The Los Angeles Kings have been building an excellent farm system in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Ontario Reign in recent seasons. Lately, they have signed some solid, talented players who came from the AHL and may be looking at a full-time NHL spot for the upcoming season. There are a handful of prospects who will probably play several games in the NHL for the Kings this season while spending the majority of the time down in the AHL. However, there is a small group of them who will likely have a lot of games to look forward to in the NHL.
Projected Full-Time Roster Players
Akil Thomas
The most significant prospect on this list would have to be Akil Thomas, who was recently extended by the Kings in June. He had a tremendously successful 2023-24 season for the Reign and Kings as the 24-year-old had his first look on the Kings’ roster. On April 1, 2024, he played in his first NHL game against the Winnipeg Jets at Winnipeg. The center’s first exposure to the league only sparked his passion to make a name for himself. In his second game, on April 4 against the San Jose Sharks, he tallied his first career point from a goal. Afterwards, he played five more games for the Kings, notching two goals and an assist for three goals in a total of seven games.
Once his seven-game appearance with the Kings concluded on April 15, Thomas was sent back down to the Reign to finish the AHL regular season and play in the Calder Cup Playoffs. He finished out the regular season by playing three games for the Reign before playing eight games in the playoffs. In his first game back from his NHL callup, he played against the Bakersfield Condors where he recorded an assist; he also added two assists in his second against the Colorado Eagles. In the Calder Cup Playoffs, Thomas recorded two goals and three assists.
The center of Ontario, Canada was originally drafted in the second round of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. The majority of his professional career has been spent in the AHL with the Reign, where he has played for the past four seasons. Prior to his recent NHL callup, he had participated in 61 games for the Reign during the 2023-24 season, accumulating an impressive 22 goals and 21 assists for 43 points. During that season, he notably had solid performances on Dec. 31 against the Henderson Silver Knights and on Jan. 21 against the Tucson Road Runners when he scored a goal and two assists per game.
During the previous season,…
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