Michael Amadio Is Ready to Make a Difference This Season

Michael Amadio has come into preseason better than ever, and the LA Kings hockey development staff are taking notice.
The 22-year-old center has been put on a line with Tanner Pearson and Tyler Toffoli, and it's paying off. Amadio leads the team with five points (0-5=5) in four games.

The LA Kings' hockey development staff aren't the only ones taking notice, so is
The Athletic
. "After a rookie season in which he produced a modest eight points in 37 games, the Kings felt Amadio was still a little bit of a fixer-upper," staff writer Lisa Dillman said in a recent piece.
So, they paged Joanna and Chip Gaines, or at least the hockey version of the two: Jarret Stoll and Craig Johnson.
Stoll and Johnson are members of the Kings' player development staff, and as former players themselves, they can relate to the current roster.
"I don't want to talk to them as a coach. I just want to talk to them as a friend," Stoll said.
"You can see the confidence in him," Stoll said. "He knows he has a bigger role and can have bigger role on this team from last year and it's good to see because he put in the work this summer. And it's looking like it's paying off."

After his postseason meetings with General Manager Rob Blake and Head Coach John Stevens, Amadio knew that he had to put in a lot of hard work over the summer to step up his game.
"It was a good summer and credit to those guys," Amadio said of Stoll and Johnson. "We were working on the little details in my game to make that next step. That was the focus for me, reinforcement and having it in the back of your mind, to do this and to do that."
Jeff Carter and Trevor Lewis have also noticed Amadio's contributions during the short time they've seen him play in preseason.
"Guys like playing with him," Stoll said. "Carts and [Lewis] were saying to me he is looking really good. They were fired up to see how improved he had gotten over the summer and how much confidence they can see him playing with."

LA Kings Insider Jon Rosen wrote about the developments to Amadio's skill set, and how his increased scoring prowess on a line with Pearson and Toffoli could give the Kings three lines with proven scorers.
"If there's an under-reported story from training camp, perhaps it's the noticeable quickness that Michael Amadio has demonstrated through his first two preseason games and the Kings vs Kings exhibition," wrote Rosen.
Amadio is alright with flying under the radar, for now. "I'm trying not to think too far ahead. I'm just trying to go out there and play my game," Amadio said to LA Kings Insider. "With Tanner and Tyler, they've had great success in the league, so I'm just going to try to build off them."

Amadio's offseason training at Toyota Sports Center included intensive upper and lower-body work in order to accelerate quicker on the ice.
"I think I feel a little bit quicker out there," Amadio said. "Maybe my first couple steps that I didn't have before - I think that's the biggest thing I've noticed."
And those first couple of steps this preseason are a great starting point, but there's more work ahead.
"I'm real proud to see how well he's doing," Johnson said to The Athletic. "This is a small step. Now he's got to continue it for the whole season."