Kings’ Jonathan Quick Out Indefinitely With Lower-Body Injury
The hits keep coming for the Los Angeles Kings. Already mired in a horrible start as they have a 2-7-1 record, including a six-game losing streak, the Kings are now going to be without star goaltender Jonathan Quick for an indefinite period of time. The goaltender suffered a lower-body injury and will be out Sunday and there is no current timetable for his return as he’s still being evaluated, according to NHL.com’s Dan Greenspan.
Quick is already coming off a injury in which he missed five straight games with a lower-body injury. Greenspan writes that this new injury is not related to the one from earlier this year. The 32-year-old Quick, normally one of the top goaltenders in the NHL, has struggled this year in limited action, especially since his returning from injury on Oct. 18. In four games this year, Quick has a 4.55 GAA and a .845 save percentage.
The Kings will start Jack Campbell on Sunday and he will serve as the starter in Quick’s place. Campbell has fared quite well this season as he boasts a .917 save percentage in seven appearances this year, including both the team’s victories this year and one shutout. The team has already recalled veteran goaltender Peter Budaj from the Ontario Reign of the AHL to serve as backup.
Minor Transactions: 10/07/18
After the first handful of games and a handful of injuries, many teams should be active as they make changes and/or additions to their roster. Keep checking to see what teams do.
- The St. Louis Blues announced they have assigned veteran defenseman Chris Butler to the San Antonio Rampage now that Jakub Jerabek has gotten his visa and is ready to join the team. With Jerabek, the team has nine defenseman on the roster, forcing them to send Butler down. The 31-year-old blueliner played in the Blues’ first two games for the injured Joel Edmundson, faring well and even scored a goal. Once an NHL regular, Butler has spent the past few years in the AHL, being utilized as an emergency recall.
- The Minnesota Wild announced they have assigned forward Luke Kunin to the Iowa Wild of the AHL. That means that Kunin has been cleared to play since he’s been working to return from a torn ACL he sustained on Mar. 4. The team’s 2016 first-rounder, Kunin bounced back and forth between Iowa and Minnesota last season, playing in 19 games for the big-league club before sustaining the injury. He has been rehabbing since and passed coach Bruce Boudreau‘s infamous skating test Saturday and looks ready to continue his return.
- The Arizona Coyotes have recalled forward Laurent Dauphin from his conditioning stint with the Tucson Roadrunners of the AHL, the team announced. The 23-year-old played one game there, putting up a goal and an assist and will now return to the Coyotes. Dauphin has been recovering from a lower-body injury he sustained at the end of last season and had been limited at training camp. The hope is he can fill in for injured Coyotes’ such as Alex Galchenyuk and Christian Dvorak.
- The Los Angeles Kings announced they have recalled veteran goaltender Peter Budaj to be the team’s backup for Jack Campbell for the near future while starter Jonathan Quick sits out after he suffered a lower-body injury in practice Saturday. The 36-year-old Budaj has only played one game for Ontario in the AHL as he allowed five goals, posting a .833 save percentage.
- With Joe Thornton landing on the IR, the San Jose Sharks have promoted center Dylan Gambrell, per CapFriendly. The first-year pro out of the University of Denver was a perennial point-per-game player in the college ranks and will be looking to live up to his second-round pick billing in his first opportunity with the Sharks.
- The Colorado Avalanche have promoted center Vladislav Kamenev from Colorado of the AHL in advance of their upcoming road trip, per the AHL’s Transactions page. The 22-year-old was added as part of the Matt Duchene trade last season but was sidelined shortly thereafter. In two games with the Eagles so far this season, Kamenev has one assist.