Kings acquire Joonas Korpisalo & Vladislav Gavrikov from CBJ in exchange for Jonathan Quick + Draft Picks

Initially reported by various outlets last night, we’ve got an official trade here bright and early this morning, Insiders.

The LA Kings have acquired goaltender Joonas Korpisalo and defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for goaltender Jonathan Quick, a conditional 2023 first-round draft pick and a 2024 third-round draft pick. Should the Kings miss the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the pick would instead become second-round selections in 2023 and 2024.

Instant Analysis –
The Kings have made a big splash here a couple of days out from the trade deadline. Widely-spread rumblings were that the Kings had two areas in which they wanted to potentially add to the group – a left-shot defenseman and a goaltender. That was, at least, the external narrative and now it’s the internal additions. They knock out both of those categories with this morning’s trade, which sees them add both Gavrikov and Korpisalo from Columbus. Korpisalo has had a strong season on a bad team, posting a .913 save percentage despite backstopping the Eastern Conference’s worst team by point total, a team that has allowed more goals than any other team in the conference. Natural Stat Trick has him as a Top-10 goalie in the NHL in goals saved above average at 5-on-5. On Gavrikov, due to depth and injuries around him, he’s been pressed into a massive role in Columbus, logging more than 22 minutes per night. He also averaged 3:31 per game on the PK, the fourth highest SH TOI average in the league. His possession metrics are not the league’s best, but he’s trended better than team average in most categories, against high-level competition, and hasn’t had the opportunity to slot into a role on a condender yet in his career. On a team with an established first pair, he’ll get that with the Kings. Additionally, despite adding the extra NHL player, the Kings actually net $1.7 million in cap space when viewing it from a full-season lens.

The analysis of what is going back is easy for the two you would deem to be assets and very difficult for the one human being. The draft picks are straight forward. Jonathan Quick is synonymous with the LA Kings. As Todd McLellan has foreshadowed over the last few days, there is a human element to trades. This is perhaps as true for Quick as anyone else on the roster. The veteran goaltender has roots in Southern California, both with his family and within the community. It’s the only organization he’s known as a professional player. He has a young family and that young family now has to handle this situation. It’s easy to analyze the hockey side of the trade and much more difficult to analyze the personal side. That’s one that will take some time, when considering who is involved. Quick is the most accomplished goaltender in franchise history and one of its most accomplished individuals, independent of position. A 2022-23 stat line aside, there’s a lot behind what he’s done here and that’s part of what makes it difficult to really put into words when talking about the person and player who is going to Columbus.

At the end of the day, the Kings made a trade that adds stability at multiple positions, while sacrificing just one first-round equivalent asset and adding potentially valuable cap space which could potentially be used in another move or moves. Both players are unrestricted free agents at the end of the season – as was Quick – so the financial impact from the trade is on just the 2022-23 season at this time.

More to follow as we should get the opportunity to speak with Kings General Manager Rob Blake later on today, as well as both players potentially as soon as tomorrow. More to follow with that information!

From the team’s official release –

The LA Kings have acquired defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov and goaltender Joonas Korpisalo from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for goaltender Jonathan Quick, a conditional first-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft and a third-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. If the Kings qualify for the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Blue Jackets will receive the 2023 first-round pick but if LA does not reach the postseason, Columbus will instead acquire LA’s second round picks in the 2023 and 2024 NHL Drafts.

Gavrikov, 27, has appeared in 52 games with the Blue Jackets this season, earning 10 points (3-7=10) and 30 penalty minutes while averaging 22:20 time-on-ice per game. Among skaters to appear in 15 or more games with Columbus this season, the 6-3, 220-pound blueliner led the club in time-on-ice per game and shorthanded time-on-ice per game (3:31) while ranking third in blocked shots (89) and ninth in hits (56).

Originally selected by Columbus in the sixth round (159th overall) of the 2015 NHL Draft, Gavrikov has registered 73 points (15-58=73) and 130 penalty minutes in 256 NHL regular-season games with the Blue Jackets. Since making his NHL debut in the 2019-20 campaign, Gavrikov has led all Columbus skaters in games played, blocked shots (396) and shorthanded time-on-ice (639:18) while ranking fourth in time-on-ice (20:47), fifth in hits (328) and eighth in shots (298). He also added three points (1-2=3) and averaged 23:21 time-on-ice in 10 Stanley Cup Playoff games.

Prior to joining the NHL, the Yaroslavl, Russia native spent parts of five seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) with SKA St. Petersburg and his hometown Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, recording 49 points (16-33=49) with 96 PIM and a plus-97 rating in 222 career KHL games.

Internationally, Gavrikov won an Olympic gold medal with the Olympic Athletes of Russia in 2018, where he posted three points (2-1=3) in six tournament games. He has also appeared in six IIHF tournaments, including four IIHF Men’s World Championships (2021, 2019 – bronze, 2018, 2017 – bronze), one IIHF World Junior Championship (2015 – silver) and one IIHF Under-18 Men’s World Championship (2013). At the 2015 IIHF World Junior Championship, Gavrikov was tabbed the tournament’s best defenseman after guiding Russia to a silver-medal finish.

Korpisalo, 28, joins the Kings after appearing in 26 games with the Blue Jackets this season, posting a 11-11-3 record with a 3.17 goals-against-average (GAA) and .913 save percentage (SV%). The 6-3, 193-pound netminder led Columbus in nearly every statistical category this season, including wins (11), saves (845), GAA (3.17), SV% (.913), and minutes played (1550:57).

A third-round selection (62nd overall) by Columbus in the 2012 NHL Draft, Korpisalo has appeared in 190 regular-season NHL games and holds a record of 87-78-24 with a 3.06 GAA, .913 SV% and three shutouts. In 2019-20, the goaltender established career-bests in games played (37), wins (19), GAA (2.60), saves (1,030) and shutouts (2) and earned his first-ever NHL All-Star Game nomination. He has also appeared in nine Stanley Cup Playoff Games, posting a 3-5 record with a 1.90 GAA, .941 SV% and two shutouts. The netminder’s first playoff shutout came against the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 1 of Round One of the 2020 Stanley Cup Qualifiers. In Game 1 of the Eastern Conference First Round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Korpisalo set the NHL record for most the most saves in a single game with 85.

Korpisalo has also skated parts of four seasons (2014-18) in the American Hockey League split between the Springfield Thunderbirds and Lake Erie/Cleveland Monsters, posting a record of 20-20-11 with a 2.49 GAA, .913 SV% and two shutouts. In his first full season in North America, Korpisalo guided the Monsters to a 2016 Calder Cup Championship by winning six of his nine Calder Cup playoff outings with a 2.96 GAA and .898 SV%.

Quick, 37, appeared in 31 games for the Kings this season, posting a 11-13-4 record. His 11th victory of the season came last Friday (Feb. 24 against N.Y. Islanders) and marked the 370th of his career to surpass Tom Barrasso (369) for sole possession of the third-most wins among U.S.-born goaltenders in NHL history. The victory also saw him pass Pekka Rinne and Barrasso for sole possession of 19th place on the NHL’s all-time wins list.

Originally drafted by the Kings in the third round (72nd overall) of the 2005 NHL Draft, Quick departs the Kings having registered a 370-275-82 record with a 2.46 GAA, .911 SV% and 57 shutouts in 743 appearances. The franchise leader in wins (370), shutouts (57) and games played (743), Quick also holds every Kings single-season statistical record, including most games played (72; 2014-15), wins (40; 2015-16), shutouts (10; 2011-12), GAA (1.95; 2011-12) and SV% (.929; 2011-12). Through 16 NHL seasons, Quick has been named to the NHL All-Star Game three times (2012, 2016, 2018), tabbed a Second Team NHL All-Star (2011-12), a two-time Vezina Trophy nominee (2011-12, 2015-16) and twice earned the William M. Jennings Trophy (2013-14, 2017-18).

A two-time Stanley Cup Champion (2012, 2014), Quick established every statistical playoff goaltending record in franchise history including games played (92), wins (49), GAA (2.31), SV% (.921), minutes played (5,635) and shutouts (10). In 2012, he set an NHL postseason record for GAA in a single playoff year (1.41, min. 1,000 minutes played) on his way to being named the 2012 Conn Smythe Trophy winner. On May 8, 2022, Quick recorded his tenth career playoff shutout to surpass Mike Richter for most postseason shutouts by an American goaltender in NHL history.

Internationally, the Milford, Connecticut native represented the United States in three international competitions, including two Olympic Winter Games (2010 – silver, 2014) and one World Cup of Hockey (2016). In seven international games for the United States, Quick registered a 3-4 record with 2.55 GAA and .907 SV%.