Pierre-Luc Dubois scored his first goal with Los Angeles in his return to Winnipeg to help the Kings to a convincing 5-1 win over the Jets on Tuesday night. Here’s what you need to know:
- Dubois played at Canada Life Centre for the first time Tuesday since being traded to L.A. in June.
- At 11:01 of the second period, he got his first point with the Kings when he followed up on a rebound created by Anze Kopitar just seconds after a Winnipeg penalty expired.
- The Kings (1-1-1) won their first game of the season as Trevor Moore starred with two goals and an assist. Phillip Danault also had a goal and two assists, Arthur Kaliyev added a goal and an assist and Cam Talbot got his first win with L.A. by making 26 saves.
— LA Kings (@LAKings) October 18, 2023
How did Dubois respond to the atmosphere?
Going in, Dubois expected a frosty reception even if he only had positive things to say about the city of Winnipeg and his time with the Jets in the days leading up to the game. He insisted that the reason he asked for a trade — marking the second time he’s done that after getting dealt out of Columbus — was more about wanting to be in a place of his choosing for the next phase of his career after his contract expired.
Advertisement
Boos rained down from the announced crowd of 11,226 every time he touched the puck. But his moment came in the second period when the Kings kept the puck throughout a two-minute power play and had a Jets unit tired. With some space to operate, Dubois took the puck to the net and slid it over to where Kopitar was located. Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck made an initial stop, but Dubois pounced on the rebound and buried it for his first with Los Angeles and 129th of his seven-year career.
In an interview on Bally Sports, Dubois said the win was “sweet because my parents are here.”
“Obviously, it’s weird to be back,” he continued. “It’s fun to be back. It’s great to get a win. But we want to make the playoffs and it’s going to take a lot of wins, whether it’s the Jets or anybody else. A win is a win. It’s not a different game. I tried to treat it like that.”
Later, Dubois said the mixed reaction to a brief video tribute, “wasn’t as bad as I thought. It was a lot better than I expected. They were booing the refs a little bit more than me. It made me feel good about myself … It was an honor to play for these passionate fans for the two years.” — Eric Stephens, L.A. Kings writer
What loss of Vilardi could mean for Jets
Another feature of the game was the three players Los Angeles traded for Dubois — forwards Gabriel Vilardi, Alex Iafallo and Rasmus Kupari — were suiting up for the first time against their former club. All three were homegrown Kings and helped them to playoff berths the last two seasons.
None got on the scoresheet Tuesday. But the Jets may have suffered a damaging loss when Vilardi could not play again following the 5:55 mark of the first period after Kings center Blake Lizotte landed on his leg as he chased the play into the corners. Vilardi, who broke out with 23 goals last season for Los Angeles, has been playing on the top line with Scheifele and Kyle Connor and is expected to be a major contributor. The Jets said he will be re-evaluated Wednesday.
Advertisement
“I want to say no because you want to be in the right mindset, but every time a teammate goes down it sucks,” Winnipeg forward Nikolaj Ehlers said. “Gabe is a guy who has been through a lot. I know exactly how that feels. It’s tough for him right now. I don’t know what exactly is happening, but obviously, I hope the best. It sucks for us because he has proven what he can do for us.”
Added Jets center Cole Perfetti: “It’s awful. Obviously, he’s a huge part of our team. The skill and hockey sense that he brings into our lineup is huge. He’s a great guy, so just to see that happen you feel awful for him. I’m not 100 percent sure what it is, but he looked like he was in a little bit of pain. Just praying for the best and hope it’s nothing serious and whatever it is he has a speedy recovery. We need him back in our lineup because he is such an elite player.” — Stephens
Backstory
Dubois requested a trade from the Jets after indicating to the club that he would not sign a contract extension. The 25-year-old center was dealt to L.A. in June on the eve of the NHL Draft, with the Kings taking on an eight-year, $68-million deal that Winnipeg negotiated in what was a sign-and-trade.
In nearly three seasons with the Jets, Dubois scored 63 goals and had 80 assists in 195 games. He added two goals and five assists in 12 playoff contests over three postseason series.
Required reading
(Photo: James Carey Lauder / USA Today)