Scouting hockey players can be an inexact science.
Consider Toffoli, the Los Angeles Kings forward who entered the 2010 NHL Draft as the 16th-ranked North American skater. The Kings picked him in the second round (No. 47), and in his third full NHL season he led the team in goals.
Scouting hockey players can be an inexact science.
Consider Toffoli, the Los Angeles Kings forward who entered the 2010 NHL Draft as the 16th-ranked North American skater. The Kings picked him in the second round (No. 47), and in his third full NHL season he led the team in goals.
The Toronto native has a quick and accurate shot, above-average speed and good hockey sense. Toffoli (6-foot-1, 200 pounds) is not a physical player, but he is an effective and frequently dangerous penalty-killer. After making his NHL debut against the San Jose Sharks on March 16, 2013, Toffoli got his first NHL goal and assist two days later in the Kings' 4-0 victory against the Phoenix Coyotes. He made his Stanley Cup Playoff debut that season, in Game 5 of L.A.'s first-round series with the St. Louis Blues.
Toffoli got his first NHL playoff point when he assisted on a late game-winning goal in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals against San Jose, and scored his first NHL playoff goal in Game 3. After scoring a goal and four points in four games of the Western Conference Final against the Chicago Blackhawks, Toffoli finished the playoffs tied for first among rookies with six points.
Toffoli began the 2013-14 season in the AHL, then started his early-November recall with a five-game point streak. That included his first two-goal game, on Nov. 9, 2013, as the Kings defeated the Vancouver Canucks 5-1. Still officially a rookie, Toffoli finished 2013-14 tied for the lead among first-year players with five game-winning goals, fourth among rookies with a plus-21 rating and tied for 12th in rookie scoring with 29 points (12 goals).
In the 2014 playoffs, Toffoli scored game-winning goals in Games 4 and 5 of the first round against San Jose. His seven goals and 14 points in the postseason ranked first among NHL rookies. With those totals he also set team records by a Kings rookie in the playoffs and helped Los Angeles win the Stanley Cup.
L.A.'s leader with a plus-25 rating in 2014-15, Toffoli set a team record by scoring four shorthanded goals in his first 18 games. He led the NHL with five shorthanded goals that season. On Feb. 12, 2015, Toffoli got his first career hat trick and added an assist as the Kings beat the Calgary Flames 5-3. Toffoli began the 2015-16 season with nine goals in his first 10 games and finished with 31 goals to lead the Kings for the first time.
Toffoli, the American Hockey League Rookie of the Year in 2012-13, tied for first in scoring in the Ontario Hockey League in 2010-11 with 108 points (57 goals).
NOTES & TRANSACTIONS
- OHL First All-Star Team (2011, 2012)
- AHL All-Rookie Team (2013)
- Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Trophy (AHL Rookie of the Year) (2013)