here's the article: January 8, 2012 | 11:29am ET WIZARD OF WESTWOOD? TheFourthPeriod.com While images of James van Riemsdyk and Drew Stafford dance in Los Angeles Kings' fans heads, a lesser known but as productive veteran winger has risen to the top of the list of GM Dean Lombardi. Ray Whitney, the 39-year-old left wing and Phoenix Coyotes leading scorer has been a long time favorite of Lombardi, and apparently the same interest that existed in two seasons ago has resurfaced. At the time, the Kings were in talks to acquire the 355 goal career goal scorer from the Carolina Hurricanes, but Whitney's refusal to ink an extension scuttled the deal. With the Kings last in the league in offense and the Coyotes about to face a six game, nine day stretch that includes two against the Detroit Red Wings, Phoenix may fall further from their 11th place standing in the tough NHL Western Conference. While Whitney has a no-movement clause, a trade within the division and a short commute to the West Coast contender could work for the Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta native. Though he plays in Coyotes coach Dave Tippett's defensive minded system, the man nicknamed "The Wizard" has outscored the likes of Washington's Alex Ovechkin and New Jersey's Ilya Kovalchuk through this weekend's play. The Kings need for a scoring left wing became more acute with the injury news reported by Rich Hammond, the author of LA Kings Insider blog on Friday. The posting noted that a source close to the situation conveyed that the injured Simon Gagne was not close to returning and remarked that long term injured reserve could be an option for his roster spot and salary. Jack Johnson has been dangled as trade bait for the aforementioned Buffalo and Philadelphia wingers, the bounty for Whitney would likely be no more than a conditional pick or a prospect as a rental (Whitney becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1) and the financial strapped Coyotes would save at least $1 million depending how early the trigger was pulled on the deal. Additionally, Kings rookie defenseman Slava Voynov, the heir apparent should Johnson be dealt, has raised concerns regarding his durability with recent absences due to injury. Voynov has proven he is an 18 to 20 minute night NHL defenseman, but his absence from the Kings' Saturday afternoon against Columbus was his sixth in the team's last 12 matches and has lessened the likelihood of dealing Johnson. MORE TRADE DEADLINE INFO