Prospect Info: Kings Prospects in the CHL/College Part II

[Raccoon Jesus]

Reasoning other than feelings? Most scouts and pundits compare his game to Malkin. He needs to be more physical for sure with that size he possesses, but he could be a dominate center in the NHL for a long time. He's one of the youngest players that are draft eligible. That should carry a lot of weight. He likely goes #2 or #3.

I certainly wouldn't call him a mistake pick but I have a hard time with him, seems so risky. I agree with you, there's a lot of weight behind his age/experience and he should only get better, especially given the real question is consistency/drive. But as I've said elsewhere, every day I go back and forth between him and otehrs.

 

[funky]

Since there are no clear-cut superstars in this draft an every one of the prospect seems to have a few minor warts, as long as Blake and staff stay close to the projected orders I don’t think you can go wrong with a pic.

I love Byfield size and skating ability. In the past I’ve always been wary of big bodied junior players as many just use their near man bodies to exploit their competitors who in some cases can be almost a foot shorter and 50 lbs lighter.

With Byfield he does not use his physical ability to crush people and get garbage goals or take pucks away smashing the guy into the boards. In some sense he is almost like watching a smaller player.

he has supreme skills and the ability to move like a much smaller player which I think will continue as his body grows and gets stronger.
It is my belief that it takes the larger players more time to catch up to their bodies and sometimes it will take the extra year or so to put it all together.

I think he is an extremely safe pick but under the caveat that it might take my extra year or two to put that weight and muscle on and then to learn to play with that type of body. He already skates well and it’s obvious that he does have the skill level that should transition to the new NHL even if he doesn’t play a heavy game. Jeff Carter is a player that has a massive frame but has never played a heavy game. Carter has an exceptional skill level and has turned in many quality NHL seasons. I think by field can be this type of player once he gets everything figured out. Once his adult strength and muscles take shape he should be even a better player that has the ability to protect the puck and his shot should only get that much better

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Since there are no clear-cut superstars in this draft an every one of the prospect seems to have a few minor warts, as long as Blake and staff stay close to the projected orders I don’t think you can go wrong with a pic.

I love Byfield size and skating ability. In the past I’ve always been wary of big bodied junior players as many just use their near man bodies to exploit their competitors who in some cases can be almost a foot shorter and 50 lbs lighter.

With Byfield he does not use his physical ability to crush people and get garbage goals or take pucks away smashing the guy into the boards. In some sense he is almost like watching a smaller player.

he has supreme skills and the ability to move like a much smaller player which I think will continue as his body grows and gets stronger.
It is my belief that it takes the larger players more time to catch up to their bodies and sometimes it will take the extra year or so to put it all together.

I think he is an extremely safe pick but under the caveat that it might take my extra year or two to put that weight and muscle on and then to learn to play with that type of body. He already skates well and it’s obvious that he does have the skill level that should transition to the new NHL even if he doesn’t play a heavy game. Jeff Carter is a player that has a massive frame but has never played a heavy game. Carter has an exceptional skill level and has turned in many quality NHL seasons. I think by field can be this type of player once he gets everything figured out. Once his adult strength and muscles take shape he should be even a better player that has the ability to protect the puck and his shot should only get that much better

Yeah the wild card is just his mammoth physical force. Like if Dustin Penner had rocket skates. You are NOT taking the puck from a guy that size with that skill/skating ability if he learns to use his size to protect it.

 

[ru4reals]

Reasoning other than feelings? Most scouts and pundits compare his game to Malkin. He needs to be more physical for sure with that size he possesses, but he could be a dominate center in the NHL for a long time. He's one of the youngest players that are draft eligible. That should carry a lot of weight. He likely goes #2 or #3.

No I totally understand what you're saying no arguments here. Sometimes you just have one of those feelings that there's something not right about this pick. I know I'm going to be wrong about Byfield and I know I'll get grilled for it but can't explain it.

 

[cyclones22]

I kinda low-key want Lucas Raymond to be the choice if the Kings select at #4.

 

[KopitarFAN]

I kinda low-key want Lucas Raymond to be the choice if the Kings select at #4.

Nothing wrong with that, 4-9 is sort of a mixed bag (Drysdale, Holtz, Raymond, Lundell, Rossi and Perfetti) that could go in almost any order depending on who you ask and when.

 

[ru4reals]

Nothing wrong with that, 4-9 is sort of a mixed bag (Drysdale, Holtz, Raymond, Lundell, Rossi and Perfetti) that could go in almost any order depending on who you ask and when.

Yes if we get any of the 4th to 9th pick any one of these guys would be great. I'm good with that.

 

[regulate]

Kings lottery odds based upon current standings. (Kings are sitting in 4th overall from the bottom)

1st 9.5
2nd 9.6
3rd 9.7
4th 2.8
5th 26.1
6th 34.0
7th 8.3

The lottery actually punishes you more than it helps if you have a poor season.

 

[KopitarFAN]

Kings lottery odds based upon current standings. (Kings are sitting in 4th overall from the bottom)

1st 9.5
2nd 9.6
3rd 9.7
4th 2.8
5th 26.1
6th 34.0
7th 8.3

The lottery actually punishes you more than it helps if you have a poor season.

And it's probably going to be different if they cancel the remainder of the season, all 31 picks will likely be included in some way. Or if they continue the regular season, the standings would be subject to change.

 

[King'sPawn]

Kings lottery odds based upon current standings. (Kings are sitting in 4th overall from the bottom)

1st 9.5
2nd 9.6
3rd 9.7
4th 2.8
5th 26.1
6th 34.0
7th 8.3

The lottery actually punishes you more than it helps if you have a poor season.

Well, I don't know if I'd word it that way. It's just the cost of being guaranteed a top pick. Would you rather be 15th and have a 100% chance of standing pat, at worst, with a 3.3% chance of picking top-3?

 

[redcard]

And it's probably going to be different if they cancel the remainder of the season, all 31 picks will likely be included in some way. Or if they continue the regular season, the standings would be subject to change.

I don't see why they would change the odds to include all 31 picks. The purpose of the draft is to increase parity, giving the worst teams the best picks and enough of the season was played to have proof of who the best and worst teams are. The purpose of the lottery is to dissuade tanking, but no team made any such decisions based on the assumption that playoffs might be canceled.

And I wouldn't even want it if I were a playoff team. If every playoff team got a 1% chance at the top pick, that means there's a 1% chance I get Lafreniere, but a 15% chance he goes to a different playoff team I have to beat during my already shortened window. If one playoff team gets lucky, the other playoff teams get screwed even further.

Like imagine Boston winning Lafreniere. Every Toronto and Tampa fan would immediately regret the decision.

 

[KopitarFAN]

I don't see why they would change the odds to include all 31 picks. The purpose of the draft is to increase parity, giving the worst teams the best picks and enough of the season was played to have proof of who the best and worst teams are. The purpose of the lottery is to dissuade tanking, but no team made any such decisions based on the assumption that playoffs might be canceled.

And I wouldn't even want it if I were a playoff team. If every playoff team got a 1% chance at the top pick, that means there's a 1% chance I get Lafreniere, but a 15% chance he goes to a different playoff team I have to beat during my already shortened window. If one playoff team gets lucky, the other playoff teams get screwed even further.

Like imagine Boston winning Lafreniere. Every Toronto and Tampa fan would immediately regret the decision.

I think most playoff teams are going to want a punchers chance at a Top 3 pick for having lost the playoff revenue. I'd gladly be wrong though.

Anaheim owns Boston's 1st round pick, we would regret it.

 

[regulate]

And it's probably going to be different if they cancel the remainder of the season, all 31 picks will likely be included in some way. Or if they continue the regular season, the standings would be subject to change.

There is zero chance the owners would agree to this. It doesn't make any sense at all. The idea is for league parity, not to reward the top echelon teams with a chance at the 1st overall.

 

[KopitarFAN]

There is zero chance the owners would agree to this. It doesn't make any sense at all. The idea is for league parity, not to reward the top echelon teams with a chance at the 1st overall.

I'd gladly be wrong. Hopefully they just do it at the point where the season was stopped (if the season is cancelled or they jump straight into the playoffs), either a 68 game rollback or by points percentage.

 

[redcard]

I think most playoff teams are going to want a punchers chance at a Top 3 pick for having lost the playoff revenue. I'd gladly be wrong though.

Anaheim owns Boston's 1st round pick, we would regret it.

Fine, imagine Toronto winning Lafreniere. Every Tampa and Boston fan would immediately regret the decision. Or any other playoff team and how much that would hurt the other playoff teams in their division, conference, and the league. I'm sure you're right that every team is thinking about how nice it would be to have a shot at it, but its immensely short sighted. And as soon as the balls are drawn, if any playoff team was lucky enough to win, every other playoff team would immediately realize how foolish it was to advocate for it because their hill to the cup just got a whole lot steeper.

 

[KopitarFAN]

Fine, imagine Toronto winning Lafreniere. Every Tampa and Boston fan would immediately regret the decision. Or any other playoff team and how much that would hurt the other playoff teams in their division, conference, and the league. I'm sure you're right that every team is thinking about how nice it would be to have a shot at it, but its immensely short sighted. And as soon as the balls are drawn, if any playoff team was lucky enough to win, every other playoff team would immediately realize how foolish it was to advocate for it because their hill to the cup just got a whole lot steeper.

See below

I'd gladly be wrong. Hopefully they just do it at the point where the season was stopped (if the season is cancelled or they jump straight into the playoffs), either a 68 game rollback or by points percentage.

 

[BallPointHammer]

The draft lottery is the stupidest idea the NHL has ever come up with! Why play 1271 total league games (normal 31 team, 82 game season) to then have non playoff teams have their draft position determined by a table of contrived percentages and some hideous random number generator process that makes the picks. This whole thing is ridiculously complicated and in a way, from a team building point of view, lessens the meaning of the games themselves.

Furthermore, the league has "modified" the lottery "rules" numerous times over the years to "make up for" embarrassing twists of uncooperative math, phantom "tanking" and just plain old bad/good luck for one team or another. Doesn't come off as a well thought out plan for what was and is a non problem in the first place.

My wish, go back to simpler, better times. Non playoff teams draft in inverse order of points. Ties decided by RW/ROW. Playoff teams draft order same as current rules.

 

[psych3man]

Kings’ Prospect Tyler Madden Bringing Bright Lights to LA
Tyler: “I play my best when the bright lights are on.”
And thus “Bright Lights” Madden was how they would now refer to him.

https://thehockeywriters.com/la-kings-tyler-madden-future/

 

[KopitarFAN]

2019 draft pick, set to attend BU this fall.

 

[Peter James Bond II]

Looks like Mayor's Manor prospect rankings are down to the last 6 spots:

(note: they did goalies separate and why you do not see any here...when you consider the 3 of: Petersen, Ingham and Parik, the top 20 prospects
are truly impressive. Jordan Spence did not make the list and he's already called the best defenseman in the QMJHL!)

2020 LA KINGS MIDSEASON PROSPECT RANKINGS
15. Kim Nousiainen
14. Cole Hults
13. Sean Durzi
12. Aidan Dudas
11. Samuel Fagemo
10. Jaret Anderson-Dolan
9. Akil Thomas
8. Cale Clague
7. Mikey Anderson

So...the top 6 are obviously: Kupari, Bjornfot, Madden, Kaliyev, Vilardi and Turcotte.

Here's how I would rank them. Let's put our top 6 and see how they compare to Mayor's top 6.

6. Kupari too bad about his injury. still have high hopes for him. he was acclimating better late by December in the AHL.
5. Bjornfot tough call between him and Madden for me here. Bjornfot is a lock as #1 LHD or #2 LHD.
4. Madden elite skill, close to elite skating. the 155 lbs worry me, but if he gets to 170, with more strength, should be fine. 170 is still light, but many in NHL now at that size.
3. Kaliyev. Honeslty, Madden or Bjornfot may end up being better. I give Kaliyev the edge, as his goal scoring prowess is elite. His vision and playmaking underrated too.
2. Vilardi I am giving Turcotte the edge, mainly due to Turcotte's skating. Vilardi is the real deal! Skating will not hold him back, but he's not going to skate by any defenseman.
1. Turcotte. I do not see any weaknesses to his game and he plays 200 feet. is he a 60 pt, 2nd center, or 80 pt, 1st center? I'd be happy with either, but 1st ctr is better.

How about adding this as well:

1. Name 2 outside of the top 7, that may be better than 1 or more in the top 7? ( I think Mikey Anderson will be a stud and #2 LHD) So let's say beyond top 7.
I am going with Thomas and Fagemo
2. Who is your favorite prospect? I'm going with Turcotte. He's so driven. May not end up being the best of the group, but the one I'm most excited about. Vilardi close second, with all he has had to overcome.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Looks like Mayor's Manor prospect rankings are down to the last 6 spots:

(note: they did goalies separate and why you do not see any here...when you consider the 3 of: Petersen, Ingham and Parik, the top 20 prospects
are truly impressive. Jordan Spence did not make the list and he's already called the best defenseman in the QMJHL!)

2020 LA KINGS MIDSEASON PROSPECT RANKINGS
15. Kim Nousiainen
14. Cole Hults
13. Sean Durzi
12. Aidan Dudas
11. Samuel Fagemo
10. Jaret Anderson-Dolan
9. Akil Thomas
8. Cale Clague
7. Mikey Anderson

So...the top 6 are obviously: Kupari, Bjornfot, Madden, Kaliyev, Vilardi and Turcotte.

Here's how I would rank them. Let's put our top 6 and see how they compare to Mayor's top 6.

6. Kupari too bad about his injury. still have high hopes for him. he was acclimating better late by December in the AHL.
5. Bjornfot tough call between him and Madden for me here. Bjornfot is a lock as #1 LHD or #2 LHD.
4. Madden elite skill, close to elite skating. the 155 lbs worry me, but if he gets to 170, with more strength, should be fine. 170 is still light, but many in NHL now at that size.
3. Kaliyev. Honeslty, Madden or Bjornfot may end up being better. I give Kaliyev the edge, as his goal scoring prowess is elite. His vision and playmaking underrated too.
2. Vilardi I am giving Turcotte the edge, mainly due to Turcotte's skating. Vilardi is the real deal! Skating will not hold him back, but he's not going to skate by any defenseman.
1. Turcotte. I do not see any weaknesses to his game and he plays 200 feet. is he a 60 pt, 2nd center, or 80 pt, 1st center? I'd be happy with either, but 1st ctr is better.

How about adding this as well:

1. Name 2 outside of the top 7, that may be better than 1 or more in the top 7? ( I think Mikey Anderson will be a stud and #2 LHD) So let's say beyond top 7.
I am going with Thomas and Fagemo
2. Who is your favorite prospect? I'm going with Turcotte. He's so driven. May not end up being the best of the group, but the one I'm most excited about. Vilardi close second, with all he has had to overcome.

My top 6 would be (out of those 6) Kupari, Madden, Kaliyev, Bjornfot, Turcotte, Vilardi. I feel super bad for Kupari and I think he's a great prospect but for a guy whose wheels were the show that's a baaaaad injury particularly given he still was adjusting anyway. I think he's a 22-23 debut at this point. I'm incredibly high on Bjornfot, gives me a Lindholm (good version) vibe where everything he does is amazing but somehow avoids ending up on the scoresheet (Vlasic-lite, not as stick-happy though).

My two outside the top 7--Nousiainen is my big wild card (you mentioned Spence and he could be too, his meteoric development has to slow at some point though, right? Maybe not!), I think a lot of times Lassi Thomson is getting the spotlight when Kim is doing some of the lifting, sort of similar to Bjornfot falling as well. And he's got some serious balls with the puck, just like Tobi does. His only problem may be being like Bjornfot, assuming our LHDs shake out as Toby, Anderson, Clague, I'm not sure who he beats out, though Clague is more of a 'specialist' imo. My second would also be Fagemo, he's just too driven to be held back.

I give Vilardi the edge on Turcotte simply because I watched him, when healthy, dominate his peers like almost no one I've ever seen. Serious Jason Allison vibes. And you guys know I love Turcotte, I wouldn't say no weaknesses to his game, his shot is kind of a muffin (even more of the Mike Richards comparison!) and he doesn't seem to want to be a finisher so you'll need to put him with one imo (a little bit TOO unselfish, team-first)--would like to see him take the bull by the horns a little bit more. Vilardi, we've already even seen it a bit in the NHL--he does what he wants to do and with confidence. Of course his skating is merely average, but his IQ takes him there before the puck. But these are splitting hairs on blue-chip prospects--I guess it matters though when you're talking about the best of the best, very thin line to criticize!

 

[kingsboy11]

Looks like Mayor's Manor prospect rankings are down to the last 6 spots:

(note: they did goalies separate and why you do not see any here...when you consider the 3 of: Petersen, Ingham and Parik, the top 20 prospects
are truly impressive. Jordan Spence did not make the list and he's already called the best defenseman in the QMJHL!)

2020 LA KINGS MIDSEASON PROSPECT RANKINGS
15. Kim Nousiainen
14. Cole Hults
13. Sean Durzi
12. Aidan Dudas
11. Samuel Fagemo
10. Jaret Anderson-Dolan
9. Akil Thomas
8. Cale Clague
7. Mikey Anderson

So...the top 6 are obviously: Kupari, Bjornfot, Madden, Kaliyev, Vilardi and Turcotte.

Here's how I would rank them. Let's put our top 6 and see how they compare to Mayor's top 6.

6. Kupari too bad about his injury. still have high hopes for him. he was acclimating better late by December in the AHL.
5. Bjornfot tough call between him and Madden for me here. Bjornfot is a lock as #1 LHD or #2 LHD.
4. Madden elite skill, close to elite skating. the 155 lbs worry me, but if he gets to 170, with more strength, should be fine. 170 is still light, but many in NHL now at that size.
3. Kaliyev. Honeslty, Madden or Bjornfot may end up being better. I give Kaliyev the edge, as his goal scoring prowess is elite. His vision and playmaking underrated too.
2. Vilardi I am giving Turcotte the edge, mainly due to Turcotte's skating. Vilardi is the real deal! Skating will not hold him back, but he's not going to skate by any defenseman.
1. Turcotte. I do not see any weaknesses to his game and he plays 200 feet. is he a 60 pt, 2nd center, or 80 pt, 1st center? I'd be happy with either, but 1st ctr is better.

How about adding this as well:

1. Name 2 outside of the top 7, that may be better than 1 or more in the top 7? ( I think Mikey Anderson will be a stud and #2 LHD) So let's say beyond top 7.
I am going with Thomas and Fagemo
2. Who is your favorite prospect? I'm going with Turcotte. He's so driven. May not end up being the best of the group, but the one I'm most excited about. Vilardi close second, with all he has had to overcome.

1. I'm really pulling for both JAD and Akil to be big parts of this group going forward. I think both players are special both on and off the ice so I'm really pulling for both of them. I just worry that Akil is going to take some time to adjust to the professional game and could continue to slide down the depth chart the longer he takes which means he could end up being part of a deal to improve elsewhere. Of our current prospects though, I think Fagemo fits into the system like a glove. He's exactly the kind of player that this team is looking for. I don't think he'll be a consistent top 6 winger, but could be the best 3rd line winger in the NHL with how he plays. Him alongside JAD on the 3rd line is my dream.
2. Favorite prospect is hands down Vilardi. Watching the 2017 draft and picking at 11 I had my eyes set on Pettersson. Vilardi was so far off my radar because we all thought he'd be long gone by our pick. And he just kept dropping and my dad and I were freaking out that he could there by our pick and it happened. And given everything that he's gone through I desperately want him to succeed.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Unpopular opinion because I think this will get taken the wrong way but I feel like Akil Thomas will be Trevor Lewis +5 points. Nothing about him screams prolific top six scorer, but he's good at everything, has good vision and IQ, can get around the ice, and is a high character dude. Kinda the same with JAD--they're both high-skill junior players, but nothing to write home about at an NHL level. But if you have guys that smart and mobile cruising around your bottom six, life's ok.

 

[funky]

Unpopular opinion because I think this will get taken the wrong way but I feel like Akil Thomas will be Trevor Lewis +5 points. Nothing about him screams prolific top six scorer, but he's good at everything, has good vision and IQ, can get around the ice, and is a high character dude. Kinda the same with JAD--they're both high-skill junior players, but nothing to write home about at an NHL level. But if you have guys that smart and mobile cruising around your bottom six, life's ok.

Completely agree. I am hoping Thomas will end up being a very good third line center and I don’t pictured JAD being anything more than a fourth line center. Saying that I think each of them have the skills to be some of the best third and fourth line centers in the league. The teams who compete for the cup need stacked teams top to bottom and there is nothing to complain about if our lower end prospects end up being top end bottom 6’ers as long as our top prospects pan out.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]