Kings GM Dean Lombardi has been known to wheel and deal his draft picks - trading up, trading down and often bundling them with an 'asset' when trading for another team's player.
At the 2009 NHL Draft, Lombardi did a two-for-one deal, sending the Kings fourth and fifth round selections (#107 and #138 overall) to Florida in exchange for the Panthers' third round slot in this year's entry draft.
Then, at the trading deadline in March, Lombardi packaged that pick with Teddy Purcell, sending them both to Tampa Bay for Jeff Halpern - a move Lombardi thought would help the Kings down the stretch and in the playoffs. After all, Halpern had played in 24 post season games - which was 24 more than Dustin Brown, Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty had at the time.
This article isn't about the Kings playoff run though. Instead, we take a look down the other side of the fork in the road created by the Kings-Lightning trade.
New Lighting GM Steve Yzerman used that third round draft pick to select Brock Beukeboom.
If that name sounds familiar, it should. Brock's father is Jeff Beukeboom, who was a punishing defenseman for the the Edmonton Oilers and New York Rangers. He collected four Stanley Cups before his career ended in 1999.
Like most recent drafts, bloodlines were a common theme at this year's event. Jarred Tinordi, the son of former NHLer Mark Tinordi, was the Canadiens' first-round pick. Fellow first rounder Nick Bjugstad is the nephew of former Kings forward Scott Bjugstad. Charlie Coyle, selected by the San Jose Sharks, is a double-dipper - he's related to Tony Amonte and Bobby Sheehan.
But Brock's current GM, Dave Torrie of the Soo Greyhounds, thinks there is more than just an obvious family connection with his player, saying "Brock Beukeboom is steadily becoming a force in the OHL. He has good offensive tools and also has the ability to throw big open ice hits that can change the tempo of a game."
In the interview below, The Mayor catches up with Brock on a variety of topics - including the draft process, living with the pressure of a famous father and playing for the legendary Soo Greyhounds in the OHL.
