Los Angeles Kings Re-Sign Peterborough Petes Alumnus Akil Thomas To One-Year Deal

Peterborough Petes Alumnus Akil Thomas is staying in California as the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings signed him to a one-year two-way contract worth $775,000 on Saturday.

Akil Thomas skating with a young fan prior to a game. Photo courtesy of the PEterborough Petes.

He was acquired by the Petes in a trade from the Niagara IceDogs in Jan. 2020 for Cameron Butler, two second-round picks (2020, 2022), one third-round pick (2022) and a fourth-round pick (2024).

He played 22 games for the Petes, scoring nine goals and 31 assists before the Ontario Hockey League was shut down by the COVID-19 pandemic. Thomas was invited back to the Peterborough Memorial Centre for Game Three of the OHL Championship against the London Knights as part of the pre-game ceremonies to pump up the fans on May 15.

The Toronto native is well-known for his game-winning goal for Team Canada in the gold-medal game against Russia at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship in the Czech Republic.

Thomas was drafted by the Kings in 2018 in the second round, 51st overall. Following his OHL career, Thomas spent time with the Kings’ AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign since the 2020-21 season. He has yet to play a regular-season game with the Kings since being drafted into the NHL.

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