Less than 24 hours after acquiring goaltender Jonathan Quick from the Las Angeles Kings, the Columbus Blue Jackets are looking to trade the veteran goaltender. The deal came together late Tuesday night as the two teams agreed upon a blockbuster deal that sent defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov and goaltender Joonas Korpisalo to LA in exchange for goalie Jonathan Quick, a conditional first-round draft pick in 2023, and a third-round draft pick in 2024. As the dust begins to settle, it has come to light that the Blue Jackets never wanted to acquire Quick in the first place but had to make the deal work. Now they are tasked with dealing the two-time Stanley Cup champion as they look to increase the return they initially received.
Luckily for the Blue Jackets, a few teams are in the market for a goaltender, especially one of Quick’s pedigree. The 37-year-old has made a name for himself in the postseason with a 2.31 GAA and a .921 save percentage. While he may not be the same goalie he was when he won two Stanley Cups, he is still a valuable netminder with a ton of playoff experience.
On the season, Quick has appeared in 31 games, starting 27 as he’s gone 11-13-4 with a 3.50 GAA and a .876 save percentage. While these numbers are a concern, a change of scenery may be what the aging veteran needs as he’s spent his whole career in Los Angeles after being drafted 72nd overall in the third round of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft by the franchise.
Quick is in the final year of his contract allowing whoever acquires him to not worry about having an aging goaltender on their books heading into next season. He would strictly be used for the 2022-23 playoffs, where the team that acquires him hopes he can kick it into playoff gear like he has done in the past for LA.
One team that has emerged as a candidate to acquire Quick is the Vegas Golden Knights, as they have engaged in talks with Columbus. The Golden Knights have been banged up at the goalie position since before the start of 2022-23. They have been without Robin Lehner all season due to a hip injury and have recently been without starter Logan Thompson and backup Laurent Brossoit. Thompson hasn’t appeared in a game since February 9th, and Brossoit was injured on February 25th and just moved to injured reserve. That leaves just Adin Hill as the starter for now, and whoever the Golden Knights decide to call up to back him up.
The Golden Knights are in dire need of goaltender depth as they are holding onto the top spot in the Pacific Division by just two points over the Kings. With less than two days to go before the deadline, general manager Kelly McCrimmon will have a big decision to make, as he can not let this team’s success be wasted due to several injuries to his goaltending room. If teams have learned anything over the years, having depth for the playoffs is the key to success.
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