Quinton Byfield's performance against Rangers is why LA Kings can't trade him

Quinton Byfield's 2024-25 season for the Los Angeles Kings has been frustrating to say the least. He entered this season with really high expectations as he was coming off a career season playing with Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe and the hope was he would build on that by moving back to center.

For most of the season, Byfield hasn't been able to make an impact and entering Saturday's game agaisnt the New York Rangers had only three goals and eight assists through 29 games. He had only two points in the prior 12 games with his last goal on November 23rd against the Seattle Kraken and his last assist on November 30th against the Ottawa Senators.

The NHL Trade Deadline is still a few months away but if the Kings keep winning and look like they are going to make a deep playoff run, they would need players who could contribute now. A player like Quinton Byfield could be an intriguing player for franchises that are rebuilding.

However, if those discussions do come up around Byfield, the Los Angeles Kings need to look back at this game to understand the impact Byfield can have on this offense.

Quinton Byfield put the game out of reach for the Los Angeles Kings against the Rangers

The play of the game for the Los Angeles Kings was probably this sequence between Alex Turcotte, Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe but Quinton Byfield's assist might be a close second and was definitely the best individual effort.

It was impressive how he was able to control the puck deep in the Rangers zone and give Warren Foegele time to get in position for the one-timer. This puck control and pass are one of the reasons that Byfield has a chance to be really good in this league.

It is also why the Kings can't give up on him because while Anze Kopitar is having a career year, he is getting in the latter parts of his career. The Kings are going to need someone to take over for him and Byfield definitely has the potential to be that player.

The Los Angeles Kings just committed a four-year contract to Byfield this past offseason so it doesn't seem like they are ready to give up on him. However, no one probably expected him to have the start he did.

For Byfield, he will need to continue to build on this performance and string some of these games together. This game against the New York Rangers though was a great reminder of what Byfield can do and the impact he can make for the Los Angeles Kings.