LA Kings Select Alex Kostov No. 177 – What You Need to Know

With pick No. 177 of Round 6, the LA Kings have selected right wing Alex Kostov from Canada. Throughout the evening, we’ll have more information and continued coverage from the 2026 NHL Entry Draft. For now, here’s what you need to know about the newest Kings selection…

Alex Kostov

KEY NUMBERS AND NOTES

Vitals
Date of Birth: June 3, 2006
Height: 6-foot-4
Weight: 207 lbs
Shoots: Right
Team: Flint Firebirds
League: OHL
Position: RW

Statistics for 2025-26 Season
OHL: 47 GP, 24 G, 31 A, 55 P, 48 PIM, Plus-24
OHL-Playoffs: 8 GP, 3 G, 6 A, 9 P, 14 PIM, Plus-0

Awards for 2025-26 Season
None

SCOUTING REPORTS

From Hockey Prospect:

Kostov is a large, well rounded right shot center, who has made developmental strides this past season. His play generation mainly stems from his ability to cut east-west while identifying lateral options in transition, direct cutting plays towards the slot before finding and threading passes to downhill options that are in tighter to the net, and peeling off of the half-walls while using his length to protect pucks before finding options. He does many things at an above average clip. He can defend using his frame and length, he has impressive stick timing to break up developing plays, his motor and conditioning are above average relative to his size. He can pass a puck the length of the ice, find options under pressure, and perhaps his best specialization is his shot from below the circles on the powerplay. We tracked his first 19 goals, and 16 of them were specifically below and to the middle of the circles, where he uses a rapid angle adjusting wrist shot to fool goalies.

From Elite Prospects:

Puck distribution remains an area for growth, as there were moments where stronger management or more assertive decisions were available,” wrote OHL scout Matthew Burns in a November report. “His pace also fluctuated, particularly in defensive and off-puck involvement, and adding a more consistent extra gear would help increase his overall impact shift to shift.

At this stage, Kostov remains more of a junior scorer who dominates with his tools than a projectable NHLer. But if he can continue to develop defensively, improving his work rate and pace while boosting his skating, the late-bloomer could give himself an outside chance at a top-nine role.

From McKeen’s:

Kostov, in his final year of draft eligibility, finds himself firmly in the draft conversation thanks to a breakout year with the Flint Firebirds. He missed some time due to injury this year but returned for the playoffs where he was excellent in Flint’s two round run. In fact, Kostov has improved steadily each of his four OHL seasons; NHL scouts love to see that year over year growth. In his original draft year, he was seen as a possible late round pick as one of those big “toolsy” forwards who could one day put everything together. Fast forward to now and that appears to be happening.

HIGHLIGHTS

We’ll update this article throughout the day with additional information.
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