Adrian Kempe joins 40-goal club as shooting mentality continues

It had been more than 10,000 days since an LA King scored his 40th goal of the season.

April 2, 1994. On that day, then Kings forward and current Kings President Luc Robitaille buried his 40th goal of the 1993-94 season against the Edmonton Oilers. It was Robitaille’s eighth consecutive 40-goal season with the Kings and also his final. 29 years and 12 days later, another King joined the club as forward Adrian Kempe capped off the 2022-23 regular season with a hat trick, with his second of three goals marking the 40-goal milestone.

Eight players, including both Robitaille and Kempe, finished a season in the time that elapsed with between 35 and 40 goals, but none has reached the 40-goal milestone…..until Thursday evening in Anaheim, that is. Kempe snapped the streak before it reached 30 years, as he joined the 40-goal club against the Ducks. A huge moment to close the season, one that resonates with both player and team.

“I’m really proud of him, I’m happy for him, the team’s happy for him, it’s a good rallying point,” Todd McLellan said of Kempe’s milestone. “The fact that he’s been able to elevate his play, almost on a weekly basis, he just keeps getting better, is a real good sign for him as an individual and us as an organization for a long time. He’s less streaky than he was in the past, scores big goals and scores them from all over the place and while he’s doing that, he’s physical and defending well. A hell of a year and a hell of a player.”

It’s been quite the follow-up campaign for Kempe, who broke out with 35 goals a season ago, a performance that earned him a four-year contract extension from the Kings this past offseason with a cap hit that tied him for the third-highest earning forward in the organization.

Externally, Kempe’s ability to recreate his 2021-22 season was questioned by some.

Of Kempe’s 35 goals a season ago, just 17 came at 5-on-5, which was just about in line with his 2020-21 season. Kempe buried six empty-net goals, had two in 3-on-3 overtime, as well as three while shorthanded. Versatility shown, in many ways, but the empty-net goals specifically would likely fluctuate. On the other hand though, several underlying metrics showed that Kempe’s breakout season was not a blip, but rather a sign of sustainable growth. His chances created were higher and his shooting percentage did not drastically rise. It actually dipped slightly at 5-on-5. Those lent signs of being replicated.

Kempe, in his own words, adopted more of a shooter’s mentality last season, as he looked both for volume and quality. That was a change from more of a pass-first approach as a younger player, but keeping his mindset consistent, season-over-season, led to hopes of building on what he started.

“A couple of years ago, I feel like I had a lot of good looks, but I was a pass first guy,” Kempe said. “I figured out that if I put the puck on net a little more, it’ll go in and that was kind of a switch went off my head. Coming into last year was the biggest step I took in terms of volume shooting, so I just tried to keep that going.”

Kempe's 40th of the season couldn't have come at a better time 🚨 pic.twitter.com/UpBvTqR8vZ

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) April 14, 2023

His 2022-23 campaign clearly proved the latter to be true. As Todd McLellan detailed the other day, Kempe’s biggest assets are his legs and his shot and he has continued to use both effectively to generate chances both in quantity and quality. Kempe ranked second on the Kings in both shot attempts and scoring chances, effectively using his legs to get into the dangerous scoring areas between the circles as he frequently capitalized on his opportunities with his shot.

Kempe was also a big part of a revitalized Kings power-play unit that improved by more than nine percentage points as it rose from 27th in the NHL to fourth. Kempe led the Kings with 11 power-play goals for the season. The last time a Kings player had more was Alex Frolov in the 2008-09 season. Another stretch ended by the Swede.

In comparison between this and last season, Kempe scored five more goals playing 5-on-5 and five more goals on the power play. Though he capped his hat trick in Anaheim with an empty-net goal, his saw his total in that department drop from six to three, in a season where his goal output in total grew by six. Those who questioned whether or not Kempe would be the player who earned the extension are certainly eating crow this weekend. Good on the man nicknamed Juice for another strong season.

“I didn’t think about it before the season, but throughout the year, I think I just tried to stay with my game, I tried not to focus too much in terms of goals,” Kempe added. “I’m playing with some really good players and they were looking for me all night. I’m very, very happy I’m out there with those guys and my linemates helped me all year to get there.

Kempe’s progression from first-round draft pick to 40-goal scorer is perhaps the ultimate marketing tool for patience with younger players.

Three years out from his draft year, Kempe had six points from 25 games played with the Kings, splitting the season between the NHL and the AHL. That’s where Quinton Byfield is at right now. A year later, he cemented himself as a full-time NHL’er with 37 points from 81 games. That’s where Arthur Kaliyev is at right now, with a similar points-per-game pace. Six years out from his draft, Kempe had still yet to crack a half-point per game, in his third full season in the NHL. That’s where Gabe Vilardi is at right now.

Puts some things into perspective for younger players and sometimes it does take time for individuals to find their way in this league. It takes some one period. It takes some eight years, as it did for Kempe to break out a season ago.

“Hitting the net, bearing down on his opportunities, being consistent, he’s proven he can do it,” McLellan said. “It took him a little bit of time, he had some people that believed in him and we believe in the people that we have here. Now, it’s time for them to step up and get it done, too.”

The rewards are now being reaped by the Kings, for their patience, and by Kempe, who has become the well-rounded player the organization always knew it had. On top of his goalscoring, which as described above has been outstanding, Kempe is one of the team’s most physical forwards, he kills penalties and he’s one of the most effective backcheckers on the team, impacting the game in all areas of the ice, while logging difficult matchups alongside Anze Kopitar on the team’s top offensive unit.

Heading into the postseason, the score resets to zero, though Kempe will be hopeful to build upon his team-leading six points in last year’s first-round series against Edmonton. With continued growth in his game and 40 goals under his belt, the Kings will rely upon nothing less in their quest to advance.

Photo by Debora Robinson/NHLI via Getty Images