Signing Jamie McBain is a Smart Move for the Los Angeles Kings
By PowerPlayCJ
@powerplaywithcj
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The Los Angeles Kings have had a plethora of issues with their defensemen this season that has, at times, kept them from looking like the dominant team they are. Robyn Regehr’s lower body injury and Slava Voynov’s suspension means two of the team’s top four defensemen are out of the lineup. The Kings’ salary cap situation further complicates matters as they have been unable to make a call up from the AHL’s Manchester Monarchs without going over the salary cap, meaning they’ve been playing shorthanded.
I recently wrote about how the Kings should start exploring their options on defense because playing Drew Doughty 30 minutes per game will catch up with them before too long. Apparently they were listening because the team inked former Buffalo Sabre and Carolina Hurricane Jamie McBain to a one year deal for the veteran minimum.
The 26-year old McBain had a hot start to his NHL career with 10 points in his 14 games for the Hurricanes in 2010. After that hot start, McBain settled in as a depth player with the Hurricanes and later the Sabres. The Sabres did not re-sign McBain this past offseason and he was a free agent after attending training camp with the Arizona Coyotes and not being signed before joining the Monarchs on an AHL contract.
After playing for some bad teams in both Carolina and Buffalo, the Kings will be McBain’s first taste of playing on a solid team. The former Wisconsin Badger should take this opportunity and embrace it as a means to put himself back on the proverbial NHL map playing a support role on a team that has legitimate Stanley Cup aspirations.
This opportunity could be a win-win as McBain uses his time on a high-powered Kings squad to get his career back on track while helping the team win games. At this point, both sides will take what they can get as they’ve got a textbook relationship out of necessity.
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