Kings Would Be Idiots to Trade for Leafs' Patrick Marleau

The Toronto Maple Leafs enter the offseason with a bit of a salary cap issue, and need to try to re-sign lead goal scorer from last season, Mitch Marner.

The Leafs will try to relieve some cap space, and that may start with veteran forward Patrick Marleau, who brings along a hefty contract with him.

Of the teams rumored to be interested, the Los Angeles Kings were reportedly in talks to acquire Marleau, which makes next to no sense whatsoever.

Hearing the Leafs and Kings have talked about a potential Patrick Marleau trade. Obviously there’s the Todd McLellan connection there for Marleau so he might waive. But as of now I don’t think the two teams have found a fit. Kings would need to unload a contract or two as well...
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) May 31, 2019

The Kings finished second to last in the Western Conference this season, and have an aging roster with some unfriendly contracts as well. If Los Angeles would add another veteran making over $6 million for another year it would be their eighth contract over that mark heading into next season.

Of those potential eight expensive contracts, only one player is under the age of 30. The Kings would be out of this world to handcuff themselves with another expensive contract for a 39-year-old.

In the 2019 NHL Draft, the LA Kings will have the No. 5 overall pick ?#GoKingsGo pic.twitter.com/3KeafYKVwi
— LA Kings (@LAKings) April 10, 2019

The best way for the Kings to return to their near dynasty days would be to trade some of their veteran players for draft picks and rebuild for a year or two. Los Angeles has the fifth overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, and no matter what falls to them, they will get an exceptional player who could alter their franchise in the long run.

Trading for an aging Marleau would be a terrible idea for the Kings, especially with questions about what their identity will be next year. Their best option would be to unload some cap space and rebuild, not take on more salary.