The Los Angeles Kings are making a change at captain.
Frank Seravalli of TSN.ca reports that Kings captain Dustin Brown has been told he will no longer be the captain of the team and that they’re going in a different direction with the C.
The move is and isn’t surprising.
It is surprising because Brown has been the captain in LA since 2008. He’s led the Kings to two Stanley Cups donning the C and was an identifiable leader among the team. Considering how long he’s held the position, it’s shocking the Kings would strip him of it without at least dealing him first.
On the other hand, Brown’s performance has significantly dipped over the past three seasons and the Kings might want to shift to a new captain who’s more than a bottom-six forward. Brown has the second highest cap hit among Kings forwards at $5.87 million per season until 2021-22 with a modified no-trade clause. Brown has scored under 30 points in four straight seasons and has seen his role diminish with the club. His contract is a black hole, as he’s not been performing anywhere near its cost. The Kings might be working on a buyout, and stripped his captaincy in advance of that, but that’s just my own speculation.
The move is a shocker. Brown has captained the team into the powerhouse they’ve been in recent years. Now, it seems they want someone else to be their leader.
