The Edmonton Oilers have traded forward Jussi Jokinen to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for forward Michael Cammalleri, per Nick Kypreos. Both Jokinen and Cammalleri signed one-year deals with their respective teams this offseason, and in a rare move, both the Oilers and Kings have deemed it worthwhile to swap the duo in hopes that a change of scenery helps them out.
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In 14 games this season with the Oilers, the 34-year-old Jokinen has recorded only one assist in 14 games and has failed to catch on in Edmonton after three seasons in Florida. In Los Angeles, Cammalleri hasn’t been a huge get for the Kings either as he’s amassed only three goals and seven points in 15 games despite the Kings starting off the season on such a hot streak with an 11-4-2 record, good for first in the Pacific Division and Second in the Western Conference.
The deal doesn’t have any financial significance as Cammalleri’s one-year deal pays him $1.1 million this season while Jokinen’s pays him $1 million. Instead, both the Oilers and Kings are looking to bolster their depth by swapping two veterans who have underperformed in the early goings of the season.
While the Kings have started the season off well, the Oilers have found much less success after a breakout 2016-17 season that saw the Oilers make it to the second-round of the postseason. Starting this season with a 6-9-2 record and a severe need for scoring wingers after trading away Jordan Eberle, they’ve found themselves a slight upgrade in the goal-scoring department as Cammalleri should provide more offense than Jokinen would have throughout the season.
Cammalleri and Jokinen Are Well Traveled Veterans
Since being drafted in the second-round in 2001, Cammalleri has found himself on multiple teams over his 15-season NHL career. Starting with the Kings in Los Angeles, the Toronto-native played for four seasons in California before playing the 2008-09 season in Calgary. That one year in Calgary proved to be the best season of Cammalleri’s career as he scored 39 goals and 82 points in 81 games.
Joining the Montreal Canadiens in 2009-10, Cammalleri was able to find success wearing the blue-blanc-rouge as well, though injuries and inconsistency began to plague him, leading to his trade in the middle of a game against the Boston Bruins. The deal saw him return to Calgary where he played for another two seasons before joining the New Jersey Devils for three years before finally rejoining the Kings this offseason.
In his career, Cammalleri has scored 290 goals and 620 points in 855 games and has been impressive in the postseason as well, scoring 17 goal and 32 points in 32 contests, though he hasn’t played in the playoffs since the 2010-11 season.
Success For Jokinen
Drafted in the sixth-round of the same year as Cammalleri, Jokinen has played for the Dallas Stars (two-plus seasons), the Tampa Bay Lightning (one-plus season), the Carolina Hurricanes (four-plus seasons), the Pittsburgh Penguins (one-plus season), the Florida Panthers (three seasons) and most recently the Oilers this season. Set to join his seventh team, Jokinen is still looking for his first Stanley Cup victory of his career.
Jokinen has scored a total of 186 goals and 547 points over 905 career NHL games and has scored 17 goal and 32 points in 54 playoff contests as well. Set to join the Kings who are looking like legitimate Stanley Cup contenders in the early-goings of the season, Jokinen could find himself in the postseason for the first time since 2015-16 after missing the postseason with the Panthers last year.
