GM Rob Blake decides Pierre-Luc Dubois' fate with the Kings

The 2023-24 season was one to forget for Pierre-Luc Dubois. 

The 25 year old forward made his debut with the Los Angeles Kings and put up the single worst season of his NHL career to date. Ouch...

Oh, and that's AFTER signing a eight year contract worth $8.5 million per season. Double ouch...

Dubois, who was acquired last offseason in a blockbuster trade with the Winnipeg Jets, put up just 16 goals and 40 points in 82 games this past offseason, well, well, weeeeell below his pay grade. Kings GM Rob Blake acquired Dubois in an effort to bolster his team's offence and to give aging #1 center Anze Kopitar a bit of a break on the 2nd line. As it turned out though, Dubois was 8th on the Kings in scoring this past season, behind the likes of Adrian Kempe, Kevin Fiala, Kopitar, Trevor Moore, Quinton Byfield, Drew Doughty and Phillip Danault. To make matters worse, Gabriel Vilardi and Alex Iafallo, two players traded to Winnipeg in the Dubois deal, seem to be fitting in perfectly with the Jets.

All of this is to say that Dubois has been a massive disappointment in LA.

So... what's next? Will Blake look to the trade market to move Dubois just a year into his tenure with the team? Will he buy him out? If Blake and the Kings were to buy-out Dubois this offseason they'd save themselves over $31 million in cap space over the next eight years, but they'd be forced to carry a cap hit that averages about $1.9 million over the next 14 years. That sounds like a hefty price to pay, but if Dubois can't find his game and the Kings elect to keep him they could be on the hook for the full amount over the next eight years.

So... what's the plan?

Well, today Blake officially announced to Kings fans that there is no plan to buy-out Dubois this offseason.

Check it out:

Of course not, though. Blake stuck his neck out to acquire Dubois and then to sign him to such a massive contract. To buy him out just a year later would be an abject failure and an acknowledgement that he made a mistake. That's not in Blake's DNA, for better or worse. 

Personally, I think if Dubois gets the boot from LA, by buy-out or otherwise, it'll be at the hand of Blake's replacement. Stay tuned.