The Los Angeles Kings are going to be officially starting training camp this week and already have to deal with one big injury. The team had Corey Perry suffer a knee injury last week, and he is now expected to miss between six and eight weeks.
Quinton Byfield among the young Los Angeles Kings forwards expected to step up in training camp and the preseason for Jim Hiller and staff this fall
This is not ideal for a team that is clearly focused on making a deep run in the playoffs, at least past the first round, for the first time in a decade. It appears this could be the final season for a franchise legend like Anze Kopitar, and there would be no better way to end his career than with a Stanley Cup.
When looking at the roster, they are going to need some younger players step into bigger roles if they want to achieve that. These are three players with the most to gain over the next few weeks.
Quinton Byfield
Kopitar has been the Kings' best center for a long time now, but as he gets to the end of his career, he might be better suited with fewer minutes. That means another player is going to have to take over those minutes, and Quinton Byfield is a player who certainly has the talent to do that.
The former second-overall pick has now had 109 points over the past two seasons, with a career high in assists in 2023-24 with 35 and goals last season with 23. He saw a jump in his ice time last season up to 18:37, but could be closer to 20 minutes if he becomes the team's top center.
One area that he really needs to focus on is consistency, as he had a great start to the 2023-24 season before tailing off at the end of the regular season. Last year, it was the opposite, as it was a slow start but a great finish. If he can put it all together and play at a high level over 82 games, he can be great in an expanded role.
However, that needs to start now in training camp to show the coaching staff he is ready for the additional responsibility.
Brandt Clarke
In the summer, the Los Angeles Kings made moves on their blue line to indicate they were ready to commit to Brandt Clarke having an expanded role. They would trade Jordan Spence and see Vladislav Gavrikov leave in free agency to join the Rangers.
Meanwhile, the only additions were Cody Ceci and Brian Dumoulin, who are better suited as the third pair. However, Jim Hiller has shown a tendency to lean on his veterans and has yet to really commit to the former first-round pick.
Entering this season, it is going to have to be a combination of Hiller being willing to let the young defenseman make mistakes and not fear that those mistakes will cost him his spot in the lineup. On the other side, it will be up to Clarke to show he has continued to develop and can have an expanded role.
The best environment for Clarke to do that is during training camp and the preseason. These next few weeks will be a chance for him to build Hiller's confidence in him once the regular season rolls around.
Akil Thomas
The Kings are going to have to figure out how to replace Corey Perry to begin the season, who could miss as much as a month. The good news is that they are going to have options, including the possibility of having Liam Greentree begin the season in the NHL.
However, Greentree won't be a solution for the entire season and will almost certainly go back to the OHL after nine games. One player who could not only earn the spot to replace Perry but create a timeshare on that fourth line is Akil Thomas.
Thomas had a great run in 2023-24 with three goals in seven games, but was almost a non-factor last season as he appeared in only 25 games. He has the potential to give the Kings some scoring on that fourth line, and if he wins the spot out of training camp, he might expand his role.
The Kings are going to have to be smart with Corey Perry and manage the ice time for the 40-year-old. They signed Perry for his experience, particularly in the playoffs, and they will want to keep him as fresh as possible at that point in the season.
By having him split time with Thomas, it could help achieve that, but the pressure will be on Thomas to prove he is ready for an expanded role. It will be an interesting training camp if he can hold off Greentree and beat out other players like Samuel Helenius.