INSIDER: Joel Armia quietly thriving for Kings

Joel Armia is a quiet man off the ice. On the ice, perhaps quietly effective would be a better term.

Armia has proven to be one of the brightest stories on the Kings in the early stages of the season. If you look at performances through 30 games, compared to preseason expectations, I think Armia would be among the top performers in terms of exceeding those expectations. You could make a legitimate argument he'd be atop that list as we approach the halfway point of the season.

“We've talked about him, really, from the first few days of training camp, how much he's impressed everybody,” Jim Hiller said of Armia. “[Last night] was his season high in time on ice, he's got himself up on the first power play, he's earned all that. He didn't start with those minutes, he started on the fourth line, 11, 12 minutes. Now, he is where he is based on merit.”

Armia began the season pegged as an upgrade on the fourth line. An elite penalty killer from his time in Montreal, he was brought in to lighten the load on top-of-the-lineup players in shorthanded situations while being a trusted player who would help the Kings play four lines deeper into games.

His impact has been greater than that, but make no mistake, he has delivered on the defensive game and the shorthanded promise.

The defensive side is there and has been as advertised. He leads the Kings with 1.93 takeaways per/60 minutes, by far the best clip on the team. Of the 371 NHL players to log at least 400 minutes so far this season, Armia ranks seventh in the NHL in that metric. So, the defensive side is there and has been there.

Armia also leads the NHL with three shorthanded goals this season. With a clever assist on Alex Laferriere’s goal yesterday against Seattle, Armia moved into a tie for the league lead with four shorthanded points, alongside New York’s J.P. Pageau. In shorthanded situations this season, Armia is actually +3. He’s been on the ice for those four shorthanded goals for, compared to just one against. That's outstanding.

In just over 43 minutes of shorthanded time on ice, Armia has been on the ice for 1.38 goals against per/60, the sixth-best clip in the NHL among forwards with at least 25 minutes of PK time. Simply put, he has been elite in that department, as the Kings felt he was when they signed him to a two-year contract over the summer.

“It seems like every game he’s getting a chance, or he’s creating a chance on the PK, it definitely gives our team a boost,” defenseman Joel Edmundson said. “Whenever you get the shorthanded goal, it’s huge. He’s been a great addition so far, guys love him in his dressing room. He’s been doing it in this league for about 10 years now and he just keeps getting it done.”

His play since arriving at the Kings, however, has merited a larger role than what he was targeted to fill.

As Hiller indicated, Armia played just shy of 19 minutes last night in Seattle, his highest total of the season. While several Kings forwards are producing at a lower rate than where you’d expect them to be offensively, Armia is currently tracking for 19 goals and 38 points, both of which would be NHL career highs, despite ranking ninth among Kings forwards at just shy of 12 minutes 5-on-5 per game. He’s got good size and sneaky skill, something that stands out to those who have played both with him and against him.

“I played against him a lot when he was in Montreal, he’s a big guy, makes good plays with the puck, good shot,” goaltender Anton Forsberg said of Armia. “He’s been a really good addition to this team.”

Where he has really exceeded expectations is in the offensive department.

What’s funny is, going back all the way to training camp, the guys who had played with him in the past knew it was in there.

Edmundson said that Armia has it in him to “take over games” at times offensively. Forward Phillip Danault said that “the puck always just seems to find him”, complimenting his skill, especially in front of the net. He said you’ll see some “really nasty moves, out of nowhere”.

Those interviews were on September 18 and 19. Now, with an extended body of work, we’re seeing what they were talking about.

The offensive side of Armia’s game has been impactful for a Kings team in search of plays and goals.

With his primary helper against the Kraken, Armia now ranks third on the Kings this season in primary assists per/60, trailing only Adrian Kempe and Quinton Byfield. He’s fifth on the team in goals per/60 in all situations. When Hiller says Armia has earned the minutes he’s gotten, I think the numbers more than back that up.

Of late, those minutes at even strength have been alongside Kevin Fiala and Quinton Byfield.

Fiala is arguably the team’s most dynamic offensive player, especially when he’s on his game, and Byfield is the fastest forward on the Kings. Both are capable of making plays and while their production hasn’t yet hit where it was second half of last season, it’s a line that requires a certain type of third player. Armia has proven to be a good fit there, with Fiala extremely complimentary of what he’s brought.

“He’s great, he’s a very skilled player,” Fiala said. “He wins a lot of puck battles, he holds onto pucks, he makes plays. He’s great on the penalty kill and he’s great all over the ice, especially now the last few weeks. It’s been showing and he’s got some goals here and there, it’s been very good. I’m very proud of him. He’s been fitting great with our team, very happy to have him on our team.”

I think, overall, Armia's simple approach meshes well with Fiala specifically. As the Kings look to improve their overall offensive impact, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the pieces continued to be shuffled at times, but right now, he's in a good spot.

Last game, the shuffling included a place on the top power-play unit for the first time. While he didn't factor in on the goal, which Fiala scored off the rush, he was impactful in the offensive zone when the Kings were able to get set up. Had several puck retrievals and got the puck to the crease from his goal-line position. I think we'd all like to see Andrei Kuzmenko get things going and take that spot back over. For a unit that has greatly struggled, though, I like Armia's direct and hardworking approach, offering a different look. Worked pretty well on night one.

Where Armia slots into the lineup long-term remains to be seen.

Hiller has referred to him as a “Swiss-Army knife” in similar ways to how he’s talked about Alex Laferriere and Trevor Moore. Guys who can play in different roles, with different players, and find ways to contribute. While he hasn’t been shuffled around as much as Laferriere in particular has, Armia has logged more than 50 minutes 5-on-5 with seven different forwards. So, when the pieces need to be moved around, Armia is one guy who can fit a few different places. Whether that's Line 1 or Line 4, he's a complementary player who can find a way to contribute.

And contribute he has. For a team that has yet to establish a ton of offensive consistency, Armia has proven to be an unexpected source of production. If he can keep that up, he'll continue to be one of the summer's best value signings around the NHL.