The Los Angeles Kings signed Erik Haula to a two-year, $7.2-million deal on Wednesday, bringing in a 35-year-old forward who has already played 840 career regular-season games. For a club looking for a veteran addition, the move gives the Kings a player who has seen nearly every part of the NHL.
Haula is coming off a 2025-26 season with the Nashville Predators, where he played 81 games, scored 14 goals and added 24 assists. He also skated for the Nashville Predators in 2020-21, but his career has taken him through the Minnesota Wild, Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, Boston Bruins and New Jersey Devils as well, which makes this his ninth NHL franchise.
That kind of path explains why the Kings may have moved now. Haula brings a defined production track record, but he is not being signed as a long-term bet on upside. His best season came in 2017-18 with the Vegas Golden Knights, when he scored a career-high 29 goals and added 26 assists, and his overall totals — 375 points, including 167 goals and 208 assists — show a player who has remained useful across a long run of stops.
The fit also carries a built-in question. A two-year deal suggests the Kings want immediate value from a player who can help right away, yet Haula’s frequent movement from team to team raises the issue of how stable his role will be in Los Angeles. The signing adds experience, but it does not answer how the Kings expect to use him or whether this stop will be any less temporary than the others.
What is clear is that Wednesday’s agreement gives Haula another chance with a contender-minded club, and the Kings another veteran name to slot into a roster that is already being shaped for the season ahead.
