{"id":29599,"date":"2025-07-01T10:27:09","date_gmt":"2025-07-01T10:27:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/29599\/"},"modified":"2025-07-01T10:27:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-01T10:27:09","slug":"best-friends-henry-brzustewicz-jared-woolley-excited-to-be-teammates-once-again-with-la-kings-organization","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/29599\/","title":{"rendered":"“Best friends” Henry Brzustewicz, Jared Woolley excited to be teammates once again with LA Kings organization"},"content":{"rendered":"

Getting drafted to the NHL is any young hockey player\u2019s dream.<\/p>\n

So, no matter where Henry Brzustewicz wound up this past weekend, I\u2019m sure he would\u2019ve been quite happy. The LA Kings, though, had someone in their organization who perhaps set them just a little bit higher on his list. His good friend and 2024 Kings draft pick Jared Woolley. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re best friends,\u201d Brzustewicz said. \u201cWe do a lot together during the season too. Just happy to have him here with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Woolley, he attended the draft alongside fellow Kings 2024 selection Liam Greentree and the pair watched in the Kings suite during Day 1 on Friday. Woolley went through the process in 2024 and was in attendance when he heard his name called at The Sphere in Las Vegas, his own special moment. <\/p>\n

He said it was almost like going through the process for the second time, though with way less nerves as it wasn\u2019t for him. He was a proud friend for Brzustewicz and so many others who saw their dreams come true as draft picks. <\/p>\n

\u201cI was fired up,\u201d Woolley said of seeing his good friend get selected by the Kings. \u201cI was sitting right there in the theater and when I saw it, I was very excited. It was nice being there as a fan, kind of coming here for the second time, you\u2019re just less nervous, there\u2019s nothing to worry about, you\u2019re just rooting for your boys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brzustewicz and Woolley have been teammates with the OHL\u2019s London Knights over the last two seasons, including a full season together in 2024-25 as the Knights skated to not only an OHL championship but also a Memorial Cup title. While they didn\u2019t play together every night as defensive partners, they spent the entire season together on the same blueline and the pairings shifted around routinely, sometimes game-to-game, so they played their fair share of minutes together last season. <\/p>\n

Today, during the first day of on-ice activity for Brzustewicz with the Kings organization, the two played together on a pairing during the scrimmage, a nice sense of familiarity for a new player in a new setting. Having a guy you know, who has gone through development camp once before, is certainly not a bad thing. <\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, he\u2019s been doing everything for me, honestly,\u201d Brzustewicz said after his first day of development camp. \u201cI\u2019m just following him and leaning on him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brzustewicz looked about as comfortable as one can during his first day of development camp, regardless of influence. He scored a nice goal during the 4-on-4 portion of the scrimmage, activating offensively and scoring on a nice move to the backhand. <\/p>\n

During the flow of play, I think some of his comfort level was attributed to playing alongside Woolley. Both players looked calm and collected on the ice and during a session where most players were getting to know each other on the ice, there were two players who looked like they\u2019ve been together before. In a short event like this, that type of thing stands out. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think our games go pretty good together,\u201d Woolley said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got chemistry and we kind of know what each other is doing on the ice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Getting drafted to the same team as your best friend >>>> pic.twitter.com\/aO8m6ObcLA<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 LA Kings (@LAKings) June 28, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Both players were a part of the squad that won OHL championships in 2024 and 2025, adding the Memorial Cup title in 2025. Brzustewicz called it \u201creally special\u201d to get over that hump in the postseason after coming up two games short the year prior. <\/p>\n

For both players, they had larger roles this time around as well, playing a bigger part on this season\u2019s club than they did in 2024. For a group that got almost all the way to the top of the mountain, without finishing the climb, it was huge to get the job done this spring. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was huge to win that last game, that\u2019s kind of what we thought about from the year prior,\u201d Woolley said. \u201cEvery game that you played during the regular season, going through playoffs, you don\u2019t want to think too far ahead, but it\u2019s in the back of your mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking forward to next season, the plan heading back to London next season at this time looks like the two could play together on the top defensive pair for the defending Memorial Cup champions. London has a few players graduating the OHL ranks and for two guys who play different styles on the backend and mesh well off the ice, the chance to play together in an elevated role is exciting for both of them, as well as it should be for the Kings, to see two of their most highly-touted defensive prospects playing on the same pairing in the OHL.<\/p>\n

What they\u2019ll be aiming to do is return to the Memorial Cup for the third straight season and, ideally, secure their second consecutive championship. <\/p>\n

In playing larger roles, it\u2019ll be an opportunity to expand their respective games. For Brzustewicz, he described himself as a 200-foot defenseman and someone who is able to elevate his game in the most important moments of the season. He showed himself well today during the scrimmage but it\u2019s not exactly a high intensity setting. Still, a good first day with the Kings on the ice. <\/p>\n

\u201cI take pride in all three zones,\u201d Brzustewicz said. \u201cI think my game excels in the higher moments, and I\u2019m really competitive, so I\u2019ll do anything to win.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Woolley, he\u2019s certainly known for his size, physicality and toughness but it\u2019s his ability to bring those thing in his game alongside an ability to move the puck effectively that makes him an exciting process. You won\u2019t mistake Woolley for an offense-first defenseman but he did highlight the offensive side of his game as the area he took his biggest strides in this past season. Woolley jumped from three goals and five points in 2023-24 to nine goals and 28 points in 2024-25, showcasing some additional aspects of his game.<\/p>\n

Certainly an exciting season ahead for both Kings prospects but plenty to come between now and then. Both will continue at development camp this week and both are expected to return for rookie camp and main camp in the fall. Woolley got into his first career NHL exhibition game last fall and that could be the same for Brzustweicz come this season\u2019s training camp. Lots to come for both and they\u2019re both happy to be able to go through it together. <\/p>\n