10 Storylines To Watch For At The 2026 Rookie Faceoff

Insiders! LA Kings hockey is back this weekend. Mostly. It won’t be the team you’ll see when the regular season opens later this month but several drafted Kings players, including some of the organization’s top prospects, will head North to San Jose to participate in the 2026 Rookie Faceoff this weekend.

The Kings roster for the event is available HERE, along with the schedule for the weekend HERE. In total, the Kings rookies will play three games in San Jose, beginning on Saturday evening at 5 PM versus the host Sharks. The Kings will also take on Anaheim on Sunday and Utah on Tuesday before everyone returns to Los Angeles in advance of main training camp, which opens on Thursday, September 17 at Toyota Sports Performance Center in El Segundo.

For this weekend, here are 10 storylines I’m keeping an eye on. These aren’t necessarily all things that we’ll see play out this weekend, but for those involved, much of it begins this weekend and continues into main training camp and perhaps the regular season. Players of interest, for sure, along with some team-wide storylines and overarching thoughts.

1. A Whole New World
Welcome to the new NHL schedule.

Gone are the days of an expansive preseason. This fall, the Kings will have just four exhibition contests before they begin the 2026-27 regular season against Colorado on September 30. As a result, training camp is substantially shorter. Both of those things mean that younger players or those on the bubble, vying for roster spots, will have less time to impress. Where would Jeff Malott or Taylor Ward have gone last season without the impressive preseasons they had? Both earned NHL games off of their play, but they played a lot.

Won’t be the case this time around or it’ll take that much more in terms of the performance.

Looking at the group heading to San Jose, there are only a few players with a legitimate shout at cracking the roster picture at the NHL level, but there are players in that mix for sure. However, with fewer NHL opportunities, this weekend becomes that much more important. Same goes for the goaltenders. With only four games, there are fewer repetitions available. Last year, all five goalies in camp got a full NHL preseason game. With five in camp this year, that is not possible. So, for a Carter George or a Hampton Slukynsky, these reps are that much more important. Both are slotted to play in the AHL this season and should get a preseason rep with the Reign, but it would be unrealistic to expect that a full 60 minutes for both players in the NHL is guaranteed. Could happen, but remains to be seen. Veterans Darcy Kuemper and Anton Forsberg need to be ready for Game 1, so it starts there and trickles down.

All in all, regardless of position, there is more emphasis on these games than in years past. As a result, I think the Rookie Faceoff is more important than it was last season or in seasons prior. Players who want to make an impact need to do so starting Saturday against San Jose.

2. So……About The Goaltenders
In a rookie tournament, the lineup and deviation of minutes is set at the top.

Starting with Ken Holland, Kings management chooses the lineups for games like this, including the distribution of minutes with the goaltenders.

The Kings have three drafted goalie prospects attending – George, Slukynsky and 2026 third-round selection Yegor Rybkin. As noted above, the reps this fall are fewer than in years past. So, the Kings have to make the most of them.

Ideally, you’d love to see George and Slukynsky each get at least a full game. They’re both playing professional hockey this season and are among the top five prospects in the organization. They should play. Rybkin is not as far along on the development curve but he was a third-round pick and is an intriguing prospect. He will play in the QMJHL this season but the Kings likely want to see him get some action as well.

The simple solution is that there are three goaltenders and three games. Everyone plays once. We’ll see if the Kings see it that way as well, or if there is more mixing and matching with potential splits. If I was a betting man – or if they offered betting lines on ridiculous things like who starts in goal at a rookie tournament – my money would be on Carter George between the pipes on Saturday and we go from there.

3. Two-stewicz
Year 2 for Henry Brzustewicz, the Kings’ first-round draft pick in 2025.

Brzustewicz is a better player today than he was 12 months ago. He was forced into a larger role in the OHL last season in London and set career highs in goals, assists and points, as he led the Knights in scoring among all skaters, regardless of position.

Unlike last season, though, Brzustewicz has options this time around. A change to the NHL’s CBA means that he could play in the AHL this season as a 19-year-old. The NHL and OHL are also options for Brzustewicz. Similar story here in that the Rookie Faceoff means a bit more for Brzustewicz than it did in seasons past. His ambition should be to make the Kings, first and foremost. To do so, it starts with being one of the best players on the ice this weekend. Might only be a game or two in the NHL preseason for Brzustewicz, so these are a part of his preseason slate. I do expect he will get a couple of opportunities come the preseason as well, since he counts towards the NHL veteran rule as a recent first-round pick.

I think the AHL should be a realistic option for a player who wasn’t perfect but didn’t look out of place with the Reign last season. He will be tested right off the bat against a San Jose team made up of several forwards with NHL experience. A strong showing puts him in a good place to come into camp and earn a job and it’ll be up to him what he does with it. If not, he’ll be one of the most talented players in the OHL and could ultimately be traded to a contending team for a run at another Memorial Cup.

4. He Went To Jared
With Brzustewicz’s former OHL teammate, Jared Woolley, we know that he will be playing professional hockey this season.

He’s won just about everything there is to win at the junior level, with three OHL championships and two Memorial Cups. Armed with an entry-level contract, Woolley has been one of the fastest risers in the prospect pool for the Kings. Drafted in the sixth-round, Woolley ranks higher on that list than you’d expect. He’s already got NHL size on the blueline and can do more with the puck than you’d expect from a player of his stature.

At a tournament like this, he’s now a veteran. He’s someone who you’d expect to be a leader on the backend for the Kings. When he was 18, Woolley turned a ton of heads at this event. Now, it’s expected from him. The real test for Woolley will be how his game stacks up against professionals, likely at the AHL level to start. The gap between the OHL and AHL is massive and the learning curve for defensemen is often harsher than with forwards. Important for Woolley to build himself a solid foundation against his peers because the jump to the professional ranks will be an intense one, but one he is expected to handle. I’ve always been a Woolley believer and think he plays NHL games when he develops.

5. Class Of 2026
Joining Brzustewicz and Woolley will be three defensemen from the draft class of 2026 – Adam Goljer, Giorgos Pantelas and Lucas Ambrosio.

Goljer was a second-round selection and is someone the Kings are very high on. There really isn’t an area of his game that doesn’t project to be at least average and he played a regular role last season in Slovakia in the top men’s division. He’s expected to move this season to the OHL with the Kingston Frontenacs and should be a major player with Team Slovakia at the World Juniors. These tournaments can be challenging for 18-year-olds, typically playing against players 2-3 years older. Goljer is used to that, though, so we’ll see how he slots in.

Pantelas and Ambrosio were both drafted from the CHL and will attend their first rookie camps with the Kings. Two players who will be among the youngest there and it’ll be interesting to see how they handle a step up in competition and experience. Both players have some good attributes but are early in their development process. Looking forward to watching both and seeing how they stack up.

6. WRight Ken-ough
The Kings have two players attending Rookie Camp who played NHL games last season – Jared Wright and Kenny Connors.

Wright has the bulk of that experience, having played 23 games down the stretch and all four in the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Wright slotted into the NHL lineup after the trade deadline and never left. Of all the players attending rookie camp and the Rookie Faceoff, Wright certainly has the highest NHL prospects. Before seeing how the Kings approached free agency, I’d have thought Wright was more likely to be in than out. Now, feels like a much bigger question mark and he might need a strong showing in camp or perhaps an injury to earn a spot.

Wright’s speed is NHL caliber but he does have areas of his game to round out. Might be the best skater in San Jose this weekend. The steps he’s taken with the puck on his stick and as a player will determine where he goes and there are reasons for him on both sides of the NHL/AHL debate. Interested to watch him as more of a veteran player for one weekend, to see how he can impose his game as he takes what is frankly a large step down in competition.

For Connors, he was pretty impressive in his rookie season. He played two NHL games with the Kings and earned a ton of trust from the coaching staff in Ontario during an impressive first AHL season. Connors is someone who you could see playing NHL games again this season and should be a top-six center in the AHL with the Reign, barring a standout performance which lands him in the NHL. He’s probably not the 1C of the future but he’s got some upside and a higher floor than I think a lot of prospects have. Really good strides as a rookie and should be one of the better players at the event this weekend.

7. Vojtech Cihar
Although he was a 2025 draft pick, this is the first chance we’ve had to see Cihar play in a Kings jersey.

Since he was playing professionally in Czechia last fall, Cihar remained overseas to continue his season preparation, with those leagues starting up sooner than the NHL does. After the World Juniors, though, Cihar moved midseason to the WHL, where he played for the Kelowna Rockets, scoring at a point-per-game pace. Kelowna participated in the Memorial Cup as the host club, something that drew Cihar there in the first place.

Now, at age 19, he’s got a plethora of options. He could make the Kings. He could make the Reign. He could return to Kelowna for one full season. He could go back overseas and play professionally in Europe. All options on the table. In speaking with him over the summer, his goal is to come into camp and make a team here in California. The Rookie Faceoff creates an early platform for him to do that. A common theme here, but with fewer preseason games in play, there is more emphasis and importance on these rookie games. Cihar is one who can benefit from that if he can turn in a strong showing in San Jose.

8. Other Forwards To Watch
Three additional forwards I’m going to keep an eye on – Grant Slukynsky, Liam Lefebvre and Jimmy Lombardi.

Slukynsky often flies under the radar, because his brother Hampton is a top drafted prospect in the system, but he earned his entry-level contract as well by scoring at over a point-per-game clip (40 PTS in 39 GP) last season at Western Michigan. He’s a national champion at the NCAA level and is older than most players in an event like this, having already played four seasons of college hockey. He is one you hope excels with that age and experience, maybe similar to what Blake Lizotte did at this tournament when he played under similar circumstances.

Lefebvre is an overaged draft pick who the Kings selected in the second round of the 2026 NHL Draft. The amount of love for this player from organizational scouts is not something I’ve seen here in my experience. He is someone that several people were banging the table for and now he’s a King. Lefebvre had 59 points (32-27-59) in 59 QMJHL games last season and won a championship with Chicoutimi, advancing to the Memorial Cup. Lefebvre should be a standout player in that league this season and is already off to a hot start in the preseason with four goals in two exhibition games. The Rookie Faceoff will be a pretty large step up in competition, so we’ll see how he handles it.

Lombardi is someone who impressed me last season in the little reads and plays he makes. He didn’t jump off the page but often times when I’d see a small play made by an admittedly small forward, it was routinely Lombardi who made it. He took a huge step forward in the OHL last season and was in the league’s Top-10 in goals scored. He signed his entry-level contract last season and not only attended the World Junior Summer Showcase with Team Canada a couple months back but impressed during his time here. One to keep an eye on here in San Jose in his second go-around.

9. Where Is The World Is Elton Hermansson?
For those hoping to catch Elton Hermansson’s first games in a Kings jersey, it’ll have to wait.

Hermansson is already deep into his preseason preparations with MoDo in Sweden and the Kings aren’t going to disrupt that so that he can attend the games this week. This is in line with how they have typically handled players who are playing in Europe, similar to what we saw last season with Cihar. In speaking with Kings Assistant General Manager Nelson Emerson, he said that Hermansson has already played in several exhibition games in Sweden and since he projects as a key player on his team over there, it doesn’t make a ton of sense to pull him out of that situation and create a ton of unnecessary travel early in the season just for him to participate in a rookie tournament.

Once Hermansson makes the jump to playing in North America, expect him to be at this tournament and to be one of the highest profile attendees when he gets there. Keep an eye on Hermansson’s progress in Sweden this season and likely at the World Juniors this winter, when he should represent Team Sweden.

10. See You There!
For those interested, I’ll be on site for the entire tournament in San Jose…..if you are also going to be there, shoot me a DM on Twitter or an email and I’d love to meet up and say hi!

For those who won’t be, expect to see all three games streamed. Full broadcast info to come here in the next few days. Expecting that the Kings will make the games available in multiple locations for fans to watch, on a few different platforms. Should be very accessible and I believe that applies to all fans in North America, not just the LA market. Not 100 percent sure though, but will have that information to share soon!

Good to have it back, though. Kings hockey, coming up on Saturday.