Holland: 'I plan to be aggressive' to improve Kings

Newly minted Los Angeles Kings general manager Ken Holland doesn't want to waste time when it comes to putting his stamp the club.

"I plan to be aggressive," Holland told The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun. "Ownership is prepared to go to the cap. The goal is to put a competitive team on the ice and, at the right time, be aggressive to try to make the team better and more exciting, whether that happens in the next six to seven weeks or next year at the trade deadline or next offseason. ... But certainly the plan is to be aggressive at the right time."

The Kings are projected to have approximately $23.3 million in cap space this offseason, according to PuckPedia. Vladislav Gavrikov and Andrei Kuzmenko are the club's most prominent unrestricted free agents, while Alex Laferriere is Los Angeles' top RFA.

This summer's UFA class looks poised to be headlined by Mitch Marner, Nikolaj Ehlers, John Tavares, and Sam Bennett, barring extensions with their respective clubs happening before July 1.

The Kings finished second in the Pacific Division this season with 105 points but brought in Holland to replace Rob Blake after losing to the Edmonton Oilers in the first round of the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year.

"It's a good team," Holland said of the Kings. "There's good veteran leadership on the team. There's some good young kids that are on the come up. It's L.A. It's got a great history. It's a great brand. It's an entertainment capital. Hopefully I can make a few decisions and we can convince a player or two to come join us like we were able to do in Detroit and able to do in Edmonton."

Holland ran the Red Wings from 1997-2019 and won four Stanley Cups over that span. He joined the Oilers for five years afterward, but the two sides decided to part ways after last season's loss in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.