Kings forward Adrian Kempe recently took himself off next summer’s free agent market by signing an eight-year, $85MM contract extension. Speaking with HockeySverige’s Martin Jansson, he acknowledged he likely left some money on the table considering how quickly the UFA class is drying up. He also indicated that he lowered his salary request which appears to be what pushed this deal across the finish line. Kempe is in his tenth NHL season, all spent with Los Angeles. He’s off to a strong start with 19 points in his first 20 games, a point-per-game pace that would be the second-best of his career. If that holds over the full season, the beginning of the deal could wind up being team-friendly, though there is some risk in the final few years given that he’ll be in his age-30 season when the contract begins.
More from Los Angeles:
- While defenseman Drew Doughty’s injury timeline carries a week-to-week designation, it doesn’t appear that he’ll be out too long. GM Ken Holland told reporters including John Hoven of Mayor’s Manor (Twitter link) that the veteran, who has been placed on injured reserve, will miss two to three weeks. The 35-year-old is dealing with a lower-body injury and had been off to a solid start to his season with eight points in 19 games while logging a team-high 22:33 per night, the only Kings player averaging more than 20 minutes per night.
- With Doughty on IR, there is a roster spot available but that won’t be the case for long. Holland acknowledged that the Kings will be recalling goaltender Pheonix Copley from AHL Ontario for tomorrow’s game against San Jose. He isn’t being brought up due to an injury though. Instead, he’s being promoted to give Darcy Kuemper a full day of rest before he gets the nod on Friday. Copley has had a tough start to his campaign with the Reign, posting a 3.84 GAA along with a .870 SV% in his first seven appearances.
Week to week is much better than it was thought to be. Good news!
Don’t rush Drew back like they did last year!