THN's Sabres site is continuing a new series in which we examine potential trade partners for Buffalo. We've kicked off the series by looking at teams including the the Utah Mammoth, Colorado Avalanche, Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers.and New Jersey Devils.

And in today's file, we're breaking down the potential trade fit between the Sabres and Los Angeles Kings:

TEAM:  L.A. Kings

CAP SPACE:  $21.7 million

FREE AGENTS:  Trevor Lewis, RW; Tanner Jeannot, LW; Alex Lafferiere, RW (RFA); Taylor Ward, RW;  Andrei Kuzmenko, LW; Vladislav Gavrikov, D

NEEDS: Offensive help; fourth-line forwards; depth on wing

SABRES FIT? The Kings were a strong regular-season team, but once again, they got trounced in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs at the hands of the eventual Western Conference-champion Edmonton Oilers. And a major change followed when GM Rob Blake parted ways with the team and veteran NHL GM Ken Holland took over for him. 

Blake left the Kings with plenty of salary cap room, which is why many expect L.A. to be big-time players in trades and free agency this summer. Certainly, longtime Toronto Maple Leafs star right winger Mitch Marner would look very good in a Kings uniform, but that's far from a lock. However, it's all but certain that Holland -- always a gambler as a team-builder -- will be active in trades. And this is where the Sabres could become involved with L.A.'s future.

Like most NHL teams, the Kings -- who were 14th in the NHL in offense this past season -- will be intrigued by young Sabres winger J.J. Peterka if Buffalo puts him on the trade block. But what would L.A. have to offer in return?

Sabres Potential Trade Partner: New York Rangers The NHL's off-season has arrived, and we're turning our attention in this THN.com series to potential trade partners for the Sabres.

Well, let's start with Kings left winger Trevor Moore. The 30-year-old is coming off a down season in which he posted only 18 goals and 40 points in 71 games -- a significant drop from his 2023-24 production of 31 goals and 57 points in 82 games. Moore has three years left on his current contract at $4.2 million per season, and thot's a very reasonable amount for a player who could easily replace the offense that would be lost by the trading of Peterka. 

More importantly, Moore doesn't have a no-trade or no-move clause; Holland has no built-in loyalty to any Kings player, and there has to be consequences for Los Angeles' inability to win playoff rounds. So Moore could be a player paying the price for that failure.

Other than Moore, a long-shot target for the Sabres could be Kings center Phillip Danault. The 32-year-old produced only eight goals and 43 points in 80 games last year -- a notable drop-off of the 17 goals he generated in 2023-24. The two-way pivot has two years left at $5.5 million, and he has a modified no-trade clause allowing him to veto a deal to 10 teams. He'd clearly help Buffalo at both ends of the rink.

Sabres Potential Trade Partner: New Jersey Devils The NHL's off-season has arrived, and here <a href="http://thn.com/buffalo">at the Sabres team website on THN.com</a>. we're in the midst of a series of columns examining which teams Buffalo could make a notable trade with.

Is Buffalo on Danault's no-trade list? Probably. But it's still worth exploring by Sabres GM Kevyn Adams, just in case Holland decides that Danault doesn't fit in with his long-term plans. Adams has to be proactive in terms of asking about players who may not stand out as available via trade, and if he does that with Danault, he might get an answer that pleasantly surprises him.

Other than that, there doesn't appear to be a match for the Sabres and Kings in any trade. But Moore is definitely someone who Buffalo could buy low on and hope he has a bounce-back season for them in 2025-26. If Adams is convinced that Peterka isn't going to stay a Sabre for the long haul, adding Moore for three years makes a lot of sense.

Sabres Potential Trade Partner: Vancouver Canucks The NHL's off-season is more or less at hand, and teams are beginning to make significant trades. And in this new series on THN.com's <a href="http://thn.com/buffalo">Buffalo Sabres</a> site, we're looking at potential trade partners for the Sabres.

Holland needs to quickly put his stamp on L.A.'s roster, and he might be amenable to dealing Moore for a younger player with more upside in Peterka. And you'd better believe Peterka would welcome the chance to play in California.

So we can definitely see a Moore-for-Peterka deal coming to fruition. The trade would satisfy both teams' needs, and that's how deals get done.