The Los Angeles Kings suffered a bad 8-7 loss against the Ottawa Senators in the third game of the season, and while 10 players got on the scoresheet for the Kings, seven goals wasn’t enough for Quinton Byfield to be able to chip in offensively.
There were questions surrounding Byfield coming into 2024-25 after taking a big step in his first full season in the NHL. With Anze Kopitar, Phillip Danault, and Pierre-Luc Dubois down the middle last season, Byfield played on the wing beside Kopitar and saw a lot of success for the first time in the NHL.
He broke out for 20 goals and 55 points and he had an excellent goals for percentage of 61%. But things change over an off-season and by trading Dubois to the Washington Capitals, there was a hole that needed to be filled at center. The Kings liked their three-headed monster at center last season and adjusted to that by once again trying Byfield down the middle, this time with a little less pressure and a little more help.
Related: Kings Victim of Senators’ Franchise Record Tying Feat
Byfield had a bad game against the Senators. That’s no secret. He was the only player in the game with a -3 plus/minus and the 6’5 center only recorded one shot. Sometimes it’s the opponent or just not your night. That seemed to be the case for Byfield and should really only be seen as a one-off to begin the season, not what should be expected of him.
The 22-year-old has two assists in three games this season and is on a line with Kevin Fiala and Warren Foegele. I would argue that Fiala is the most skilled player on the team and always elevates his line. As for Foegele, he is coming off a career year having scored 20 goals and 41 points and hunts pucks.
Of the seven goals the Kings scored, three came on the power play, two were from the first line, one from the second line, and the fourth line chipped in for a goal. If Byfield was on the power play, we wouldn’t be having this discussion.
Byfield was on the top power-play unit last season and recorded 14 points. In his place to begin this season is Alex Laferriere, and it has worked. It’s too short of a sample size to see how long that will last, but considering the top unit scored three goals in the game against Ottawa, that’s three more great opportunities to be on the ice and in the action that Byfield didn’t get.
Another positive note that Byfield will be just fine is the line matchups the “third line” will get against opponents. When it comes to third lines, LA has one of the best in the league as it stands and Byfield is still playing over 17:30 per game.
This Kings third line with Byfield is arguably better than the team’s second line, but Danault and Trevor Moore are no slouches.
Related: Can Byfield Shine & Help The Kings Reach Playoffs Without Doughty?
The Kings drafted Byfield as a center and he has the size to be a dominant first line center in the NHL. He is still very young and has a lot more to learn. Just because he was drafted second overall doesn’t mean he will instantly adjust to the NHL and be a star.
LA needs Byfield to work out at center because 37-year-old Kopitar isn’t going to be playing forever. The torch has to be passed on and there’s a lot of confidence that it will be. Byfield has at least two seasons to figure it out at center. That’s a lot of time and he’s capable of doing so.
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