankfully they were able to come out lucky and now have a bit more ammunition to either trade for assets at the NHL Draft or end up using it to bring in a future star.
While it's not exactly the news fans want to hear right now considering the nail-biting finish to the season that could see Toronto sneak away with their 2026 first-rounder or heartbreakingly lose it to the Bruins and watch a future superstar head to their heated rivals — it's still a decent consolation right now.
how Keith Pelley can use that upgraded second-round pick to accelerate the summer rebuild
But now that the team has a solidified and guaranteed second-rounder, Keith Pelley and the new management group have a choice to make.
This rebuild or retool or reimagining; whatever you wanna call it...it's going to take a lot of work. There's a world where the Maple Leafs pull off a selection in the vein of Matthew Knies where they find a second-round star and give themselves hope for the future.
Or they could package it together with a few players and target someone on the open market. Matty Beniers of the Kraken has been named as a player potentially on the move, and Toronto could use that second-rounder as a sweetener to bring him in.
Think of it as using the pick on an already established NHL youngster, and bypassing the need for the development timeline. It would be easier to make Toronto competitive now with a trade for a player like Beniers and would actively give the team someone they can rely on for the next five years.
Frankly, the decision they make relies heavily on whether or not they keep their first-rounder.
If they do, they can use it to select a superstar and trade that pick to add even more firepower. If not, then they likely need to keep it and find the next Knies or someone who can come in and make a difference; you don't need a Top-32 player.
Whatever the case, Toronto actually got a little bit of help from the hockey gods on Monday night, and all they can hope is whatever prayers they are sending keeping getting answered.
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| POLL | ||
AVRIL 14|955 ANSWERS The LA Kings' playoff berth officially upgrades the Maple Leafs' return in the Scott Laughton trade Do you think Toronto will keep or trade the second-round pick they got for Scott Laughton? | ||
| Keep It | 785 | 82.2 % |
| Trade It | 170 | 17.8 % |
| List of polls | ||