Kings not expecting big deals

The Kings made a roster move Friday, beating the league-mandated freeze on transactions by assigning rookie forward Scott Parse to Manchester (N.H.) of the American Hockey League. Although not a blockbuster move, it made a huge statement about how Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi sees his team.

In his first three seasons as GM, Lombardi made major moves at the NHL trading deadline. Yes, there is still time to do that -- Friday’s noon PST roster freeze expires when the Olympics ends, after which teams will have until noon PST March 3 to make a trade -- but the best deal for the Kings this year may prove to be no deal at all.

“I’m done trading veterans for picks,” Lombardi said. “We’re at the stage where we don’t want to do anything that doesn’t make our team better. It’s not fair to the team. At this stage they’ve worked really hard and I think they’re learning every day. I don’t see ourselves making that [dressing] room worse in terms of personnel.”

Lombardi, who could use one more serviceable defenseman, said he’ll continue to talk to other GMs during the Olympic break which, for the Kings, begins after Saturday’s game. But with 28 of the NHL’s 30 teams within 10 points of a playoff berth entering the weekend, few GMs are willing to deal front-line talent.

“There aren’t too many sellers,” Lombardi said.

With the Kings standing fifth in the Western Conference, Lombardi certainly isn’t among them. “I’m a buyer,” he said. “[But] you can’t make a deal unless it fits and it’s the right deal.”

Sent down

Parse’s demotion came the day after the Kings played one of their worst periods of the year in Thursday’s shootout loss to the Edmonton Oilers. And Coach Terry Murray, who drove the team through a spirited hourlong practice Friday, hoped it would serve as a wake-up call, for Parse and the rest of the Kings.

“He can give you spectacular efforts. Looks like he’s a top-six player,” Murray said of Parse. “And next shift or next period you’re wondering what happened. The word ‘concentration’ covers him in those situations.”

That word was behind Friday’s high-energy workout. “It needed to be,” Murray said of the pace.

Quick return

Goalie Jonathan Quick pronounced himself cured after missing Thursday’s game because of flu symptoms. Murray said the U.S. Olympian would be back on the ice Saturday. “He’s back to 100% and ready to go,” Murray said.

kevin.baxter@latimes.com