EL SEGUNDO, CA — The Los Angeles Kings have made an impressionable summer thus far under Ken Holland. Impressionable in the sense that things could go as scheduled or very badly. Their push for 'contender' status has left many in doubt about their ability to prevail under an array of dubious circumstances left behind by a different administration. The team sought to bolster its size and experience, and while that was achieved, significant gaps remained, including enforcement.
While the idea of having an enforcer has died down in the recent decade, more or less, it's still a linchpin element in a game where you can control the opposition if they are 'running around.' It also helps protect your top players, or sometimes, the young up-and-coming prospects (see Ryan Reaves being signed in San Jose, a team with a boon of young talent). For the Kings, a team without remotely the same level of up-and-coming talent as their Northern-in-state-rivals has been defined by its physical dominance and grit and will enter the 2025-26 season facing the notable void of a true enforcer.
Over the past few seasons, the team has relied on a rotating cast of physical presences to protect its stars and young players, as well as the ability to shift momentum with well-timed hits or fights. That cast has included Brendan Lemieux, Andreas Englund, and, most recently, Tanner Jeannot. With the departure of Jeannot, the Kings are now skating into a new era without a clear on-ice enforcer. Holland clearly took a look around the league and also saw the usage of the fourth line last year and chose to adapt to players who can still contribute five-on-five and on special teams. The fourth line of the previous season barely whiffed ice time in their six-game departure from the Oilers while Jeannot himself sat out with injury.
LA has done admirably in harnessing these players to fill in-depth roles while providing this element. If you consider their past three-plus seasons of players who provided this niche skill, it was still fundamentally players who could still play without being complete liabilities.
Brendan Lemieux brought an old-school edge to the Kings during his stint. The son of legendary NHL antagonist Claude Lemieux, Brendan wore his scrappy style like a badge of honor. He was unapologetically abrasive, racked up penalty minutes, and was always ready to drop the gloves. Lemieux even took a chomp out of a certain Ottawa Senator captain, earning himself a suspension.
Though his role as a deterrent and agitator was clear, his presence did gel on a line with Blake Lizotte and Arthur Kaliyev that was excellent analytically (58.75% Corsi, 58.72 Fenwick, 207-126 SF vs SA, 19 GF vs 11 GA, 183 SCF vs 141 SCA, 80 HDCF vs 61 HDCA, and 12 HDGF vs 9 HDGA in 365.55 toi via NST). Lemieux was a cost-effective fourth liner who brought occasional offensive upside and applied his edge when the game demanded it. His eventual trade for Zack MacEwen still forces a prolonged scratch to the head.
Then, of course, there's Andreas Englund, a depth defenseman who wasn't necessarily your typical classic enforcer in the mold of Georges Parros or Kevin Westgarth. He did, however, bring a rugged physicality to the blue line and despair to a majority of Kings' fans, who blamed poor in-game results on a depth defenseman (your number 6-7 defense isn't the problem). His game wasn't built around outletting and quick strike transition offense. However, Englund wasn't a complete liability and was reasonably consistent with his willingness to throw big hits and stand up for teammates; he filled the void during a transitional phase for the team. However, his departure stripped the backend of its snarl and opened the door to a potential overpay to replace it.
The Kings hoped that bringing in Tanner Jeannot would reintroduce that blend of toughness and tenacity. One of the more physically strong hockey players in the league, Jeannot's presence in the lineup briefly gave LA the element of enforcement it sorely lacked. Known for his bone-crunching hits and fearless puck pursuit, he embodied the type of player who could change a game's tone in one shift, even if his contract was a swap and overpay for Carl Grundstrom. He would land on a line last season that looked to be one of the Kings' best, lining up with Quintn Byfield and Warren Foegele (50.75% Corsi, 52.97% Fenwick, 64-52 SF vs SA, 13 GF vs 4 GA, 67 SCF vs 57 SCA, 32 HDCF vs 24 HDCA, and 9 HDGF vs 2 HDGA in 146.31 toi via NST). But with his exit, too, the team is once again missing that critical piece of intimidation and pushback, especially in what could be an ultra-competitive Pacific Division next season.
So where does that leave the Kings?
The organization is clearly prioritizing depth, size, and experience under the Holland era. The Kings certainly have exciting young players in the form of Brandt Clarke, Byfield, and Alex Laferriere. Still, in sum, they don't have the layered amount of game-breaking talent or the presence of a player who can protect that element. They whiffed during the offseason in signing any marquee players, leaving for most a sour aftertaste as a result of a maligned four years of playoff woe. Still, their initial signings of Corey Perry and Joel Armia were solid signings to upgrade their fourth line. Armia can penalty kill, and Perry is a plug-in on the second powerplay unit. At the same time, both averaged in the mid-to-low teens in five-on-five ice time last season.
Despite the fourth line upgrade, the blueline is holistically worse off, and the team will have to enforce by committee. This will be a risky gambit for the 2025-26 season, which is four lines of above-average players with a questionable blueline to break into rarified air for a playoff win-deprived organization and fan base.
In all fairness, skill alone doesn't always win playoff series, especially when games get tighter, rougher, and more physical. Enforcers are seldom used in a playoff series, but first, you have to make the show.
During the regular season, opponents may now see the Kings as a team that can be pushed around. Without a true enforcer or even a consistently physical presence, there are teams, especially in the Western Conference, who have plenty of edge to their game to take liberties that go unanswered.
It's not that LA lacks size or tenacity altogether. Players like Phillip Danault and Mikey Anderson play hard, defensively responsible hockey. But their focus isn't on enforcing; it's on execution. There's a difference between hard to play against and physically imposing, and right now, the Kings fall more in the former.
In today's NHL, the role of an enforcer has evolved. The one-dimensional fighter is nearly extinct. But the need for a player who can play minutes and still bring a physical deterrent, someone in the mold of Tom Wilson, Josh Anderson, or even a younger Milan Lucic, still has a demand around the league. The Kings don't currently have that player.
Whether the Kings' front office views this as a gap worth addressing remains uncertain, given the season is still months away, and management will continue to assess the team leading up to the Trade Deadline.
None of their offseason additions, Brian Dumoulin, Cody Ceci, Perry, or Armia, bring the kind of fear factor or deterrence that someone like Jeannot or Lemieux offered. They are bigger and tougher than some of the players currently on the Kings' roster, and they'll help make the team 'harder to play against' in subtle, strategic ways. But none of them are the type of player who changes the game's emotional temperature with a fight, a massive open-ice hit, or a response to a cheap shot.
If the Kings are hoping to replace enforcement by committee through positioning, board play, and physical depth, then these signings help. But if the goal is to have someone who puts opposing agitators on notice or rallies the team through sheer physical presence, they may still be one piece short.
I see hope in a young player like Samuel Helenius evolving into a hybrid role based on his sheer size. But Holland has already verbally committed Alex Turcotte to the fourth-line center role. Right now, the team's depth looks solid down four lines, and the defense is sizable but questionable.
Plenty of players on this roster have shown the ability to step in when things get nasty. Still, there will undoubtedly be hesitation from Jim Hiller when picking a number to make a statement through fists.