The Kings will kick off their sprint of a preseason campaign Saturday when they’ll host the defending Western Conference champion Vegas Golden Knights in the Empire Classic at Ontario’s Toyota Arena.
They’ll then welcome the Utah Mammoth on Tuesday before facing the Ducks at Honda Center on Wednesday and again at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday. That’s the extent of a preseason schedule cut short by the regular campaign expanding from 82 to 84 games.
Here are three facets of this speedy exhibition schedule to keep an eye on for Kings fans.
Injuries and absences
The Kings bore the brunt of the NHL’s Olympic participation last year. They lost flanker Kevin Fiala for the season after he broke his leg in multiple places during the Switzerland-Canada match. Winger Joel Armia sustained a serious back injury that limited his participation initially and his effectiveness ultimately. Goalie Darcy Kuemper, who didn’t even play in Milan, saw his early-season injury issues exacerbated by the travel to and from Italy, losing his starting job to Anton Forsberg down the stretch.
They’re also starting camp with health problems.
Fiala underwent another procedure on his leg and GM Ken Holland revealed to reporters Thursday that they were hopeful he’d return before Nov. 1, though there were variables at play in his recovery.
Veteran winger Mats Zuccarello, the 39-year-old headliner of the Kings’ offseason, took a spill last week and hurt his shoulder, relegating him to non-contact status as camp opened Thursday.
Brian Dumoulin, part of a group of six regulars on defense that returned despite questionable all-around performance, failed his physical Wednesday, per Holland, and still required further evaluation.
Positional battles
While Zuccarello is likely to be ready for opening night, Fiala will not and Dumoulin may or may not be. That opens up a heretofore static lineup to some opportunities. Veteran Erik Gustafsson and 26-year-old Scott Perunovich were signed to give the Kings more depth and skill on the blue line, and Dumoulin’s continued absence would create a lineup slot for one of them and a roster spot for both.
Alex Turcotte, Erik Haula, Alex Laferriere and Adrian Kempe all have entirely secure roster spots, but it’s unclear if they will be used on the flank or in the middle. Kempe feels like a mortal lock for the top line with Artemi Panarin and likely Quinton Byfield, but the middle-six is less clear, especially without Fiala.
Defensemen Angus Booth and Jared Wooley as well as forwards Jared Wright, Andre Lee, Kenny Connors and Vojtěch Čihař could also be among the players eager to showcase their skills and fill a gap on the roster.
New coach, new system
The Kings made mostly modest additions in terms of player personnel, otherwise banking on some internal growth and Fiala’s return to move the needle in a positive direction. But where they were more active was behind the bench.
Seasoned bench boss Peter Laviolette, his trusted associate coach Phil Housley and cerebral player turned first-time NHL assistant Ray Whitney are all new to the organization. Laviolette reached the Stanley Cup Final with three franchises (Carolina, Philadelphia and Nashville), winning once, and won the Presidents’ Trophy with the New York Rangers, led by Panarin.
The labored breakouts, sluggish offense, rigid defensemen and all-around languid attack of the Kings under Jim Hiller, who was fired midseason in March, could quickly become a distant memory.
Housley was a Hall of Fame defenseman who innovated the position as a player. Whitney was an imaginative forward that excelled on the power play, where he’ll run the show for the Kings. Laviolette has long favored an aggressive and creative approach to offense, one that could restore some entertainment value to Kings hockey while simultaneously making its results more consistent.