Kings’ draft pick Derek Forbort enjoys summer development camp

Defenseman Derek Forbort, the Kings’ 2010 first-round draft pick, was so eager to attend their summer development camp that he paid his way and shelled out for his hotel and meals.

He had to do all that, actually, because he plans to return for a second season at the University of North Dakota and NCAA rules prohibit players from taking any extra benefits.

“It kind of stinks,” he said of paying all the bills, “but it’s worth being here. It’s good to get a little better taste of what the pro game is like and trying to adjust to it.”

The 19-year-old from Duluth, Minn., was the tallest player at the two-day development camp, which ended on-ice activities Tuesday with a scrimmage and intensive practice in El Segundo. He was listed at 6 feet 5 and a scrawny 198 pounds, “and I don’t know if he’s that,” assistant General Manager Ron Hextall said. “He’s very immature physically, I think. For his age he’s probably on par but he’s in school there with 20-, 21-, 22-, 23-year-olds.”

Hextall knows what Forbort faces at North Dakota: Hextall’s son Brett played three seasons there before signing with the Phoenix Coyotes. Hextall visited the campus for the last parents’ weekend and hoped to monitor Forbort’s progress but Forbort was battling mononucleosis at the time.

“It’s a great program and they develop hockey players,” Hextall said. “I think last year was a learning year for him. He played well at times. He started out with some power-play time, some penalty-killing time. He played a lot. Then about Christmas he seemed to hit a bit of a wall. He went to the world juniors and didn’t play a lot. Came back and he struggled for a bit and then he picked up towards the end of the year.

“There’s a learning curve for him. He’s a big guy who can really skate and again, physically he’s got a lot of maturing to do.”

Forbort plans to stay in college two or three years “and see where it takes me from there,” he said Tuesday. “The Kings are happy with where I am at North Dakota. It’s a great school for developing guys.”

Yorba Linda man

At the other end of the draft spectrum from Forbort was undrafted goaltender Adam Brown of Yorba Linda, who was invited to camp on a tryout. The son of Newell Brown, a former Ducks assistant coach who’s now on the Vancouver Canucks’ coaching staff, Brown has played three seasons for Kelowna of the Western Hockey League.

“Every year you see hockey growing and growing in Southern California,” he said. “I think the WHL is getting bigger among California kids and just kids from the United States in general, mostly on the West Coast. I liked the option. It was better for me. It fit what I wanted a little better.”

Brown, who will be 20 in October, said his family still has a home in Yorba Linda. He expects to return to Kelowna next season but is grateful for the invitation to the Kings’ camp.

“It was a huge thrill. I was really excited,” he said. “Going to any camp would be a thrill but especially so close to home.’

Ship shape

General Manager Dean Lombardi said he was pleased with the efforts of the development camp participants, especially with the work of players such as Brandon Kozun and Tyler Toffoli to improve their conditioning. Lombardi said he took special notice of players’ fitness while they did a series of lunges on the beach.

“I’m not sure I would have seen this, to that level, six years ago,” he said. “It’s starting to filter down. Players have been through and then it’s handed down that this is the way you do things.

“I was really impressed with the way these kids are so focused and committed.”

Lombardi said the staff will meet to decide which players will be invited to the main training camp in September.

Penner looks trim

Speaking of conditioning, a player who isn’t known for being in good shape turned heads Tuesday with his trimmed-down physique.

Left wing Dustin Penner, a disappointment after the Kings acquired him in a trade with Edmonton Feb. 28, was at the El Segundo training facility at 7:30 a.m. to work out and said he has shed some weight.

“Most of my workouts have been around two hours, depending on the day, with an ice-time session, but now it’s pretty much an 8-to-2 job,” he said. “It’s different, I think, for a lot of guys who come here from other teams. We weren’t used to this type of intensity.”

He attributed the Kings’ fast start last season to players’ high-level conditioning. “With the team we’ve got this year and everybody on the same page as far as that goes we’ll be tough to stop,” he said.

His dedication to fitness for the team’s sake is admirable but there’s some personal gain to be made, too. There’s no motivation like playing for a new contract, and he’s entering the final season of his current deal. “I have heard that,” he said, smiling.

helene.elliott@latimes.com

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