LA Kings: Seven-round mock draft 1.0
In this seven-round mock draft, the LA Kings get a little bit of everything.
With the 2020 NHL Draft just over a week away, the LA Kings have 11 picks to use how they sit fit. Of course, all eyes will be on the first round, where the Kings’ organization has the second overall pick. Ever since the lottery revealed that LA would be picking second, the experts have gone back and forth between Quinton Byfield and Tim Stutzle for the selection.
With the consensus number one pick in Alexis Lafreniere expected to be taken by the New York Rangers, Rob Blake and the Kings’ front office will have to decide which guy they prefer. On paper, Stutzle fits a need more than Byfield, but true number one centers don’t come along very often. He’s big, fast, and extremely skilled. And he’s one of the youngest kids in this draft class.
For those reasons, along with his production rates in the OHL, I have the Kings taking Byfield to kick off Day 1 of the 2020 NHL Draft.
*used Fanspeak’s On The Clock NHL Mock Draft Simulator to make my picks.
1st Round, 2nd Overall: Quinton Byfield, C
The consensus number two pick in this draft, in my opinion, Byfield has been a beast for the Sudbury Wolves over the last two seasons, scoring a combined 61 goals with 82 assists in 109 games. He’s a leader on and off the ice and wore a letter for Sudbury at the end of the 2019-2020 campaign. Byfield has such good vision and great speed for his size.
He displays excellent stickhandling abilities and a decisive shot on net. The Kings would have one of the deepest groups up the middle with Kopitar, Vilardi, Turcotte, and now Byfield added to the mix.
2nd Round, 35th Overall: Tyson Foerster, RW
This year’s version of Arthur Kaliyev. Tyson Foerster has first-round talent, but he’s consistently been mocked in the early second round. Good news for the Kings, who can add to the winger position a guy that scored 36 goals with 44 assists for 80 points in 62 games for the Barrie Colts of the OHL.
A big-bodied forward with deceptive speed. Foerster’s shooting accuracy is arguably his best trait, and he led the OHL with 18 power play goals last year. He features terrific stickhandling and passing abilities as well and projects to be a player like T.J. Oshie.
NHL’s scouting report:
“A gifted offensive player who displays excellent vision and playmaking ability. High hockey IQ. Excellent puck protection ability. Has a lethal shot with a quick release and the ability to score from multiple angles.”
2nd Round, 50th Overall: Lukas Cormier, D
Think Quinn Hughes when you watch Lukas Cormier. Smaller in stature, but extremely quick and can light up the box score in bunches. The 18-year-old defenseman tallied six goals with 30 assists for the Charlottetown Islanders of the QMHJHL this past season. During the 2018-2019 campaign, Cormier finished with seven power play goals, but that number dropped to one this year in 19 fewer games.
He’s a guy that loves to put the puck on net, as demonstrated by his 10.9 shot percentage two years ago, which decreased to just 3.4 percent this season. He stands at 5-foot-10, 176 pounds, and he should get stronger as he physically matures. Cormier is not a physical defenseman, but he has good speed to control the gaps and utilizes an active stuck to disrupt opponents.
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2nd Round, 59th Overall: Yan Kuznetsov, D
After grabbing a speedier, puck-moving defenseman, I have the Kings taking a more traditional, stay-at-home defenseman in Yan Kuznetsov. Hailing from Murmansk, Russia, he stands at a towering 6-foot-4, and 201 pounds as an 18-year-old. Prior to his freshman year at the University of Connecticut, Kuznetsov transitioned to North America, playing 34 games for the Sioux Falls Stampede while tallying four assists.
At Connecticut, he scored two goals with nine assists and had the Gold Medal-winning goal for Team Russia at the World Juniors in January 2019. For his size, Kuznetsov has excellent speed and physically imposes his will on opponents. He’s great around the net, knocking down players camped out in front of the goal.
3rd Round, 65th Overall: Hayden Fowler, LW
Taken with the 19th overall pick in the 2017 OHL Draft, Hayden Fowler’s rights were traded to the Erie Otters halfway through the 2017-2018 campaign. At that point, he had just two goals with two assists in 33 games, but the change of scenery saw Fowler dominate the competition over the final few months, tallying ten goals with 12 assists in 28 games.
He was slowed by injury the following season but returned this past year with conviction. In 52 games, Fowler scored 20 goals with 22 assists for 42 points and was named an alternate captain for Erie. He finished with a career-best eight power play goals. What he lacks in speed, he makes up for with stickhandling and puck-controlling abilities. Fowler has a terrific shot and started off the 2019-2020 campaign scoring a goal in four-of-five contests.
3rd Round, 82nd Overall: Thimo Nickl, D
A big defenseman with room to grow, Thimo Nickl is a master on the power play, finishing fourth in the QMJHL with six goals on the man advantage. As noted, he’s 6-foot-2 and 176 pounds and should fill out his frame as he physically matures. The Klagenfurt, Austria native scored ten goals with 29 assists for 39 points in 58 games for Drummondville this past season. In the World Juniors, Nickl tallied three assists in five games.
He’s fast for his size and is a physical defenseman, despite his offensive categories lighting up the box score. His best attribute might be reading the play and gap control, which is vital in the NHL that seems to get faster every year. He projects to be a Brent Seabrook-like player from a stylistic perspective and is a sneaky-good find for the Kings in the third round.
4th Round, 96th Overall: Oliver Suni, RW
Starting to stockpile wingers now, I have the Kings taking the talented Oliver Suni, who transitioned to the North American rink last year with the Oshawa Generals of the OHL. The Finnish forward scored 19 goals with 17 assists with the Kärpät U18 team while wearing a letter. With Oshawa, Suni had a tremendous debut year, scoring 12 goals with 20 assists for 32 points in 43 games. He also scored six goals on the man advantage. For the U18 Finland team, he tallied three assists in four games in international play.
Suni stands at 6-foot-2 and 187 pounds. He’s a right-handed shot and carries the puck well through the neutral zone. Away from the puck, you can find him around the net where he puts himself in great spots and does a great job of cleaning up the play, whether it be passes intended for him or rebounds off the goalie. Because of his size, he absorbs contact well in transition without losing control of the puck and attacks the net very well.
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4th Round, 111th Overall: Jack Thompson, D
Another defenseman here. Jack Thompson played with Quinton Byfield on the Sudbury Wolves. He stands at 6-foot-1 and weighs 172 pounds. Like Byfield, Thompson has been with Sudbury for the last two seasons, where he doubled his point total from the first year to the next. This past season, Thompson scored 13 goals with 19 assists for 32 points in 63 games. He’s not a huge threat on the power play, but he did combine to score five goals on the man advantage over the last two years. And his shot percentage has stayed the same-right around 7.4 percent.
Thompson is quick and loves to attack the net. He and Byfield were regularly on the ice together last year, with Byfield finding him in front of the net and vice versa. He features a beauty of a snipe from the blue line and excellent puck-handling skills.
5th Round, 127th Overall: Drew Commesso, G
Much like the NFL in that, it’s generally a good idea to take a quarterback somewhere in the draft ever year, grabbing a goalie is smart. The Kings have taken a goalie each year that Rob Blake has been the general manager, including two in the 2018 Draft. With John Wroblewski having ties to the USNTDP, there’s likely a good chance that one of his guys is taken. I have the Kings going with Drew Commesso, who has a commitment to Boston University next season. For the U18 US Team, Commesso logged a .920 save percentage and a 2.05 GAA in 27 games.
In the USHL, he put up nearly identical numbers over 11 games, .917 SVG %, and 2.01 GAA. Commesso’s season was highlighted by a 28-save shutout performance against Tri-City back in November. He also recorded a 26-save shutout in the second USHL game of the year. He’s ranked as the second-best North American goalie and the 87th best prospect per TSN’s Bob McKenzie. Getting him in the 5th round is tremendous value.
6th Round, 158th Overall: Martin Chromiak, RW
A potential steal of the 2020 NHL Draft, Martin Chromiak, was drafted second overall as part of the 2019 CHL Import Draft. Rather than transitioning to the North American game right away, he stayed in Slovakia and tallied five goals with one assist in 32 games for HK Dukla Trencin. He made the switch when the calendar flipped to 2020 and scored a goal with an assist in his first game.
Chromiak finished with 11 goals and 22 assists for 33 points in only 28 games. Had he made the transition earlier, he could have easily gone sooner in the draft. Luckily for the Kings, they find a diamond in the rough, as the 18-year-old winger scored four power play goals and led Kingston of the OHL with 1.179 points-per-game played.
He’s one of the quicker forwards in this draft class, and he possesses excellent stick-handling skills. Chromiak is a major asset in odd-man rushes and was often providing support for 15-year-old phenom Shane Wright. He’s a high hockey-IQ guy and projects into a top-six forward.
7th Round, 189th Overall: Christian Jimenez, D
This time last year, Christian Jimenez was just about to begin his first stint of junior hockey. Before that, he was playing for Taft School hockey-a prep school in New England. There, he would score three goals with 12 assists and migrated to the Sioux City Musketeers of the USHL. All he did was lead all rookie defenders in scoring, tallying seven goals with 21 assists for 28 points in 42 games.
Jimenez had a strong finish to the 2019-2020 campaign, putting up six points in his final six games, including two two-point games. He was a huge asset on the man advantage, scoring three goals and chipping in 10 assists.
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While listed at 5-foot-10 and 190 pounds, Jimenez finished with the fourth-most penalty minutes, and he likes to throw his body around. He’ll have his work cut out for him, especially with the Kings taking this many defenders in the draft.