Trevor Lewis Signs PTO With Winnipeg Jets
The Winnipeg Jets have released their training camp roster and among the players are a trio of professional tryouts. The most notable of these is veteran forward Trevor Lewis, who has to this point played his entire 674-game career with the Los Angeles Kings. Cole Kehler and Jimmy Oligny will also attend camp on PTOs.
The 33-year-old Lewis has always been an interesting player for the Kings. Though his best offensive season was still limited to 14 goals and 26 points, he has been an integral part of two Stanley Cup-winning teams with his versatility and defensive ability. Even with those paltry scoring totals, this isn’t a player who was limited to the fourth line or given only a handful of minutes each night. On the contrary, Lewis lined up beside all kinds of different teammates over the years, moving up and down the roster doing whatever was asked.
That is of course until last season when his playing time was drastically cut, even losing his leading role on the penalty kill for much of the year. Now in Winnipeg, he’ll have to try and show why the Kings coaching staff felt so comfortable throwing him over the boards for the last decade. Where he would fit in the Jets lineup certainly isn’t clear, but if there’s anything left to give, you know the savvy veteran will bring his best.
Kehler, 23, played most of last season with the Fort Wayne Komets but actually did spend eight minutes in the Ontario Reign net. The former WHL goaltender was an undrafted free agent signing when he inked an entry-level deal in 2017, but was not issued a qualifying offer from the Kings at the end of last season. He’ll try his luck with the Jets organization this time, trying to catch a new contract and keep his professional career moving forward.
Oligny, 27, has been playing with the Manitoba Moose for the last two seasons and is likely headed back there this year when things open up in the AHL. His presence at Jets camp is likely just to fill out the defensive ranks, though perhaps if he performs well enough he could land an NHL two-way deal.
Trevor Lewis To Test Free Agency
Trevor Lewis has been a part of the Kings organization since they drafted him in the first round (17th overall) back in 2006. However, his time with Los Angeles has come to an end as he told David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period (Twitter link) that he will not be re-signing with them when the free agent period opens up next month. He briefly commented on his pending departure:
It’s definitely different, a little tough to think about. I grew up here, been here my whole career. It’ll be different, but I’m excited. Change is always good. I’m excited to see what happens.
The 33-year-old has been a versatile veteran throughout his 12-year NHL career, played almost exclusively in a bottom-six role. However, his offensive production has tapered off considerably as he has managed just a dozen points in each of the last two seasons while battling some injuries along the way.
Nevertheless, as someone that can kill penalties and play all three forward positions, there should be a decent market for his services come October 9th. However, he’ll likely have to take a pay cut from the $2MM he has made in each of the last four seasons as most contenders – and Pagnotta adds in a separate tweet that Lewis is looking to go to one – won’t have that type of money to commit to someone that is likely best suited to play 10-12 minutes per game on the fourth line.
With 674 regular season games and another 79 in the playoffs, the Kings got a reasonable return out of their selection of Lewis even though he never really managed to develop a consistent offensive game. However, his time with Los Angeles has come to an end.