Jan Jeník’s path back to an NHL contract has taken longer than expected.
When the Arizona Coyotes selected him 65th overall in the 2018 NHL Draft, Jeník was viewed as a player with legitimate offensive upside. He had the skill, creativity, and confidence with the puck that made him one of the more interesting prospects in Arizona’s system.
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The difficult part was turning those tools into a consistent NHL role.
Over the past several seasons, Jeník has experienced the challenges that come with trying to establish himself at the highest level. He has moved through different organizations, spent significant time in the American Hockey League, and had to continue proving himself year after year.
But he never stopped producing.
Every time Jeník returned to the AHL, he found ways to make an impact and remind teams why he was once such a highly regarded prospect.
The Los Angeles Kings are the latest team willing to give him that chance.
Los Angeles signed Jeník to a one-year, two-way contract worth $850,000, adding a forward who has quietly built a strong professional resume and continues to search for a permanent NHL role.
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Jeník has always been at his best when he is allowed to create.
Jeník’s game has always been built around his ability to create with the puck. He has quick hands, sees the ice well, and is willing to take chances to make something happen. Whether it is beating a defender or finding a teammate in a tight spot, he has the skill to create offense.
That offensive ability has been the biggest reason teams have continued to keep an eye on him.
Jeník spent most of the 2025-26 season with the Belleville Senators, where he scored nine goals and recorded 17 points in 40 games before joining the Kings organization after a March trade. Although he has only appeared in 24 NHL games, his production in the AHL has shown why teams still believe there is more to his game.
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Through 260 career AHL games, Jeník has put together 166 points. His best season came in 2021-22 with the Tucson Roadrunners, when he tallied 17 goals, 30 assists, and 47 points in 51 games.
That year showed the type of impact Jeník can have when he’s confident. He drove the offense, created chances, and looked like a player who wasn’t giving up on another chance to play at the top level.
Before turning pro, Jeník was already showing those same offensive traits with the Hamilton Bulldogs of the Ontario Hockey League. He recorded 86 points in 54 games between 2018 and 2020, establishing himself as one of Czechia’s better young players and earning opportunities to represent his country internationally.
Now 25 years old, Jeník enters Los Angeles at an important stage of his career.
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He has experienced the highs and lows of professional hockey and understands how difficult it can be to earn a permanent NHL role. Reminiscent of Fabian Lysell’s ongoing reclamation project with the Colorado Avalanche, this is Jeník’s chance to erase the demons.
The talent has never been the question. The challenge has been consistency and that’s what makes this signing worth it for the Kings.
That is what makes this signing worth watching for the Kings. Jeník has already shown he can produce. The question is whether he can bring that same level of confidence and creativity into an NHL lineup on a regular basis.
For Jeník, this contract is another chance to show that the skill that made him a third-round pick seven years ago is still there.
For the Kings, it is an opportunity to find out if a player who has spent years fighting for his spot can finally put everything together at the NHL level.
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