Los Angeles Kings top prospect forward Valentin Zykov will miss up to four weeks with an injury that is “reported” to be a sports hernia. John Hoven who writes for Mayor’s Manor and is a reputable Kings insider tweeted this a few hours ago.
Hearing Valentin Zykov, #LAKings top rated prospect, has a hernia and will be out a minimum of four weeks.
— The Mayor John Hoven (@mayorNHL) November 1, 2014
Zykov was a second round pick (37th overall) of the Kings back in 2013, and has been playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with the Baie-Comeau Drakkar team for the past two years. In his first two seasons with Baie-Comeau, Zykov has played in 120 games, scoring 63 goals, and helping out with 75 assists. This season, Zykov has appeared in 13 games posting five goals, and nine assists before his reported injury.
Here is a section From Ben Kerr’s report on Zykov this summer:
Zykov is a big forward (already listed at 6’2″ 205 lbs) who plays with a gritty edge and is developing into a potential power forward. He goes to the net very hard and knows what to do when he gets there. He has great hands in tight and can make slick moves, tip in shots, or bury rebounds. A natural goal scorer Zykov also has a strong wrist shot and quick release. Zykov also works extremely hard in the corners, winning board battles, and playing a gritty, physical game. Zykov is very strong on the puck and protects it extremely well in the cycle game. He uses his body to shield off checkers and is strong on the puck and rarely knocked off of it by contact. As mentioned, he became more of a playmaker this year, finding open teammates off the cycle game, and using his ability to control the puck to extend plays, and wait for teammates to get open. He has very good vision and hockey sense.
Zykov’s skating is very unorthodox. His hunched over style means that his top end speed, and his acceleration are not as good as they could be and could use some work going forward. In particular his first few strides need improvement, as he needs to be quicker. He does however have good agility, and great balance and power that allow him to fight through checks and to drive to the front of the net with power. These skating issues will be the biggest area that Zykov must work on before he is able to crack the NHL as he has the other skills to look for in a power forward.
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