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Following Day 1 of LA King Dev Camp, Alex Turcotte spoke with the media about the upcoming season and what he learned most from year one.
The 2020-21 season was a whirlwind year for LA Kings 2019 fifth overall pick Alex Turcotte. The Island Lake, Illinois, native guided Team USA to a gold medal at the 2021 World Juniors, tallying three goals and five assists in seven games, including scoring the golden goal.
From there, the 20-year-old joined the Ontario Reign of the American Hockey League, where he went over a month into game action before scoring his first professional goal. From there, Turcotte ripped off 12 points over his next 14 games, finding his stride. He finished the year on a high note, recording his first pro hat trick in the penultimate game.
Following Day 1 of the Kings Dev Camp, Turcotte reflected on his first year as a pro and what lies ahead.
On being back in Toyota Sports Performance Center
It’s nice to be with all the guys. I’ve actually been training here most of the summer anyway, so I’ve been back for a while, but just having other guys come in, especially all the guys I played with in Ontario and then meeting all the new guys, it’s great to finally meet them.
On coming into camp having a year of professional hockey under his belt.
I feel obviously a lot more comfortable. I remember my first Dev Camp a few years ago. I was pretty nervous, and I didn’t really know anyone. Now I pretty much know everyone and for the new guys just kind of introducing myself and helping them whenever I can if they have questions or anything. But yeah, it’s definitely nice being back here and knowing everyone.
Thoughts on last year overall.
Last year was great for me development-wise. Coming in, I didn’t start off too hot. It kind of took me a while to get going, and that was part of the process. I know that’s pretty normal, and obviously, you want to get going right away. It took me a little bit, but I felt by like halfway through the season, I got comfortable in my game and started playing my game more and started producing really well. [I] just kept that going for the rest of the year, and I thought I finished really strong.
On where he improved his game the most during the offseason.
Something I noticed coming in [was] just how strong everyone is in the corners, and you’re playing against grown men, and they’re really physical out there. That was something I needed to work on this summer was just getting more muscle and more strength, and I feel like I’ve had a great summer with that. I feel more than ready for this next season, and I feel like I’m taking everything I learned from last year into this season and I’m looking forward to it.
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