Kings right wing Tyler Toffoli finds a way to score

Tyler Toffoli, a true believer of persistence, as evidenced by his Toronto Blue Jays T-shirt, was musing about the art of goal scoring on a recent off day.

Or you could call it the lost art of goal scoring, given the current NHL climate. Toffoli, the Kings’ right wing, and his center, Jeff Carter, have combined to score 17 of the Kings’ 46 goals this season.

“We both have an idea of where to go on the ice,” said Toffoli, who has 10 goals and 17 points in 18 games. “We think the same. Obviously, he’s a shooter and I’m a shooter and have that same mind-set.

“It’s weird. Brownie [Dustin Brown] was getting 10 shots a game. He’s hitting posts and losing the puck in front, an open net.”

Toffoli’s shrug showed that it is sometimes difficult to explain the random nature of goal-scoring, and made reference to a game at St. Louis.

“You look at Carts and myself, shooting the puck off the goalie and it’s going in,” he said. “Call it luck or I don’t even know what you call it, but we just find a way.”

Toffoli is in that transitional period, no longer one of the youngest kids in the dressing room and rapidly becoming one of the faces of the franchise. If the Kings needed someone to step up for a community appearance in the summer, Toffoli seemingly appeared at every function.

The 23-year-old is finding his way, on and off the ice, and embracing the role of budding NHL star. He was tied for fourth in goal-scoring heading into Thursday night’s games, three goals behind leader Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks.

“He makes plays. He makes people around him better,” said Michael Futa, the Kings’ vice president of hockey operations and director of player development. “There’s a swagger and a confidence that is not arrogance. It’s fun to be around. You can poke fun and take shots. He’s got that ‘it’ factor.

“He’s a baby. That being said, he’s experienced a lot. World Championships and he wins himself a gold medal [with Team Canada], a Stanley Cup and a 57-goal season under your belt in the OHL [Ontario Hockey League]. American Hockey League rookie of the year.

“A lot to put on your resume, and you think how much that resume can grow if he still buys in and continues to get better with his off-ice habits.”

Former Kings player Ray Ferraro, an analyst for Canadian cable network TSN, drew a comparison between Toffoli and Joey Mullen, who scored 502 career goals in 16 NHL seasons, and made the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2000.

“The one thing he [Toffoli] has, I see a little bit of Joey Mullen in this,” Ferraro said. “Joey Mullen was never a pretty skater, but when he got to the puck, it was like he became so strong. He never got knocked off of it. He never got his stick lifted.”

The NHL used to be defined by trios — often snappy or even sappy nicknames bestowed upon lines. Now it’s more about duos — Carter and Toffoli, and when things have gone well for the Kings, center Anze Kopitar and Marian Gaborik.

Now, the left wing on Carter’s line is Milan Lucic, who has been on a solid scoring run with four goals in the last five games. Last season, Tanner Pearson, Carter and Toffoli were the most dynamic line in the league the first month of the season.

“It’s weird. You play with some guys and you’re like, ‘This isn’t going to work,’” Carter said. “Some guys you have a couple practices and it’s going to be pretty good.

“I don’t know how to explain it. You just get that feeling and you know.”

Toffoli spent most of the summer in Los Angeles and consistently worked out with a group of Kings players, including Carter.

He joked about Carter’s lack of body fat, saying: “The guy is a freak. It’s not fair.”

For Toffoli, the partnership and being trusted in the final minutes of games by King Coach Darryl Sutter is a far cry from his less-disciplined days. He cycled back to those times when the topic of his recent contract came up. In the summer, Toffoli signed a bridge deal, a two-year agreement worth $6.5 million.

At the time, Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi lavished praise on the youngster, noting that by taking the deal and not trying to “shoot for the moon,” Toffoli left room for the organization to make other moves.

Said Toffoli: “I think if I were anywhere else, I don’t think I’d be in this position. My first training camp was an eye-opener. Dean, some of the things they said to me, I really don’t want to talk about.

“I was clearly in terrible shape. I wasn’t very well-conditioned. If you want to say the commitment wasn’t there, I was just getting by on skill in junior. Without those things, I wouldn’t be in this position.”

Futa, who has known Toffoli since the forward was in his early teens, remembered another unpleasant moment. Lombardi and Futa went to watch Toffoli play with his junior team, the Ottawa 67s.

“He [Futa] hasn’t always been positive,” Toffoli said. “I think I had a 20-game point streak and I found out he was coming with Dean. I think I was minus-five that night. Dean and Futs had some words to say to me. It was a learning experience.

“At the time, I was stubborn. I thought I was ‘all that’ in junior. But they’ve had my back throughout everything.”

KINGS NEXT UP

AT DETROIT

When: Friday, 4:30 p.m. PST

On the air: TV: FS West; Radio: 790.

Etc.: Goalie Petr Mrazek is scheduled to start against the Kings, according to the Detroit Free Press. Brad Richards, who appears ready to return to the lineup, will be a game-day decision. He has been limited to six games this season because of injuries.

lisa.dillman@latimes.com

Twitter: @reallisa