LA Kings re-sign defenseman Jacob Moverare to one-year, two-way contract, $750,000 AAV

The LA Kings have signed defenseman Jacob Moverare to a one-year, two-way contract extension with an average annual value (AAV) of $750,000 at the NHL level.

Moverare, 22, played in his first season with the Ontario Reign (AHL) last season, ranked second among club defensemen in assists (14) and points (15) in 26 regular-season games. The 6-3, 200-pound defenseman started the season playing for SaiPa (Liiga), totaling five assists in 11 games.

During his end-of-season awards, LA Kings Insider contributor John Hoven named Moverare as his “most outstanding defenseman” for the Reign.

Moverare is a smart, steady defenseman, who showcased those exact qualities, along with some offensive touch, during his first professional season playing in North America. It’s challenging to measure qualities such as hockey sense, but Kings Director of Scouting Mark Yannetti has frequently referenced Moverare’s hockey sense as being the best in his draft, resulting in his selection by the Kings in the fourth round. As he’s played professionally in Sweden, Moverare has rounded out other areas of his game since, resulting in an impressive debut campaign with Ontario.

Prior to his first season with the Reign, the 2016 draftee spent five years between the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), Liiga and Ontario Hockey League (OHL). From 2018-20, he compiled 26 points (11-15-26) in 93 regular-season appearances for Frolunda, capped by winning the 2019 Swedish Championship after contributing six points (3-3-6) over 16 playoff games. In two seasons with the Mississauga Steelheads (OHL), Moverare notched 53 points (5-48-53) in 95 games and served as an assistant captain his second season (2017-18). Before Mississauga, he spent two seasons with the HV71 organization, capped by his SHL debut in 2015-16.

Moverare also won the Champions Hockey League in 2019 and 2020 with Frolunda, playing alongside Samuel Fagemo on both of those squads. He ranked tied for sixth in the 2019-20 tournament in assists by a defenseman (5), helping the team to back-to-back titles.

The Ostersund, Sweden native has represented his country in several international tournaments, winning two silver medals at the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship (served as assistant captain) and the 2016 IIHF Under-18 Men’s World Championship. Across international play, Moverare has posted five points (1-4=5) in 14 contests.

The Kings have now signed all of their qualified restricted free agents for the 2021-22 season, and officially have 50 players under NHL contracts.

John Wroblewski on Jacob Moverare
Maybe somebody who surprised [us] the most was maybe Jacob Moverare. Just as you weren’t sure how a first-year North American pro would fare coming in, then a little bit of an injury to start off a season, so then you really don’t know what you have and then, you’re sort of underwhelmed initially because he’s not the most fluid skater but then, all of a sudden, you notice he does a good beat and then he’s facilitating all kinds of offense and making such heady plays with the puck on a consistent basis.