Not sure where the love is coming from more – Scott Laughton to Los Angeles or Los Angeles to Scott Laughton?
It’s been an absolute whirlwind of a month for Laughton.
Around the trade deadline, Laughton said his “mind was spinning” with the unknowns of what might happen at that time of the year. His deal was one of the latest to be approved around the deadline in the entire NHL, with formal confirmation not known, publicly at least, for a few hours after the deadline passed.
The Kings officially acquired Laughton from the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 6 and after a late, cross-country flight, he was in the lineup at Crypto.com Arena on March 7, as the Kings hosted Montreal. One of the fortunate ones in situations like this not to deal with visa issues. The next day, he was on a plane back East to begin a five-game roadtrip with his new club, kicking off a stretch where eight of Laughton’s first 11 games with the Kings came on the road.
Finally, over a month after he first arrived in Los Angeles, he’s had the chance to breath and learn what the inside of his house looks like.
Having some time with family, on a seven-game homestand, has started to make Los Angeles feel like exactly that – home.
“Being at home with family has been pretty nice after a pretty hectic month,” he said. “I think just being away so much, we were on the road in Toronto before I got dealt, so it’s really been nice to have that time to be able to settle in a little bit more.”
He’s certainly settling in at the right time.
Currently on a season-defining, seven-game homestand for the Kings, Laughton has found the back of the net twice, including the second goal in Monday’s critical 3-2 win over Nashville. His goal in the second period snapped a stretch of momentum for the Predators, helping the Kings to restore their lead and eventually work the game into overtime, ultimately winning via the shootout. On the ice, Laughton has been a good fit.
He’s got five goals and seven points in 16 games, playing a third-line role, offering stability at that position in the lineup. Among the 66 players around the NHL with at least 200 faceoffs taken since the date Laughton joined the Kings, he ranks second in the NHL at 60.1 percent. While Laughton doesn’t play a ton of 3-on-3 hockey, the Kings seem to play it every night and Laughton has a role – the opening faceoff. He’s won that a number of times to ensure his team begins with possession of the puck to start the overtime session.
Individually, while the sample size is small, Laughton leads the Kings goals per/60 and shots on goal per/60 in 5-on-5 situations. His possession numbers have been solid as well. Laughton ranks as one of the team’s best in terms of fewest high-danger chances against, per/60, when he is on the ice. He’s on the positive side of the ledger in most categories. He’s been quite effective for the Kings, at an important time of the season when they’ve needed him to be.
All coming one month after the biggest change he’s experienced yet in his NHL career. While it’s been different, Laughton is embracing it, the opportunity he has here and the way the organization has immediately made him feel comfortable.
“It’s definitely a big change, I haven’t played on the West Coast [in my career],” Laughton said today, speaking on TSN Radio, embedded below. “It’s been a little different, but it’s been amazing, honestly. The opportunity that I’ve been given here, I know [D.J. Smith] from juniors and he’s given me a pretty good leash and a pretty good runway here. The hockey aspect has been a ton of fun for me……the way the organization treats you here has been pretty special.”
The other side of it has been a group here in Los Angeles that is loving what Laughton brings to their room.
Drew Doughty put it simply – “I can’t say enough good things about him and I’m really happy to have him.”
Anze Kopitar for example, has had as many teammates as just about anyone in the league. When asked about what Laughton has brought to the team, he highlighted both the player that he is on the ice, the role that he plays, as well as what he has brought within the room.
“He’s a great teammate, first and foremost,” Kopitar said. “I think he’s a perfect role player. We use him in just about with anything, great on faceoffs, huge part of our penalty kill and he’s working his ass off. He’s been a great addition to our team.”
For Kings Interim Head Coach D.J. Smith, Laughton was not a new face, just a new face to Los Angeles.
As has been discussed, Smith was the head coach in Oshawa in the OHL when Laughton was the team’s star player. At that time, Laughton was a first-round draft pick by Philadelphia and the team’s leading scorer, with 40 goals in 54 games during his final season in that league.
What Smith remembers about Laughton is that, despite his offensive accolades, you’d never know it by the way he carried himself. He’s always been the kind of teammate that others are drawn to, a popular player in the room, both based on his personality and the honest game he plays, on top of the scoring.
“Even when I had him in juniors, when he was the big dog, he didn’t act like it and he’s always looking out for his teammates,” Smith said of Laughton. “He’s been around the league for a long time and he doesn’t take himself too seriously, he understands how to play the game, he plays the game hard. I think guys respect the way he plays and respect that he’s a good teammate. Obviously, the intangibles in the dressing room, all those things are great, but don’t look too far past how hard he plays on the ice that allows him to gain that respect.”
So. Laughton has enjoyed his short time in Los Angeles. Los Angeles has certainly enjoyed having him here.
Would he be open to extending his time here?
Short answer is yes, he would. I just wouldn’t necessarily expect that to come tomorrow. His focus right now is singular and that’s helping the Kings get into the playoffs, with hopes of going on a run. He and his family have enjoyed their time here thus far and because of that and how the organization has treated them, he does have an interest in possibly extending with the Kings.
But that’s a conversation for down the road.
I’d expect Laughton to have several suitors over the summer throughout the NHL. He does a lot of things that teams value and his play since joining the Kings certainly won’t lower that number. However, his short time in Los Angeles has been meaningful enough to where the Kings will be strongly considered when that time comes, because of the experience he’s had here since joining.
That time coming just might not be today. He came here to try and help the 2025-26 LA Kings team achieve something and that’s what he’s focused on doing.
“I haven’t gotten to that, but yes, it would be, I think for sure,” Laughton said of his openness to an extension in Los Angeles. “Being here in the short time that I have and how much my family has loved it, yeah, for sure, but that all takes care of itself after the year. The focus is making a playoff push and being a part of something. That’s what I want to do, I want to help this team and wherever the chips fall, they will. I want to be a part of something here and help this team out this year.”