The Los Angeles Kings took care of their most pressing contract negotiation this summer in re-signing forward Quinton Byfield to a five-year extension worth $31.25 million on Monday.
Byfield was a restricted free agent in need of a new contract. This deal carries an average annual value of $6.25 million, a cap hit that’s now the fourth highest on the Kings for the 2024-25 season behind Drew Doughty ($11 million), Kevin Fiala ($7.875 million) and Anze Kopitar ($7 million).
Good thing Dudley also agreed to the terms 🐶 pic.twitter.com/zBhMz1Dgim
— LA Kings (@LAKings) July 16, 2024
The 21-year-old Byfield was not eligible for salary arbitration, and it’s possible the Kings could have taken negotiations out toward the start of the season to extend him at a lower amount on a shorter bridge deal lasting two or three years. Instead, the Kings rewarded a major piece of their future for his breakout 2023-24 season after being the No. 2 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft.
“We are extremely excited to reach an agreement that will allow Quinton to continue to grow with the Kings for the next five years,” Kings general manager Rob Blake said. “Since selecting him in 2020, Quinton has demonstrated his commitment to getting better on and off the ice each day.”
Byfield took a major leap in registering career highs in games played (80), goals (20), assists (35) and points (55) after scoring only eight times and recorded 33 points in his first 99 NHL games. His average ice time of 16 minutes, 29 seconds was also a significant spike forward, displaying his growing importance to the Kings.
Much of Byfield’s last two seasons were spent playing left wing on the top line with Kopitar and Adrian Kempe but the 6-foot-5 forward also played center, a natural position he grew up playing and one the Kings see him playing. That could be this season as the team traded Pierre-Luc Dubois in June, creating a hole that Byfield could slide into.
Moving Byfield back to center can also allow him to grow into an eventual replacement for the 36-year-old Kopitar and further maximize his value for his next contract. Kopitar is starting his own two-year extension that could take him to retirement, something he has strongly hinted at. Byfield could be in for a major payday if he becomes a highly productive pivot with size.
His value will only increase further if he becomes a leading cornerstone player on the Kings. While the Kings gained some security and cost certainty with the five-year term, Byfield would set himself up for a huge third NHL contract if he outperforms this extension. When it expires in 2029, Byfield will only be 26 but eligible for unrestricted free agency as he will have played in the league for at least seven seasons.
In his draft year, the Kings envisioned Byfield as an impact center and knew it would take him longer than some others at the top of that 2020 draft to reach his potential. That’s still something in progress as the club believes he’s only scratched the surface of what he can eventually be. A full-time move to center would set him on that path.
In an April interview with The Athletic, Byfield talked about learning to be a responsible two-way player from Kopitar — a two-time Selke Trophy winner and one of the best all-around centers of his generation.
“I think my defensive game has improved a lot from when I came in,” Byfield said. “A lot of that goes to Kopi as well, just seeing him day in and day out. Seeing how hard he competes in the defensive end. Faceoffs as well. He’s so good at those.
“Just to be able to learn off him and hopefully that helps me later on in my career to become one of those guys. When I was growing up, the three guys that were winning Stanley Cups and making huge impacts was obviously Kopi, (Patrice) Bergeron and (Jonathan) Toews. I grew up watching that style of hockey and what it takes to win. They’re all leaders, all captains. Playing both ends of the ice.
“And then just to be able to be in person and play on the same line as one of them — it’s pretty cool to see the mindset that you have to play and how you have to win.”
The Kings have what PuckPedia projects is a little over $2.9 million left under the $92 million cap. They still need to re-sign defenseman Jordan Spence, winger Arthur Kaliyev and goaltending prospect Erik Portillo, all of whom are RFAs ineligible for salary arbitration. It’s possible they could trade Kaliyev, who was a regular healthy scratch through much of last season.
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(Photo: Justin Berl / Getty Images)
