Jamie Kompon on Ex-LA Kings’ Trevor Lewis: He’s Been Unbelievable

This postseason, some former LA Kings will be competing, including Trevor Lewis. Jamie Kompon spoke of Lewis’s impact on the Winnipeg Jets this season.

Last summer, the LA Kings and their ever-loyal fanbase said goodbye to a longtime fan favorite in Trevor Lewis. While he may not have been celebrated league-wide, Lewis wasn’t deterred to establish himself as one of the most underrated — but never underappreciated — players in Kings history. To be frank, his defensive prowess and innate ability to shut down opposing power plays were integral in the franchise winning two Stanley Cups in three years. However, all good things must come to an end and after 12 years in Los Angeles, it was time for Lewis to move on.

Whether it’s Tyler Toffoli‘s breakout season in Montreal, Jack Campbell‘s inspirational run in Toronto, or even Alec Martinez‘s success in Vegas, there are plenty of former Kings — and fan favorites, no less — who are enjoying solid post-Kings careers. While this may leave some Kings fans upset, or even bitter, those who choose to wish former Kings well no matter where they play will certainly enjoy the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs.

As for the postseason thus far, it has gotten off to a hot start. In the first seven games, five of them were decided by one goal with four of them needing overtime. Now, Kings fans can take solace in cheering those they cheered on for so many years, including Trevor Lewis.

While he was without a team for much of the offseason, Trevor Lewis received a professional tryout from the Winnipeg Jets. Lewis was impressive in his tryout and, at the behest of Jets associate coach Jamie Kompon, the Jets rewarded the defensive specialist with a contract.

I recently had the pleasure of speaking with Kompon about Lewis, whom he coached for four seasons with the Kings.

“Trevor Lewis has been unbelievable,” the Jets associate coach said of Lewis this season. “I’ve said this before, but I’ve been pushing for Trevor Lewis to join the Winnipeg Jets for a few years now. It finally happened and I couldn’t be more thrilled for Lewie and his play this year. He’s been unbelievable.”

Competing in all 56 games for the Jets this season, Lewis scored five goals and five assists while blocking 22 shots and dishing out 71 hits, all the while averaging just 9:52 of ice time per game. However, Lewis, who has been playing on Winnipeg’s fourth line this season, has found a great deal of success with a former Kings teammate.

“Him and Nate Thompson on that fourth line, their contribution and whoever’s been their winger, whether it’s been Mathieu Perrault, Jansen Harkins– [or] Dominic Toninato, Kristian Vesalainen — those two work so well together, Nate and Lewie,” Kompon noted. “And what they provide on the bench, the little details that they help the young players with. You look at our penalty kill and where it was last year to where it is this year, and those two guys have had a huge impact, and Trevor’s had a big impact.”

In 2019-20, the Jets’ penalty-kill percentage was 77.6, which ranked them 22nd overall. This past season, that percentage jumped to 80.5 for the Jets, good enough for 13th overall. Needless to say, Lewis was instrumental in this improvement.

“He’s always been that penalty-kill guy and he embraces that role, loves that responsibility, and we couldn’t be any more happy with him,” Kompon beamed. “As we prepare here for the playoffs, [Lewis and Thompson] going to have a big part of it, with both of those guys have been there, done that, and Trevor winning two Stanley Cups, we can draw on his experience. I think that’s a vital piece because he’s one of the few players that we do, or the only player, that we do have that has won.”

The Winnipeg Jets open their playoff schedule on Wednesday evening in Edmonton. They may be in tough against this year’s 100-point man Connor McDavid and the Oilers, but as long as Lewis, along with Thompson, is healthy and in form, you can bet that the Jets will give their rivals from northern Alberta all that they can handle.

Trevor Lewis is just one of a handful of former LA Kings worth watching this postseason. So, let us wish him, Nate Thompson, and Jamie Kompon the best of luck as they attempt to carry the Winnipeg Jets into deep contention for hockey’s Holiest prize.