Los Angeles Kings traded goalie Darcy Kuemper to Washington Capitals on Wednesday for Pierre-Luc Dubois.
The 25-year old center scored 40 points (16 goals and 24 assists) for the Kings in 82 games during regular season this year, as well as one goal in each of five Stanley Cup playoff games. Los Angeles (44-25-11) lost to the Edmonton Oilers during the Western Conference’s First Round.
Dubois, who was traded by the Winnipeg Jets to the Kings on June 27, 2023 and immediately signed a contract for eight years, $68million ($8.5million average annual value), will run through the 2030-31 seasons.
Rob Blake, Los Angeles’ general manager, said: “I don’t believe I did an adequate job of integrating [Blake] in the correct roles on this team this year.” “I think that wasn’t the best fit for us in that regard, and I’ll accept responsibility for that.”
The Columbus Blue Jackets selected Dubois with the No. Dubois was the No. 3 pick at the 2016 NHL Draft. He has 342 (145 goals and 197 assists), in 516 games, with the Kings Jets, and Blue Jackets, and 27 (11 goals and 16 assists), in 43 playoffs games.
Kuemper had a record of 13-14-3, with a goal-against-average of 3.31 and a.890 saving percentage in 33 games (30 starts). He also recorded one shutout. The 34-year old was Charlie Lindgren’s backup when Washington (40-31-21) was swept by the New York Rangers four games in a row in the Eastern Conference first round.
Kuemper will return to Los Angeles for his second stint. He was 10-1-3 in 19 games with a GAA of 2.10 and a save percentage of.932 during the 2017-18 campaign. Next season, Kuemper is expected to play in tandem with David Rittich.
Blake stated, “I believe the goaltender will return in exchange, with Darcy’s familiarity, our goalie division understanding him and having an established relationship with him.” Blake said, “I believe the pair of him and David will help stabilize the position for a couple years. This will continue our growth in the American (Hockey) League with (Erik) Portillo. We have seen some positive things from him this year but we are also looking at the future, so I believe that will help us solve a problem.
The Minnesota Wild selected Kuemper in the sixth round of the 2009 NHL Draft (No. Kuemper, who was selected by the Minnesota Wild in the sixth round (No. 161) of 2009 NHL Draft is 178-135 46 with a GAA of 2.61,.914 saving percentage and 31 shutouts over 389 games (368 starting) with the Capitals. In 34 playoff games (30 starting), he is 17-10, with a 2.72 GAA and.908 saving percentage. He also has two shutouts.
Kuemper still has three seasons left on his five-year contract worth $26.25m ($5.25m AAV), which he signed on July 13, 2020, with Washington.
Capitals General Manager Brian MacLellan stated, “We are delighted to announce Pierre-Luc’s addition to the Caps Organization.” This acquisition brings in a 25-year old with tremendous potential to be a top-tier NHL center. We are confident that his size, skating ability, and hockey IQ will help him thrive in our organization.
“We thank Darcy as well for his valuable contribution to our organization both on and off the Ice and wish him all the best in Los Angeles.” Charlie Lindgren was a standout performer last season and we think he deserves to be a part of our team.
