Thursday’s loss to Vancouver could have a lasting impact on Jim Hiller’s LA Kings, at least in the short term. As noted postgame, the status of one defenseman and forward remained in question. Below is the latest info we’ve gathered, as well as some additional context regarding what could be coming next.
Mikey Anderson
First and foremost, the health of Anderson is the biggest concern here. Unfortunately, life in pro sports can often become a ‘next man up’ situation and that’s what the Kings could have been facing should one of their top rearguards needed to sit out another game on Saturday.
Fortunately, from what we’ve been hearing this morning, that won’t be the case. According to our sources within the team, Anderson is said to be good to go and should not miss any time.
Tanner Jeannot
On one hand, this situation will sort itself out later this afternoon. Mayor’s Manor has learned that Jeannot’s official hearing has been scheduled for 1pm PST.
It is believed he will receive at least a one-game suspension for his hit on Brock Boeser. Even in a vacuum, though, that is an issue because the Kings only have 12 healthy forwards on the roster at the moment. They’re currently carrying a full roster of 23 players, including 13 forwards and eight defensemen. With one forward already injured (Turcotte), losing Jeannot for one game could see coach Jim Hiller opt to play an 11+7 configuration just to avoid having to make a roster move to recall a 12th forward.
However, if Jeannot is suspended, Alex Turcotte will be placed on injured reserve (IR). This would be necessary because beyond Saturday’s game, LA has a road trip coming up to Calgary and Colorado.
Turcotte to IR could even be done retroactively, back to Tuesday (he was injured against the Predators) — which would mean he could potentially return next Wednesday vs. the Avalanche. However, there are a lot of moving pieces in that equation. For starters, how long of a suspension would factor into things, as well as the actual health of Turcotte’s upper-body injury.
AHL Recall Candidates
If the Kings needed a defenseman, Jacob Moverare would have been the easy player to target. He’s been up with the Kings before and he usually fits into things rather seamlessly on the left side.
Under the assumption that Anderson will be OK, placing Turcotte on IR would lead to a forward being recalled, and there are two obvious candidates.
Sammy Helenius – He was among the last players cut from training camp and certainly impressed throughout the month of September. LA brass likes the hulking 6-foot-6 center and he would be the closest like-for-like player to Jeannot, in the sense that he brings a physical element to the game. Helenius plays center, which could actually be a benefit for Hiller, as well. The Kings haven’t quite found a consistent 4C this season and letting Helenius fill that role short term could be an interesting experiment. It would also push veteran Trevor Lewis out to the wing, where he started training camp before moving back to the middle a few weeks ago. Helenius could also give the Kings another option on the penalty kill, a role he’s played quite a bit in the AHL.
Sammy Fagemo – If he gets the nod, it leaves Lewis at center on the fourth line because Fagemo is a winger. The question often becomes, where do you play the Swedish sniper within the Kings roster? If it’s just a game or two, having him play fourth line minutes is essentially just having a warm body out there for a few shifts per period. To tap into his offensive upside, Fagemo likely needs a spot further up the lineup, and that can be dicey. Kevin Fiala could stay up top with Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe, leaving Akil Thomas as the likely player moving down to the fourth line to make room for Fagemo on the second line with Phil Danault. It’s possible.
One other note on Fagemo: Because he already cleared waivers this season, he is eligible to be called up to the NHL roster and then be sent back down without needing waivers again, as long as he’s only the NHL roster for less than 10 games and/or 30 days (which would most likely be the case).
Helenius is waiver exempt, so that wouldn’t come into play should he be recalled and make his NHL debut.
First things first, though. LA will wait to see what happens with Jeannot and then make a decision. If they did opt for Fagemo, they’d at least be getting him while he’s hot. After starting colder than usual, Fagemo has six points (4G, 2A) in his last two games, where both were multi-goal performances.
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