The Los Angeles Kings are a team loaded with talent. They also play a very strong team game which is a great recipe for success. As of right now, they sit with a record of 11-3-3.
They are in third place which is low for a record like that. That goes to show how strong the Pacific Division is, especially at the top. The Vegas Golden Knights and Vancouver Canucks are in first and second but they have each played two more games. There is a lot of season left to go.
The Kings have the usual suspects helping them win with guys like Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty who have both been there for over a decade. There are plenty of other good players there as well but one young stud is really starting to advance his game.
The Kings drafted Quinton Byfield with the second overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft. For a while, people were wondering if he was ever going to live up to that selection. To be honest, it took a lot of players extra time to develop from that draft.
Quinton Byfield is finally making a name for himself with the Los Angeles Kings
Byfield has played in 17 games with the Kings so far this season and he has three goals and 12 assists for 15 points. He is just under a point per game which is a very impressive start for him. His career high in points is 22 so he will blow past it with ease this year.
It took a while for him to get to this level but the Kings are going to think it was worth the wait by the time it is all said and done. They moved him to the wing as he was drafted as a centerman but that was a smart move.
We know about Kopitar’s two-way game down the middle but having guys like Pierre-Luc Dubois and Phillip Danault behind him as centers makes them very deep. That allowed Byfield to make that switch to wing. Playing on the top line with Kopitar and Adrian Kempe has been huge for him.
Maybe Byfield will be able to drive his line as he develops but this is a good spot for him right now. He just turned 21 which is very young in the NHL.
Not everyone comes into the league and dominates as an 18-year-old like Connor McDavid, Connor Bedard, or Auston Matthews. The Kings were patient with Byfield and now they are being rewarded because he is an outstanding player.
Their most recent game was a big win over the Arizona Coyotes. Byfield collected one of his assists in this contest. Now, they will head back to Southern California to play the Anaheim Ducks in their barn. It will be fun to see Byfield and the Kings take on that very young and exciting Ducks squad.