Maple Leafs send Scott Laughton to Kings in last-minute deadline deal

According to a top Kings insider, the Kings made a move to acquire Laughton just in the nick of time.

According to the same insider, the Kings are only sending a third-round pick to the Maple Leafs in exchange for the bottom-six pivot. It's a stunning turnaround from the potential multiple pick haul he could have provided.

The pick however isn't all bad, as it is conditional based off LA making the playoffs. If they do, it becomes a second-rounder.

Laughton, 31, was slated to be dealt for a while now and was held out of the lineup for Wednesday against the New Jersey Devils for precautionary reasons. He has 12 points in 43 games (8 goals, 4 assists) while adding 78 hits and a 56.5% face-off win rate.

He's earning $1.5-million and is a free agent at the end of the season, and could very well return to the team in the summer on potentially a hometown discount.

Acquired at least season's deadline for Nikita Grebenkin and a first-round pick, Laughton had some struggles acclimating but became a core part of the locker room in 2025-26. After returning from a foot injury suffered in the preseason, Laughton came back with a vengeance.

He transformed Toronto's PK unit, gave the team a lot more heart and grit while also maintaining a locker room leader role -- specifically taking rookie Easton Cowan under his wing.

This comes only minutes after the team dealt Bobby McMann in a surprising last-minute deal to the Seattle Kraken for two draft picks; albeit not the ones that fans were hoping for.

With Brad Treliving making two trades for way less than their value, there's no real way to get out of this one for him. Unless there's some grand plan involving these picks then it might be the last time he works a deadline for Toronto -- or ever.

More details to come.

Also read on Hockey Patrol :
Maple Leafs trade Bobby McMann in deadline deal as return details emerge