LA Kings Complete Jaw-Dropping Move Sending 23-Year Old To The NHL Waiver Wire
If GM Kyle Davidson wants to add to the Blackhawks' forward depth, they could claim Arthur Kaliyev who was waived by the Los Angeles Kings today.
Kaliyev has played 188 games in the NHL, and since his career started has been a King.
He was drafted 33rd overall in 2019 by GM Rob Blake, and now it seems his time in the Kings organization is over.
This season Kaliyev has only played 5 games in the AHL with the Ontario Reign, the Kings minor league affiliate.
He's only scored 2 points(1 G, 1 A) with 8 PIMs, and a -2 this season.
Kaliyev had been on loan to the reign on a conditioning stint, and it looks like he won't be able to crack the regular lineup in LA now.
Interestingly, they were the first 'real' games he skated in for the club. Back in 2020-21, Kaliyev's first season as a pro, he suited up for 40 Reign games; however, none of them were played with fans in the building due to the pandemic.
In fact, all of those contests were played at the team's training facility in El Segundo, rather than in Ontario.
While it seems Kaliyev may not have much to offer the Blackhawks organization there's something you may not know about him.
Kaliyev has been utilized on the Kings' power play previously and was once thought to become a regular top-six forward in the lineup.
He was mentioned on numerous occasions on 32 Thoughts: The Podcast by Elliotte Friedman as wanting a change of scenery.
As a Restricted Free Agent at the end of the season, there's likely going to be plenty of trade speculation again this summer.
There remains intriguing upside with Kaliyev, but if he doesn't fit the LA system then it may make sense for the team to move on.
But the Blackhawks could claim him, and send him to Rockford to help clean up his acts, as this could be a reclamation project. While his skating isn't the best, we've seen how players like Kaapo Kakko could benefit from a fresh start elsewhere.
Kaliyev is an RFA whose $825K contract expires at the end of the season. He still has plenty of upside to explore being only 23-years old and could provide depth goal-scoring if Anders Sorensen and company can improve his game.
