Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
Jarret Stoll is known throughout the hockey community as the third line anchor on two Los Angeles Kings Stanley Cup championship teams. Outside the NHL, he is known as the better half of TV personality Erin Andrews.
After being arrested for drug possession Friday night in Las Vegas, however, it’s safe to say he’ll be known as a former King with the arrest being the mere tip of the iceberg.
Long before the Las Vegas Police Department arrested Stoll at the MGM Grand, his future in Los Angeles was sealed as a result of his on-ice productivity.
While being arrested for cocaine possession is far from an ideal look for anyone, much the less a semi-well known hockey player, it in so many ways masks the bigger issues for Stoll’s future in L.A. Stoll’s production has gone down in each of the last three seasons, and he suffered a seizure in the summer of 2013 that may have been a result of multiple headshots during the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Stoll turns 33 this summer, and giving a multi-year extension to a declining forward with a history of medical problems is not in the best interest of the Kings.
Watching a player who was once an integral part of two Stanley Cup championship squads walk out the door is tough, especially under the circumstances, but it’s the business side of staying competitive in a salary cap driven league. Moving on from Stoll and looking elsewhere for a better suited replacement could very well be what puts the Kings back in contention in the Western Conference.
