Polished Off The Ice, LA Kings’ Defenseman Prospect Roland McKeown Is Working To Be Equally Polished On It

July 17, 2014 by 15 Comments

LA KINGS PROSPECT WATCH: Throughout the summer, Frozen Royalty will be taking a look at several of the Los Angeles Kings’ young prospects. In this installment, the focus is on 2014 second round selection Roland McKeown. An audio interview with McKeown is also included.

Los Angeles Kings 2014 second round pick defenseman Roland McKeown
during the team’s 2014 Development Camp on July 8, 2014,
at the Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo, California.
(click above to view larger image)
Photo: David Sheehan/FrozenRoyalty.net

EL SEGUNDO, CA — The first thing that strikes you about defenseman Roland McKeown, who was selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the second round (50th overall) of the 2014 National Hockey League Draft, is that with his dashing good looks and his articulate, polished way of handling media interviews, he should be able to land a television broadcasting job without much effort after his playing days are over.

But his more immediate concern is making it to NHL ice as soon as possible and one step towards that end was participating in the Kings’ 2014 Development Camp, July 7-11.

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You’ll Have To Look Closely To See Where LA Kings LW Prospect Valentin Zykov Has Improved

July 15, 2014 by 16 Comments

LA KINGS PROSPECT WATCH: Throughout the summer, Frozen Royalty will be taking a look at several of the Los Angeles Kings’ young prospects. In this installment, the focus is on 2013 second round selection Valentin Zykov. An audio interview with Zykov is also included.

Los Angeles Kings 2013 second round pick forward Valentin Zykov
during the team’s 2014 Development Camp on July 8, 2014,
at the Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo, California.
(click above to view larger image)
Photo: David Sheehan/FrozenRoyalty.net

EL SEGUNDO, CA — After looking at Los Angeles Kings’ left wing prospect Valentin Zykov’s statistics in his two seasons with the Baie-Comeau Drakkar of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, you might wonder if he has improved from the previous year.

In 2012-13, the 6-2, 205-pound (weight at start of the 2013-14 season) native of St. Petersburg, Russia scored 40 goals and tallied 35 assists for 75 points in 67 regular season games. He also played in 19 playoff games, scoring ten goals and adding nine assists for 19 points.

Last season, Zykov’s numbers were not much different. In 53 regular season games, he scored 23 goals and contributed 40 assists for 63 points, and in 22 playoff games, he scored seven goals and added 15 assists for 22 points.

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LA Kings 2014 1st Round Draft Pick Adrian Kempe Returns To Sweden, But Not Before Making Solid First Impression

July 13, 2014 by 22 Comments

LA KINGS PROSPECT WATCH: Throughout the summer, Frozen Royalty will be taking a look at several of the Los Angeles Kings’ young prospects. First up is 2014 First round selection Adrian Kempe. An audio interview with Kempe is also included.

Los Angeles Kings 2014 First Round pick forward Adrian Kempe (right) is shown here fighting off Kings fourth round pick in the 2013 NHL Draft,
right wing Justin Auger, during the team’s 2014 Development Camp on
July 8, 2014, at the Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo, California.
(click above to view larger image)
Photo: David Sheehan/FrozenRoyalty.net

EL SEGUNDO, CA — When the Los Angeles Kings turn during the first round of the 2014 National Hockey League Draft on June 27 came around, all of the top prospects were long gone, well before the Kings’ 29th overall selection came around.

Despite that, although no one will know until and unless he actually plays for the Kings, forward Adrian Kempe, who the Kings selected with that pick, appears to fit the Kings like a glove.

One week later, Kempe was in Southern California for the Kings annual Development Camp for their young prospects and one of Kempe’s advantages over his peers—having played against older players for several years—was quite evident.

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A Glimpse At The Critical Role Development Has Played In LA Kings’ Championships

July 9, 2014 by 16 Comments

Former NHL defenseman and general manager Mike O’Connell (standing) instructs LA Kings prospects during the team’s 2014 Development Camp on July 8, 2014, at the Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo, California.
Photo: David Sheehan/FrozenRoyalty.net

2014 DEVELOPMENT CAMP: Frozen Royalty begins its coverage of the Los Angeles Kings’ 2014 Development Camp with a story on what the team is trying to accomplish during their annual camp for their young prospects and the impact their development staff has had on the team’s success. ALSO: listen to an audio interview with former Kings left wing Mike Donnelly, now on the team’s development and scouting staffs.

EL SEGUNDO, CA — The hockey world is now in what should probably be known as The Dreaded Lull, that period between the height of unrestricted free agent signings on July 1, and the start of National Hockey League training camps in mid-September, a period when it seems like everything related to the game has been sucked into a black hole.

The result: hockey fans are bored out of their minds, clamoring for any little tidbit of something hockey-related to help them survive the two-and-a-half months before training camps open.

Something that helps fans cope is that NHL teams now have development camps for their young prospects in July and August, giving fans and hockey media alike something to chew on during The Dreaded Lull, and the Los Angeles Kings are no exception.

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Former Kings Superstar Defenseman Rob Blake Joins LA Kings Braintrust As Assistant GM

July 18, 2013 by 2 Comments

ROB BLAKE NAMED ASSISTANT GM: Frozen Royalty brings you in-depth coverage of the Los Angeles Kings naming their former superstar defenseman Rob Blake as their new assistant general manager, replacing Ron Hextall. For those who are critical of bringing Blake back into the fold, be sure to read the next story on Frozen Royalty, featuring Dean Lombardi explaining why the criticism is unwarranted.

Former Los Angeles Kings defenseman Rob Blake was named as the team’s assistant general manager on July 17, 2013.
(click above to view a larger image).
Photo: Wendi Kaminski/NHLI via Getty Images
and the Los Angeles Kings

LOS ANGELES — July 18 turned out to be a big news day for the Los Angeles Kings, who named former Kings defenseman Rob Blake as their assistant general manager, replacing Ron Hextall, who has accepted the assistant general manager position with the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Kings also signed winger and captain Dustin Brown to an eight-year contract extension. A story on that, with comments from Kings President/General Manager Dean Lombardi, as well as from Brown, will be published later here on Frozen Royalty.

Blake played the majority of his National Hockey League career with the Kings, who selected him in the fourth round (70th overall) of the 1988 NHL Entry Draft, beginning his NHL career with the Kings in the 1990-91 season.

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