Breaking: Phaneuf is a healthy scratch tonight!

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HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 5 years ago
Breaking: Phaneuf is a healthy scratch tonight!
Zuma Press

Los Angeles Kings interim head coach Willie Desjardins has put his foot down and it seems like it's veteran defenseman Dion Phaneuf who is feeling it the most. 

The Kings coach just announced that Phaneuf will be a healthy scratch for tonight's game against the Philadelphia Flyers. 



It has to be frustrating for Kings' fans to watch their team get pegged with Phaneuf's $5.25 million cap hit for the rest of this season and two years after that. That's a lot of money sitting in the press box! 

The 33-year-old is minus-16 this season while averaging just 14:38 of ice time, last among the Kings regular defensemen. He has put up just three points this season. 

Phaneuf called himself out last month in an interview with The Athletic

“I haven’t had a very good year,” Phaneuf said. “I’ll be the first to admit that I haven’t played well enough. I expect more of myself and my game.
“I’m disappointed in my year personally and I have to be better for our team.” 

While it is a good thing to be aware of the problem, Phaneuf needs to fix it and find solution to get going again. 

If not, the Kings could seriously look at buying out his contract in the summer... After he was traded from Ottawa, the Senators retained $1.75 million of Phaneuf's salary in the deal and he has two more seasons left on his contract at a cap hit of $5.25 million. 

Source: Twitter