"He didn't say quick fix things. He didn't make excuses. He didn't get overly defensive," Yannetti recalled. "He already had a plan and he recognized his deficiencies. Name a 17-year-old kid who has it all figured out? The fact he didn't have it all figured out is good because we knew we would get more from him," he added.
By the time the NHL Combine came around, Doughty had undergone a physical transformation. Futa figures that, by that point, Doughty had lost around 25 pounds.
"I still remember it was like watching the WWE. Zach
Doughty made an immediate impact on the Kings' blue line. In 2009-10, his second season with the club, Doughty had racked up 59 points and was a finalist for the Norris Trophy that year. Two years after that, he was celebrating the franchise's first Stanley Cup on the ice with both Futa and Yannetti.
"You can't even put it into words," Futa said proudly. "I know that sounds like a cliché but until you're standing on the ice and you're hugging a kid you've known since he was 17 years old and now he's hoisting the Stanley Cup. It's the ultimate feeling of full encompassment of your job when they come up and you've won the cup together. It's beyond words," he continued.
Of course, Doughty wasn't the only player among that championship team that Futa and Yannetti had a hand in scouting, but there was special significance for the pair because of his impact on the organization and that he was the first player they had drafted as Co-Directors of Amateur Scouting.
"You see this player go from an out-of-shape elite prospect as a 17-year-old to a Stanley Cup winner. Watching a guy figure it out is really cool," Yannetti said.