Last season, Alex Laferriere was a surprise addition to the Los Angeles Kings roster to begin the year. This season, it wasn't surprising to see him on the roster, but expectations were higher entering his second season in the NHL.
For the most part, Laferriere meet or exceeded those expectations as he improved in a number of categories. He would finish the season with 19 goals, 23 assists, 42 points, a +/- of +22, a shot percentage of 9.8% and an average time on ice of 16:32, which were all career highs.
Even with the improvements, there are still some questions left unanswered for Laferriere as he is entering the offseason as a restricted free agent. The biggest concern is whether or not Laferriere can be productive over an entire season.
The forward started the season off so well as he had 13 goals and 13 assists through the first 36 games of the season. Those totals surpassed what he did all last season and it looked like he was heading to a truly breakout season.
However, the second half of the season wasn't nearly as productive as he had only six goals and 10 assists in the final 41 regular-season games. In the playoffs, Laferriere wasn't much of a factor with only three assists in the six games.
Season grade for Los Angeles Kings' forward Alex Laferriere: B
If Alex Laferriere kept the pace he had in roughly the first half of the season, this grade would be much higher. However, the second half of the season brings this grade down and raises the question of which half of the season fans should expect to see from Alex Laferriere moving forward.
During the season, Laferriere was part of one of the team's best forward lines with Quinton Byfield and Kevin Fiala. If the Kings are able to re-sign him, this would be a great spot for him to begin next season, to hopefully set him up for success in Year 3. In totality, Alex Laferriere improved almost across the board from his first season in the NHL and that was certainly a welcomed sight and why he received the grade he did.