Los Angeles chose not to tender Keaton Ellerby a qualifying offer. He will be eligible for unrestricted free agency as a result. Ellerby suited up in 45 games between Los Angeles and Florida in 2013. He also skated in five playoff contests. The Kings did not retain the rights to minor-league players David Kolomatis and Stefan Legein as well.

Keaton Ellerby will be a healthy scratch Tuesday night. Matt Greene, who had been sidelined with an undisclosed injury, will take his spot in the lineup.

Keaton Ellerby replaced Alec Martinez in the Kings lineup Saturday. Ellerby was plus-one with three hits and two blocked shots in 12:31 minutes of action. It was his first game since Game 4 of the opening round against the Blues.

Keaton Ellerby is projected to remain in the lineup for Los Angeles in Game 4 on Monday. He saw just 9:05 of ice time in Game 3 when the Kings dressed seven defensemen and it looks like coach Darryl Sutter will stick with that formula Monday night. Ellerby will be used primarily as a penalty killer, while Alec Martinez is paired with Rob Scuderi, Jake Muzzin skates with Slava Voynov and Drew Doughty plays alongside Robyn Regehr

Keaton Ellerby will probably play in Game 1 against St. Louis Tuesday night. Matt Greene participated in Tuesday's morning skate, but he may not be ready to go. "We'll have an extra forward and an extra defenseman in warm-ups," coach Darryl Sutter said.

The Florida Panthers have traded Keaton Ellerby to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for a fifth round draft pick. The Kings have been dealing with some defensive depth issues due to injuries to Willie Mitchell and Matt Greene, so the addition of Ellerby makes sense. Ellerby is just 24 years old, but he's not much of an offensive force and therefore doesn't have any fantasy value in standard leagues.

Keaton Ellerby has a great opportunity to land a roster spot with the Panthers out of training camp. Erik Gudbranson isn't expected to be ready for the start of the season because of a shoulder injury and Florida still needs to sign restricted free agent Dmitry Kulikov, so that opens up two potential holes in the team's top-six group. Coach Kevin Dineen said that AHL rearguards Alex Petrovic and Michael Caruso will get chances to stick around too. Ellerby should have the inside track on them though, as he skated with Mike Weaver during Monday's practice.

Keaton Ellerby joined his Panther teammates at practice for the first time Friday. The 24-year-old rearguard is coming off a mediocre season where he played in just 40 games and was a healthy scratch for the balance of the schedule. He faces an uphill battle for a roster spot, although Florida GM Dale Tallon seems to like him. Ellerby needs to learn to use his strong shot and his smooth skating ability to his advantage. There is no telling if that will happen in 2013.

The gauntlet has been thrown down for defenseman Keaton Ellerby in Florida. The former first-round pick, 10th overall in 2007, hasn't been much of an NHL success early into this career. Ellerby played in just 40 games last season and the year before he suited up in 54, as he has found himself on the outside looking in during most of his tenure as a professional. However, he is still just 24 years of age and GM Dale Tallon has faith in him. "Now it's time for him to grab the bull by the horns," said Tallon. "He has the ability, he's a great skater, he's got a good shot. I challenged him at the exit meeting that he needs to get prepared this off-season and get stronger mentally and physically. I'm counting on him."

Keaton Ellerby will probably get a chance to get back into Florida's top-six group with Erik Gudbranson sidelined with a shoulder injury. There's no timetable for Gudbranson's return, but he could miss several months so Ellerby could play more if the season starts on time. Ellerby skated in 40 games last season with the Panthers and often sat as a healthy scratch. Even if he plays regularly his fantasy value would mostly be limited to hits and blocked shots though, as he doesn't produce many points nor penalty minutes.