Carter to Los Angeles

February 23, 2012

Over the summer, the Flyers traded away their (now former) capatain Mike Richards, and a 30 goal scorer in Jeff Carter just minutes apart from each other.

Richards landed in Los Angeles, Carter in Columbus, and Wayne Simmonds, Brayden Schenn, Jake Voracek, and Sean Couturier came to Philadelphia.

The trades payed off pretty nicely on the Flyer's side. The trade seems to have worked out for Richards too, as he quickly settled in wearing the King's black and silver.

Carter's tenure in Columbus has been a much different story. He has had to deal with injuries, has often been said to be unhappy in Ohio, and has played nowhere near on the level he did with the Flyers.

The Blue Jackets have had quite a few trade rumors surrounding them lately, mainly because they are trying to move their own captain Rick Nash, but there have also been some that concerned Carter.

The Carter rumors can now be put to rest.

Reported by NHL.com, the Blue Jackets traded Carter to the Kings for defenseman Jack Johnson and a conditional first round pick in the 2012 or 2013 NHL Draft.

It is a good move for both Carter and the Kings.

The Kings have struggled this season with goal scoring, averaging a league-low 2.05 goals per game. They will be getting a player who has scored 30-goals in a season three times already.

Los Angeles (at the time of this writing) is just barely hanging on to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference with 66 points, just one point over the Calgary Flames in ninth.

Carter will bring more offense to the team, which the King's front office is hoping, will result in more wins and better playoff security.

For Carter, he is finally out of Columbus, and will be reunited with his former teammate and close friend in Mike Richards.

As for the Blue Jakcets; they are the worse team in hockey, at 18-35-7 with only 43 points. They are getting a good, solid defenseman in Jack Johnson, that will bring veteran experience to a young and disorganized team. In addition, they could be getting a first round pick that will bring in more young talent to help them be better in the future.

The news is not entirely Flyers related, but is still news worthy to Flyers fans, considering that Carter never wanted to leave Philadelphia in the first place.

Best of luck to Jeff Carter on his new start in Los Angeles.