It’s that time of the year again, the college hockey season is winding down, and in fact has already ended for many players. Even those players fortunate enough to still be in contention for the NCAA playoffs only have a have a small handful of games remaining before the Frozen Four will be here and then this year’s championship trophy will be awarded.
Which also means, college hockey’s unrestricted free agency period is starting to ramp up.
To borrow from a Mayor’s Manor article right about this time a few years ago…
Of course, the Kings have done quite well in this area in recent years, including the recruiting of Alex Iafallo, Blake Lizotte, and Sean Walker to name a few. Conversely, not every signing is a success story, yet it’s still a viable way to add players to an organization without utilizing the more common methods.
Like most spring periods, the Kings likely have eyes on a few college UFAs right now. That doesn’t guarantee they’ll be able to sign anybody, though, as some of the players featured in this article will be highly sought after from several teams.
Getting a player to sign with the Kings may prove to be more challenging than it was during their down years, where there was more of a clear path for certain guys to ‘jump the line’ (ala Lizotte) because LA’s prospects were still too young and inexperienced, not quite ready to make the NHL jump. On the flip side, if one of the college UFAs has full confidence in his abilities and wants to join a team on the upswing, it’s widely believed the Kings are building a Cup contender and have many of the pieces necessary to have many years of success in the not too distant future. Thus, this could be a good time to hop aboard the train.
We believe there are six potential candidates the Kings have in mind this season:
FORWARDS
listed in alphabetical order
Karsen Dorwort, Michigan State
Sophomore, left shot, 6-foot-1, 191 lbs, 21 years old
2022-23 Season Stats: 27 points (10 G, 17 A) in 38 games
2023-24 Season Stats: 33 points (14 G, 19 A) in 35 games
Received Honorable Mention All-Big Ten honors this season, while playing as his team’s top line center and serving as an alternate captain. Skated in Skated in all 38 games as a freshman and ranked second on the team in goals (10) and third in points (27). Was also a team-best plus-10 on the season. In his younger years, was a San Jose Sharks Junior player and later played for Sioux Falls in the USHL. He attended Development Camp with the Detroit Red Wings last summer. Scouts often talk about his overall game, rather than specific individual aspects.
Collin Graf, Quinnipiac
Junior, right shot, 6-foot, 170 lbs, 21 years old
2022-23 Season Stats: 59 points (21 G, 38 A) in 41 games
2023-24 Season Stats: 48 points (22 G, 26 A) in 31 games
Considered a legitimate candidate for this year’s Hobey Baker Award as the best college hockey player. Is one of the team’s alternate captains. Won the national championship last year, then attended Development Camp with the Nashville Predators last summer. His defensive abilities are said to be as impressive as his offensive skills. In 2023-24, his 1.59 points per game ranked fourth in the NCAA. Last season, his points totals trailed only Michigan’s Adam Fantilli (65) and Minnesota’s Logan Cooley (60), with going very early in the first round at last two NHL Drafts. Scouts like nearly all of his tools, including his hands, vision, and shot.
Joey Larson, Michigan State
Sophomore, right shot, 6-foot-1, 196 lbs, 22 years old
2022-23 Season Stats: 27 points (13 G, 14 A) in 37 games
2023-24 Season Stats: 31 points (15 G, 16 A) in 35 games
Now teammates with the aforementioned Dorwort, Larson actually transferred in after spending his freshman season at Northern Michigan University. He’s also been around the block a bit over the past few summers, as he was at Nashville’s Development Camp last summer after going camping with Vegas the year prior. Putting up nearly a point-per-game this season will likely have teams talking to him. Most scouts talk about his shot first; they love it. Yet, his skating style helps him attack the hard areas of the ice.
Jacob Quillan, Quinnipiac
Junior, left shot, 6-foot, 200 lbs, 22 years old
2022-23 Season Stats: 38 points (19 G, 19 A) in 41 games
2023-24 Season Stats: 44 points (15 G, 29 A) in 36 games
Another member of the reigning college champions; however, he’s one of the rare left shot players on our list. He capped off a phenomenal sophomore season by being named the MVP of the NCAA tournament last April. And topped it by increasing his offensive output in 2023-24. Scouts like his compete and creativity. Nashville, Boston, and Edmonton are just a few of the teams rumored to be interested in signing him.
Ben Steeves, Univ. of Minnesota-Duluth
Sophomore, left shot, 5-foot-9, 167 lbs, 21 years old
2022-23 Season Stats: 28 points (21 G, 7 A) in 25 games
2023-24 Season Stats: 34 points (24 G, 10 A) in 37 games
When everybody else is looking left, the Kings may opt to go right this year. Research and homework lead all roads back to Steeves, even though his name isn’t being bandied about in most other circles. Last season’s NCHC Rookie of the Year should not be ignored, though.
There’s no point in running from it, so let’s get to it right up front. His size immediately makes him standout from every other player on this list. Don’t tell Patrick Kane size matters. in a similar vein, Steeves scores goals. He has the highest ratio of goals-to-points on our entire list and he had the highest percentage of his team’s goals than any other player in the country. Steeves isn’t thinking pass, he wants to shoot the puck. Last year, his 20 goals were the most among NCHC freshmen and ranked second among all NCAA freshmen. It also was the first time a UMD freshman scored 20 goals since Brett Hull.
Further, the Kings obviously have been tracking Steeves’ development. They even had him at Development Camp last summer, where they were able to get an up-close look at what he brings to the rink on a daily basis. The organization is also very familiar with where he goes to school, having had Mikey Anderson and Iafallo graduate to being NHL players after finishing their time as Bulldogs. UMD runs a fine program, one of the best in the country, and coach Scott Sandelin is as good as they come. If he blesses Steeves as having a shot at being a pro player, take it to the bank. If that’s not enough, add in the fact current Kings amateur scout Andy Johnson was in Sioux Falls (USHL) when Steeves was there. Johnson had his fingerprints all over what the Kings did at the Draft last year, so he’s clearly earned the ear of Mark Yannetti.
GOALTENDER
Victor Ostman, Maine
Senior, 6-foot-4, 205 lbs, 23 years old
2022-23 Season Stats: .918 save percentage and 2.21 goals against avg in 33 games
2023-24 Season Stats: .894 save percentage and 2.79 goals against avg in 20 games
We don’t have any defensemen on our list this year, and Ostman is the lone goalie candidate likely to get any consideration in LA. As he should; especially considering this big Swede has the frame typical of what NHL teams are looking for these days. Ostman’s numbers did dip a bit this season and he was in more of a situation where starts were being split with an incoming freshman goaltender. Last season, he was a finalist for the Mike Richter Award, presented to the nation’s top goaltender.
Maine is set to play in the Hockey East semifinal on Friday — against Kings prospect Jack Hughes and Boston University. It will be interesting to see how the Black Bears opt to use Ostman in either the semis and/or the final round, should they make it that far. Maine is one of 11 teams already locked into one of the 16 spots in this year’s college hockey playoffs, thus the results this weekend aren’t as critical for them compared to UMass, as an example. That could have an impact on how Ostman is utilized.
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