The Los Angeles Kings are heading into training camp with a goalie situation that looks a lot less settled than it has in recent years, and that alone makes this fall worth watching.
New head coach Peter Laviolette will have a real call to make when camp and the preseason open: who gets the crease to start the 2026-27 season? For a while, that answer seemed obvious.
Last season, the Kings went into the fall with Darcy Kuemper as the unquestioned No. 1, fresh off a Vezina Trophy finalist run. But by the time spring arrived, Anton Forsberg had taken control of the job, and he started all four of Los Angeles’ first-round playoff games against the Colorado Avalanche.
Forsberg’s case is strong, and it got stronger as the year went on. He was the more productive and reliable option in the regular season, then carried that form into the postseason.
In April, he posted a 5-1-0 record with a .943 save percentage, a 1.48 goals-against average and one shutout. That kind of stretch is exactly what a team wants from a goalie trying to seize the net.
Still, the Kings don’t have to hand him anything just yet.
Kuemper remains a legitimate challenger, even after a rough season by his standards. He was a Vezina Trophy finalist just a couple of years ago, when he put up a .917 save percentage. This past regular season, though, injuries and inconsistency dragged him down to an .891 save percentage and a 2.78 goals-against average.
That leaves Los Angeles with a decision that could go a few different ways. The Kings could let Forsberg and Kuemper battle it out on equal footing in camp, or they could even lean into a more traditional 1A/1B setup. Both goalies have just one year left on their contracts, which only adds another layer to the competition.
Forsberg has clearly earned the chance to win the job. The question now is whether he can hold onto it once camp begins.
In Other News...
Kings Win-Now Trades Suddenly Look Different After Recent Redrafts
When the Kings pushed in their chips on Kevin Fiala, Vladislav Gavrikov and Joonas Korpisalo, the logic was clear enough at the time: spend draft capital now to help a roster trying to win now. Fiala has delivered the kind of offense Los Angeles was after, Gavrikov settled in as a steady top-four defenseman, and Korpisalo filled the short-term playoff-goalie role the Kings needed when the pressure rose.
Recent redrafts from The Athletic have made those deals look a little different in hindsight, because the picks Los Angeles sent out were used on Liam Ohgren and Oliver Bonk, two prospects whose standing has since been reexamined. Ohgren slid in the 2022 redo, and Bonks stock took an even bigger hit in the 2023 three-year redraft, which is the sort of development that always sharpens the debate around a contenders trade-off between immediate help and the long view. [Read more 🡒]
Reign Add Three More Depth Pieces To Strengthen Kings Pipeline
The Ontario Reign kept building out their organizational depth this week, signing forward Ryan O'Hara and goaltenders Mattias Sholl and Owen Flores to one-year AHL contracts. For a Kings pipeline that always needs reliable support at the minor-league level, the additions bring a mix of scoring touch, goaltending insurance and familiarity with the kind of grind that defines the AHL and ECHL.
O'Hara arrives after a productive season with Greenville and a strong NCAA run at Bowling Green, giving Ontario another forward who has shown he can contribute in different settings. Flores and Sholl add to the crease picture, with Flores bringing encouraging limited AHL experience and Sholl returning to the Reign after splitting time between Ontario and Greenville last season, a reminder that the organization is still sorting out the pieces behind its top prospects. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Pipeline May Finally Be Improving In One Crucial Area
The Kings prospect picture has started to look a little healthier in goal, where Hampton Slukynsky and Carter George give the organization something it has not always had in the pipeline: legitimate long-term depth at a premium position. Add in Yegor Rybkin, the third-round summer pick who is already viewed as one of the better international netminders in the 2026 draft class, and there is at least a sense that one part of the future is taking shape.
Center, though, is still the area that keeps the whole discussion from feeling settled. The Kings know that position is the real stress point in the system, and it is the one they will likely have to attack through future drafts or trades if they want to avoid a thin middle down the road. For a franchise built around structure and matchup play, that kind of gap is hard to ignore, especially with the next wave of answers not yet fully in place. [Read more 🡒]