Less than a week after his team was eliminated from the postseason, Los Angeles Kings general manager Rob Blake said that the team will not buy out the contract of maligned star center Pierre-Luc Dubois, who struggled in his first season with the club.
and a 2024 second-round pick for Dubois, who was signed to an 8-year, $68-million contract that kicked in this season.
Dubois, 25, had 40 points in 82 games for the Kings, a 23-point drop in production. Dubois had one goal and 20 penalty minutes in five playoff games against theWhile speculation around the league was that the Kings might explore a buy out with Dubois, the team's general manager shut that down. "We need to make him better," Blake said on Monday, while also confirming that he'll remain the general manager for the Kings."He's had a consistent performance over his career so far and deviated from that this year. It's up to us to help him become more productive to us."Dubois said that any talk of a contract buyout or a trade this summer was out of his hands.
Dubois said there was a challenging transition for going from Winnipeg to Los Angeles, from playing in a more defensive system to having his average ice time drop by nearly three minutes per game over last season ."When you show up to a new team, there's a lot of new roles and new systems. I played on a lot of lines this year. I think any player at the end of the day wants consistency, knowing who you're going out there with," Dubois said.. They traded him in Jan.
"I'm not panicking. I'm not stressed. Was it frustrating? Sure. But is not lost. I just got to get back to it and that's on me," he said.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Kings’ Pierre-Luc Dubois dilemma: buying in or buying out?Ten months later, the Kings’ blockbuster trade and 8-year, $68 million contract extension for the center look like a bust that will force a difficult decision
Read more »
Dubois, Roy end long goal droughts to propel Kings to 3-1 victory over DucksPierre-Luc Dubois and Matt Roy ended long goal droughts and the Los Angeles Kings beat the Anaheim Ducks 3-1 on Saturday night to remain in third place in the Pacific Division.
Read more »
Kings won't buy out Pierre-Luc Dubois, but GM Rob Blake is vague on other plansRob Blake says the Kings have no intention of buying out Pierre-Luc Dubois' contract but is short on specifics about coaching and free agency plans.
Read more »
Kings search for different results against Oilers in postseasonKings coach Jim Hiller says he expects a great performance from Pierre-Luc Dubois and a passionate effort from the entire team.
Read more »
LA Kings shutout in 1-0 loss to Oilers, Edmonton leads series 3-1Stuart Skinner stopped 33 shots for his first postseason shutout, Evan Bouchard scored on the power play midway through the second period and the Edmonton…
Read more »
Kings shutout by Stuart Skinner, Oilers in Game 4The Kings are now on the cusp of being eliminated by Edmonton for the third consecutive season, with Game 5 in Edmonton on Wednesday.
Read more »