Day 1 of this year’s NHL Draft was considered a success, according to several inside LA Kings management circles. Prior to the official festivities even getting underway on Friday night, the team traded back from pick No. 21 to 26, a shift that came with some risk. In the end, though, one of the players they were targeting from their top tier was still available — and that’s the guy they selected, Liam Greentree.
Via the aforementioned trade with Montreal, LA GM Rob Blake was also able to give Mark Yannetti some more draft capital to work with. They added a late second-round selection (No. 57) and a seventh-round selection (No. 198). Setting them as follows when Day 2 of the Draft begins early Saturday morning:
Round 2 – No. 57
Round 3 – N/A
Round 4 – No. 118
Round 5 – N/A
Round 6 – No. 182
Round 7 – Nos. 198 and 214
DAY 2 APPROACH
Now that they have a second-round selection, there’s no guarantee that’s where they’ll stay. There can be a huge difference around every five picks in the second-round. Thus, getting to 47 could be getting them (theoretically) a significantly better prospect.
So, they’ll be interested to move, it’s just getting up there that could prove to be a challenge for the Kings because they still don’t have a lot of draft capital to work with. Remember, they are without a third and fifth rounder right now.
Nonetheless, if LA is going to have any luck moving up, we see these five picks as prime targets for a potential trade up scenario:
No. 41 – Calgary
No. 43 – Buffalo
No. 46 – Pittsburgh
No. 50 – Chicago
No. 51 – Philadelphia
As of this writing, the Kings have a full complement of picks in 2025. They may need to dip into that reserve to pull something like this off. We shall see.
For example, maybe the deal with Pittsburgh would look like LA acquiring No. 46 this year in exchange for the Kings 57th pick (2024), next year’s third-round selection, and one of their seventh rounders this year.
We had previously mentioned the idea of trading Arthur Kaliyev (maybe for a third) and/or the rights to Matt Roy (for a fourth or fifth round pick). The former doesn’t seem to have any traction behind it as of now. In fact, we’ve been led to believe there’s a good chance anything involving Kaliyev will likely have to wait until after the Draft. As for Roy, that idea at least to still be on the table, albeit with little interest just yet.
ROUND 2 NAMES TO WATCH FOR LA
Below are 5 of the names we feel they’ll most likely be focusing on in the second round:
(NOTE: Players listed in alphabetical order)
Charlie Elick | Defense, WHL
6-foot-3, 200 lbs., shoots right
Buzzwords from scouts: Strong, defensive defenseman, reliable
Defining characteristic: Physicality
Our full write-up on Elick can be found here.
Alfons Freij | Defense, Sweden
6-foot-1, 187 lbs., shoots left
Buzzwords from scouts:Controls puck well, active in all zones
Defining characteristic: Exceptional skater
Our full write-up on Freij can be found here.
Adam Kleber | Defenseman, USHL
6-foot-5, 204 lbs., shoots right
Buzzwords from scouts: Good reach, defensive defenseman
Defining characteristic: Size and defensive ability
Our full write-up on Kleber can be found here.
John Mustard | Forward, USHL
6-foot-1, 184 lbs., shoots left
Buzzwords from scouts: Fantastic skater, sniper, plays with pace, high skill
Defining characteristic: Shot
Our full write-up on Mustard can be found here.
Jesse Pulkkinen | Defenseman, Finland
6-foot-6, 203 lbs., shoots left
This is one of the players the Kings would most likely need to trade up for. He’s almost surely gone by No. 57.
Buzzwords from scouts: Physically engaged, developing two-way play, aggressive, and strong
Defining characteristic: Size and skill combo
Our full write-up on Pulkkinen can be found here.
NAMES TO WATCH IN OTHER ROUNDS
As noted in original Draft Predictions article, projecting how who still be there in the third round and beyond is pretty tricky. We’ve grouped players we could see the Kings targeting in Rounds 3 and 4 as ‘middle rounds,’ with rounds 5-7 serving as ‘later rounds.’
Below are 10 potential names for each category.
Middle Rounds
Jacob Battaglia – forward
Kamil Bednark – forward
Spencer Gill – defenseman
Tomas Lavoie – defenseman
Luca Marrelli – defenseman
Henry Mews – defenseman
Javon Moore – forward
Max Plante – forward
Teddy Stiga – forward
Eemil Vinnie – goalie
Late Rounds
Lucas Ellinas – forward
Lukas Fischer – defenseman
Jake Fisher – forward
Aatos Koivu – forward
Blake Montgomery – forward
Pavel Moysevich – goalie
Ilya Nabokov – goalie
Kaden Shahan – forward
Jared Woolley – defenseman
Brodie Ziemer – forward
Fear not, the entire Mayor’s Manor team will continue to bring you coverage throughout Draft weekend, including comments from players and members of Kings management.
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