Kings forward Adrian Kempe is currently slated to be one of the top unrestricted free agents next summer if the two sides can’t reach a deal on an extension before then. Speaking in a recent interview with Sirius XM (transcribed by Mayor’s Manor), the 28-year-old made it clear that he’d like to get something done sooner rather than later:
I would like to get it done as soon as possible, but I’m still not in a rush. I don’t want to rush anything. But I also don’t want to come around after Christmas, with the trade deadline starting to come up, and then I’m sitting there not knowing where we’re at or we’re not [close] on the terms of a contract. That, I wouldn’t be looking forward to. So, before Christmas would be great. Before camp would be great.
Kempe is coming off his second straight season of amassing at least 70 points, picking up 35 goals and 38 assists in 81 games. After being more of a checker in the first few years of his career, he has become one of the more consistent scoring threats in the NHL, averaging 35 goals over the last four seasons.
That has him well-positioned to land a significant raise from the $5.5MM he will make in the final year of his deal, one that started back in 2022-23 and has become one of the better team-friendly contracts around the NHL. David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period was the latest to suggest that Kempe’s camp was seeking a max-term eight-year extension worth $10MM per season with Los Angeles coming in at $9MM per year. Meanwhile, AFP Analytics projected a seven-year, $64.225MM deal for Kempe earlier in the offseason, one that would carry an AAV of $9.175MM.
If that gap can’t be bridged within the first few months of the season, Kempe acknowledged that he wouldn’t exactly be comfortable heading into the trade deadline unsigned:
For me and the team, I don’t think it would be a good thing to do that. For me, I feel like, if I haven’t signed before the deadline, then you don’t know what’s going to happen.
Considering both Kempe and the Kings under new GM Ken Holland have publicly stated a willingness to get something done and Kempe’s discomfort with pushing talks deep into the season, this is a situation that should get resolved well before he gets close to testing the market. And if he does somehow reach free agency, Kempe could very well wind up with a higher price tag than he’s asking for now, especially if few top names actually get there as is typically the case.