The NHL can't have its great players sitting on the sidelines as holdouts, and Jason Allison fell into that category. The Los Angeles Kings get one of the five best centers in the game, and the Boston Bruins receive two quality players in Josef Stumpel and Glen Murray who will give them even more depth.

I like the deal for both teams. But if either team has a challenge going forward, it's the Kings making sure they have enough depth to play with Allison. With Murray going to Boston and Luc Robitaille leaving in the offseason to Detroit, the Kings are suddenly not so deep on the wings. It would have been great if they could have kept Murray and Allison. But the Kings need to make sure they get wingers who can score to play with Allison.

Stumpel and Murray both know what it's like to play in Boston because they broke into the league with the Bruins in 1992-93. So the adjustment will be easy. Both are good offensive players. And for a team to climb from a non-playoff position to a playoff position, it needs multiple players who can play. Sometimes, one player isn't as valuable as two quality ones.

The addition of Stumpel and Murray puts Boston near the top of the Northeast Division. The Bruins will be difficult to reckon with. Teams with only single-pronged attacks are easier to shut down. Now, with Bill Guerin, Martin Lapointe and Murray, the Bruins have the best right side in the Eastern Conference along with Philadelphia.

Former NHL center Bill Clement is a hockey analyst for ESPN.