Evening Notes: Frondell, Perfetti, Dorofeyev
The Chicago Blackhawks aren’t concerned about the long-term effects of a scary-looking injury to top prospect Anton Frondell. The top Swedish winger got his hand caught in a bench door during Team Sweden’s Friday matchup against Team Italy at the IIHF Men’s World Championship. He missed Sweden’s Saturday matchup with a subsequent injury that is not believed to be serious, per Scott Powers of The Athletic.
Frondell has kept his hot season rolling at the World Championship with two points in as many games. He has performed at a top level in competition across the world this season – netting 28 points in 43 SHL games, nine points in his first 12 NHL games, and eight points in seven games at the 2026 World Junior Championship. No decision has been made on Frondell’s availability for the remainder of the summer tournament, which could leave a major hole in Sweden’s roster.
Other notes from around the hockey world:
- The Winnipeg Jets face an interesting task in re-signing middle-six winger Cole Perfetti this summer. The former 10th-overall pick scored 18 goals and 50 points in the 2024-25 season but fell back to 12 goals and 32 points in 68 games this season. That places him in an interesting spot next to many of his peers from the 2020 and 2021 NHL Draft class, as pointed out by Murat Ates of The Athletic. While Perfetti’s struggles to frequently pop up on the scoresheet could keep him from matching the long-term contracts of players like Matthew Coronato, Matthew Knies, and Alexis Lafreniere – he could find a starting point in negotiations in the six-year, $7.5MM recently signed by Winnipeg’s Gabriel Vilardi. While that deal serves as a ceiling, Ates points out that Winnipeg’s bidding could begin in the realm of $5.5MM. Splitting the gap between the two numbers, and leaning on the term garnered by peers, would put Perfetti’s next deal in the realm of four-to-six years and $6MM-to-$6.5MM in cap hit. That cap hit would dedicate roughly half of Winnipeg’s projected $13.628MM in cap space this summer to their top restricted free-agent – which should leave just enough room to also re-sign Jonathan Toews, Isak Rosen, and Eric Comrie.
- Another RFA to watch this summer will be Vegas Golden Knights winger Pavel Dorofeyev, who has exploded onto the scene this season with 37 goals and 64 points in the regular season and 10 goals and 14 points in 14 playoff games. That sudden boom – and Dorofeyev’s seamless fill-in for captain Mark Stone over Vegas’ last five games – could quickly be proving Dorofeyev’s ability as a true, top-six scorer. Teams around the league will pay attention to that as Dorofeyev heads towards restricted-free agency per Shayna Goldman of The Athletic. Vegas is only projected to wield $11MM in cap space this summer, per PuckPedia, with Reilly Smith, Brandon Saad, and Rasmus Andersson all set to hit the open market. The 25-year-old Dorofyev would certainly be top priority among that list but could command the majority of their savings after a breakout year. If Vegas gets cold feet, the young sniper could be a great option for teams looking to add an immediate impact. Goldman projects both Dorofeyev and Andersson could command as much as $9MM in cap hit, which would pull Vegas nearly $7MM over budget with multiple lineup holes still to fill. After the St. Louis Blues’ success with their offer sheet of winger Dylan Holloway, could a team see similar potential in the cap-strapped Golden Knights’ handling of Dorofeyev?
These Mid-Season Contract Extensions Have Not Aged Well
This year has been unique for in-season contract extensions, as a rising salary cap put pressure on teams to lock up their pending free agents before they could even sniff the open market. What once looked like a promising free-agent class in the summer of 2026 quickly turned into a very thin market void of big names and impact players. Some of those extensions were signed with players who had thrived in previous years and/or started the season well, but faltered after signing their big new contract, leaving teams in a tough spot heading into the summer. Here are five contracts that the signing teams would presumably like to have back.
The first player on our list could very well turn things around next season, and that is Dallas Stars defenseman Thomas Harley. The 24-year-old inked an eight-year, $84.7MM contract extension at the end of October ($10.587MM AAV), and it made perfect sense at the time, as Harley was the 15th-highest-scoring defenseman in the NHL over the previous three seasons, with 105 points in 166 games, and played a solid defensive game as well. However, he struggled this past season, posting his lowest offensive numbers in three years and struggling to drive play. Harley lacked a solid partner for much of the year, but given his new salary cap hit, the hope would be that he could overcome that obstacle, especially considering Dallas doesn’t have the cap space to really look at upgrades on their back end. Harley has plenty of time to turn things around, and he likely will, but Stars management has to be a little nervous about the deal they inked and the long-term ramifications if Harley can’t get his game back next season.
Sticking with Western Conference defensemen, Jake Walman of the Edmonton Oilers was a colossal disaster after signing his seven-year, $49MM extension with the team. The 30-year-old had been terrific after a trade from the San Jose Sharks, but after signing his extension in October, Walman began to struggle and never returned to his form for most of the season. Walman’s signing was made because Oilers management believed he was a good fit for the team’s style, with his solid first pass and heavy shot. But many of the warts in Walman’s game became evident as the season went on. He isn’t physical, he turns the puck over too much, and he doesn’t play a full season. These issues aren’t exactly unique, but for a player being signed to a $7MM AAV, you’d hope he would give you more than 21 points a season, something Walman has done just once in his NHL career. A big issue for the Oilers and Walman is that his contract will take him from his age 30-37 seasons, and at this point he is a finished product. It’s clear Edmonton overpaid to retain his services.
Moving up front, the Winnipeg Jets were quick to re-sign their captain Adam Lowry to a five-year, $25MM contract extension in late November. The deal looked fine at the time, though there were concerns about his age, as he was 32 at the time of signing, and five years is a long time for a player who plays the way he does. Lowry remains a solid shutdown center who can skate, outwork his opponents, and tilt the ice in the Jets’ favor. But given his age and style of play, it’s fair to wonder how much longer he can serve as a Jets top-nine center before his body breaks down and he is relegated to fourth-line duties. It’s a tough spot for Winnipeg because Lowry is a heart-and-soul player, but five years for him is a long time, and it’s a contract the Jets would probably like to renegotiate. Given the history with Lowry, the Jets would no doubt love to keep him in the fold, but at a lower cap rate.
Another late-October extension (two years, $12MM) was New Jersey Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom, who had a decent first season with the Devils but was awful in his second year. The timing of this one was particularly peculiar, as Markstrom was off to a very slow start in October 2025, posting a 5.13 GAA and a .830 SV% in just four appearances. He was also coming off a lower-body injury and was 35 years old at the time, making the timing of the signing even stranger. Obviously, the Devils were concerned he might go on a heater and raise the price tag, but that never happened as Markstrom struggled through much of the year, finishing with a 3.07 GAA and a .883 SV%. Those numbers are clearly concerning, but the silver lining is that Markstrom has a history of struggling through a season and bouncing back the following year to get into Vezina Trophy contention, so a bounce-back season in 2026-27 can’t be discounted. However, for now the Devils must be looking at Markstrom’s $6MM AAV and wondering how much lower the number could have been or whether they should have gone in a different direction.
Finally, we have Detroit Red Wings defenseman Ben Chiarot, who inked a three-year extension this past January worth $3.85MM per season. The 35-year-old has his strengths, as he is reasonably good at skating and can move the puck. He’s also incredibly physical, playing on the edge much of the time and displaying a high level of orneriness in the defensive zone. But that is where his strengths wear off, and his weaknesses are becoming more glaring as he ages. Chiarot has been a drain on whoever he is paired with, particularly on the possession front, and he has posted the worst Wins Above Replacement score for two consecutive regular seasons (as per hockeystats.com). Chiarot can still be an effective defenseman in the NHL, but not in the top four, and that’s where Detroit may need to deploy him once again next season.
None of these contracts are going to be especially crippling to a team, but they do show how quickly the shine can wear off a high-priced extension and how much pressure teams are under to extend their players, thanks to a rising salary cap and many teams’ possession of additional cap space, chasing a few available players.
Paul Boutilier Passes Away At Age 63
In an unfortunate announcement from the NHL’s Alumni Association, the group shared that former defenseman Paul Boutilier has passed away at the age of 63. He played for the New York Islanders, Boston Bruins, Minnesota North Stars, New York Rangers, and Winnipeg Jets throughout his NHL career.
The roots of that career sprouted in the 1980-81 season when Boutilier scored 10 goals and 39 points in 72 games for the QMJHL’s Sherbrooke Castors. In the postseason, he registered three goals and 10 points in 14 games, setting him up as one of the top-30 talents heading into the 1981 NHL Draft. He was ultimately selected with the 21st overall pick by the Islanders, one spot ahead of current Jets’ head coach, Scott Arniel.
Despite debuting in the NHL in the 1981-82 campaign, Boutilier wouldn’t become a full-time player in New York until the 1982-83 season. He didn’t factor in as much as he may have liked, but he was a part of the last Islanders team to win the Stanley Cup in 1983, having his name engraved on the illustrious silver.
Over the next three years, Boutilier enjoyed the most productive years of his career. From the beginning of the 1983-84 season to the end of the 1985-86 campaign, Boutilier registered 16 goals and 80 points in 183 games for the Islanders with a +14 rating. During the 1984-85 season, he was the third-highest scoring defenseman on the team behind Denis Potvin and Tomas Jonsson.
Unfortunately, inconsistency became a recurring theme throughout Boutilier’s career. He played for four different organizations over the last three years of his career, scoring seven goals and 21 points in 75 games with a -4 rating split between the Bruins, North Stars, Rangers, and Jets.
After a two-year career with NLA’s SC Bern, Boutilier retired after the 1990-91 season. He worked for several years as an assistant coach at St. Mary’s University and Dalhousie University in Canada, and he also had a one-year stint as a development coach with the Nashville Predators. The last stop of his coaching career was working as a defensive coach and assistant coach for the QMJHL’s Montcon Wildcats and Québec Remparts this past season, respectively.
All in all, Boutilier finished his NHL career with 27 goals and 110 points in 288 games with a +1 rating and a Stanley Cup ring from 1983. We at PHR offer our condolences to those impacted by Boutilier’s loss.
Engel Changes College Commitment
- Jets prospect Edison Engle has changed his college commitment. According to Illegal Curve’s David Minuk and confirmed by Brad Elliott Schlossmann of the Grand Forks Herald, the 19-year-old will now play for Western Michigan next season instead of Ohio State as originally planned. Engle was a sixth-round pick by Winnipeg last summer, going 188th overall. He played for OHL Brantford this season and in his first year at that level, he put up 28 points in 61 games during the regular season before adding five more in 15 playoff contests.
Offseason Checklist: Winnipeg Jets
The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus those eliminated in the first round. Accordingly, it’s now time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at Winnipeg.
After a 2024-25 season that saw the Jets finish first overall in the regular season and make it to the second round of the playoffs, expectations were high heading into this year. Yes, Nikolaj Ehlers was gone but the core group was expected to be good enough to keep them in a safe playoff spot. However, that certainly didn’t happen as they put up their lowest 82-game point total since 2015-16. Now, Kevin Cheveldayoff has several pieces to try to add to his group over the coming months if he wants to get Winnipeg back into a playoff spot. Unsurprisingly, that covers the bulk of their checklist.
Add A New Backup Goalie
With Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg’s starting goalie is in place for the long haul as the veteran is signed through the 2030-31 season. While Hellebuyck has called for some changes to the roster, one of those arguably should come at his position.
Eric Comrie has had three separate stints in Winnipeg’s organization over the years and has put up solid numbers overall, ones that are better than his career averages. But his usage has always been rather limited. When Hellebuyck was sidelined for 11 games with a knee injury earlier this season, Comrie got the opportunity to run with the number one job and the team promptly slumped, eventually falling into a hole they weren’t able to overcome.
Winnipeg’s cap situation in recent years necessitated a low-cost signing which made bringing back (or keeping) Comrie a logical decision. But they have plenty of flexibility this summer, with more than $20MM in projected cap room, per PuckPedia. That means instead of looking for a goalie near the league minimum salary, they can set their sights a little higher and even shop toward the upper tier of the backup market in the $4MM range.
While that would give them a very expensive tandem, that player should represent an upgrade on Comrie. Presumably, he’d be able to play a bit more than Comrie as well, keeping Hellebuyck a little fresher as he enters his age-33 season. Both of those situations could pay dividends down the stretch and be worth a few extra victories.
Re-Sign Perfetti
When the Jets opted to sign Cole Perfetti to a bridge deal two summers ago, it felt like a prudent move for both sides. Perfetti would get more time to prove that he’s worthy of the long-term deal he was seeking while Winnipeg got some shorter-term cap flexibility.
After the first season of the contract, it looked like Perfetti was in good shape. He was coming off a career-best 50 points and even repeating that would have put him in a good spot to at least double his current $3.25MM AAV. However, things didn’t go quite as well this season, as he notched just 12 goals and 20 assists in 68 games despite a small uptick in playing time to 15:37 per night. Ehlers’ absence clearly affected Winnipeg’s second line and Perfetti, in particular. Now, it’s not so clear what’s coming on his next contract.
The max-term (or close-to-max-term) deal that seemed likely last summer seems a lot less likely now as there are still questions as to his overall upside. Was the 50-point season an outlier or, with better linemates, does he have another level to get to?
Winnipeg has two years of team control left on the 24-year-old which takes another two-year bridge pact off the table as that would walk him to UFA eligibility in his prime. That leaves Cheveldayoff with two viable options: Sign Perfetti to a one-year deal and kick the decision down the road 12 months or try to work out a medium-term pact that buys a year or two of extra control. AFP Analytics projects that a one-year deal would cost around $4.26MM while a four-year agreement could run closer to $5.78MM per season.
How certain are the Jets when it comes to Perfetti’s ceiling and fit moving forward? They’ll have to make a call on that in the early part of the offseason as he’ll be arbitration-eligible for the first time this summer on top of his $3.5MM qualifying offer. Something will surely get done but it’s not as clear-cut of a call as it seemed a year ago.
Add A Top-Six Piece (Or Two)
The loss of Ehlers to Carolina clearly impacted the Jets more than they were expecting. They went from being one of the top-scoring teams in the NHL in 2024-25 (they tied for the lead in the West in that regard with Dallas, a pretty high-octane team) but saw their output drop by more than half a goal per game this season. Their top line was productive but Perfetti was ultimately fourth in scoring among forwards with output closer to the level of a third-liner.
Winnipeg has had a long-standing issue down the middle in terms of finding someone to play behind Mark Scheifele. The end result has been them moving high draft picks for short-term upgrades at that slot or taking a flyer on Jonathan Toews who proved to be overmatched in that role (though considerably more effective lower in the lineup). They briefly tried Perfetti there but abandoned that pretty quickly. At this point, it basically goes without saying that they need to fill the number two center spot. The problem is that few are available and the list of suitors is quite long.
At this point, the more realistic option might be to try to augment their winger situation. Yes, it would mean not solving the most important spot but they’re not in a position to be picky about how they upgrade their offense; it just needs to be upgraded. It’s not as if there’s a surplus of options available there either but generally speaking, there are more of those available in free agency than centers and they’re also typically easier to get in a trade. Adding one (or even two) of those to create a winger-driven second line could give them the secondary scoring they were clearly lacking this season.
Bring In A Top-Four Right-Shot Defender
When it comes to Winnipeg’s back end, there is a clearly defined top four – Josh Morrissey and Dylan Samberg on the left side with Neal Pionk and Dylan DeMelo on the right side. However, DeMelo has typically been at his best in a third-pairing role in his career while getting him to that spot would certainly help their overall defensive balance. Elias Salomonsson showed some promise this season but isn’t ready to jump into that spot on the depth chart just yet.
It’s not the deepest crop of free agents but there are a handful who could fit the bill, headlined by Rasmus Andersson, John Carlson, Darren Raddysh, and even former Jet Jacob Trouba. Landing one of those could even potentially make DeMelo expendable to try to flip him for some offensive help up front. This isn’t a must-get by any stretch but it would definitely get them a boost.
Failing that, adding a depth right-shot option would make sense. Colin Miller is a pending unrestricted free agent and probably won’t be back. Jacob Bryson (a lefty) is also set to hit the open market this summer. With Logan Stanley and Luke Schenn now in Buffalo and Ville Heinola on his way out the door, what was once a deep back end has been thinned out. Getting another righty in the mix (especially since their recall options for next season, as things stand, are primarily lefties) would be a prudent add. But a top-four pickup would be even better.
Photo courtesy of Terrence Lee-Imagn Images.
Rasmus Dahlin, Gabriel Landeskog, Jonathan Toews Named Masterton Trophy Finalists
The NHL has announced its three finalists for the Bill Masterton Trophy: Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, Colorado Avalanche forward Gabriel Landeskog, and Winnipeg Jets forward Jonathan Toews.
The Trophy is awarded annually by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association to the player who “best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to ice hockey.”
Dahlin captained the Sabres to a season fans in Buffalo won’t forget for a long time. The franchise had not made the postseason in 14 years, the longest playoff drought in the “Big 4” North American professional sports leagues.
Dahlin’s leadership, and stellar on-ice play, helped the Sabres become one of the league’s best teams over the course of 2025-26.
Dahlin was able to accomplish all of this despite immense off-ice challenges.
Last July, Dahlin’s fiancee, Carolina Matovac, underwent an emergency heart transplant while the pair were vacationing in France. She later revealed that the couple lost their unborn child as well. The Athletic’s Matthew Fairburn told Dahlin and Matovac’s story in an excellent piece last month. He noted that during the beginning of the season, Matovac’s recovery was weighing on Dahlin, and he “had trouble focusing” on the season.
Dahlin eventually stepped away from the team in November to be with his fiancee, a decision the entire Sabres organization emphatically supported. He told Fairburn:
The first part of the season was terrible. I could not think about anything else other than Carolina. Then Terry Pegula flew me home to Sweden to be able to see Carolina for a week, and it just gave me an unbelievable boost. Then I was able to go home during Christmas, and I’ve just been lucky to have the organization let me go home and do stuff I needed to do throughout this process. And things got better every day.
Dahlin did eventually return from his leave of absence, and when he did, he joined a Sabres team that was quickly becoming a juggernaut. He finished the season with 74 points in 77 games, and led Buffalo to victory over their first-round opponent, the Boston Bruins. His fiancee was even able to return to Buffalo and be welcomed back by an adoring home crowd.
Each nominee for the Masterton Trophy, every year it is awarded, is deserving in his own right. But the story of Dahlin’s 2025-26 season in particular embodies the core values of the award.
Moving on to Landeskog, this is actually the Avalanche captain’s second consecutive campaign as a finalist for the award. Landeskog missed three seasons as a result of knee injuries, coming directly after he led Colorado to a Stanley Cup championship in 2022.
Landeskog was productive for the Avalanche this season, scoring 35 points in 60 regular-season games, and five points in five playoff contests so far.
There are many athletes for whom missing three seasons would be an insurmountable, career-ending obstacle. There were those who, at times, speculated that might be the case for Landeskog. It did not. He is back in the NHL and his knee issues appear to be behind him, and the league is better for it.
The final nominee is Toews, the former Chicago Blackhawks star who captained the team to three Stanley Cup titles in the 2010’s. Toews’ story shares some similarities to Landeskog’s. He missed two full seasons as a result of a variety of health issues, including long Covid and Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS). Toews left the game unsure of whether he would be able to play again, and went to great lengths to pursue methods of recovery, including traveling to Asia for “a five-week Ayurvedic detox.”
Toews was able to return to the NHL, signing with his hometown Winnipeg Jets. He played in all 82 games of the Jets’ season, his first full, healthy NHL campaign since 2018-19. He scored 11 goals and 29 points while winning 62% of his faceoffs. Like Landeskog, he had no assurances he would be able to continue his storied NHL career, but he found a way to return to the game.
Photos courtesy of Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images
Jets’ Nikita Chibrikov, Elias Salomonsson Undergo Surgery
The AHL’s Manitoba Moose will face big lineup impacts as they move on to the Calder Cup Playoffs’ second round. Top Winnipeg Jets prospects Nikita Chibrikov and Elias Salomonsson will both be out for the remaining playoffs after undergoing surgery. Chibrikov is out six-to-eight weeks after a core muscle surgery per Murat Ates of The Athletic. Salomonsson will be on the mend much longer, set to rehab for five-to-six months after shoulder surgery per Ates.
Rehabbing through the summer could cut down Salomonsson’s chances at breaking camp with the Jets next summer. The 21 year old had an encouraging start to his NHL career in the second-half of this season. He scored five points and a minus-six in the first 32 games of his NHL career, to go with nine points in 29 AHL games. He was a wall on the blue-lines for much of the year, bringing confident defense into his first year of pro hockey in North America. With little depth on the Jets blue-line after the trade of Logan Stanley, Salomonsson seemed to have a chance at securing a third-pair role early into the 2026-27 season. Now, those chances could hinge on how he recovers from shoulder surgery.
Chibrikov’s summer training shouldn’t be knocked too far off course by his surgery. The 23 year old filled a third-line role with the Moose for much of the season. He finished the year with 16 points and a minus-19 in 53 AHL games and no scoring in 11 NHL games. Chibrikov has just four points in 16 career NHL games, a quiet mark for the former 50th-overall draft pick. Chibrikov had a strong rookie season in the AHL, netting 47 points in 70 games – a mark he hasn’t been able to match in 83 games over the last two seasons combined. The 2026-27 season will be focused on getting back to that first-year performance. If he can, Chibrikov could earn another chance to prove his productivity at the top flight.
Manitoba will look to find a spark from late-season addition Alfons Freij on defense, and Brayden Yager or Colby Barlow on offense, to help supplant their pair of missing prospects. The Moose will kick off a series against the Grand Rapids Griffins on Saturday.
Jets Assign Prospect Kevin He To AHL
The Winnipeg Jets assigned prospect forward Kevin He to their AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose today.
Manitoba is currently down 1-0 to the Milwaukee Admirals in a best-of-three first-round playoff series. He’s OHL season ended April 16 when his Flint Firebirds were swept by the Windsor Spitfires in the second round of the playoffs. This reassignment gives He the chance to potentially make his professional debut in a do-or-die playoff contest for the Moose.
He, who turns 20 in one week, concluded a second consecutive OHL campaign scoring above the point-per-game mark. He totaled 36 goals and 75 points in 62 games for the Niagara IceDogs in 2024-25, and managed 39 goals and 77 points in 60 games between Niagara and Flint this season. He had served as the IceDogs captain since the start of last season, until his trade to Flint.
While He’s current stint with the Moose may very well not last through the weekend, the bigger test for his future will start next fall. He is set to begin his professional career then, most likely with Manitoba.
The Moose struggled to score for much of this past season, finishing third-to-last in the AHL in total goals scored with 185, the fewest among playoff teams by a wide margin. They ranked No. 31 in the AHL in scoring the year prior, and No. 25 in 2023-24. He, along with other Jets forward prospects, will be tasked with helping to reverse that trend next season.
Victor Klingsell Signs SHL Extension, Loaned To Allsvenskan
- Winnipeg Jets prospect Viktor Klingsell signed a two-year rookie contract with the SHL’s Skelleftea AIK, according to a team announcement. In addition, the team announced that Klingsell will spend next season on loan in Sweden’s second division, HockeyAllsvenskan, with Kalmar HC. The 19-year-old was selected in the fifth round by the Jets at the 2025 draft and proved himself ready for pro hockey in 2025-26. He scored 17 goals and 43 points in 25 games at the U20 Nationell level, and seven points in eight games on loan with Östersunds IK in HockeyAllsvenskan. That’s the level he’ll get to start the year at in the fall.
Trevor Lewis Announces Retirement
Two-time Stanley Cup champion Trevor Lewis has announced the end of his playing career. Lewis played 17 seasons and 1,034 games in the NHL between 2008 and 2025, including 14 seasons with the Los Angeles Kings. He filled an important, depth role in the Kings’ race to the 2012 and 2014 Stanley Cups. Lewis also holds the honor of most NHL games played by a Utah-born player.
Lewis’ hockey career began with the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers in the 2004-05 season. He quickly stood out as a grinder for the Buccaneers. After a quiet rookie season, he exploded in his draft season of 2005-06. Lewis finished the year with 35 goals and 75 points in 56 games. His ability to bring tempo to his shifts helped Des Moines blaze their way to the 2006 USHL Clark Cup Championship. It also earned Lewis a string of individual awards, including the USHL’s MVP and ‘Gentleman of the Year’ awards, as well as the USA Hockey Player of the Year award.
Even with those accolades, Lewis was ranked as a third-round talent by The Hockey News headed into the 2006 NHL Draft. That low rank didn’t stop the Kings from going out on a limb for Lewis in the first-round. Los Angeles traded away forward Pavol Demitra, fresh off a 62-point first season with the team, to acquire depth winger Patrick O’Sullivan and the 17th overall pick, used to select Lewis.
Lewis was originally committed to the University of Michigan following his draft but decided to sign an entry-level contract with Los Angeles instead. That left him ineligible for college – and prompted to sign with the OHL’s Owen Sound Attack. By location, the Utah-born Lewis was eligible for the WHL, not the OHL – but the CHL Board of Governors decided to allow Lewis to move to the Ontario league. He went on to nearly match his scoring from the prior year, with 73 points in 62 games.
Lewis moved to the AHL at the end of the season and scored six points in his first eight games. His scoring cooled down in his rookie AHL season, but Lewis heated up with his footing under him. He began his second pro season with 19 points in the first 28 games of the AHL season. That prompted the first NHL call-up of his career, a move he rewarded with three points in his first four games. He played two additional scoreless games before being reassigned for the remainder of the season. His 2008-09 season ended with 51 points in 75 AHL games.
A taste of NHL hockey helped Lewis break camp with the Kings for the 2009-10 season. He wound up as a healthy scratch after five scoreless games to start the season and was reassigned to the minors before the calendar turned over. He finished the year with just seven points in 23 AHL games. It was a muted season, but it didn’t knock Lewis off-course. He earned a full-time role with the Kings in the 2010-11 season and quickly settled into a bottom-six role that he would fill for the next 10 seasons.
Lewis’ scoring never flashed too bright. He scored only 20 points across 144 games between 2010 and 2012. Despite that, he seemed to have a knack for showing up in must-win games. Lewis scored four points in six games of the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs, then returned with nine points in 20 games of the Kings’ Cup-winning 2012 run. That scoring included two goals in the Cup-winning Game 6 of the Cup Finals. He combined for 25 points in 121 games across the next two seasons, backed by eight points in 44 playoff games. While again quiet scoring, Lewis did rack up 216 hits in 70 playoff games between 2010 and 2015 – the ninth-most of any NHL skater in that timeframe, and second on the Kings to Dustin Brown‘s league-leading 330 hits.
Lewis proved capable of filling a depth-grinder role on a championship roster twice over during his time with the Kings. His career continued to follow the path of low-scoring, high hit totals, and depth minutes. He scored a career-high 14 goals and 26 points in 68 games of the 2017-18 season, narrowly beating out 25 points scored in the 2014-15 season and 24 points scored in 2016-17. Two years later, the Kings opted to leave Lewis in free agency after 12 seasons with the team. He signed a one-year contract with the Winnipeg Jets after attending training camp on a professional tryout. Lewis turned that deal into 10 points, just two penalty minutes, and a plus-seven in 56 games with Winnipeg.
Lewis was again left in free agency in the following summer and, at the age of 35, decided to sign a one-year deal with the Calgary Flames for the 2021-22 season. That deal reunited Lewis with head coach Darryl Sutter, who led the Kings’ Cup runs. He scored 16 points in 80 games in his first season with the Flames, enough to earn another one-year deal, which he matched with 16 points in 82 games in the 2022-23 season. That year was just the second time that Lewis played every game of the season, joining the 2016-17 season.
The Kings brought Lewis home for the final two seasons of his career. He was slower and less involved than he looked in the prime of his career, but still managed a commendable 28 points in 142 games from a fourth-line role to close things out. Lewis, now 39, did not re-sign for the 2025-26 season and will now move his career forward.
He calls things to a close with the fourth-most hits (1,429), the sixth-most playoff games (86), and the seventh-most regular-season games (816) in the Kings franchise history. His all-three-zones energy and grit are traits teams still search for as they hope to build Cup-winning depth charts. He is a Utah-great and could find the next steps of his career in supporting the burgeoning Utah hockey scene.
Photo courtesy of Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports.