Elite Young Top-10 Pick Unexpectedly Healthy Scratched: Blockbuster Trade May Be Coming
The Los Angeles Kings are getting one of their veteran stars back, but as a result, they may be moving on from Brandt Clarke, who faces a healthy scratch.
The Los Angeles Kings currently sit in third place in the Pacific Divison, and now, they're officially getting star defeneman Drew Doughty back, which will be a major boost for them moving forward.
However, that does mean someone in their lineup will need to come out, and according to reporter Kevin Weekes, that will be rising star Brandt Clarke, who has been excelling in his role this season.
Not only that, but Weekes also suggests this could set up a move of the 21-year old former first-round pick, who is getting his first extended look in the NHL in 2024/25.
In 47 games this season, Clarke has 3 goals and 24 points alongside a +8 differential, but clearly, the Kings see him as a luxury rather than a necessity, as it could be an opportunity for them to land another star up front.
Not only does Clarke lead the Kings in scoring on the blue line, but he also leads the team in takeaways, showing that he's playing well on both ends of the ice, but ultimately, his playing time has dipped to 15 minutes a game after averaging 19 throughout the year before this scratch.
While nothing is imminent, if the team do begin shopping Clarke, teams with depth up front and a need on the blue line should be quickly pursuing the Ontario native, but given the progress he's shown this season, there's also a chance that they move other pieces to give him more time in 2024/25, so keep a close eye on this situation moving forward.
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Matthew Tkachuk | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Sidney Crosby | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jack Hughes | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Luke Hughes | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jesper Bratt | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Quinn Hughes | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Timo Meier | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Brett Pesce | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Aleksander Barkov | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nathan Bastian | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Sam Bennett | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Michael Carcone | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Marcus Foligno | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nils Hoglander | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Erik Karlsson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Linus Karlsson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Marat Khusnutdinov | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Dawson Mercer | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Thomas Novak | 1 | - | 1 | |
| William Nylander | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Capitals | 50 | 34 | 11 | 5 | 73 | |
Jets | 52 | 35 | 14 | 3 | 73 | |
Oilers | 50 | 32 | 15 | 3 | 67 | |
Golden Knights | 51 | 31 | 15 | 5 | 67 | |
Hurricanes | 51 | 31 | 16 | 4 | 66 | |
Stars | 50 | 32 | 17 | 1 | 65 | |
Wild | 51 | 30 | 17 | 4 | 64 | |
Devils | 53 | 29 | 18 | 6 | 64 | |
Panthers | 52 | 30 | 19 | 3 | 63 | |
Maple Leafs | 51 | 30 | 19 | 2 | 62 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||