Kings Star Predicted to Make Canadian Team

The Los Angeles Kings' star center is on Team Canda's radar for the Four Nation's.

Apr 15, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; LA Kings right wing Quinton Byfield (55) skates with the puck against the Minnesota Wild in the second period at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Kings have Stanley Cup ambitions after an exciting summer. Looking to improve upon a 44-win campaign, they brought in Stanley Cup-winning goaltender Darcy Kuemper to upgrade their options in net. They also extended star center Quinton Byfield to a new five-year contract, paying him $6.25 million annually.

The Kings are expecting superstar things from Byfield in 2024-2025. Along with inking him to an expensive new deal, the team moved on from center Pierre-Luc Dubois, clearing the way for him to be the undisputed number two center. The 22 year-old center is coming off of his best season, scoring 20 goals and adding 35 assists. The breakout season came at perfect time, as the former second-overall selection of 2020 NHL Draft struggled to find consistency over his first two seasons in the NHL.

But his reputation is skyrocketing around the hockey world. Elliotte Friedman recently made a bold claim about the Canadian forward on his 32 Thoughts podcast. He thinks that Byfield will be a member of the Team Canada roster at the upcoming Four Nations Face-Off in winter of 2025.

"My prediction," he said. "Byfield's on Team Canada this year. He plays for Team Canada at the Four Nations (Face-Off)."

Co-host Kyle Bukauskas was surprised by Friedman's claim, but the insider doubled down.

"That's not one of the wimpy (Kyle) Bukauskas predictions," he joked. "That is a real prediction."

Byfield is in a prime position to earn a roster spot with Team Canada and surpass the 70-point plateau with the Kings. Playing as the number two pivot in L.A, he should spend a majority of his ice-time playing with the likes of Kevin Fiala, Alex Laferriere, Trevor Moore, or Adrian Kempe. For Team Canada, he could be the perfect fourth line center option, giving the team a scoring center that can be a matchup nightmare for opposing countries. The tournament begins in February 2025, and if Byfield has the season many think he will, he could go from surprise choice to sure bet for Team Canada.

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