Los Angeles Kings Notebook: Doughty, Kempe and Kuzmenko – Hockey Writer – Los Angeles Kings
It’s been a confusing start to the 2025-26 season for the Los Angeles Kings, and so far, you could classify it as almost the opposite start to last season. After struggling in the first few games, they found a way to take the lead in four straight games, taking their away game to a whole new level. There are mixed feelings about how the Kings’ season is progressing, with 19 games played and a degree of uncertainty surrounding the team’s performance after 82 games, but there’s no doubt they’re trending in the right direction.
The good, the bad, and the uncertainty continue as we enter the latest edition of The Los Angeles King’s Notebook.
Kings lock up Kempe with massive extension
Yesterday afternoon, Sportsnet’s NHL insider Elliott Friedman reported that the Kings and Adrian Kempe have agreed to a contract extension. Weeks later, there has been no progress or even discussion as both sides have agreed to suspend any further discussions regarding Kempe’s future in Los Angeles.
This morning, the Kings officially announced that their superstar winger is staying with the team long-term. Kempe and the Kings agreed to an eight-year contract extension with an average annual salary of $10.65 million.
This trade has been a long time coming and has been a major talking point surrounding the Kings since the summer. For a long time, it felt like this would be done before the season started, but with the salary cap rising and the market changing after the awkward trades of Kirill Kaprizov and Connor McDavid once again distorted the market, it makes sense why both sides would take their time.
The question is more about what the deal would look like than whether Kempe would actually re-sign with the Kings, which would be a win for both parties given his value to the team and the salary cap now and going forward.
“I’m happy, I feel good […] Once you get the call that everything is okay, you’ll be super excited. “I’m happy and proud of myself and thanks to my teammates, the fans and everyone here, I’m excited to spend another eight seasons here,” Kempe said. “This is my home and where I want to be.”
There are rumors that the Kings won’t be able to keep Kempe if they offer him less than $11 million in average annual value, and with the current market conditions, there’s no doubt he could get a $11-12 million contract if he hits the open market.
Here’s a breakdown of the eight-year extension.
Kempe Contract:
26-27: $1 million salary, $11 million signing bonus
27-28: $1 million salary, $11 million SB
28-29: $1M salary, $11 SB
29-30: $2.5M salary, $9.5M SB
30-31: Salary $9.75 million
31-32: Salary $9.75 million
32-33: Salary $8.75 million
Ages 33-34: Salary $8.75 million
Total SB: $42.5 million
Total salary: $42.5 million
AAV: $10.625 million— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) November 17, 2025
Kempe, drafted by the Kings with the 29th overall pick in 2014, is a homegrown talent who is currently in his 10th season as a member of the Kings and has achieved many milestones during his time in Los Angeles. He has over 400 points and 200 goals in 649 games and continues his stellar performance this season, averaging a team-leading 19 points per game.
Doughty can’t escape hurting error
Drew Doughty has had terrible luck with injuries the past two seasons. The 35-year-old defender suffered another setback Saturday in Ottawa.
Doughty was injured in the second period against the Senators when his left foot was hit by a shot from Senators defenseman Tyler Craven. He didn’t come back.
Earlier today, Kings insider Zach Dooley confirmed that Doughty will miss each week with a lower-body injury that is not related to the serious ankle injury he suffered in last year’s preseason. The good news is there.
The Kings will be in a familiar situation from last season; the only difference is that the two guys they once could rely on are no longer there. It will be interesting to see how the Kings’ new D-core handles the loss of their old teammates.
“We’ve been through this before […] Others will have to step up and other players may be shouldering more playing time. “The best part is he’s practicing every week, not every month. We can see the light at the end of the tunnel,” head coach Jim Shearer said.
With Jacob Moverare becoming the next starter, questions are beginning to arise about how the Kings will set up their defense over the next two weeks. As of now, Shearer has opted to promote Brian Dumoulin to Mitch Anderson’s right side, with Cody Cece and Mo Villare set to form a pair. Brandt Clark and Joel Edmundson have been the Kings’ best defensive tandem to date, giving them a level of familiarity and stability that Shearer may be able to rely on and increase their minutes. Things could change depending on how this new formation performs against the Washington Capitals.
Movillare, who has played in just one game so far this season, is no stranger to filling in when players go down, and the Kings are relieved that he’s the next man up.
“Whenever he’s out, he always comes back in good shape, he’s a good guy, he’s fun, guys love being around him, and then when you put him on the ice, he gets the job done,” Shearer said. “It’s a perfect fit […] He is there when called upon. “
Kuzmenko’s deja vu
The trend keeps repeating itself with Andrei Kuzmenko, who has now met the same fate in Vancouver, Calgary and Los Angeles.
Over the past few weeks, Kuzmenco has slowly dropped through the lineup along with his ice time, eventually reaching healthy status. He was removed from the first power-play lineup, put back into the lineup a few games later, a sort of final “prove yourself” scenario, and then removed from the lineup entirely. The 29-year-old was averaging around 15-16 minutes of ice time per night before he was scratched, which quickly dropped to around 7 minutes in two consecutive games.
When Kuzmenko was listed as scratched for the second straight game, most thought it was just a one-time thing done to give Kuzmenko a chance to start over, but it turned out to be something more. The Kings are playing their best hockey of the season right now, which might make Hiller hesitant about changing things up.
“Cuzzi was a very important addition to our team last year, he gave us a lot of 5-on-5 and power play opportunities, and this year may not have been as good as he or we expected,” Shearer said. “It’s not that he didn’t work hard enough, or that he didn’t play well. […] We have a lot of veterans now, so it’s a tough choice. He’ll be back, I can’t tell you exactly when, I hope he’ll be a big part of our team by the end of the game. “
Kuzmenco performed very well when he was acquired by the Kings at the trade deadline last season, but the start of this season has not gone the way the Kings envisioned. Regardless of what the Kings envisioned for the Russian winger when they signed him to a one-year extension, it would be wrong to say it’s unlikely to happen.
Kuzmenco had a fantastic rookie season with the Canucks, scoring 39 goals and over 70 points. The following season, his production declined and he essentially became such a liability to former Canucks coach Rick Tocchet that he was banished to the press box and eventually traded to the Calgary Flames. Kuzmenco also got off to a pretty good start in Calgary, finishing the 2023-24 season with 25 points in 29 games.
The next year, Kuzmenco once again excluded himself from the starting lineup and was eventually traded to the Philadelphia Flyers. The sample size for Flyers Kuzy isn’t quite there yet, as he only played in seven games before joining the Kings. The same story has been repeating itself since the start of Kuzmenco’s NHL career, a trend that played a large role in the Kings’ decision to only bring him back for one year.
Kuzmenco’s time in Los Angeles isn’t over yet, and as Shearer mentioned, he will be back in the lineup. He’s still very effective in some areas; the problem is, he’s ineffective in more. If he doesn’t create or push the power play to new heights, then he won’t be impactful enough to keep him in the lineup. In the 17 games Kuzmenco played, most of them played alongside Kempe, but he only scored 3 goals and 7 points.
For a player considered the team’s biggest offensive contributor, Kuzmenco has had a rather disappointing start to the 2025-26 season.
The Kings are forging ahead and now look to get their fifth straight win and seventh straight road win tonight against the Capitals in Washington.
