It is no secret that the Los Angeles Kings have botched what was the league's envy in prospect pipelines. Many outlets had the Kings as high as best in the league when Rob Blake collected as many assets as possible (Scott Wheeler of the Athletic 2019).
Speaking of that highly touted year where the Kings were the 'royalty of the league' with their pipeline, it was not to be so. The 2019 NHL draft stymied the Kings franchise even though they walked away with four players from the first two rounds. They drafted Alex Turcotte (fifth overall) and Tobias Bjornfot (22nd overall) in the first round. Turcotte has been pummeled by injuries going back to his days in Wisconsin and has yet to crack the NHL roster, even after a promising stint last season.
Bjornfot, though amassing over 100 NHL games as a starting defenceman for the Kings, played only one game for the Kings last season. Bjornfot was beaten at the season's onset, much like Lombardi's holdover in Jacob Moverare to career AHL'r Andreas Englund. Since he was waived to the minors and claimed by the Vegas Golden Knights, Bjornfot is now a Florida Panther.
The second-round picks are where it gets even more dicey. Arthur Kaliyev was drafted at 33rd overall. Many pre-draft speculators had him as high as 15th overall due to his booming shot and offensive instincts. Kaliyev dominated the OHL and even scored in his first game coming into the NHL against the Anaheim Ducks. After scoring 14 goals in 80 games as a depth, bottom-six winger for a defense-first franchise, Kaliyev had missed ample game time up in the press box the last two seasons, missing 20+ games each year.
The once-possible 'steal of the 2019 draft has now requested a trade out of LA. Kaliyev was a regular healthy scratch under Todd McLellan and Jim Hiller. With Hiller staying long-term, it was inevitable for something to give.
Finally, Samuel Fagemo. Fagemo was another piece (50th overall) that looked like a steal out of the second round. Fagemo has found ample success scoring at lower levels of competitive hockey, including torching the AHL last year (43 goals in 50 games). While he scored twice in his stint with the Kings in 2022-23, he was waived last year, being claimed by the Nashville Predators.
While the Kings are very fortunate to reclaim Fagemo in waivers, the 2019 draft, particularly the top half, has been a direct result of their ailing franchise and poor asset management.
The Kings, under Blake, built out a pipeline that was pouring out players left and right. However, those players, underserved, underutilized, and mostly blocked from roster spots, became buried in a franchise that swung for a higher mark than its own reach capable.
The Kaliyev situation is just another notch on a belt that Blake shouldn't be proud to wear. Kaliyev is not likely to become a 30-goal scorer somewhere else, but could realistically threaten to be a 20-25-goal scorer given the proper ice time elsewhere.
It brings to light the direness of the situation in LA.
The cupboard was the franchise's biggest strength. Now that it is withered and primarily empty, management has to pursue going all in on two prospects: Brandt Clarke and Quinton Byfield. Byfield has flourished after finally getting top-six ice time, while Clarke dominated the AHL and fared well in his short trip up with the Kings.
Not doing so would be a massive mistake.
Salvaging the franchise through those two, while the two biggest stars the modern franchise has ever known tread closer to their retirement, should be the only goal for next season. Over the last three years, They have misread their overall capability and depleted their resources.
It's time to put a saddle on Clarke and Byfield, letting them drive this bus towards whatever direction the franchise goes, as long as they develop into the players they desperately need.