EL SEGUNDO, Calif. – They should just rename the NHL waiver wire – the second-chance wire, sponsored by Allied Van Lines.



The new kid in town, Nikita Scherbak, was embracing the shot with another team – happily, with both arms on Tuesday – in his first day of practice with the Kings after they claimed him off waivers from the Montreal Canadiens.



If he started humming the Randy Newman tune, “I Love L.A.,” it would have nicely completed the picture. There was something appealing about his palpable excitement in joining a last-place team.



Scherbak said he was “stunned,” when Montreal general manager Marc Bergevin called to tell him the news on Sunday. And Scherbak’s fiancée started jumping around the kitchen in excitement, he said.



“I was just like, ‘No way,’” Scherbak said. “It’s been my dream. I’ve been here when I was 10 years old. I have...