Former Peterborough Pete Akil Thomas Signs Two-Year Extension With the Los Angeles Kings

Former Peterborough Petes Akil Thomas is staying in the City of Angels as he signed a two-year contract with the Los Angeles Kings through the 2025-26 season, announced on Thursday.

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

The contract is worth an average annual value of $775,000. 

The Petes acquired him in a trade from the Niagara IceDogs in January 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. On May 15 last year, 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.

Thomas 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.

The Toronto native 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.

On July 8, he signed a one-year deal with the Kings after his entry-level contract had expired.

He played 64 games with the Reign last season, scoring 22 goals and 24 assists.

Thomas debuted with the Kings on April 1 against the Winnipeg Jets after an upper-body injury to centreman Philip Danault.

In his seven games with Los Angeles, he scored three goals and an assist including a game-winner against the San Jose Sharks on April 4.

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