There are a lot of factors that go into having a “big year.”
And we all know that the Kings need a big year from Brandt Clarke this season.
With changes on the blueline, as Vladislav Gavrikov and Jordan Spence will play elsewhere next season, Clarke’s importance to the team this season shouldn’t need all that much explanation. Ken Holland, on numerous occasions, has spoken about his belief in Clarke and his desire for Clarke to play a larger role this season. We should all want that.
But I can see why, on the surface, there might be hesitation about whether or not it will actually come into fruition, in ways that don’t really concern Clarke.
Clarke was technically not a rookie last season but it was his first full go around at the NHL level. He played in games during the 2023-24 campaign but he was largely with the AHL’s Ontario Reign, where he was an AHL All-Star and one of the more impactful blueliners in that league, tallying 46 points (10-36-46) from 50 games played. He came into camp last fall projected in the lineup for Game 1 and he was.
It’s actually kind of staggering to think about how rare it is to have a defenseman of Clarke’s age playing every night on a playoff team. Of players drafted in 2021 – Clarke’s draft year – or later just five played each playoff game their club participated in. Only Lian Bichsel from Dallas did so on a team that advanced past Round 1. Doesn’t happen often on teams at or approaching contention.
In 2024-25, Clarke played in all but four regular-season games and in all six playoff games. He was in the lineup, certainly, but not utilized as much as he perhaps could have been. Clarke plays a game that is different than just about anyone on the Kings and that’s what makes him such an exciting player. He brings different things to the table.
Ultimately, the usage comes down to coaching decisions, which have a variety of factors involved. It was often wondered if player and coach were on the same page at times last season. For those wondering now, they certainly seem to be. Clarke said he’s been in constant communication with Kings Head Coach Jim Hiller and Associate Coach D.J. Smith throughout the summer, with Hiller specifically expressing a lot of proactive excitement about the season to come.
“Jimmy’s reached out to me a ton of times, sending clips and just talking about how excited he is for me this season and how proud he was of situations and how I handled myself last year,” Clarke said. “It’s all things I want, it’s really comforting to hear. I want to be an LA King for forever, for as long as I play, so it’s really comfortable, really encouraging that they’re saying all these things to me.”
I’ve always appreciated Clarke’s honesty and willingness to talk with some depth about different areas of his game and his team’s game.
For example, when asked about how the Jordan Spence trade might open up an opportunity, he spoke first about losing a teammate like Spence, before how it impacts his role and opportunity personally. Skating in Ottawa in the summer, he’s actually been on the ice with a number of Senators players and said he’s told them all “how much they’re going to love this guy.” The person before the moment.
In getting so much communication from Hiller directly, Clarke wondered aloud if that was common, if that was the norm, at this level. It was, after all, his first summer after a full NHL season, so he doesn’t know anything different.
He went so far as to ask other players he trains with if that’s normal for them. He said most told him it was fairly uncommon. “Unique” as he put it. And that resonated with him, that the staff thinks of him in that way and it made him feel good about the summer work he was putting in and the expectations for him in the season to come.
“I’m really happy with the communication they’ve had with me, I feel like I know where I stand, I know where they stand and everything’s going good,” Clarke added. “I’m honored to be in that spot and that they see me as a key contributor this coming season and they have the belief in me and just want to know that we’re all kind of on the same page and that’s exactly how I feel. It’s going to be exciting to have camp rolling, go to preseason games and have the puck officially drop in October. It’s going to be good and I’m excited to get things going.”
For all of the conversation around the defensemen added/subtracted in free agency, I don’t think there’s enough conversation about specifically about Clarke.
As noted HERE, Drew Doughty’s situation, related to his injury last year, is of massive importance. Hopefully more to come on that front. With Clarke, though, there is opportunity abound. His offensive and puck-moving gifts are unique to him and he’s working hard to improve the other areas of his game.
Clarke pinpointed the usual answer of speed and strength as areas he’s working on improving, but as he tends to do, he took it a level deeper, noting that his “first step takeoff” has been a huge summer priority. He was by no means a bad skater last season, which is supported by NHL Edge data. Clarke ranked in the NHL’s 67th percentile amongst defensemen for speed bursts between 20 and 22 MPH and the 81st percentile for bursts between 18 and 20 MPH. But as he went through his full season, he found it as an area that he felt needed improvement.
After Game 6, Clarke said he felt relatively good from a health standpoint. He didn’t feel a ton of need to take that much time off. He craved routine and regiment and got in the gym and on the ice perhaps sooner than most. Coming off his first 82-game season in the NHL, he has a better sense this summer for the areas he wants to work on, because now he’s been through it all and seen how things play out.
“I could just notice what was weaker, what was stronger, throughout the season last year and I’m just focused on hitting some of my weaker spots and being able to sustain that,” he said. “I think just because it’s such a wear 82 games playing every other night, I think it just wears you down, so I’ve just been trying to build a strong overall base and then add speed to my style and it’s been going really good. I’m really happy with where I’m at. I feel like the quickest I’ve ever been right now and I’ve noticed a huge improvement there, so I’m just really happy with how everything’s going.”
That first step could be huge at both ends of the ice.
If you look at the league’s most gifted offensive defensemen, you see percentile numbers in the 80’s and 90’s on a regular basis on those skating metrics for just about all of them. While Clarke’s skating style is a bit unique, it was never thought of as a flaw in his game. Just something that was a little bit different. Even a small step in that area could make a world of difference, especially at the offensive end. Being quicker – and doing quicker – should go a long way for a player who can make things happen with the puck on his stick that most other defensemen in the NHL can’t.
Clarke’s hopeful that his summer progress can help lead into more meaningful minutes come the 2025-26 season.
As noted, playing every night on a playoff team is a rarity for a player of Clarke’s age and experience level but he was also the eighth pick in the draft for a reason. He’s different. From the way Clarke described the conversations with Hiller, it sounds as if both player and coach are excited about an increased role this season. Holland has said similar things. When the clock wound down, often Clarke saw himself on the bench. Heading into the 202-26 season, it’s his goal to play more in those key moments, where he feels he excels.
“I want to get back to playing those late game situations,” Clarke said, candidly. “At times where they kind of pulled me back a little bit, I was just itching because we’d be in those tight games, up a goal, down a goal and I wanted to be out there, that’s where I feel like I strive the most, is when stuff’s on the line and the pressure rises. I think that’s just going to come this year and I’m looking forward to that but it’s also an onus on me. Coming to camp in shape, be reliable, be productive, be a good teammate, that’s all things that I want to do and that’s all things that I’ve put myself in the right mindset to do. Obviously nothing’s happened yet, but I think I’m really in the right mindset to get all those things checked off, be a great teammate and help the team in any way I can.”
Clarke’s doing all the right things. His relationship with the coaching staff feels stronger than it’s ever been. The Kings need difference makers on the backend.
The stage certainly feels set for Clarke to excel. One of the most exciting players to watch when camp opens next month.