LA Kings: Jaret Anderson-Dolan ready for increased role

Will the 2020-2021 season finally be the year that Jaret Anderson-Dolan is a regular for the LA Kings?

One of the more interesting storylines to follow next year will be observing how players from the prospect pool fit in at the NHL level. For the Los Angeles Kings, they have a plethora of talent in the minors. Adding to that, they are likely to take Quinton Byfield with the second overall pick, although don’t be surprised if general manager Rob Blake likes Tim Stutzle as well.

A player that will be looking to break through and grab a permanent roster spot is Jaret Anderson-Dolan. The 20-year-old centerman was taken in the second round of the 2017 NHL Draft and spent last year with Ontario. Anderson-Dolan tallied eight goals with 20 assists for 28 points in 53 games for the Reign.

He had a cup of coffee with the LA Kings in mid-January, logging four games and just nine total over the last two seasons. Having signed his three-year entry-level contract in September 2017, the clock officially starting ticking this past season, with the nine-game limit reserved to 19-and-under players.

So, the Kings will need to see what they have in Anderson-Dolan, which could end up playing favorably for him, as there’s an opportunity to grab regular playing in the 2020-2021 season.

But while he’s a natural center, he may be forced to play left wing due to the abundance of centers the Kings have, especially with either Byfield or Stutzle coming through within the next few years as well.

Anderson-Dolan was a big-time goal scorer for the Spokane Chiefs of the WHL during the 2017-2018 campaign. In 70 games, he tallied 40 goals with 51 assists, contributing two goals and seven assists in the playoffs as well. The following year, he scored 20 goals with 23 assists in 32 games for Spokane, and he put on a show in the playoffs, finding the net five times along with eight assists.

With Nikolai Prokhorkin heading back to Russia after just one year with LA, there is an opening along the left side of the fourth line. And after producing the fourth-most points for Ontario this past year, the time is now for Anderson-Dolan.