The Kings have officially traded defenseman Jack Johnson and a first round pick for Blue Jackets center Jeff Carter. Carter, who spent six seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers before being traded to the Jackets, will be reunited with his good friend and drinking buddy Mike Richards.
Hopefully these two will be able to light it up like they did in Philly and bring the Kings out of their major scoring slump. My guess is that one of them will be moving to the wing, but to not put them on the same line, at least as a trial run, would be foolish. Carter will need to pass a physical, but if all goes well, he should be in the lineup for the Kings/Blackhawks game on Saturday at 5pm PST.
Carter is a three-time 30-goal scorer, with a career high 46 goals for the Flyers in the 2008-09 season. This is exactly the kind of offense the Kings need right now. He’s not Rick Nash, but he certainly has a good resume. I gotta say, if I’m a Flyers fan living in Los Angeles, I’m extra stoked about this deal. To put this all in perspective, the Kings got rid of Brayden Schenn, Wayne Simmonds, Jack Johnson, a conditional 1st round pick, and a 2nd round pick to get these two power forwards. They better bring it.
Good luck in Ohio, JJ! They could sure benefit from your mediocre defense. Ciao.
via lakings.com