Recently, Bleacher Report put together a first-round mock draft for the upcoming 2025 NHL Draft and selected Sascha Boumedienne, a defenseman who played with Boston University this past season. The Kings have plenty of needs and can go in a number of directions with their first pick, so let's take a closer look at this player.
Sascha Boumedienne Stats
Sascha Boumedienne was one of the youngest players in the NCAA last season as he turned 18 in January of this year. The 6'1" defenseman would play in 40 games for Boston University and finished with 13 points (3 goals, 10 assists) and a +/- of +8.
Boumedienne also played for Sweden's U18 team at the IIHF U18 Men's World Championship and earned a silver medal after losing to Canada in the Gold Medal Game. He would play in seven games in that tourament and averaged two points per game with one goal and 13 assists.
Sascha Boumedienne Scouting Report
William Espy at The Hockey Writers wrote this about Boumedienne's NHL potential:
"Boumedienne appears to project as a second-pairing offensive defenseman who could be a key piece of a team’s second power-play unit. While he’ll need to continue improving defensively in order to be an effective 5-on-5 player at the NHL level, he’s unlikely to become a reliable penalty killer unless he completely revamps his game defensively. "
Sascha Boumedienne Highlights
Why the Los Angeles Kings would draft Sascha Boumedienne in the 2025 NHL Draft
The Los Angeles Kings are currently reportedly trying to move one of their defensemen in a trade in Jordan Spence. The combination of him and Brandt Clarke has created a problem on the right side behind Mikey Anderson as the Kings try to figure out how to get them both ice time.
However, the left side could be a potential issue in the near future as the Kings have Vladislav Gavrikov set to be a free agent this summer. That won't be solved in the NHL Draft but what this pick could do is give the Kings a potential replacement for Drew Doughty.
He has two years left on his contract and is getting towards the end of his career. The Kings could use a big defensman like Boumedienne who can move the puck and help on the offensive end. The pick makes sense and with the ceiling he has, could end up being a really good selection in a few years.