Los Angeles Kings

Lore & Background

During the 1970s and early 1980s, the Kings had many years marked by impressive play in the regular season only to be washed out by early playoff exits. Their highlights in those years included the strong goaltending of Rogie Vachon, and the 'Triple Crown Line' of Charlie Simmer, Dave Taylor and Hall of Famer Marcel Dionne, who had a famous upset of the rising Edmonton Oilers in a 1982 playoff game known as the Miracle on Manchester. In 1988, the Kings traded with the Oilers to get their captain Wayne Gretzky, leading to a successful phase of the franchise that raised hockey's popularity in Los Angeles, and helped elevate the sport's profile in the American Sun Belt region.

Gretzky, fellow Hall of Famer Luc Robitaille, and defenseman Rob Blake led the Kings to the franchise's sole division title in 1990–91, and the Kings' first Stanley Cup Final appearance in 1993, where they lost to the Montreal Canadiens. After the 1993 Stanley Cup Final, the Kings entered financial problems, with a bankruptcy in 1995, which led to the franchise being acquired by Philip Anschutz (the owner of Anschutz Entertainment Group and the operators of Crypto.com Arena) and Ed Roski Jr..

A period of mediocrity ensued, with the Kings only resurging as they broke a six-year playoff drought in the 2009–10 season, with a team that included goaltender Jonathan Quick, defenseman Drew Doughty, and forwards Dustin Brown, Anze Kopitar, and Justin Williams. Under coach Darryl Sutter, who was hired early in the 2011–12 season, and with the acquisition of Jeff Carter, the Kings won two Stanley Cups in three years: 2012 over the New Jersey Devils, and 2014 over the New York Rangers, while Quick and Williams respectively won the Conn Smythe Trophy.

The team has had mixed success since then as they have qualified for the playoffs from 2022 to 2026, but have not advanced past the first round – a feat they have not achieved since winning the Stanley Cup in 2014.

Reader's Guide

The Kings opened their first season at the Long Beach Arena in the neighboring city of Long Beach on October 14, 1967, defeating another expansion team, the Philadelphia Flyers, 4–2. The 'Fabulous Forum' finally opened its doors on December 30, 1967, with the Kings being shut out by the Flyers, 2–0. While the first two seasons had the Kings qualifying for the playoffs, afterwards poor management led the Kings into hard times. The general managers established a history of trading away first-round draft picks, usually for veteran players, and attendance suffered during this time.

Eventually the Kings made a few key acquisitions to resurge as a contender. By acquiring Toronto Maple Leafs winger Bob Pulford, who would later become the Kings' head coach, in 1970, Swedish center Juha Widing in a trade from the New York Rangers, and Montreal Canadiens goaltender Rogie Vachon in 1971, the Kings went from being one of the worst defensive teams in the league to one of the best, and in 1974 they returned to the playoffs. After being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs in both 1973–74 and 1974–75, the Kings moved to significantly upgrade their offense when they acquired center Marcel Dionne from the Detroit Red Wings.

Behind Dionne's offensive capabilities, the goaltending of Rogie Vachon, and the speed and scoring touch of forward Butch Goring, the Kings played two of their best seasons yet, with playoff match ups against the then-Atlanta Flames in the first round, and the Boston Bruins in the second round, both times being eliminated by Boston. Bob Pulford left the Kings after the 1976–77 season after constant feuding with then owner Jack Kent Cooke, and General Manager Jake Milford decided to leave as well.

This led to struggles in the 1977–78 season, where the Kings finished below .500 and were easily swept out of the first round by the Maple Leafs. Afterwards, Vachon became a free agent and signed with the Red Wings. The following season, Kings coach Bob Berry tried juggling line combinations, and Dionne found himself on a new line with two young, mostly unknown players: second-year right winger Dave Taylor and left winger Charlie Simmer, who had been a career minor-leaguer.

Each player benefited from each other, with Simmer being the gritty player who battled along the boards, Taylor being the play maker, and Dionne being the natural goal scorer.