Pierre-Luc Dubois provides excuses for why his short stay in Los Angeles was unsuccessful

It's very rare for a former 3rd overall pick to be playing on his 4th team in the last 5 years, however Dubois has gained some notoriety in every pit stop he's made - unfortunately not the good kind.

After starting out in Columbus, he got into several dust-ups with then-head-coach John Tortorella, who accused the player of being soft and playing very lazy. He was then moved to Winnipeg in exchange for Patrik Laine but butted head with then-head-coach Rick Bowness after he believed he was being criticized far too often.

The Los Angeles Kings then paid a pretty penny to acquire his services in the summer of 2023 when they not only traded Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kupari, and Gabriel Vilardi alongside a second round pick, but then extended him immediately to an 8-year deal worth 68 million dollars.

He wound up lasting just one season in Los Angeles and his tenure was as rocky as his previous ones after not seeing eye-to-eye with Todd McLellan. He looked to have turned a corner with Jim Hiller after the former was fired and the latter was promoted but the writing was on the wall and the Kings wanted out.

The Washington Capitals then stepped in this summer and traded goaltender Darcy Kuemper to the Kings in exchange for Dubois, despite the 7 years remaining on his contract at an albatross cap hit of 8 million dollars per season.

In an interview with Quebec-based "La Presse", Dubois opens up about his time with the Kings, what he believes went wrong, and how he's excited to be a member of the Capitals.

"I get confused when there are grey areas. I ask myself too many questions. It's something I've been working on since I was young. And, from my very first conversations with the team, I didn't really know what was expected of me. I didn't know where I fit in. You can't play well when you're asking yourself too many questions."

He continued by saying that he doesn't blame the Kings for that, nor does he blame anyone but himself, however he found it extremely difficult to acclimate to his new surroundings when his relationship with McLellan was non-existent.

«We didn't talk often. Todd is more of a team tactics coach. Maybe we didn't have that relationship. Maybe I was too demanding, wanting to have the path explained to me. It's obviously my fault that it didn't work. You're not supposed to expect your entourage to help you gain confidence, but it can help. I tried to take on the challenge, but I stayed in a gray area all year. I didn't feel at home. The players helped me, and I wanted it to unblock, but it just wasn't working.»

"Jim (Hiller) knew me better than Todd because we talked more. It was a breath of fresh air for the whole team."

Entering his 8th season in the NHL in 2024-25, Dubois will look to finally make ground in what was expected to be an illustrious career. He has shown flashes of why he was a third overall pick with 3 seasons of 60+ points, however his consistency and 2-way play has plagued him dearly.

Only time will tell but perhaps Spencer Carbery can unlock his true potential this season with the Capitals in the midst of an aggressive re-tool.

Source for the interview: La Presse
THE UPS AND DOWNS OF PIERRE-LUC DUBOIS

Source for Dubois' stats: Hockey DB
Pierre-Luc Dubois