As expected, the first cuts from LA Kings training camp came on Monday, following the team’s Young Guns scrimmage at noon. Let’s deal with that first and then get to the cuts.
B v C tied 1-1 through regulation. Still tied after 3-minute, 3-on-3 OT. Heading to the shootout https://t.co/sgWge8g7Hj
— Alexander Legget (@LeggetNHL) September 21, 2026
Koehn Ziemmer wins it in the shootout for Group B https://t.co/wP97qj9VuC pic.twitter.com/ApKQ9uAnBl
— Alexander Legget (@LeggetNHL) September 21, 2026
Because each group was playing with fewer than a full lineup of 20 players, several guys on each side were being double-shifted — and primarily the centers.
Even so, there were a few line combinations and D-pairings worth noting:
Isogai – Pinelli – Jamsen
Guttman – Connors – Chromiak
Hughes – Slukynsky – Ziemmer
Ward – Lawrence – Doty
Hicketts – Brzustewicz
Kirsanov – Mastrodomenico
Roster Cuts Now Confirmed
Following today’s scrimmage, the Kings announced five players are being returned to their junior clubs:
Jan Chovan – F (Sudbury, OHL)
Adam Goljer – D (Kingston, OHL)
Jimmy Lombardi – F (Flint, OHL)
Giorgos Pantelas – D (Penticton, WHL)
Lucas Ambrosio – D (Erie, OHL)
This was expected, as the CHL’s 2026-27 regular season began over the weekend. However, there are two noticeable names not included among that group: forwards Liam Lefebvre and Vojtech Cihar.
We had an article on Lefebvre up over the weekend, see here. Indications are he’s now set to make his NHL preseason debut on Tuesday against Utah. It isn’t common for a first-year player to get into an exhibition game, which speaks to just how much he’s impressed the organization in a few short months since being drafted in the second round this past June.
Before departing SoCal today, we caught up with Chovan, who said he enjoyed his time in LA and was just trying to take in as much information from coaches as possible.
“This summer, I was working on overall strength and improving my skills,” he noted. “I was more focused on shooting, skating, and improving my shot. I’m excited for the season to get going too. While summer was long, I was working hard, so I want to play games. That’s what we do and why you work hard during the offseason.”
When we spoke with Lombardi, the Flint Firebirds forward expressed how his camp experience has been an extension of his offseason training, where he’s striving to get better and better each day.
“I want to build off last year, obviously trying to contribute more — like more goals, more assists, just help my team win,” he said. “I definitely want us to go on a deep run this year, hopefully my last year in juniors, and win something.”
He’s already signed his NHL entry-level contract, with the expectation that he’ll turn pro next summer. Coming off a breakout year, with 72 points in 65 games — featuring 36 goals — has brought him some extra attention, including consideration for Team Canada at the World Juniors.
AHL Camp Opens Tuesday
This is the weird part of the year every season, when AHL training camp opens. It’s a bit odd because there are a group of players officially reassigned from NHL training camp to the AHL (see list below). Then, there’s another group who remain with the Kings in camp, yet they often practice with the Reign, even though some will play for LA in preseason games. We’ll get to that latter group in just a moment.
From an official standpoint, here are the players who have been assigned to Reign training camp thus far:
Forwards: Vojtech Cihar, Kaleb Lawrence, Grant Slukynsky, Jacob Doty, Brendan Gorman, Jack Hughes, Kenta Isogai, Ryan O’Hara
Defensemen: Henry Brzustewicz, Michael Mastrodomenico, Nate Corbet, Jack Millar, Cameron Supryka
Goaltenders: Carter George, Hampton Slukynsky, Owen Flores
These are largely players competing for AHL jobs, and some will end up in the ECHL or elsewhere.
Cihar is an interesting situation to follow, as he can play in the WHL, AHL, or go back overseas for the season. He’s technically also eligible to play in the NHL, that’s considered an extreme longshot, though. His most likely destination either involves the WHL or AHL. Regardless, he’s scheduled to join his national team for the World Juniors in December.
What about names like Connors, Wright, Lee, Pinelli, Ziemmer, Booth, and Woolley?
They’re part of the tweener group. After today’s cuts, LA still has 42 players on the NHL roster. They’ll need to get down to 23 by next Monday. Before then, there are three preseason games scheduled — Tuesday vs. Utah, Wednesday vs. Anaheim, and Saturday vs. Anaheim again.
From a roster distribution standpoint, the first two games will feature about half of the bigger name players, like Kempe and Panarin. They’ll only get into one of those games mid-week games. Then, Saturday will feature close to the full team of starters.
With that in mind, consider this tweener group — the non-NHL regulars — as players 25 to 42 on the depth chart. They’ll be used to round out the Kings rosters on Tuesday and Wednesday night against the Mammoth and Ducks.
By Thursday or Friday, expect another round of camp cuts, as the Kings will look to get down to about 25 guys in advance of the final preseason game on Saturday.
Lead photo by Megan Sanders
MORE LA KINGS NEWS:
Laviolette on Perry’s Absence, Zuccarello’s Timeline, and Other Camp Notes from Monday
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