Jackets trade Korpisalo, Gavrikov to Kings
BUFFALO, N.Y. — When reports about a deal between the Blue Jackets and Los Angeles Kings surfaced on Tuesday night, Vladislav Gavrikov and Joonas Korpisalo sat next to each other.
Watching from the press box as their teammates upset the Buffalo Sabres, 5-3, at Keybank Center, the two friends and Blue Jackets teammates learned at the same time they'd remain teammates with the Kings after a trade that was completed around 1 a.m. Wednesday.
The Dispatch confirmed the deal through multiple sources soon after it was completed. Both teams made it official Wednesday morning.
“It's never easy to trade players like Vladislav Gavrikov and Joonas Korpisalo, as they have been exceptional Blue Jackets, but given our current position these moves were in our club's best interest,” Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said in a statement. “They are wonderful individuals and we will always appreciate the contributions they made while they were here.”
The return for Columbus is a conditional first-round pick in this year's draft, a 2024 third-round pick and 37year-old goalie Jonathan Quick, who has an expiring contract after playing exclusively in Los Angeles for 16 years and backstopping the Kings to the Stanley Cup in 2012 and 2014.
“Jonathan Quick is a two-time Stanley Cup winner who has been an outstanding goaltender in our league for a long time,” Kekalainen said, “and this deal provides us with draft capital that will be valuable as we move forward as an organization.”
The condition attached to the firstround pick is connected to the Kings making the playoffs, which appears to be a near certainty. With 20 games left as of Thursday, they were in second place in the Pacific Division with 76 points and had a nine-point cushion on the Calgary Flames, the closest team outside the mix in the Western Conference. Should the Kings not qualify, they'll keep this year's first-round pick and Columbus would instead receive L.A.'S second-round picks in 2023 and 2024 plus the Kings' 2024 third-round pick.
According to Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli, Quick is upset about the deal, which was completed after the Kings won 6-5 in Winnipeg. Seravalli said Quick flew back to Los Angeles with the Kings after being informed of the trade. It's fair to wonder whether he'll even show up in Columbus and play for the
Blue Jackets.
As for the trade, it puts an end to months of speculation about Gavrikov and Korpisalo.
Both were on the market because they're pending unrestricted free agents. Gavrikov and the Blue Jackets were unable to agree on a contract extension last summer, while Korpisalo signed a one-year extension for this season after surgery to repair a hip labrum last spring.
Elvis Merzlikins' five-year contract with a $5.4 million charge against the salary cap is the reason the Blue Jackets felt obligated to trade Korpisalo, who has significantly outperformed his counterpart for all but the past few weeks. Rookie Daniil Tarasov also factored into the decision. He will require waivers to be assigned to the American Hockey League next season, which would likely result in another team claiming him.
Korpisalo and Gavrikov will now help stiffen the Kings' defense as they head toward a second straight playoff appearance.
Trading Quick means Korpisalo will take over the starter's role in Los Angeles, a rare mid-season goaltending flip the Finnish netminder earned with a strong rebound year. Gavrikov, 27, is a proven stopper with good experience (256 games), size (6-3, 221) and the willingness to block shots in bulk quantities.
Combined with an earlier trade Tuesday that sent injured forward Gustav Nyquist to the Minnesota Wild for a 2023 fifth-round pick, Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen has moved all three of his pending UFAS a full two days before the trade deadline arrives at 3 p.m. Friday. bhedger@dispatch.com @Brianhedger