L.A. Kings acquire defenseman Andrej Sekera from Carolina Hurricanes

The Kings on Wednesday afternoon acquired the puck-moving, offensive-minded defenseman they’ve lacked since Slava Voynov was suspended indefinitely by the NHL over a domestic violence charge involving his wife in October.

They gave up a prospect and a draft pick in order to get Andrej Sekera from the Carolina Hurricanes, another bold move by Kings general manager Dean Lombardi in a week that’s already seen two players signing long-term contract extensions.

Sekera had 19 points, including 17 assists, in 57 games for the Hurricanes this season. He has 155 points in 470 career games in the NHL, playing the most recent 131 contests with the Hurricanes. He also played with the Buffalo Sabres during a nine-year career.

To get Sekera, a 28-year-old Slovak, the Kings sent prospect Roland McKeown and a conditional draft pick to Carolina. McKeown, 19, was the Kings’ second-round pick (50th overall) in the 2014 draft. The pick was acquired in the deal that sent Linden Vey to Vancouver.

Tuesday, Lombardi signed physical forward Kyle Clifford to a five-season contract extension worth an average of $1.6 million. Monday, Lombardi signed another hard-nosed forward, Jordan Nolan, to a three-season extension worth an average of $950,000.

Lombardi was scheduled to speak with reporters later this afternoon.

 

 

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L.A. Kings forward Jordan Nolan talks about his contract extension

Here’s some of what Kings forward Jordan Nolan said about his new three-year contract extension after the morning skate Tuesday in El Segundo:

“My agent called me a few days ago and said there was an opportunity to maybe take care of some paperwork and get locked up for a few years, so I sai, ‘All right, sounds good.’ Two days later, I got a call and he said, ‘We’re all set.’ There’s no easy contracts, but definitely a lot quicker than the first one I got. …

“Any time you feel wanted in the organization, it gets your confidence up there. I spent a lot of time in Manchester (in the AHL) in development with the coaches and he (general manager Dean Lombardi) shows a lot of confidence in me, so to give me that three-year deal definitely makes me feel good.”

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L.A. Kings give forward Jordan Nolan a three-season contract extension

Kings general manager Dean Lombardi continued to reward his players with contract extensions. Tuesday, he inked Jordan Nolan to a three-season deal with an AAV of $950,000. Nolan, a 25-year-old forward, has only 24 points in 170 career games in the NHL. He was a member of the Kings’ Stanley Cup championship teams in 2012 and ’14, however. Lombardi has been generous in giving extensions to his players, with Marian Gaborik receiving a new seven-year deal and Matt Greene getting a four-year contract during the last offseason.

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L.A. Kings forward Justin Williams won’t play against the Islanders

Kings forward Justin Williams won’t play Thursday night against the New York Islanders at Staples Center after suffering an eye injury in the closing moments of Tuesday’s victory over the Dallas Stars. The stick of Dallas’ Brendan Dillon clipped Williams, who left the ice immediately to seek treatment.

“Get better every day and when he’s ready to play, he’s ready to play,” Kings coach Darryl Sutter said after the team’s morning skate Thursday in El Segundo.

Jordan Nolan skated in Williams’ spot on a line with Marian Gaborik and Anze Kopitar during the Kings’ morning skate. Sutter also reunited That 70s Line after splitting up Tanner Pearson, Jeff Carter and Tyler Toffoli in Dallas.

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It’s Nolan versus Nolan for the first time as Kings face the Sabres

Kings forward Jordan Nolan grew up with the ultimate hockey dad. Ted Nolan served as coach of the Buffalo Sabres, the New York Islanders and the Sabres for a second stint that started last season. But before he reached the NHL, he was the youth coach on one of Jordan’s teams.

The Nolans faced off against each other for the first time as opponents in the NHL on Thursday night at Staples Center, when father Ted and the Sabres played against son Jordan and the defending Stanley Cup champion Kings.

“He’s an NHL coach and he’s also my dad, but he knows a lot about the game, so I’m always trying to impress him,” Jordan Nolan said. “I’m always looking for advice and whenever he’s in the building I push a little harder because I want to make him proud and show him what I got.

“I always seem to work harder when he’s in the building, so hopefully the night goes well.”

Jordan Nolan, 25, has filled checker’s role during his tenure with the Kings, and that’s been especially true this season. He went into Thursday’s game without a goal or an assist in five games, averaging only 9 minutes, 37 seconds of ice time.

He was surrounded by reporters at the Kings’ pregame workout, however, with teammates giving him a hard time about the sudden surge of attention. It’s not been often that he’s been asked to answer questions about himself or his play.

Jordan Nolan didn’t seem to mind, however. He understood this was a special occasion.

“We never thought this would happen,” he said of facing his father. “We always hoped to get another chance. But to do it (against the Sabres), it’s pretty special for him, and for our family to be back in that organization and for myself to be here. It’s pretty remarkable.”

Asked about playing for his dad as a youth, Jordan Nolan said, “I think he favored me a little bit. He played me a lot. It was always nice to play for him. He always got the best out of me and he always pushed me hard.”

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It’s official: NHL says it won’t suspend the Kings’ Jordan Nolan

The NHL said Monday afternoon it wouldn’t suspend Kings forward Jordan Nolan for his hit on Rusty Klesla of the Phoenix Coyotes in the first period of Sunday’s exhibition game at Glendale, Ariz. The league’s department of player safety reviewed the play and announced it “has determined that no supplemental discipline is appropriate.”

Meanwhile, the league did impose a 10-game regular-season ban to the Coyotes’ Paul Bissonnette for leaving the bench to join an altercation during Sunday’s game. Bissonnette drew a game misconduct for his infraction, which happened at 12:09 of the first period. Bissonnette will forfeit $37,820.51. He’s eligible to return to the lineup for an Oct. 24 game against the Kings at Staples Center.

 

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Report: Kings forward Jordan Nolan will avoid an NHL suspension for Sunday hit

Late-breaking news from Bob McKenzie of TSN: Kings forward Jordan Nolan will not face an NHL suspension for his hit that knocked Rusty Klesla out of Sunday night’s exhibition game in Glendale, Ariz. Klesla was taken from the ice on a stretcher and later taken to a nearby hospital for tests. He was diagnosed with a concussion and a case of whiplash, according to a reporter for the Arizona Republic newspaper.

Continue reading “Report: Kings forward Jordan Nolan will avoid an NHL suspension for Sunday hit” »

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Kings lose one and perhaps another in split-squad games vs. Phoenix

Well, that was some exhibition the Kings put on during a lackluster 5-1 loss to the Phoenix Coyotes in a split-squad game Sunday night at Staples Center. The Kings gave up a pair of first-period power-play goals to the Coyotes and never were really in their first exhibition contest since 2011. There were no exhibitions last season because of the lockout.

Meanwhile in Glendale, Ariz., the news was worse. Kings forward Jordan Nolan could face a suspension for what eyewitnesses described as a shoulder-to-chin hit to the Coyotes’ Rusty Klesla in the first period of a split-squad game at Jobing.com Arena. Klesla was taken from the ice on a stretcher.

Phoenix’s Paul Bissonnette left the bench to join an ensuing scuffle with Nolan and others and could draw an automatic 10-game suspension.

At Staples Center, Brandon Yip scored twice and had an assist for the Coyotes. He extended the Coyotes’ lead to 4-0 in the opening minutes of the third period, beating Kings goaltender Mathieu Garon with a laser from the right faceoff circle while on the rush.

Defenseman Slava Voynov scored a third-period goal for the Kings.

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