Kings' Justin Williams Signs Four-Year Extension

[Thrillhouse]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Kings have signed forward Justin Williams to a four-year contract extension that runs through the 2014-15 NHL season, Kings President/General Manager Dean Lombardi announced today.

Williams, 29, a 6-1, 188-pound native of Cobourg, Ontario, is tied for first on the Kings with 20 goals, and his 49 overall points (20-29=49), five power play goals and 180 shots on goal rank second best on the squad. The 20-goal season is his first since the 2006-07 season. Additionally, his plus-14 rating is tied for third on the team, as are his three game-winning goals. Williams, who’s skated in all 62 of the Kings’ games this season, has 12 points (3-9=12) in his last 15 games, 10 points (2-8=10) in his last 10 games and needs only two more points to reach 400 career points in the NHL (155-243=398). He appeared in his 600th NHL game at Phoenix on January 22, 2011, and set a new career-high by scoring in 11 straight games (7-7=14 during the streak) from October 23 – November 17.

Williams is the latest core player to commit to a long-term deal with the Kings. He joins defenseman Jack Johnson, who agreed to a seven-year contract extension on January 9, 2011; center Anze Kopitar, who also signed a seven-year contract extension on Oct. 11, 2008; right wing Dustin Brown, who agreed to a six-year contract extension on Oct. 26, 2007; defenseman/assistant captain Matt Greene, who agreed to a five-year contract extension on Oct. 17, 2008; center Jarret Stoll, who agreed to a four-year contract extension on Sept. 4, 2008; defenseman Rob Scuderi, who signed a four-year free agent contract with the Kings on July 2, 2009; goaltender Jonathan Quick, who signed a three-year contract extension on Oct. 23, 2009; and goaltender Jonathan Bernier, who signed a two-year contract extension on Oct. 4, 2010.

Williams totaled 29 points (10-19=29) and 39 penalty minutes in 49 regular season games with the Kings in 2009-10. He also had one assist in three postseason games. He missed 28 games during the regular season due to a broken leg (out from December 28, 2009 – March 10, 2010).

The Kings acquired Williams from Carolina in a three-way deal with Edmonton on March 4, 2009. As part of the deal, the Kings sent forward Patrick O’Sullivan to Edmonton and sent a second round selection in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft to Carolina. In the 12 games he appeared in with the Kings after the trade, Williams recorded four points (1-3=4) and eight penalty minutes. He made his Kings debut on March 20, 2009, recorded his first three points (1-2=3) as a King on April 4, 2009, vs. Phoenix, and appeared in his 500th career NHL game at Calgary on April 6, 2009. In 32 regular season games with the Hurricanes in 2008-09, Williams collected 10 points (3-7=10) and nine penalty minutes.

Injuries limited Williams to just 37 regular season games during the 2007-08 season with Carolina. Despite those injuries, he collected 30 points (9-21=30) and 43 penalty minutes in those 37 contests.

Williams led Carolina with a career-high 33 goals and eight game-winning goals during the 2006-07 season, a season in which he collected 67 points (33-34=67) and 73 penalty minutes while skating in all 82 regular season games. He also tied for the team lead with 12 power-play goals and finished second on Carolina with 258 shots and a time-on-ice average of 20:51. He also recorded two points (1-1=2) at his first career NHL All-Star Game (January 24, 2007 at Dallas) and notched his first career hat trick while tying a career-high in points (3-1=4) on October 16, 2006 at Tampa Bay.

A career-high 76 points (31-45=76) and a Stanley Cup championship highlighted Williams’ 2005-06 season, a season that also included a career-high 45 assists. Williams appeared in all 82 regular season games and finished second on Carolina in both goals and points while ranking third in assists. In addition to reaching the 30-goal mark for the first time in his career, Williams also became the third player in Carolina history to score two short-handed goals in one game (April 7, 2006 vs. Washington) and he had two four-point games for the Hurricanes (1-3=4 on April 3, 2006 vs. Washington and 2-2=4 on March 16, 2006 at Montreal). Williams career year continued into the postseason as he collected 18 points (7-11=18) in 25 games, helping Carolina capture the Stanley Cup in seven games vs. Edmonton. He tied for first on Carolina (and tied for fourth in the NHL) with a plus-12 rating during the postseason and scored an empty-net goal with 1:01 left in third period to seal Carolina’s Game 7 victory vs. Edmonton (June 19, 2006).

Williams began the 2003-04 season with Philadelphia before being traded to Carolina for defenseman Danny Markov on January 20, 2004. He combined to score 44 points (11-33=44) and 64 penalty minutes in 79 regular season games.

In 2002-03, Williams had 24 points (8-16=24) and 22 penalty minutes in 41 regular season games with the Flyers. During the 2003 Stanley Cup playoffs, Williams recorded six points (1-5=6) in 12 postseason games. He scored the game-winning goal and had two assists in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Toronto.

Williams won the Pelle Lindbergh Memorial Trophy as the Flyer who had most improved from the previous season at the conclusion of the 2001-02 campaign. He appeared in the NHL’s YoungStars Game as part of NHL All-Star Weekend that season while collecting 17 goals and 40 points (17-23=40) and 32 penalty minutes in 75 regular season games. He also appeared in five postseason games with the Flyers (0-0=0, 4 PIM).

Williams earned at least a point in his first three NHL games, totaling five points (1-4=5) from October 5 - October 11, 2000. He also scored his first NHL goal and added two assists in his NHL debut (October 5, 2000 vs. Vancouver), a debut that took place just one day after his 19th birthday.

On the International stage, Williams earned a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2007 World Championships (9 GP, 1-2=3) and at the 2004 World Championships (9 GP, 0-0=0). He also represented Team Canada at the 2002 World Championships (5 GP, 0-3=3).

Williams has 398 points (155-243=398) and 425 penalty minutes in 614 career NHL regular season games with the Los Angeles, Carolina and Philadelphia. In addition, he has 25 points (8-17=25) and 48 penalty minutes in 45 career postseason games with Los Angeles, Carolina and Philadelphia.

Williams was originally selected by Philadelphia in the first-round (28th overall) in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft.

[LAKINGSNUT]

i like it! he's proven that when healthy he can skate and be effective on this team!

[lakingsfan19]

I like too. It's for a good price and I like the edge he plays with for a small skilled guy.

good signing...

[Juha82]

Originally Posted by lakingsfan19

I like too. It's for a good price and I like the edge he plays with for a small skilled guy.

good signing...

Not elite player but such like Top30-50 player in the NHL for sure.
Skilled and wise teamplayer.

[bengino]

a guy that has been decent but injury prone breaking out in a contract year? Never seen that before.. in any case, i'm just glad i barely seem him, i still have a level of hatred towards this guy i can't shake.

[NickDoh]

3rd kings fan to say it; i like it. he has probably the most drive of anybody on the team. he has brought it all year. a guy who truly appreciates being healthy and (knock on wood) has been just that.