The Kings’ development camp is drawing plenty of eyes toward the usual headliners, especially the prospects who arrived in Los Angeles after the NHL Draft last weekend. But there’s another pair in the room who have a real chance to turn heads: Hank Cleaves and Hayden Stavroff.
Both are Dartmouth teammates. Both skate on the same line for the Big Green. And both showed enough this week to make sure they won’t be overlooked for long.
Cleaves is the 6-foot-5 center who drew interest from around 20 NHL teams, while Stavroff comes in as college hockey’s top goal scorer and the reigning ECAC Player of the Year. Their connection runs deeper than the ice, too. Cleaves said, “And Stav is also my roommate back at school,” which only adds to how naturally the two have fit together in camp.
For Cleaves, the path to Kings camp started with a growing relationship that developed over the season.
“I think from the start of the year, I started building a good relationship with the Kings, especially Teddy Belisle,” Cleaves explained. “Then they’d come to the games, and then Ken Holland came to the game and I got to meet him, so we started building a good relationship, as well. I thought it’d be a really good spot to come check out.”
Stavroff’s presence isn’t some side benefit for Cleaves. The production is very real, and the impression has been immediate.
“I noticed him right away in the morning,” said development coach Jarret Stoll. “He’s very, very into it.
He wants to learn, get involved. You can tell he’s a character.
I love working with him, I love being around him. And then during the game, he gets chances.
He works. He has a great shot.
Him and Cleaves, they go good together. You can see why they play together so well and had a good season.
He’s not the biggest guy, but hey, he plays big. Gets in there; he’s not afraid to get involved.”
Stavroff’s size - listed at 5-foot-11 - hasn’t slowed down the buzz around him. Dartmouth coach Reid Cashman has been even more direct about what makes him different.
“I haven’t seen anybody else in college hockey have the puck come off their stick the way it does for Hayden.”
And after the season, Cashman doubled down:
“He is the best college goal scorer I have ever seen. On top of his goal scoring, Hayden competes at a high level and plays a selfless form of hockey.”
That kind of chemistry showed up again in Monday’s scrimmage, where Stavroff stood out as one of the more noticeable forwards on the ice. He was involved all over the rink, contributing in all three zones and making plays at both ends.
The Dartmouth connection doesn’t stop with the players. Jason Tapp, the program’s associate head coach, is also at camp this week as a guest instructor. He’s one of three guest coaches fully involved in the daily practices, scrimmages, and off-ice work, and he brings another familiar voice for the two prospects in an otherwise unfamiliar setting.
“Having Tapp here too is awesome,” Cleaves told Mayor’s Manor. “He’s great, he helps us so much throughout the year with the team. So, it’s awesome seeing familiar faces here - it makes you more comfortable.”
The pair arrived after a Dartmouth season that ended with a historic run to an ECAC Championship, and Cleaves said the group handled the outside noise well.
“Coach Cashman did a really good job with that, keeping the noise outside of our room and keeping us focused just on what we need to do every day to win each game,” Cleaves said with a firm confidence, not just some typical words a player may have been pre-programmed to say. “I thought he consistently sent a really good message there to our team, blocking out the noise.”
As for what comes next, Cleaves isn’t rushing the conversation about a possible future role in Los Angeles, even with a clear opening in the Kings lineup.
“I think I take it day by day,” Cleaves commented, with a coy smile. “Obviously, that’d be pretty cool, but I’m just looking forward to getting better every single day.
I’m heading back to school and we’re making another run. Then, I’ll figure it out from there.”
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