Los Angeles Kings demote former 2nd overall pick after another lackluster call up

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Joshua Deeds
November 7, 2022 (8:30)

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The Long Angeles Kings defeated the Florida Panthers 5-4 on Saturday night. After the game the team made the difficult decision opting to re-assign their 2020 1st round pick, Quinton Byfield, back to the AHL's Ontario Reign.

Byfield will be assigned to Ontario on a conditioning stint, as the young center missed six games earlier in the season due to an illness.

Byfield has resumed skating, but during his current run in the NHL with the Kings, he's registered 11:46 time on ice.

Byfield is set to resume skating imminently, following some light off-ice activity the past few days. Of further interest is the possibility of what will come next. From what we understand, a conditioning assignment with the Ontario Reign is not out of the question. While, technically, it would not be an official �conditioning assignment' because he is waiver exempt (meaning he can flow freely, moving up/down between the AHL and NHL as often as needed), that's essentially what it would be.

The Kings picked Byfield with the intent and purpose of the youngster developing into a 1st line center. If Byfield is to stay with the team the rest of the season and the Kings are looking for progression and for now, his progression into a top-six forward.

Gabe Vilardi and Adrian Kempe are recent Kings draft picks who have matured into regular producers and shown they can be relied upon to contribute. Byfield's true maturation as a player has yet to be seen, as he is still green and there are some who speculate that his full potential as a 1C/2C will be realized in the next few years, as Anze Kopitar will slide into a 3rd line role, as Danault and Byfield will compete to slot into either of those spots.

Byfield's production this season has been 3 assists in 8 games, but it is still early yet to see how it will turn out.