Updates: Andersson/Moverare Loaned, Kings Injury Latest, Thomas/Doty headed for surgery

Happy Saturday, Insiders!

An off-day for the LA Kings today, and we’ll take a deeper look into a couple of areas of last night’s win over San Jose a bit later on in the day. But for now, sharing a couple of tidbits that are not necessarily new information, but passing along the latest as it comes to roster moves and injuries throughout the organization.

On the transactions front, forward Lias Andersson and defenseman Jacob Moverare have been loaned to the AHL’s Ontario Reign. Ontario is in action this evening at 6 PM from Toyota Arena and both players are eligible to play in that game. Andersson has now been recalled twice by the Kings over the last couple of weeks but has not featured in a game with the big club. The Kings touched down back home just after midnight last night, not your usual 3 AM arrival from the road, so perhaps an opportunity to get Andersson into a game if the organization so chooses. Regarding Moverare, he did feature against Seattle and New York but was a healthy scratch last night as Sean Durzi returned to action off an injury. Moverare hasn’t really put a foot wrong over his two appearances, and will likely get additional opportunities throughout the season. The Kings will likely have additional roster moves coming tomorrow before they take host Ottawa, potentially including one or both of these players. Next steps for defensemen Brandt Clarke are due to come as the defenseman’s 14-day conditioning loan with AHL-Ontario is set to come to an end. More to follow on that front.

Regarding Durzi, he is recovered in full from a lower-body injury that cost him two games. Durzi played 19:32 in the win over San Jose yesterday and he tallied a pair of assists, hit one post and had one turnover leading to a goal the other way, though a turnover that did not impact the final score. Durzi quarterbacked an effective second PP unit, which hums along much better when he’s a part of it. Will include an additional note on Durzi later today in a deeper look into Friday’s win.

Regarding Alex Iafallo, the forward has resumed skating, a positive next step in his recovery process. Iafallo skated alongside Durzi on Tuesday at Toyota Sports Performance Center and has continued skating on his own.

“Starting to skate, getting involved, but won’t be in our lineup for a little while,” Todd McLellan said of his injured forward. “He’s getting back on the ice, it’s not really a story right now.”

No update was provided regarding Brendan Lemieux, who is also out with a lower-body injury, but Lemieux was not on the ice with Iafallo and Durzi as of my last viewing.

At the AHL level, the Ontario Reign made a pair of announcements yesterday afternoon regarding forwards Akil Thomas and Jacob Doty. The pair of players have both sustainted upper-body injuries that will require surgery. Both players are out “indefinitely” from game action.

The update is especially disappointing as it pertains to Thomas, because of his history with upper-body injuries. Thomas had surgery on both shoulders in the summer of 2021, coming off of his rookie season at the professional level in 2020-21. The surgeries set Thomas back for nearly the enterity of the 2021-22 season, as he missed all of training camp and didn’t make his season debut with the Reign until early-December. In an interview here on LAKI, Thomas said he didn’t truly feel like himself until rookie camp this past September, though his production saw an uptick late in the season. Thomas came out of the gates hot in October, with four goals and six points from his first seven games, but will regrettably miss more time due to his injury.

In Doty’s case, the veteran forward has not featured since November 10 and like Thomas, will miss time with his injury. Doty is a great story, as he progressed from a player who was scratched most nights during his first year with the Reign in 2019-20 to a player who established himself as an every-day player for Ontario, with his combination of toughness, physicality and leadership an important part of the group. A player who knows his role and embraces it. Here’s to hoping for a speedy recovery for both Doty and Thomas.

Kings off today, Reign at home against Tucson with a back-to-back set with the Roadrunners this weekend. Analysis from last night’s win over the Sharks and post-game notes and quotes from Ontario to follow later on today!