Last week, at the start of training camp, captain Anze Kopitar announced that he will retire after the 2025-26 season. LA’s lack of top free-agent additions, paired with losses of Vladislav Gavrikov and Jordan Spence, now require the improvement of younger players to fill the void.
None of these young players are more important than right-shot defenseman Brandt Clarke. Despite playing well on the offensive side of the puck last season, he was often scratched by head coach Jim Hiller. Hiller cited Clarke’s lack of defensive prowess for his decision; however, the Spence trade has undoubtedly opened the door for Clarke to develop into a top-pairing defenseman and establish consistent ice-time.
The talent is definitely there for Clarke, he just needs to polish his game in 2025-26 for the Kings’ backend depth to improve.
So far this preseason, Clarke has silenced the doubters. He’s totalled two assists, including a spectacular helper on a spin-o-rama pass to Alex Turcotte in LA’s first preseason game against Anaheim.
Another player who has played well to start the preseason is Kings 2024 first-round draft pick, forward Liam Greentree. Greentree has four assists, including a two-point game in the Kings’ 3-1 win over Vegas. At just 19 years old, any kind of production in the LA lineup would be viewed as a huge plus.
Los Angeles will need internal improvements from numerous players on the roster as well. Forward Alex Laferriere got off to a blazing start in 2024-25, scoring 13 goals during the first three months of the year. However, he scored just 6 over the next four months. It was a breakout season for the young winger, but more consistency will be needed if the Kings want to improve their scoring.
Bottom-six additions Joel Armia and Corey Perry will help in that regard. Brought in to bolster the fourth line, both should give Hiller more confidence in his lineup and allow a more balanced ice-time distribution. LA’s Achilles’ heel was its top-heavy lineup, as shown in its first-round series loss against Edmonton this past season. Perry’s recent injury clouds the picture, but Armia will add strength to the Kings’ bottom-six and special teams units.
Arguably the biggest question mark heading into the season is how new defensemen Cody Ceci and Brian Dumoulin will mesh with the rest of LA’s defensive corps. General manager Ken Holland came under some criticism this summer for letting Gavrikov go and trading Spence to Ottawa for draft picks. Ceci and Dumoulin, who are expected to fill big shoes, are currently paired with veteran Joel Edmundson and Clarke, respectively.
One offseason addition who has flown under the radar, yet could have a large impact is goaltender Anton Forsberg. Starting goalie Darcy Kuemper was phenomenal in 2025-26. The Vezina Trophy nominee posted a .922 save percentage and 2.02 goals-against average in 50 starts.
Kuemper has a lengthy injury history, though, and backup David Rittich was very underwhelming in 2024-25 when Kuemper was unavailable. In 31 starts, Rittich put up a .887 save percentage and 2.84 goals-against average, numbers that Forsberg should outperform. The improvement behind Kuemper in goal should also help to ease his workload, giving the Kings a stronger tandem overall.
Fans will see how these new additions impact the Kings’ lineup on Oct. 7, when LA hosts the Colorado Avalanche on opening night. It’ll mark the start of what Los Angeles hopes to be a successful, cup-contending season.