Rasmus Kupari trades the sandy beaches of Los Angeles for the freezing temperatures of Winnipeg.
Pierre Luc-Dubois has been the Jets’ driving force in recent seasons. AOP / USA TODAY SPORTS
A giant trade has occurred in the NHL, where the Los Angeles Kings and the Winnipeg Jets have exchanged players.
Winnipeg’s star forward Pierre-Luc Dubois trip to Kings. They move in the other direction Rasmus Kupari, Gabriel Vilardi, Alex Iafallo as well as the second round of bookings for 2024.
The exchange was hampered by Dubois’ contract situation. The player’s contract expired this season, so he needed a new piece of paper to play next season.
Dubois’ new contract is for 8 years and worth a total of 68 million dollars. This makes 8.5 million dollars a year.
Star player and unrealized potential
The 25-year-old Dubois was one of Winnipeg’s leading players last season. He scored 63 points in 73 games. Dubois was reportedly unhappy in Winnipeg, and trade rumors swirled around him for quite some time.
Dubois is remembered by Finns for the booking ceremony of 2016, where Jarmo Kekäläinen booked the center in the third Patrik Laine and Jesse Puljujärvi between. Kekäläinen later traded Dubois to Winnipeg, getting back Laine in exchange.
Kupari’s time in the Kings, who went in the other direction in the trade, has been difficult. The former first-round draft pick scored only 15 points in 66 games last season. Kupari also had to spend time this season on the AHL side, where he produced commendable results.
In total, 23-year-old Kupari has scored only 29 points in the NHL during three seasons and 130 games.
Vilardi, on the other hand, has found out about the plot on the NHL side. The former first-round pick had a quiet start to his career, but last season produced a nice 41 power points in 63 games.
Iafallo is clearly the most experienced of the players going to Winnipeg. Iafallo has played in 420 NHL games in his career and has produced 204 power points in them. Vilardi has been the vice-captain of the Kings for the past two seasons.
Story edited on 27.6. 23:45: Added Frank Seravalli’s confirmation of the transfer.
The story was edited on 28.6. 0:13 am: Added official confirmation from Los Angeles Kings.