Warren Foegele has settled into the California lifestyle and is excelling in his first season with the Los Angeles Kings.
The 29-year-old forward has set NHL career highs in goals (22), points (43) and plus-minus rating (plus-32) in 79 games with the Kings, who will begin the Stanley Cup Playoffs against his former team in the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference First Round.
"It's been a lot of fun," Foegele said. "I think the fit has been really good. I couldn't have asked for a better fit. It's always a little nerve-racking going to a new team. I've done it before, but I think this transition has been a lot easier than the first time I went to a new team, and it's gone really well."
The Kings (46-24-9) visited the Oilers (47-28-5) on Monday for the last time before competing in the first round for the fourth straight season.
This time around, though, Foegele is on the other side of the matchup after winning the previous three with the Oilers. He signed a three-year $10.5 million contract ($3.5 million average annual value) with Los Angeles on July 1, 2024, and is enjoying the West Coast sunshine while feeling more at ease than in past seasons.
"I think my mental health is probably in a better place than it has been in the past," Foegele said. "It's always sunny and it always puts you in a better mood when the sun is out.
"It's unique because a year ago, you went to battle with those guys and made it to the Stanley Cup Final. They were a bunch of great guys, and we fell short in the last game of the season. Those guys know me well and they know that I'm super competitive. The friendships will always last forever, but a bunch of those guys know that once the playoffs start, we won't be friends, and then we'll go back to being friends once the series is over."
Foegele played the previous three seasons for the Oilers and had a breakout campaign in 2023-24, getting 41 points (20 goals, 21 assists) in 82 games and helping Edmonton advance to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, a 2-1 loss to the Florida Panthers.
This season for the Kings, he's been providing secondary scoring in a third-line role, has been an effective penalty killer, and is averaging 16:11 of ice time, up from 13:59 last season.
"His 200-foot game has gotten better, and it's gotten better over the last couple months," Kings coach Jim Hiller said. "We've asked him to focus on a couple things, and to his credit, he's done that, and he's done it very, very well. I feel really good about his game right now and I think he's fit in really well, and he's got a bit of a character.
"We've talked about it before, you need character and characters, and I think he's one of those guys that, I don't know the right way to say it, he can bring energy into the room."
Selected by the Carolina Hurricanes in the third round (No. 67) of the 2014 NHL Draft, Foegele broke into the League as a bottom-six forward predominately used in a checking role before he was traded to the Oilers for defenseman Ethan Bear on July 28, 2021. He played a similar role in his first two seasons in Edmonton, but he then got an opportunity to play on a line with Leon Draisaitl, who this season leads the NHL with 52 goals and is third with 106 points in 71 games.
"I learned a lot playing in Edmonton and I learned a lot playing with Leon," Foegele said. "He's a heck of a player. He can be hard on his linemates sometimes, but I think in the long run it's beneficial. He really taught me a lot of things.
"Leon is one of the top players in the world and he has high expectations for himself. I think one of the things I do remember him saying is that you can't just do it every couple of games, you have to try and do it every night. That's probably one of the hardest things to do in this league is to be consistent. I think I've taken that message from him and tried to apply it, especially this year. I'm trying to be as consistent as I can."
Foegele has seen his role continually evolve with the Kings. Of his 22 goals, 21 have been scored at even strength, including one on a penalty shot. Last season, 19 of his 20 goals were at even strength.
"I think the No. 1 thing is confidence, the confidence that my current teammates give me and the confidence from my coach," Foegele said. "When guys get ice time, that's a message from the coach that he trusts you on the ice and you're going to feel a lot more confident. I thought I had the confidence last year as well with (Oilers coach) Kris Knoblauch and I'm pretty fortunate Jim Hiller has that confidence in me as well."
Foegele had never scored more than 13 goals in a season before getting 20 last season.
"It's hard to score in this league and that's something that I take a lot of pride in," Foegele said. "I took a lot of pride in Edmonton too. I think I was third in 5-on-5 goals last year and that's probably something that doesn't get talked about enough, being able to score 5-on-5, not everyone is going to get out there on the power play. I think I've always been a good 5-on-5 player, and here getting more minutes, I've gotten more goals 5-on-5."
Foegele has developed chemistry at left wing on a line with center Phillip Danault and right wing Trevor Moore. They provide depth up front, something that's become a strength for the Kings.
"Those guys are part of the reason why I thought I would be a good fit coming to Los Angeles," Foegele said. "Both are super tenacious, they're hard working, they're smart players and they're competitive. It's been a lot of fun playing with them for the last month or so together. Both of them are really good hockey players and they make my job a lot easier out there."
The Kings are hoping a balanced lineup will finally get them past the Oilers. Foegele's experience going on a long Cup run with Edmonton should help as well.
"You know what you are going to get from [Foegele]," Danault said. "I remember playing against him in the back in Carolina and also Edmonton. He's always annoying to play against, steady, speed, strong, so, yeah, a reliable player and a key piece for us."
NHL.com independent correspondent Dan Greenspan contributed to this report
