The Los Angeles Kings have long preached strength in depth; however, their future as a franchise is directly tied to one player, Quinton Byfield.
It's not an exaggeration to say the Kings can only go so far as Byfield can take them in the medium turn. He must become a true number-one center in the NHL if this franchise is to take the next step and start making deep runs into the playoffs again.
You need elite players in premium positions, and center might be the most important of the premium positions, and Byfield is the only player in the organization with the potential to be that. After 18 months of playing wing and a breakout season last year, Byfield returned to center this season to start the process of becoming that player.
The early signs haven't been what anyone was hoping for.
Through 13 games Byfield has just five points, all assists. He's yet to find the back of the net on 2.3 expected goals and has registered just two assists in his last eight games. While he hasn't played center in every game this season, these numbers are not good enough at any position.
The Kings are still winning games, which is good, but don't forget this team was 8-2-3 through their first 13 games last season and by February they were firing their coach because of poor play. It's nice to get wins early but don't let that paper over some of the cracks a team is showing.
Of course, that works two ways, don't let a slow start from a player shape your perception of their entire season. The underlying numbers suggest Byfield's been better than his zero goals, five assists stat line shows. With him on the ice, the Kings are largely outshooting and out-chancing the opposition but he's suffered from some poor goaltending. With Byfield on the ice at five-on-five, the Kings are getting .860 goaltending, it's tough to post positive numbers when you can't get a save.
That's not an excuse for such poor production though, Byfield must be better. He's lost some of the assertive, aggressive style of play offensively that led to so much success last season. There's too much perimeter play, especially for a 6-foot-5, 230-pound center. He needs to be in the thick of things at all times, winning battles in the corners, along the boards and in front of the net. Byfield is an exceptionally skilled player but would benefit from playing a bit more rough-and-tumble hockey.
The highlight reel goals he scored against the Columbus Blue Jackets and Montreal Canadiens were great and flash the high-end skill he possesses, but that can't be the goal for every shift, those need to be outliers.
This isn't the first time Byfield's taken a while to adapt though. In fact, at every level, Byfield's taken time to adapt to changes. It took him a while to get going in the OHL and the AHL, he was moved to wing in the NHL because he was taking a while to adapt at center and now we're starting that process again. There's one consistent though, once Byfield did adapt, he dominated.
The Kings put this process off for the last two seasons by moving Byfield to wing and they must persist with it now. They need him to succeed at center and he needs the reps up the middle.
It's not all on LA though, all they can do is give Byfield the opportunity, and he must seize it. He needs to abandon the perimeter play and stop trying to be so cute with the puck. He's one of, if not the best, puck carrier and rush creator on the Kings and he's at his best playing in the interior of the ice.
Once he returns to doing those things, Byfield will thrive. Despite a few defensive mistakes early on, he's been good in his end, the Kings have controlled chances, including high-danger chances, with him on the ice and controlled shots. He now just needs the offense to come.
Remember, it's been just 13 games, we shouldn't ignore all trends through those first 13 games, but we shouldn't take them as facts either. Quinton Byfield won't finish the season with zero goals and 31 points, just as Ross Colton in Colorado won't finish with 66 goals.
There's plenty of hockey to be played and plenty of time for Byfield to find his groove.
