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Goalie Notes: Quick, Lehner, Rask

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The rumor mill is usually relatively quiet at this time of year, but the trade whispers surrounding Jonathan Quick that began last season simply haven’t gone away. Much of the discussion is likely internal or at least hypothetical, as there is no reason believe there is a solid market for Quick right now, especially given his start to the season. Through two starts, Quick is 0-2 and has allowed a shocking 14 goals on just 56 shots. His .750 save percentage, very bad in its own right, is more than 70 points lower than the next-worst save percentage, while his 7.17 GAA is one of only two in the league over 6.00 early on. When Quick is on his game, he has proven himself to be one of the top goaltenders in the NHL, but after a miserable 2018-19 campaign, he’s off to the wrong start if he wants to show that he can still be that guy. Quick’s early struggles have both local and national hockey pundits weighing in on his future. With backup Jack Campbell coming off a breakout campaign and signed affordably through 2022 and promising collegiate prospect Cal Petersen waiting in the wings, the rebuilding Kings would likely be open to moving Quick and his $5.8MM cap hit through 2023. The question is whether there is a team willing to gamble on Quick’s history and upside at the risk of his injury issues and performance problems. With a change of scenery or perhaps the right coaching staff, Quick’s salary could actually still be a bargain if he gets back to peak form, however unlikely it may seem to some. The Columbus Blue Jackets and Ottawa Senators are the only obvious teams with both the need and cap capacity to add Quick, and neither is likely to pull the trigger on a trade this early in the season. The Kings are likely stuck with him for a while and need to start thinking of different ways to help improve the play of a long-time franchise leader and star.

  • Robin Lehner is set to make his first appearance as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks, getting the start on Saturday, and the door is wide open for him to make far more starts moving forward. Through two games, incumbent Corey Crawford is 0-2 with an .875 save percentage and a 4.63 GAA that is third-worst among goalies with multiple starts. It’s a bad start for Crawford after missing considerable time due to injury in each of the past two seasons and performing poorly in the majority of looks he did get last year. Meanwhile, Lehner is a reigning Jennings Trophy winner and Vezina candidate after a dominant season with the New York Islanders. A strong start to his Blackhawks tenure could easily change the status quo of the tandem. Lehner isn’t just fighting for starts this season either; both he and Crawford are impending UFA’s at season’s end and a 28-year-old with a recent history of success is going to have a much better shot at a new long-term commitment than a 35-year-old with a recent history of injury and inconsistency. The first step toward Lehner potentially becoming the main man in net for Chicago for a long time begins tonight.
  • After the whistle blew on an intense match-up between the Boston Bruins and Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday, Bruins starter Tuukka Rask limped off the ice with help from his teammates. There was little word from the team as to the extent of Rask’s injury, but he did dress as the backup for their game on Thursday night. Tonight, in what would normally be his regular turn in net, Rask appears ready to go. The long-time Bruin is expected to make the start and The Boston Globe’s Matt Porter relays from head coach Bruce Cassidy that there are no lingering issues from whatever did occur on Tuesday. Rask is 2-0 with just four goals allowed on 63 shots so far. He and backup Jaroslav Halak have both picked up right where they left off last season, as both are in the top ten in save percentage and goals against average early on.

Kings Sign Jack Campbell To Two-Year Extension

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The Los Angeles Kings will not have to spend any time this season worrying about their future goaltending depth. With starter Jonathan Quick signed through 2022-23 and promising prospect Cal Petersen locked up through 2021-22, the Kings have announced an extension with backup Jack Campbell as well. It is a two-year, $3.3MM deal for Campbell beginning after this coming season, keeping him under contract through 2021-22 as well at a discount cap hit of just $1.65MM.

One has to wonder if this contract came with a handshake agreement that Campbell would take over as the Kings starter during or immediately after the term of the deal. The 27-year-old Campbell was set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer and, while $1.65MM is a nice bump up from the $675K that he’ll receive in the final year of his current contract, it doesn’t seem to accurately reflect what his market value could have been. Campbell has been a revelation for L.A. since the team took a flier on him in a minor trade with the Dallas Stars in 2016. In 37 appearances with the club, Campbell has posted a stunning .928 save percentage and 2.30 GAA. 31 of those appearances (25 of which were starts) came last season alone and produced identical numbers, which also landed in the top five among NHL goalies with at least 25 appearances. It’s fair to argue that Campbell was the very best backup goaltender in the NHL in 2018-19. So why did he sign so early and for so little?

The rumors that the Kings are shopping Quick have persisted for several years now. The two-time Stanley Cup-winning keeper is one of the most decorated goalies in the NHL, but missed most of the 2016-17 season due to injury, prompting the initial rumors, and then followed up a Jennings Trophy-winning 2017-18 campaign with a career-worst performance last season, which also included more injury issues. Quick did not look like himself last year and some believe that L.A. will continue to try to move on from the veteran and the remainder of his hefty contract before things get worse. If they succeed, Campbell would take over as starter. It could be that the promise or at least the likelihood of this scenario unfolding may have led to this underwhelming deal for the current backup.

On the other hand, Campbell is obviously a late bloomer and putting up these numbers at age 27 makes him a less exciting name than a much younger backup in the situation. Campbell also lacks the sample size that some might like to see before calling him a starter-caliber goaltender. If he had a repeat performance of last season, he could have demanded much more on the open market. However, if his numbers had dropped off, he would have be overshadowed by a strong goalie market next off-season. Not only could starters like Braden Holtby, Robin Lehner, and Jacob Markstrom be available, but some of the league’s other top backups – Thomas Greiss, Darcy Kuemper, Jaroslav Halak, Anton Khudobin – and several veterans set to transition into backup roles – Jimmy Howard, Corey Crawford, Craig Anderson – could also hit the market. Despite the fact that he outplayed all of these netminders last season in his limited action, it could be that Campbell took the safe route and opted to stay in a situation that he was comfortable with. The worst case scenario for Campbell would be that he continues to play exceedingly well, but Quick also returns to form and he remains stuck as the backup. But even in that scenario, Campbell would still generate quite the trade market, especially at his inexpensive price tag.

Cal Petersen Signs Multi-Year Contract

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The Los Angeles Kings have secured one of their young goaltenders for several years, signing Cal Petersen to a three-year contract. The deal carries an average annual value of $858,333 and is a two-way deal in 2019-20.

Petersen, 24, is a very interesting player to watch for the Kings the next several years. Signed as a free agent after he decided not to agree to a contract with the Buffalo Sabres in 2017, Petersen has now played two seasons in the minor leagues and made his NHL debut when the Kings were without any goaltenders at one point. In 11 games at that level he recorded a .924 save percentage and 5-4-1 record despite the team not having a good year. Considered a legitimate NHL prospect, a three-year deal locks him in at a huge bargain if the team decides he’s ready to take on some of the load.

His presence, along with that of 27-year old Jack Campbell, creates a fascinating situation in Los Angeles. Veteran starter Jonathan Quick still has four years left on his contract that carries a $5.8MM cap hit, and is a franchise icon that helped them to two Stanley Cup runs including a Conn Smythe trophy in 2012. Quick is one of the most accomplished American-born goaltenders in NHL history, but is also now 33, coming off years of injuries and just posted an .888 save percentage through 46 games.

Quick’s contract comes with a large cap hit, but drops dramatically in actual salary after this season. In the last three years of the contract the veteran netminder is owed just $9MM total, and amazingly he has no trade protection in the 10-year deal. If the Kings decided to move on, Petersen could be in line to take on at least some of the starting responsibility if they deem him ready. The question is whether that would be an improvement, especially since Campbell is scheduled for unrestricted free agency of his own next summer and likely will look for a substantial raise.

Either way, a three-year deal gives Petersen some stability and keeps him in the organization he chose after leaving college. It will also take him right to UFA status in 2022, the earliest he could have been eligible for it.

Snapshots: Competition Committee, Imoo, Byron

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When the NHL/NHLPA Competition Committee convenes tomorrow in Toronto, the players’ side will be represented by some of the biggest names in the game. The NHLPA has announced that Ron Hainsey, Connor Hellebuyck, Connor McDavid, John Tavares, and James van Riemsdyk will be the players in attendance at Tuesday’s meeting. McDavid and Tavares obviously stand out as two of hockey’s top talents and players whose inputs will be highly valued. Hainsey is a respected veteran who has always been involved with the players’ association. Hellebuyck will seemingly be there to represent all goalies, while – maybe unintentionally – van Riemsdyk will be the only player from an American team in attendance. The group will have a lot to talk about, as officiating concerns have only increased over recent weeks and the discussion of changing or expanding review will almost certainly be on the table.

  • The Athletic’s Lisa Dillman reports that Los Angeles Kings goaltending development coach Dusty Imoo is headed overseas. The goalie whisperer is set to join the KHL’s Kunlun Red Star in a similar role and Dillman notes that it is a major loss for the Kings. She writes that Imoo was part of a strong tandem with goalie coach Bill Ranford that has worked with Jonathan Quick for years, helped to resurrect the careers of Peter Budaj and Jack Campbell, and have been working with promising prospect Cal Petersen. Fortunately, goaltending is one of the few areas where L.A. found success last year and, even with the loss of Imoo, still have the talent and depth to stay strong in net.
  • Blaine Byron has re-signed with the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds, the team announced. It’s a one-year re-up for Byron, who just completed his second season with the Thunderbirds. Byron was a standout at the University of Maine and was expected to draw NHL interest as a college free agent in 2017, but instead signed with Springfield. He failed to impress in his first pro season, but after a 25-point campaign this year, it would not have been a surprise to see the Florida Panthers look into a two-way deal for the well-rounded forward. Instead, Byron returns to Springfield and will look to improve again next year.

Deadline Primer: Los Angeles Kings

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With the trade deadline fast approaching, we will be taking a closer look at the situation for each team over the coming weeks.  Where do they stand, what do they need to do, and what assets do they have to fill those needs?  Next up is a look at the Los Angeles Kings.

It’s been a rough season for the Kings who had high hopes before the season started. The team had a very successful season a year ago as they had a 45-29-8 season and even though they were the fourth seed, many teams expected them to dominate in the playoffs. Unfortunately, while they played the Vegas Golden Knights well, the team was swept out of the playoffs as Vegas’ speed overwhelmed the slower-moving Kings. The team tried to re-stock in the offseason when the signed Ilya Kovalchuk to a three-year, $18.75MM deal to add even more offense.

Then everything fell apart when the season commenced as the team struggled out of the gate and by early November, the team fired head coach John Stevens and replaced him with interim coach Willie Desjardins. The team found itself at the bottom of the standings throughout the league and have already began to fix their team as the team has already moved out forward Tanner Pearson to Pittsburgh and more recently when it sent defenseman Jake Muzzin to Toronto for a first-rounder and a pair of prospects. With the deadline just weeks away and the Kings looking to rebuild their aging franchise, the team may be making a number of moves to upgrade their team.

Record

23-27-5, seventh in the Pacific Division

Deadline Status

Seller

Deadline Cap Space

$7.608MM in a full-season cap hit, 0/3 used salary cap retention slots, 46/50 contracts per CapFriendly

Upcoming Draft Picks

2019: LAK 1st, TOR 1st, LAK 2nd, LAK 3rd, LAK 4th, LAK 5th, ARZ 5th, LAK 6th, LAK 7th
2020: LAK 1st, LAK 2nd, LAK 3rd, LAK 4th, LAK 5th, LAK 6th, LAK 7th

Trade Chips

The team has several trade options if they want to totally rebuild the franchise. The Kings already moved Muzzin, but with a group of young defensemen, including Sean Walker, Daniel Brickley and Kale Clague waiting for their chance, Los Angeles could move Alec Martinez for a similar return that they got for Muzzin. Martinez has been a solid top-four defenseman with the Kings for years and will be highly sought after, especially in a market where there are so many buyers.

It might be hard to believe, but the Kings may also be ready to move on from their superstar goaltender Jonathan Quick. However, the 33-year-old has struggled with both injuries and hasn’t had his usually impressive season as he has a 2.99 GAA and a disappointing .902 save percentage in 28 games. While starting goaltenders are rarely moved at the deadline as most playoff teams already have a starting goaltender, this is an unusual year as a team like the Columbus Blue Jackets could conceivably move the unhappy Sergei Bobrovsky and could conceivably be looking to add a replacement goaltender. The Kings have Jack Campbell and rookie Calvin Petersen, who could take over and start the rebuilding process in net if L.A. decides to go that route.

Ilya Kovalchuk has also come up as a potential trade chip for the Kings. The 35-year-old winger has struggled with injuries and production slumps, but the veteran winger has 11 goals this year and could score even more on productive playoff team. Whether a team is willing to take on his $6.25MM salary for another two years after this is a whole different question, considering he’ll be 37 years old in the final year of his contract. When the team acquired Carl Hagelin in the Pearson deal, the main purpose of the trade was to free themselves of Pearson’s two extra years on his contract. Hagelin, however, will be an unrestricted free agent and could easily be flipped at the deadline for a pick or prospect. Unfortunately, Hagelin only has two goals and eight points this season in 33 games, but still could provide a franchise with a quality middle-six rental for a low cost.

Five Players To Watch For: F Carl Hagelin, F Ilya Kovalchuk, D Alec Martinez, G Jonathan Quick, F Nate Thompson

Team Needs

1) Youth: With numerous aging veterans already locked up for the next three to five years with no way to escape from those deals, what Los Angeles needs more than anything are young talent that they can build on. The team already picked up a pair of interesting prospects from Toronto in Carl Grundstrom and Sean Durzi, but the more young talent and picks they can acquire to expedite the team’s rebuild the better.

2) Forwards: The team needs more offense. While they have a number of interesting defensive prospects, there are only a handful of scorers that the team has ready to step into their lineup with the possible exception of Gabriel Vilardi, who has been injured all season. There are other prospects, but the Kings need to start focusing on bringing in as much offensive talent to fix the team’s lack of speed and offensive woes.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Los Angeles Kings Activate Jack Campbell, Send Cal Petersen To AHL

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Though he has played outstanding hockey since being recalled out of desperation by the Los Angeles Kings, Cal Petersen is heading back to the minors. The team activated Jack Campbell from injured reserve today after he suffered no setbacks during his conditioning stint, and assigned Petersen back to the Ontario Reign of the AHL.

Petersen, 24, played in 11 games for the Kings while Campbell and Quick were out with meniscus injuries, and showed that he could potentially be a future starter for the team as he posted a .924 save percentage and went 5-4-1. While that record isn’t outstanding, he was behind the league’s lowest scoring team and one that finds itself in last place. Now that Quick and Campbell are back, Petersen will have to go back to starting in the AHL and wait for his next chance.

When that chance will come though is anyone’s guess. Quick is the obvious starter in Los Angeles for the time being, given his history as an elite goaltender in the league. Just last season he posted a .921 save percentage and dragged the Kings to the playoffs, only to see them unable to score in a whitewashing at the hands of the Vegas Golden Knights. The Kings have a lot invested in Quick, as his current contract continues through 2022-23 and carries a $5.8MM cap hit.

Campbell meanwhile is only 26 himself and has turned his career around since moving to Los Angeles. The former top prospect is signed for just $675K this season and next, but has been great for the Kings in backup duty. In 13 games this year the 11th overall pick from 2010 has a .923 save percentage and is an extremely inexpensive option at the NHL level.

The question though, is whether the Kings could get anything of value for one of their NHL netminders and promote Petersen in his place. The 10-year extension that Quick signed in 2012 came with no trade protection at all, and being front-loaded as it is may be of some value to another team. He’ll earn $7MM next season before seeing his salary drop to $3.5MM or less in the final three years of the deal. If he’s playing at a championship level, perhaps a team takes a chance to see if they can squeeze another few playoff rounds out of him.

For now Petersen will have to be patient, something he understood when signing with the Kings. Originally drafted by the Buffalo Sabres, Petersen left college early and waited to become an unrestricted free agent before picking Los Angeles for his first professional contract. He saw Quick ahead of him on the depth chart then, and he sees him still. There’s plenty of time for him to continue to hone his game, though he’ll be in a better situation this summer after getting his feet wet in the NHL. Petersen is an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent, and should be able to secure a more lucrative deal given his obvious upside.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Los Angeles Kings

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As the holiday season approaches, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for as the season heads past the one-quarter mark. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. Let’s take a look at what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Los Angeles Kings.  Click here for the other articles in this series. 

What are the Kings most thankful for?

With a victory Saturday over division-rival Vegas and having split four of their last eight games, Los Angeles has pushed its way out of 31st place in the NHL. While that’s not necessarily something to be thankful for, the veteran-laden Kings started so badly that they were last in the NHL by far. However, the team has shown slight improvements since the team fired John Stevens and replaced him with Willie Desjardins on Nov. 4, who has a 7-10 record so far with the team. While that’s nothing great, the team has picked up a few key wins such as on Saturday and can only hope that things will be getting better on a daily basis.

Who are the Kings most thankful for?

With all the goaltending injuries that the team has sustained this season as both Jonathan Quick and backup Jack Campbell have missed large chunks of the season already, the team’s goaltending hasn’t been that bad. The team has been right in the middle, ranked 15th in save percentage with a .903, which is impressive considering their issues. In fact, the always reliable Quick has been the weakest link for the team in goal this year as he has a 3.23 GAA and a .893 save percentage in nine appearances, although it’s likely he’s not playing at 100 percent.

The team should be impressed, however, with their success from their other goalies as Campbell fared quite well filling in for Quick initially before he went down with the same lower-body injury that Quick suffered. Campbell has posted a 2.33 GAA and a .923 save percentage in 13 games, while AHL prospect Calvin Petersen has fared equally as well with a 2.41 GAA and a .929 save percentage in nine games.

What would the Kings be even more thankful for?

Goal scoring. Team star Anze Kopitar, who is coming off a 35-goal, 92-point season last year, remains the team’s top scorer, but has just seven goals and 18 points — hardly numbers of a player who should be somewhere among the league leaders in scoring. In fact, the team’s lack of scoring can’t be placed on just one person as the entire team’s offense has been lethargic all season as other players including Jeff Carter, Dustin Brown and their big offseason acquisition Ilya Kovalchuk have all struggled this year. If Kopitar and some of the other veterans can pick up the pace a bit and start to show their value, the team could find the offense they need to move them from out of the bottom of the Pacific Division.

What should be on the Kings’ Holiday Wish List?

The team has brought in multiple youngsters to attempt to bring life to the team and while some of those players have had limited success such as Matt Luff, the Kings really need to shake up their roster and begin to reshape their franchise. While there have been plenty of rumors around about L.A. moving on from players like Jeff Carter or Tyler Toffoli, the team remains laden with multiple long-term deals that they are stuck with. If they can find any way to move one or two of them, they have to hope someone finds enough value in some of those veterans that they would be willing to take them off their hands.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Florida Panthers Seeking Upgrade In Goal

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Entering the season, the Florida Panthers’ goaltender trio of Roberto Luongo, James Reimer, and Michael Hutchinson seemed like one of the deepest in the league. As the second month of the season wraps up, the Panthers currently hold the second-worst goals against average in the NHL and their play in the net has been the team’s greatest weakness. As a result, The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun reports (subscription required) that, despite their considerable depth, Florida is looking for an upgrade behind the injury-plagued Luongo.

Injuries have limited Luongo, 39, to just nine appearances, but even when healthy he has not looked like himself. Luongo holds a 3.07 GAA and a .902 save percentage that, if the season were to end today, would be his career-low. It could be that Luongo’s play is reflective of his poor health, especially considering his strong performance just last year. However, between his injury issues and inconsistent results, Luongo simply can’t be relied upon as a bona fide starter. Of course, that was the reasoning behind the Panthers initially signing Reimer three years ago. Reimer looked the part in his first season in 2016-17, with perhaps his best NHL campaign. Yet, his numbers tailed off last season as he too struggled with injuries and now this year Reimer looks far from a starting option. The 30-year-old leads the Panthers with 14 appearances, but has just four wins, tied with Luongo despite five more showings. His performance has been bleak, with an .895 save percentage and 3.39 GAA. Yet, the injury concerns and inconsistency of Luongo and Reimer is exactly why Florida signed Hutchinson this summer. That has quickly proven to have been a mistake, as the AHL veteran has been out of his depths in four NHL games, sporting a brutal .839 save percentage and 4.17 GAA. Hutchinson has struggled to even perform at an average level in the minors this season.

Nothing has worked out according to plan in Florida, so the team needs to make a move to improve in net. The problem with that plan, as LeBrun points out, is that Reimer still has two years remaining on his contract at $3.4MM. That contract could prove very difficult to move. Luongo is also signed long-term, with three years remaining, but it appears that the team would prefer to hold on to him despite his current struggles, even if they were able to find a take. As such, a long-term solution in net may be difficult to find, unless the team is also able to move Reimer. Nearly any established goalie signed beyond this season would put too much strain on the Panthers’ payroll, which is already close to $2MM from the salary cap. An expensive rental, such as Detroit’s Jimmy Howard, would also be difficult to manage. Cheap rentals, such as New Jersey’s Eddie Lack, Carolina’s Petr Mrazek, Edmonton’s Al Montoya, and recent waiver placement Calvin Pickard, are readily available, but would be unlikely to shift the status quo substantially. The Panthers could make a play for a young, affordable goalie lacking opportunity, such as Montreal’s Charlie Lindgren, Vancouver’s Thatcher Demko, Los Angeles’ Cal Petersen, or Pittsburgh’s Tristan Jarry, but it would come at a cost. The Panthers may want to upgrade their goalie depth, but such a move won’t come easy for the team this season.

Pacific Notes: Ducks, Quick, Chychrun

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The Anaheim Ducks have dealt with more than their fair share of injuries over the past year or so. The team is still far from healthy, but finally full strength is within sight, particularly among their battered forward corps. The likes of Ryan Getzlaf, Ryan Kesler, and Patrick Eaves are healthy, and recent injuries like those to Jakob Silfverberg and Kalle Kossila have also run their course. Nick Ritchie and Ondrej Kase are on the mend and expected to be active sooner rather than later. Corey Perry (knee) and Carter Rowney (upper body) are still far from a return, but in terms of players the Ducks reasonably expected to be healthy, things are looking up. However, a full set of healthy forwards also brings with it some tough choices. While Anaheim has the flexibility to send the likes of Ben Street, Pontus Aberg, Sam Carrick, and Kiefer Sherwood – currently on the roster – to the AHL, they have to be concerned about whether there is enough ice time to go around for the more permanent pieces. Already, the team sent promising rookie Isac Lundestrom to the AHL today to bring up Kossila and fellow top prospects Sam Steel and Troy Terry are already down with the San Diego Gulls. As the team grows healthier, it it possible that they could explore returning rookie Max Comtois to his junior club, the QMJHL’s Drummondville Voltiguers. While Comtois has already played in ten games this season and tolled the first year of his contract, he cannot be sent to the AHL and could be better served getting guaranteed top-six minutes at the junior level than fighting for ice time with the Ducks. Comtois is currently sidelined, buying Anaheim some time on the decision, but with conceivably an upwards of 20 forwards expecting to see action in the NHL this season, eliminating even just one option by sending Comtois back to junior would help the Ducks with their impending roster crunch.

  • The Los Angeles Kings took another hit in net today with the news that backup goaltender Jack Campbell will be out four to six weeks with a torn meniscus. The team is already without starter Jonathan Quick due to the same injury and are left to lean on veteran Peter Budaj and rookie Cal Petersen for the time being. Fortunately, GM Rob Blake did assure the media later on that Quick remains on track to return sometime around the end of the month, per beat writer Curtis Zupke. Quick underwent surgery on October 31st and was given a timeline of roughly a month to return. So long as his rehab continues to progress positively, Quick could potentially be ready to return by the Kings’ November 30th clash with the division rival Calgary Flames. Yet, even in that best-case scenario, Budaj and Petersen will still be on the hook for the nine games between now and then.
  • In more immediate injury news, The Athletic’s Craig Morgan reports that Arizona Coyotes defenseman Jakob Chychrun is “probable” to make his season debut on Tuesday night against the Detroit Red Wings. Chychrun has been sidelined since late last season with a torn ACL in his right knee. The first-round pick was establishing himself as a reliable top-four defender prior to his injury and his return should come with an automatic starting spot, likely bumping Ilya Lyubushkin down to the minors and Jordan Oesterle from his starting slot.

Jack Campbell Out Four To Six Weeks, Cal Petersen Recalled

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The Los Angeles Kings just can’t catch a break. As they continue to deal with the absence of Jonathan Quick, they now have another goaltender hitting the shelf with a long-term injury. Jack Campbell has suffered a torn meniscus that requires surgery and will be out four to six weeks. In his place, rookie netminder Cal Petersen has been recalled while Matt Luff has been sent back to the Ontario Reign.

The fact that Campbell and Quick both suffered injuries to their meniscus is laughable, at least given the struggles of the Kings this season without a reliable presence in net. The team now turns to a duo of Petersen and Peter Budaj, who were supposed to be the AHL tandem this season. The younger Petersen is a top goaltending prospect in the league, but has just a single season of professional experience after leaving college early and signing with Los Angeles. That happened in the summer of 2017 after he snubbed the Buffalo Sabres, the team who drafted him 129th overall in 2013.

Petersen isn’t the biggest netminder in the league, but has an uncanny ability to read the play and react quickly to pucks in tight. He rode those skills to an outstanding college career at Notre Dame and ended up posting a .910 save percentage and 23-14-2 record in his first season in the AHL. That was good enough to get him named to the AHL All-Star game, though the Reign were not able to get past the first round of the playoffs. This season hasn’t been as kind to Petersen, but there is still plenty of ability to get excited about as a Kings fan.

Unfortunately, even an outstanding debut for Petersen may not be enough to turn around the season for Los Angeles, who sit dead last in the NHL with just 11 points on the season. That’s thanks to a 5-10-1 record and league-worst 33 goals scored on the year. Even with the addition of Ilya Kovalchuk the Kings just haven’t been able to score enough, something that will need to be addressed before they can really compete for the playoffs once again.

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