Young center Quinton Byfield could be facing the most important season of his NHL career with the Los Angeles Kings in the 2026-27 campaign.
After consecutive 50-point seasons, Byfield actually took a step back production-wise this past regular season, registering 24 goals, 25 assists, and 49 total points. It was the third consecutive season for Byfield scoring at least 20 goals.
This upcoming season isn't just to test if Byfield can eventually become the Kings' No. 1 center anymore, it's now time for him to truly be the first-line center.
Quinton Byfield 2025-26 player season recap
2025-26 season stats: 79 games played, 24 goals, 25 assists, 49 points, -2
2025-26 advanced stats: 13.3 shooting %, 11.5 5-on-5 shooting %, 1.9 points/60, 4.9 point shares, 2.1 WAR
2025-26 possession metrics: 53.4 CF%, 53.0 SCF%, 98.0 PDO, 52.4 HDCF%
It was really a tale of two seasons for Byfield in the 2025-26 campaign. He started this past regular season with just five goals in the season's first three months. His play eventually improved significantly later in the year.
Byfield really stepped his game up down the stretch this past regular season, scoring double-digit goals and 16 total points in the season's final 15 games. Something clicked for Byfield after he returned from an injury in the season's final couple of months down the stretch.
Not only did he score at around a point-per-game clip in the season's final 15 games, but he also led the team in total points in that stretch run. He was playing his best hockey of the regular season, and arguably some of the best production of his NHL career for the Kings, by mid-to-late March.
Even though he started slow offensively, Byfield still managed to register a career-high 24 goals and tie a career high with four-game winning goals.
In the postseason, Byfield wasn't amazing, but he did contribute offensively in multiple games in the first round for the Kings vs. the Colorado Avalanche. He picked up a couple of assists in Games 2 and 3 and he led all Kings' forwards in takeaways in the series (five).
As a whole, this past regular season wasn't really a bad one for Byfield. The Kings didn't see the progressions the team was expecting to see from Byfield this past regular season. Despite playing over 20 minutes in average time on the ice per night, Byfield only registered five goals in the calendar year of 2025.
While he registered under 50 points for the first time in this past three seasons, he finished the season on a high note.
Quinton Byfield 2026-27 Los Angeles Kings season preview
Now that Anze Kopitar is retired, Byfield is ready to become the No. 1 center for the Kings this upcoming season. Byfield is projected to center the Kings top line with wingers Adrian Kempe and Artemi Panarin. This should give him the best opportunity of his career to produce at a high level offensively.
If Byfield can keep the momentum going that he built offensively down the stretch this past regular season, he should be a really effective first-line center alongside Panarin and Kempe this upcoming season for the Kings.
I think there's a chance that Panarin could help to elevate Byfield's game to a great extent in the offensive zone. Not only could Panarin help to increase Kempe's goal production, but he could help to boost Byfield's output to a degree he's never seen in his NHL career thus far.
That said, the Kings don't need Byfield to immediately become the primary playmaker or to become a 40-goal scorer right away. He'll be playing with a consistent 35-goal scorer and one of the top playmakers in the Western Conference this upcoming season.
The pressure will also never be higher on Byfield than it will be in the 2026-27 season. Now entering Year 6 of his NHL career and Year 3 on his current contract, Byfield must prove that the conversation surrounding his game will no longer be about if he can fulfill his potential, it's about living up to the hype this upcoming season.
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