LA Kings: Three late-round gems to target in 2020 NHL Draft
By Ryan Sikes
The LA Kings have done well drafting from top to bottom recently, and they can find several late-round gems in this draft class.
One of the best moves that LA Kings 2019 seventh-round draft pick Andre Lee made was transitioning his game to North America. The Karlstad, Sweden native is a big-bodied forward who put up 20 goals with 16 assists for 36 points in 22 games for Färjestad BK J18 of the J18 Elit.
In the United States Hockey League, Lee tallied 20 goals with 15 assists in 61 games for the Sioux Falls Stampede in his draft year. He shined in the playoffs, tallying 11 points in 12 games and chipped in nearly a power play goal per game. That effort was good enough to get him drafted.
At UMass-Lowell, Lee started his collegiate career off with a bang, scoring three goals in his first four games. He finished third on the team in scoring with eight goals and 12 assists for 20 points in a 33-game sample size.
Lee has a long road ahead, but guys like Matt Roy, who was LA’s seventh-round pick in 2015, have paved the way for other late-round picks. Roy figures to be a mainstay on the Kings blue line for the foreseeable future. With a combined 12.4 goals-above-replacement, he finished as the 13th most valuable defensemen in the NHL last year, per Evolving Hockey.
Looking ahead to the 2020 NHL Draft, the Kings should target these three players in the later rounds.