Probably taking out the 3rd pick would be a realistic offer but still would be a good return for the Preds.

Sign me up

I can't see LA giving up their 2023 1st because Blake hasnt been a GM that shows he'll move consecutive picks. I'd keep the 3rd in there if it allowed the Kings to push to a 2024 1st.

That being said, I'm at least interested in this deal.

Deal.

Why do I get the feeling Nashville fans are excited to move on from Ekholm? Has he not been good this year? Or is it just the fact that you guys want Poile to finally move into a rebuild?

If I were an egotist, I'd say this is starting out to be a bad Friday: this is the fourth or fifth comment already that is exactly what I would say, so I have nothing intelligent to add.

Aaaah, who am I kidding: I'm an egotist.

Nashville fans wanted a rebuild after last year and Poile gone. Guys over achieved and should have been traded when the value was good. Saros is the only reason this team is staying competitive, put in an average goalie and this team would be in the tanking competition.

However, Ekholm has been having an excellent year in my eyes. He would be an excellent D partner for one of your young right handed D man.

We want to rebuild. Initially, we were looking forward to the McDonagh-Ekholm pairing, but they were a trainwreck together. Once the two of them were split up Ekholm was his old self again.

We have 3 highly paid, good LD. We just acquired McD, and already have Josi. Ekholm doesn't have trade protection. We need RD & cap assistance going forward which makes Ekholm the most logical candidate to move.

The proposal here would give us the pieces needed to avoid a rebuild imo. A vet RD, and quality young RD, a 1st and a 3rd to acquire a couple more quality prospects. Ekholm makes more of an immediate impact now for LA and these pieces impact NSH positively starting as early as next season. This would balance out our backend leaving only a couple issues in the forward core to handle (top 6 C mostly since we have what should be a couple top 6 wingers in the minors).

We're having a very down year but can easily use that to our advantage with a quality trade like this as well as good draft position in a very deep '23 draft. It's not necessarily excitement to move on but more of this is the glaringly obvious best choice to move and receive a quality return like the one proposed here.

Makes sense. Like I said initially, Blake has done nothing to suggest that he'd be a GM that would trade away consecutive first round picks. (Also, as a side-note, I think the LA organization still has nightmares about trading out of the 1st round in 2015 where they supposedly had Kyle Connor on their radar as their choice). So I have difficulty seeing LA trading out their 2023 1st for anyone NOT named Chychrun. However, if there was room for negotiation, I could see LA willing to part with the 2024 1st rounder. Maybe that means upping the 3rd round pick to a 2nd, or something similar.