Los Angeles Kings need Jonathan Quick to get healthy
Jonathan Quick has been placed on injured reserve by the Los Angeles Kings. They need him to get back on the ice as soon as possible.
The Los Angeles Kings live and die by their goaltender Jonathan Quick. He’s one of the most reliable goalies in the NHL. After posting a career-best .921 save percentage last season, the Kings were optimistic about his health going into the 2018-19 season.
However, the team has announced they’ve placed him on the injured reserve. Quick will have to miss at least one week. On Saturday, he suffered a lower-body injury during practice. In a corresponding move, the Kings are calling up an old friend in Peter Budaj.
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LA fans might remember him from the 2016-17 season. Budaj posted a .915 save percentage that season in 60 appearances split between the Kings and the Tampa Bay Lightning. Los Angeles brought him in this summer to serve as goaltending insurance.
Where Do The Kings Go From Here?
Hopefully, Quick won’t be out for that long. The Kings don’t have a proven NHL starter in their organization other than him. Starts will likely go to backup goalie Jack Campbell, though Budaj could get some starts if he doesn’t do well.
Last season, Campbell posted an impressive .924 save percentage in five appearances (four starts). However, the 2010 first-round pick of the Dallas Stars has only seven games of NHL experience under his belt.
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The schedule is favorable to the Kings, as they don’t have any games on consecutive nights in October. Of their 10 remaining games in the month, only three of them are against teams that made the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season.
Their schedule does, however, get tougher in November. So every win the Kings can get in October would be really helpful. And it doesn’t sound like Quick will miss too much time. The Winnipeg Jets are the only tough team the Kings will have to face this week, which is a good sign.
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They also face the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday, the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday, and the Ottawa Senators on Saturday. The Kings are in what could be a huge dogfight in the Pacific Division, so they can’t afford to take a huge step backward without Quick. They seem to have a lot of faith in Campbell. The Kings hope that faith will be rewarded.