New Forward Matt Frattin A Terrific Fit For Los Angeles Kings


Matt Frattin

Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

It’s been a little while since the Los Angeles Kings shipped Jonathan Bernier off to the Toronto Maple Leafs, with the dust having cleared and the knee-jerk reactions turning into logical thought. Or at least some of them. Nonetheless, it’s hard to look at this deal from the Kings’ perspective and say that they didn’t win it.

The Kings won the deal, and they won big. It didn’t matter that they traded a goalie with Bernier’s potential. Regardless of where they ended up moving him, it was going to be a win. They have one of the three best goaltenders on the planet, down year or not, already residing in the crease, in Jonathan Quick. Getting anything for their backup was a win.

Which means that what the Kings ended up getting makes the win even bigger. Ben Scrivens is a nice piece in the deal. He’s a quality guy in the locker room and will replace Bernier as a steady backup presence. But the real piece to pay attention to in the deal is Matt Frattin.

Frattin didn’t really get a chance to crack the lineup regularly with the Maple Leafs. He played in 25 games with Toronto in 2013, finishing with 13 points, just two short of his career high, which came in more than twice as many games. He has 28 points in 82 career tilts.

He’s not the type of guy who’s going to set the world on fire offensively, but he’s a fit with the Kings. He plays the physical game that this Kings club plays so well. He does have some speed as well, and a good shot. There’s more offensive upside than many realize, and he’ll fit right in with this club in the bottom six.

It’ll be interesting to see how Frattin fares in a full season. He could help to ease the loss of Dustin Penner, if that ends up becoming the case in free agency. Overall, it was a great deal for the Kings, and Frattin should prove to be a terrific fit for them.


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