Assistant General Manager Mike Futa will no longer be under the employ of the Los Angeles Kings organization. According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the two sides have parted ways as of Monday morning. Futa will have the opportunity to speak to other teams, pending the approval of the Kings.
Not exactly sure of terminology here, so going with this: LA and assistant GM Mike Futa are parting ways. Futa, whose expertise is draft and amateur scouting, is allowed to talk to other teams now. Kings still have director of amateur scouting Mark Yannetti to run their draft.
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) May 11, 2020
Mike Futa Parts Ways With Los Angeles Kings
Futa leaves Los Angeles after serving a respectable 13-year term with the team in various capacities. He was brought on for the 2007-08 campaign as a co-director of amateur scouting for the team. He held that position through the 2013-14 season, after which the team promoted him to Vice President of Hockey Operations and Director of Player Personnel. His role switched again prior to the 2017-18 season when he started serving as an assistant general manager. He held that role until his departure today. For that 2017-18 campaign, he also served as the general manager for Los Angeles’ AHL affiliate in Ontario, whose season officially ended Monday.
What This Means for the Future
Futa was a large part of helping draft the core of the 2012 and 2014 Kings teams that won the franchise’s first two Stanley Cups. Under his reign, he drafted players such as Drew Doughty, Tanner Pearson, and Tyler Toffoli, all of which were key contributors. Futa will have no issue finding a job elsewhere in the NHL, and a team may hire him to fill a general manager vacancy. He does have experience in that role, having served as the general manager of the OHL’s Owen Sound Attack from 2002 to 2007.
As Friedman states, his departure leaves Mark Yannetti in charge of the Kings’ draft this year, in conjunction with General Manager Rob Blake. He arrived one year before Futa and serves as the team’s Director of Amateur Scouting. It’ll be on him to help right the ship in Los Angeles.
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