The annual Rookie Faceoff showcase is almost here and rosters have been announced for the participating teams.
The Kings don’t have the star studded roster they’ve had in past years, but there are still some interesting names to keep an eye on.
Brandt Clarke & Erik Portillo
I’m a little surprised Brandt Clarke is attending this year as a D+4 player, however, I’m assuming the Kings wanted a star there as the host team.
We won’t learn much about Clarke here. He was one of the AHL’s best young defensemen and is one of the best offensive defensemen prospects in hockey.
Given his pedigree and experience he should be the best player at this tournament, although Macklin Celebrini will push him for that title.
Clarke should dominate games and be fun to watch but we already know what Clarke is.
Erik Portillo is the other big name here, and like Clarke, should be one of the best players at his position.
He should be a brick wall at this showcase and this could be the start of an excellent season fresh off a new contract.
The 2024 Class:
Three of the Kings’ four 2024 draft picks will be attending; Liam Greentree, Carter George and Jared Woolley.
Greentree is the headliner here and there’s a few things to keep an eye on.
We know the skill is high end, but it will be interesting to see how his compete and physical game looks.
His compete was spotty in the OHL on a terrible Windsor Spitfires team and it will be interesting to see if there’s more consistency on a better team.
He’ll also be playing against some older, stronger players and it will be interesting to see how he handles that.
He isn’t a bull in a china shop type player, but he uses his size a lot with the puck, leaning on players and inviting contact along the boards and in corners to create space for himself.
There’s also the skating question but I doubt we see any big improvements this early from him.
If he’s consistently competitive and a physical force with the puck, it should really excite fans.
George will likely split games with Portillo and we’ll get a good look at how he handles some more NHL quality shooters.
We know there’s the size and athleticism questions and seeing him face players like Cutter Gauthier, Celebrini and Will Smith will be a good test for George.
Woolley is maybe the most interesting because there’s the most to learn.
He spent have of last season in the GOJHL and when called up the OHL he almost exclusively played a 3rd pair role.
We should get a look at Woolley in a more expansive role and see more of what he can do on the puck.
He’s never going to be an offensive defensemen, but if he can consistently make a good first pass and handle the puck well, that’s a great sign.
Others:
Francesco Pinelli:
As I’ve mentioned before, Francesco Pinelli needs a big season and this would be a great place to kickstart it
He should be a top player here with an AHL season under his belt and needs to dominate for the Kings.
Aatu Jamsen:
Heading into his first season of North American hockey this will be a first look on Jamsen in game action for a lot of fans.
With plenty of Liiga experience he should be a top player at this showcase.
If he can showcase some NHL quality skill to go with his size and compete he could set himself up for a good rookie season in the AHL.
Jakub Dvorak:
Jakub Dvorak and Clarke feels like an ideal pair if you have faith in Dvorak’s skating.
That will be the biggest thing to watch for with Dvorak, how does his skating match up with other future, and some current, NHLers.
If his skating looks good, the Kings could have a future shutdown defensemen in their pipeline given Dvorak’s size and compete.
Koehn Ziemmer:
Koehn Ziemmer was a top WHL player when healthy last season and still had the skill and goal scoring that saw the Kings draft him.
The big question at this tournament will be his skating and conditioning.
If Ziemmer gets those two things in order he’s a good bet for the NHL.
Kaleb Lawrence:
Another player heading into his rookie AHL season, Kaleb Lawrence is all about physicality and making life tough for the opposition.
Showcases like this, which aren’t as physical or intense as regular season games, do make it tough for players like Lawrence to shine but there’s still things to watch for.
His game will never be about offense, but it will good to see how his puck skills hold up against some NHL competition.
I expect him to be physically dominant as always.
Matthew Mania:
How does Matthew Mania’s puck moving and puck transporting scale to the next level? That’s the big question for him at this showcase.
Angus Booth:
Another potential for Clarke, Booth’s a good two-way defensemen who was physical in the QMJHL despite not being the biggest player.
How that works against better, older competition will be something to keep an eye on.
