With his final start in the books, Jonathan Quick officially completes his incredible career and retires as one of the best goaltenders of his generation. While his career ends with the Rangers, he will be forever known as an LA King. Drafted in the 3rd round in 2005, Quick was the 8th goalie off the board in a draft that included Carey Price. At the time, he was a backup at UMass; but seen as an electrifying talent, albeit one that lacked pedigree. He, along with Kings’ 1st round pick Anze Kopitar became the backbone of the Kings. It took a few years for Quick to arrive, but once he did for more than a few games, it became clear that the Kings had something. 3 years later, Quick was one of the best goalies in the NHL. He led the entire NHL in shutouts with 10 and finished 2nd in Vezina voting, only behind King Henrik, ironically. However, it would be the playoffs where Quick became a legend. In 2012, the Kings entered the playoffs as an 8th seed. They left those playoffs as the greatest 8th seed in sports history. They became the only team in NHL history to lead every single one of their playoffs 3-0 at some point. They only lost 4 games on their way to their first ever Stanley Cup. How? Jonathan Quick. Quick put up arguably the greatest playoff performance in NHL history, at least for a goalie. He put up a gargantuan .946 save percentage. It is the single highest save percentage for any goaltender that played more than 10 games in a single playoff run. He won the Conn Smythe as playoff MVP for his efforts as the Kings won their first ever cup. 2 years later, the Kings were the 3rd place team in the Pacific and went on another run. While not as strong as 2012, the 2014 Kings do not win the Cup without Quick as their first 3 series all went to the full 7 games before beating King Henrik and the Rangers in the Cup Final to win their 2nd Cup in 3 years. Quick and the Kings would never win another playoff series together, although Quick did manage to win another cup after being traded to Vegas in 2023 and remaining their backup for their playoff run. His legacy is cemented as one of the very best playoff performers in NHL history. He will retire as the winningest goaltender goaltender in Kings’ history and finishes with the most wins for any American-born goaltender. Only Bob and Fleury accumulated more wins during his career. He ranks 12th all-time in career wins among all goalies and 17th all-time in shutouts with 65. Coincidentally, exactly 1 shutout ahead of Henrik Lundqvist. With a badass name, a strong legacy with the LA Kings and an enduring influence in California and American hockey, Jonathan Quick is truly a legend of the game with an outside chance to make the Hall of Fame.
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