By Bobby Berger
The Los Angeles Kings and Seattle Kraken made a pretty big, unexpected deal with the centerpieces being a grizzled veteran in Carl Hagelin for a prospect with huge upside in Liam Ohgren. Thus far this season the deal appears to be a win/win for both teams. Although it us a small sample size, both players appear to be thriving with their new teams.
The Kings have gone 3-1-3 in the seven games since acquiring Hagelin. Hagelin has contributed with 2 goals and 3 assists and a +5 plus minus in those 7 games. Hagelin has been able to move around the lineup seamlessly while the Kings dealt with an injury to Denis Gurianov. Hagelin has also hopped onto the penalty kill logging big minutes for the FNHL's 3rd ranked unit.
Meanwhile, the Kraken have gone 5-2-1 during their 8 game stretch since the deal. Ohgren has been a big piece of that, anchoring a second line and chipping in with 4 goals and 2 assists for 6 points and a +6 plus/minus. Everyone knew if Ohgren was presented an opportunity, big things may happen and it looks like that will be the case.
It looks like at least a short term win/win for both teams. We will check back on this deal at the end of the year to see how it played out, the true determination for the Kings will be if they can finally make a deep run in the FNHL playoffs. Something that has been elusive in GM Berger's tenure in Los Angeles.
7/18/2026 - 255 words
