Kim Nousiainen

June 2022 – After his strong performance with KalPa of Liiga, Nousiainen was rewarded with a three-year entry-level contract from the Kings. The Finnish defender played eight games for the Reign to finish the year, putting up two points through eight games. He has strong instincts in the offensive zone and can slow the game down to use his skating ability to create a scoring opportunity. He is always a threat to shoot the puck and has overcome defensive blemishes and poor decision making to boast his growing strength in the transition game. 2022-23 will represent his first extended look in North America and should be given every chance to succeed as one of few left shooting defenders on the organization’s depth chart. He stands to log solid minutes and should get looks on the powerplay which will only help his overall development. Sean Crocker

April 2020 – The 19-year-old Finn has continued to grow his game with KalPa in the Liiga in his native Finland. He has appeared in 51 games contributing 19 points thus far while also representing team Finland in the 2020 World Junior Championships. He is a draft pick that carries high-risk, higher reward pedigree as he lacks size and muscle for a defenceman with many of his abilities being raw and in need of refinement. Although he is not a defensive liability his play on the back end will need to improve in order to make the jump to North America. The offensive upside he provides is very strong, and he will have to rely on those instincts to prove his long term offensive production outweighs the early growing pains and flaws with his game.  Julian Mongillo

June 2019 – Nousiainen has been drafted 119^th overall by the Kings.  Jokke Nevalainen

March 2019 – Nousiainen spent the first half of his draft season in Jr. A SM-liiga which is the top junior league in Finland. He produced eight goals and 28 points in 32 games. Even though he’s very good on the power play, only seven of those points were scored while on the man advantage which means his even strength production was excellent. Nousiainen was one of the best defensemen in the league, and he was still just 17 years old when he played most of those games. In December and January, he moved up to play pro games in Mestis and Liiga. He produced five points in eight games in Mestis. He also earned some fans at the Spengler Cup where KalPa won the tournament and Nousiainen was named to the All-Star Team. He’s now back in junior for the playoffs.

Nousiainen is an undersized offensive defenseman who loves to join the rush and take risks in the offensive zone. He doesn’t have blazing speed but he’s a very talented skater. His agility and acceleration are great. He doesn’t have a big bomb from the blue line but he can get his shots to the net pretty well. He’s an excellent playmaker who gives crisp passes and creates a lot of scoring chances. He’s a very creative player with great vision on the ice. His defensive game needs work, and sometimes his commitment to the defensive side of things has been lacking. But he has shown improvements in that area throughout the season which is a very positive sign. Nousiainen is likely going to get drafted in the middle rounds of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. In points-only dynasty leagues, he could be a worthwhile gamble. Just don’t expect him to provide much of anything in peripheral stats.  Jokke Nevalainen