Predicting the 2025-26 statistics leader in Los Angeles Kings – Hockey Writer – Los Angeles Kings

We’re only a few days away from opening night, which will put the Los Angeles Kings on the home opener of Crypto.com Arena. The Kings have two preseason left, which means deciding who will be the roster. Having said that, it’s time to talk about who can lead teams in different statistics categories.

Last year was my first time making these predictions and they weren’t going as far as I wanted. Drew Doughty was injured for most of the season, and Trevor Moore’s tough/unfortunate offensive season screwed up some of it. I ended up with a 4/10 and gave Anze Kopitar the lead in assists (I was perfect with 46 points), Kevin Fiala scored the most goals, and Tanner Jeannot led in shooting percentage and free throw minutes. The goal of this season’s statistics forecast is simple: do better than last year.

Who can lead?

Adrian Kempe has led the Kings over the past two seasons and I can’t see any changes this season. He is easily regarded as their best striker, he is the core and soul of the offense because of their offense output that won’t win games. He scored 73 points last season, 2 points less than his previous season (career highest). It is important to note that he will enter a contract year, which almost always has a significant impact on the output and the overall impact on the players. He is a driver and he hasn’t slowed down during his season for a raise. He expects him to be a big season and he is the clear choice when predicting who can end with the most points.

If for whatever reason, it wasn’t Kempe that ended up with the most points, I would be very shocked if it weren’t part of Fiala, Kopitar or Quinton Byfield. The Kings have multiple highly skilled strikers who can come up with points, and any of these players can increase by more than 65.

Who can lead the goals?

Scoring goals wasn’t the Kings’ expertise for a long time, but it did take a step last season, with two players scoring more than 30 goals for the first time since the 2007-08 season. Yes, it’s been a long time since the Kings have more than one player who can score more than 30 goals in a season.

In fact, Kempe will be one of the favorites of leading the Kings this season (especially in contract year) as he did in 2022-23. Moore may also have a rebound season and find his goal-scoring touchpoint again like the 2023-24 season, with 31 goals. But I’m going to be with Fiala, who scored 35 goals last season and tied for first place with Kempe. Fiala is most likely to sit on one side with the more comfortable and confident Byfield who should take the next step this season with the perfect opportunity to fill the network. Last season, they were great together, especially in the second half, and now they not only built some chemistry together, but Byfield has time to adjust in the midfield, and I would be surprised if the duo didn’t light it up this season.

Fiala also has the trick to find the net in a powerful game. Last season, he scored goals with the strength of leading the Kings in 26 seasons and I hope he will lead again. It’s almost like the King’s power match was to hit Fiala near that right circle, because he rarely missed the target when they performed by. Many of his goals were scored from that field of ice in power games, and now, throughout Andrei Kuzmenko’s season, the Kings’ power games will become more active, and this is undoubtedly his goal-scoring ability.

Who can assist?

For me, there are only two clear choices to lead the Kings assists, and that’s two centers, the top two goals scored on this team Kopitar and Byfield.

This season, I’m going with Byfield because I really believe this is his preparation to be the Kings’ No. 1 center after the season, so he’s become more influential, consistent and dangerous. Byfield can create and score, but he has more assists than goals. His gameplay and creativity should take a step forward this season, and a terminator like Fiala will show these attributes on the statistics table.

While I think Byfield has the best Apple, you can bet Kopitar hopes to explode in his last season, and his points production will be driven by playing with Kempe and Kuzmenko.

Who can be led by the defensive player?

The Kings are bright at offensive guards, and in fact, the only players who have the chance to earn points in defensive players are Drew Doughty and Brandt Clarke. Since the 2012-13 season, Doughty has led all the Kings defenders in one season, except last season. He scored 50 points in the 2023-24 season, but as he was eliminated for most of last season, Clark stepped up and ended up with a feat, leading the Kings’ defender by 33 points.

Related: Raz’s 2025-26 ranking forecast: Pacific sector

At this stage, it’s really a toss, as it’s all up to who has what character and how much Ice Time Clark will get. When he plays freely on the ice, he is a dangerous player who can create offenses from the back end from the thin air. Will Clark seize this opportunity? Will he see any powerful playback time? These are all questions that determine whether Clark has the best chance to create the way most people know.

Clark will be reportedly given a bigger role, more opportunities to participate and do what he does best. If this is the case in the end, then I can’t tell he won’t end up getting the most points. If he plays a role in a power play, it will be his time to shine. But if it isn’t for this or the change of seasons, Doughty, who has the ability to make an impact in a completely healthy situation, will be there to bring the cake.

King’s Statistical Leader’s Prediction

With all of this in mind and really thinking about who can take the next step, who will play a bigger role, or may be backing off, this is my prediction that players will lead the Kings in different Kings statistics in the 2025-26 season.

• Points – Adrian Kempe (81)
• Target – Kevin Fiala (38)
• Assistance – Quinton Byfield (43)
• Powerful Target – Kevin Fiala (26)
• Shooting – Kevin Fiala (252)
• Defensive Point – Brandt Clark (40)
• Popular Songs – Alex Laferriere (118)
• Shooting – Cody Sesie (144)
• Free throw minutes – Corey Perry (54)
• Plus/minus-Phillip Danault (Plus-22)

Kempe, Kopitar, Fiala and Byfield can control the offense, but beyond that, there are other players I lead in other ways. Alex Laferriere made 124 hits last season and wasn’t afraid to lie down while training hard around the corner. Last season, only Samuel Helenius and Jeannot hit harder than Laferriere, both of which may not be on the roster (Jeannot is Boston Bruin, and Helenius is a few attractions on the depth map).

Anderson got the second biggest obstacle after Vladislav Gavrikov, who was no longer a member of the king, behind Vladislav Gavrikov, but if one thing Ceci is amazing, start shooting the road. He had 155 blocks last season, which is his favorite favorite of the season. Who else would lead the Kings in free throw time besides Perry? Even if the season starts with injuries, you can bet on Perry’s annoyingness, and once he returns, the “under your skin” type of game under his skin will leave him in the box more than a few times.

The Kings have a lot of everything and there are enough players to lead different categories of leaders, and I think the final statistics are not only interesting, but also different from what I expected.