LA Kings Goaltender Done for the Season

The Los Angeles Kings have been handed some brutal injury news. According to John Hoven of SiriusXM NHL Network Radio, goaltender Pheonix Copley will miss the rest of the 2023-24 season after undergoing successful ACL surgery earlier this week.

Copley has been on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) and has not made an appearance since Dec. 10 against the New York Rangers because of it. The expectation was that he would be able to return at some point during the season, but now we have confirmation that his season is over, and the Kings have a big hole between the pipes because of it.

Copley served as Cam Talbot's backup this season and struggled, posting a .870 SV% and a 3.16 GAA in eight appearances. However, when noting how well he played just last season with the Kings, losing him for the year is not good in the slightest. Now, they will run with Talbot and David Rittich as their goaltenders until another move is made. With that, Aaron Dell was just signed to a contract by the Ontario Reign.

It will be interesting to see what the Kings do with their goaltending from here. With Copley done, one has to assume they are going to at least explore the trade market for a goalie, whether it is a traditional backup or a 1B to give Talbot more support.

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