Erik Haula is headed to the Los Angeles Kings on a two-year, $7.2-million deal, and Mats Zuccarello is part of the same Kings move. The signing on Wednesday sends Haula to his ninth NHL franchise after a season that showed why he remains a useful middle-six forward.
Haula played 81 games for the Nashville Predators in 2025-26 and finished with 14 goals and 24 assists. For a 35-year-old forward, that is a clean, durable season line: he stayed available, produced at both ends of the scoring ledger, and kept his workload high over a full schedule.
Los Angeles Kings Add Haula
The deal gives the Los Angeles Kings a veteran forward for the next two seasons. Haula has also played for the Minnesota Wild, Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, Boston Bruins and New Jersey Devils, so the move adds another stop to a career built on movement as much as production.
That mix is the point. Haula is not arriving as a one-role specialist; he brings 840 career regular-season games, 375 points, 167 goals and 208 assists, which is the profile of a player who can slot into different forward usages without needing to be built around. The Kings are buying experience and steady scoring depth at the same time.
Nashville Predators in 2025-26
His 2025-26 line with the Nashville Predators also explains why the market stayed open. The 14-goal, 24-assist season was not a peak year, but it showed he can still finish plays and drive secondary scoring after he also skated for Nashville in 2020-21.
Haula’s career-high remains 29 goals with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017-18, when he also added 26 assists. That is the sharper version of his scoring profile, and it frames the Kings’ bet: they are not getting a pure breakout scorer, but a forward with a proven ceiling and enough recent volume to support a real role.
Wednesday and the Next Two Seasons
For the Kings, the immediate effect is roster depth with term attached. For Haula, it means another new locker room and a chance to turn a one-year output into a stable two-year run. The only real unknown now is how the Kings will use him, but the signing itself already tells the story: they wanted a veteran forward who can keep producing while moving into another NHL home.
