Los Angeles Kings
The only major arena in the area, the
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, was certainly large enough to accommodate an NHL team, but its sight lines were inadequate.
When the NHL decided to expand for 1967-68 amidst rumblings that the
Pacific Coast Hockey League was proposing to turn itself into a major league and compete for the
Stanley Cup, Canadian entrepreneur
Jack Kent Cooke paid the NHL $2 million to form a new team in Los Angeles as one of the expansion teams to be added for the
1967-68 NHL season, and on February 9, 1966, Cooke was awarded a new NHL franchise, behind his promise to build a new arena for his team.
[Ibid.] The terms of a new television agreement with
CBS called for two of the new teams to be located in California, the other being the
California Seals who would represent the Bay Area.
The Kings opened the
1967-68 NHL season, their first in the NHL, at the
Long Beach Arena on October 14, 1967, defeating the
Philadelphia Flyers, 4-2. For the next two months, the Kings played their home games at Long Beach and at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena.
[Ibid.] |
LA Kings primary logo from 1982-88. |
|
LA Kings crown logo, used on their jerseys from 1967-88. The logo was based on the crown from Spanish soccer team Real Madrid. |
As for the new arena, Cooke stated that the new team would play in "the most beautiful arena in the world." True to his word, the first home of the Kings, the "Fabulous
Forum" in
Inglewood, California, opened to rave reviews on December 30, 1967, even though the Kings were shutout by the Flyers, 2-0.
[Ibid.] Cooke chose the colors of purple (or "Forum blue," as he called it) and gold for his new team; the colors had long been associated with royalty. They were also the same colors worn by the
Los Angeles Lakers, which Cooke also owned.
The Kings made the Forum their home for the next 32 seasons. Players like Bill "Cowboy" Flett, Eddie "The Jet" Joyal, Eddie "The Entertainer" Shack, and Real "Frenchy" Lemieux helped introduce the Los Angeles area to the NHL in the team's first few seasons. Such player nicknames were the brainchild of owner Cooke, who felt that colorful nicknames would make hockey more user-friendly to the Southern California market. He even insisted that his radio and television commentators use the nicknames in preference to the players' given names.
[*]In their first season, the Kings finished a very respectable second place in the Western Division, just one point behind the Flyers, but would be eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Minnesota North Stars in seven games.
In their second season behind head coach
Red Kelly, the Kings would finish fourth in the Western Division. But after eliminating the
Oakland Seals in the first round of the playoffs in seven games, the Kings were swept out of post-season play in the second round by the
St. Louis Blues[Ibid.].
After two fairly successful seasons, the Kings hit hard times, mostly due to poor management, who would establish a history of trading away first-round draft picks, usually for veteran players, some of them NHL stars, on the downside of their careers.
In 1972, the Kings moved to bring some credibility back to the franchise when they hired former
Toronto Maple Leafs winger Bob Pulford as their head coach. It took him just two seasons to lead the Kings back into the playoffs, where they lost to the
Chicago Blackhawks in five games. Pulford would eventually lead the team to five of the most successful seasons in franchise history.
[Ibid.]In 1973, the Kings brought in
Bob Miller as the team's new play-by-play announcer. He has held that post continuously since that time, and has gone on to become a Hall of Fame announcer.
[Ibid, p. 21.]Despite qualifying for post-season action in the
1973-74 and
1974-75 seasons (eliminated in the first round in both years), the Kings finally moved to substantially upgrade their offensive firepower when they acquired center
Marcel Dionne on June 23, 1975, in a trade with the
Detroit Red Wings.
[Ibid, p. 6.]Dionne, already a superstar in the NHL, had an immediate, resounding impact in the
1975-76 season, scoring 40 goals and adding 54 assists for 94 points in 80 regular season games. He led the Kings to a 38-33-9 record (85 points), earning them a second place finish in the James Norris division.
[Ibid.]Behind Dionne's offensive prowess, the stellar goaltending of
Rogatien Vachon (better known as "Rogie"), and the speed and scoring touch of forward
Butch Goring, the Kings swept the
Atlanta Flames out of the first round of the playoffs, but were eliminated in second round by the
Boston Bruins in seven games
[Ibid, p. 210.]The Kings would beat the Flames and lose to the Bruins the following season as well.
[Ibid.]Three seasons later, the Kings had still not advanced past the second round of the playoffs. But on January 13, 1979, Dionne found himself on a new line with two young, mostly unknown players, second-year right wing
Dave Taylor, and left wing
Charlie Simmer, who had been a career minor-leaguer. But this line combination would go on to become one of the highest-scoring line combinations in the history of the NHL.
[Ibid, p.6.]After that first season that the "Triple Crown Line" played together, Dr.
Jerry Buss purchased the Kings, the Lakers, and the Forum for $67.5 million, but the Triple Crown Line remained intact.
|
LA Kings home jersey, circa 1980. |
The next season, the Triple Crown Line dominated the NHL, scoring 146 goals and 182 assists, good for 328 points. The entire line, along with goalie
Mario Lessard, was selected to play in the
NHL All-Star Game that season, which was played at the Forum. In that
1979-80 season, Dionne won the
Art Ross Memorial Trophy for winning a NHL scoring title that season with 137 points on 53 goals and 84 assists.
[Ibid.]But even with the Triple Crown Line's ability to dominate, the Kings still could not get out of the first round of the playoffs until the
1981-82 NHL season.
That year, the Kings opened the playoffs against the
Edmonton Oilers, who were led by a young, but fast-rising star by the name of
Wayne Gretzky. Gretzky was only in his third year in the league, but he dominated the NHL like no other had before from the moment he stepped onto NHL ice in his rookie season. And by the
1981-82 NHL season, he was already the most dominant player in the league, and he made the Oilers one of the elite teams in the NHL, on their way to winning four
Stanley Cup championships in the 1980's. The Oilers finished with 114 points, the second-best record in the league. Given that background, what happened in Game 3 of the Kings' first-round playoff matchup against the vaunted Oilers was truly unbelievable.
In that game, played on April 10, 1982 at the Forum, Gretzky led the Oilers to a commanding 5-0 lead after two periods, and had the game locked up. But the Kings did not give up. They scored five unanswered goals in the third period to tie the game, and then Kings' forward Daryl Evans scored at 2:35 of
overtime to win it for the Kings, 6-5.
[Ibid. p. 7.]The "
Miracle on Manchester," arguably one of the greatest comebacks in NHL playoff history, is the greatest moment in Kings' franchise history to date. And not only did the Kings complete a miraculous comeback against the mighty Oilers, but they also went on to eliminate the Oilers in five games.
[Ibid.]Despite Dionne's leadership, the Kings missed the playoffs the next two seasons, and were quickly swept out of the playoffs by the Oilers in the
1984-85 NHL season, when the Oilers won their second straight Stanley Cup championship.
[*]Dionne's time with the Kings ended on March 10,
1987, when he was traded to the New York Rangers. But by this time, the Kings had new skaters to help lead them into the next decade, including star forwards
Bernie Nicholls,
Jimmy Carson,
Luc Robitaille, and defensemen
Steve Duchesne, and eventual Hall-of-Famer
Larry Murphy.
[*][*]The Kings continued to be bounced out of the first round of the playoffs until
1988-89, a season that would be a big turning point for the franchise.
The Black and Silver Era
|
LA Kings logo from 1988-98. |
In 1987,
Bruce McNall purchased the Kings from Buss, and he turned the team into a Stanley Cup contender almost overnight on
August 9,
1988; when he acquired
Wayne Gretzky in a blockbuster trade that rocked the hockey world
[*], especially north of the border, where Canadians mourned the loss of a player they considered a national treasure.
In Gretzky's first season with the Kings, "The Great One" led the team in scoring with 168 points on 54 goals and 114 assists, and won his ninth Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's most valuable player. He led the Kings to a second place finish in the Smythe Division with a 42-31-7 record (91 points), and they ranked fourth in the NHL overall.
[Ibid.]In the 1989 playoffs, Gretzky led the Kings to a seven-game series win against the Oilers in the first round, but the Kings were quickly swept out of the playoffs in the second round by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Calgary Flames.
[Ibid, p. 210.]Over the next two seasons, Gretzky would lead the way, only to see his team bounced out of the playoffs in the second round by his former team, the Oilers, who won the Stanley Cup in 1990.
[Ibid.]Gretzky led the Kings to their first regular season division title in franchise history in the 1990-91 season with a 46-24-10 record (102 points, the second best point total in franchise history), but that would not be the pinnacle of his career in Los Angeles.
[Ibid, p. 7.]The Kings would reach new heights in the 1992-93 NHL season, but the year started badly for the team when it was learned that Gretzky had suffered a career-threatening herniated thoracic disk before the season began. The concern was not only if Gretzky would be able to play that season, but if he would ever be able to play again.
[*] But without their captain and leading scorer, the Kings got off to a blistering 20-8-3 start
[*], with left wing Luc Robitaille filling in as captain for the ailing Gretzky. Robitaille led the team until Gretzky returned after missing the first 39 games.
[Sadowski, op. cit., p. 29.] (Robitaille would go on to retire at the end of the 2005-2006 season as the highest-scoring left winger in
NHL history).
[*]Robitaille and Gretzky, along with former Oilers' winger
Jari Kurri, forwards
Tony Granato and
Tomas Sandstrom, defensemen
Rob Blake and
Alexei Zhitnik, and goalie
Kelly Hrudey, would lead the Kings through a rough middle portion of the season until they found their game once again in the last three months of the season to qualify for post-season action. Although Gretzky came back to score 16 goals and 49 assists (65 points) in just 45 games, it was Robitaille who was the Kings' impact player that season, leading the team in scoring with 63 goals and 62 assists (125 points) in 84 regular season games, setting new NHL all-time records for goals and points scored by a left winger in a single season.
[*]Kings' head coach
Barry Melrose had his team's offense running on all cylinders when the 1993 playoffs began, and they scored a whopping 33 goals in the series against the
Calgary Flames[Sadowski, op. cit., p. 145.]. In the second round, the Kings faced the heavily-favored
Vancouver Canucks, a team that had beaten the Kings rather handily five times in seven games during the regular season, and had not lost to the Kings in their four meetings in Vancouver. But the Kings would go on to eliminate the Canucks in six games, with the pivotal victory coming in Game 5 at Vancouver, which was tied, 3-3 at the end of regulation play. The teams were still tied after the first overtime period, but winger Gary Shuchuk scored at 6:31 of the second overtime period, giving the Kings a 3-2 series lead, and dealing the Canucks an emotional, and as it turned out, fatal, blow.
[Ibid., p. 161.]In the Campbell Conference Finals, the Kings were even more of an underdog against the
Doug Gilmour-led
Toronto Maple Leafs. But with Gretzky leading the team, the Kings eliminated the Leafs in a hard-fought seven game series that included two overtime games and a Game 6 win for the Kings, who were facing elimination after losing Game 5 in overtime--they trailed the Leafs in the series, 3-2.
[*] In Game 6, the teams were tied, 4-4 at the end of regulation play, only to have Gretzky score in overtime to give his team a dramatic 5-4 victory, sending the teams back to Toronto for Game 7, when Gretzky scored a hat trick (three goals), and an assist to lead the Kings to a 5-4 win and a berth in the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in franchise history.
[Sadowski, op. cit., p. 192.]In the Stanley Cup Finals, the Kings faced the
Montreal Canadiens, who breezed through the playoffs and were very well-rested. The Kings defeated the Canadiens in Game 1, 4-1.
[*] They led by one goal in the waning seconds of regulation of Game 2 when Canadiens coach
Jacques Demers asked the referees to check the stick of Kings
enforcer Marty McSorley. The curve of the stick was too great.
[Sadowski, op. cit., p. 213.] The Canadiens scored on the resulting power play and won the game in overtime. The Kings never recovered. They lost the next two games in overtime, and were shelled 4-1 in Game 5
[*] as the Canadiens won their 24th Stanley Cup.
[*]Despite the stinging defeat at the hands of the Canadiens in the finals, Gretzky and the Kings had generated excitement about hockey and the NHL that had never been seen before in Southern California. As soon as Gretzky donned a Kings jersey, the Forum was sold out for every game--virtually overnight, a Kings game became the hottest ticket in town.
The popularity of Gretzky and the Kings also led to the NHL awarding an expansion team to
Anaheim, California; in the 1993-94 NHL season, the
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (who became the
Anaheim Ducks on June 22, 2006) would become the Kings nearest rival, just 35 miles to the south
[*][*]. Gretzky's popularity in Southern California also led to the NHL expanding into other
Sun Belt cities such as
Phoenix,
Dallas,
Tampa,
Miami, and
Nashville.
The next four seasons would be major disappointments, as the Kings failed to qualify for the playoffs. It was during this period that McNall's criminal activities came to light, and he would eventually be convicted of bank fraud. McNall's mismanagement put the Kings in dire financial straits, forcing the team to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy--they were even unable to meet player payroll.
While he was headed to prison, McNall sold the team to Joseph Cohen and Jeffrey Sudikoff, but even they were unable to lift the Kings out of their financial woes, and the Kings were unable to spend the money needed to bring in talent. The Kings' financial woes resulted in a roster with almost no talent outside of Gretzky and created a ripple effect for the next few years--the Kings missed the playoffs for four seasons, from 1993-94 to 1996-97, even though the team was purchased in October, 1995 by
Philip Anschutz and Edward P. Roski Jr., who would lead the franchise into a new era.
[*]The Staples Center Era
|
The Kings' alternate logo. (Was the teams' primary logo from 1998-2002.) |
Now under the ownership of the
Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), the Kings began a rebuilding phase.
[Ibid.] Meanwhile, Gretzky, who was by this time on the downside of his career, stated publicly that he wanted the team to acquire a forward capable of scoring fifty goals per season and an offensive defenseman. If they failed to do that, he wanted to be traded to a team that was a legitimate Stanley Cup contender.
After all he had done for the game by that time, Gretzky probably deserved another chance to win another Stanley Cup before retirement. But his public statements forced the Kings' hand, since no team would now give them equal value in a trade because of his demands--the Kings would be at a huge disadvantage in any trade, and this would badly hurt their rebuilding program.
On February 27,
1996, The Great One was traded to the St. Louis Blues for forwards
Craig Johnson,
Patrice Tardif,
Roman Vopat, a first-round pick in the
1997 draft (
Matt Zultek) and a fifth-round choice in the
1996 draft (
Peter Hogan).
[Ibid., p. 159.] None became stars for the Kings, although Gretzky himself was an unrestricted free agent by season's end, and only played 18 regular season games for the Blues.
Shortly after Gretzky was traded, the often-maligned general manager Sam McMaster was fired and was replaced by former Kings great
Dave Taylor[Ibid., pp. 7, 14.]. But the rebuilding phase for Taylor was a tough one, as the Kings continued to flounder--they failed to make the playoffs until the
1997-98 season.
[Ibid., p. 211.]After another disappointing season in
1998-99, then head coach
Larry Robinson, who also played three seasons for the Kings from 1989-1992, was not re-hired.
[Ibid., p. 7.]Taylor turned to
Andy Murray, who became the Kings' 19th head coach on June 14, 1999. Taylor's hiring of Murray was immediately criticized by media across North America because of Murray's perceived lack of experience--up to that point, his only head coaching experience had been at the international level with the Canadian National Team and at the US high school level. Indeed, Taylor took a gamble on Murray, hoping it would pay off.
[Ibid., pp. 7, 18.]But Taylor was not finished dealing that summer. Shortly after hiring Murray, Taylor acquired star right wing
Zigmund Palffy and veteran
center Bryan Smolinski on June 20, 1999, in exchange for center prospect
Olli Jokinen, forward prospect Josh Green, defenseman prospect Mathieu Biron and the Kings' first-round pick in the
1999 NHL Entry Draft.
[Ibid., p. 7.] |
Staples Center, viewed from Figueroa Street, the southeast side of the arena. |
The Kings also made an even bigger move in the
1999-2000 NHL season, as they left the Great Western Forum and moved to
Staples Center in Downtown
Los Angeles, which was built by Anschutz and Roski.
[Ibid., p. 8.]Staples Center was a state-of-the-art arena, complete with luxury suites and all the modern amenities that fans and athletes wanted in a new facility.
With a new home, a new head coach, a potential 50-goal scorer in the fold, and players such as
Rob Blake,
Luc Robitaille, *
Glen Murray,
Jozef Stumpel,
Donald Audette,
Ian Laperriere, and
Mattias Norstrom, the Kings improved dramatically, finishing the season the 1999-2000 season with a 39-31-12-4 record (94 points), good for second place in the Pacific Division.
[Ibid., p. 203.]But in the 2000 playoffs, the Kings were once again eliminated in the first round, this time by the mighty Detroit Red Wings in a four-game sweep. Clearly, the Kings were still not one of the NHL's elite teams, capable of contending for the
Stanley Cup.
[Ibid., p. 211.]The
2000-01 season was a controversial one, as fans began to question AEG's commitment to the success of the Kings, as they failed to significantly improve the team during the off-season. Adding fuel to the fire was the February 21, 2001 trade of star defenseman
Rob Blake, who won the
James Norris Memorial Trophy as the NHL's best defenseman in the
1997-98 NHL season.
[Ibid., p. 8.]In that deal, the Kings sent Blake and forward Steven Reinprecht to the
Colorado Avalanche in exchange for right wing
Adam Deadmarsh, defenseman
Aaron Miller, center prospect
Jared Aulin and a first-round pick in the
2001 NHL Entry Draft (
Dave Steckel).
[Ibid., p. 160.]Deadmarsh and Miller became impact players for the Kings, who finished the 2000-01 season with a 38-28-13-3 record (92 points), good for a third place finish in the Pacific Division and another first-round playoff date with the still-mighty
Detroit Red Wings.
[Ibid., p. 205.]The heavily-favored Red Wingsmade easy work of the Kings in Games 1 and 2 in Detroit, but the Kings got back in the series with a 2-1 win in Game 3 at Staples Center.
[Ibid., p. 211.] |
Home jersey worn by the National Hockey League's Los Angeles Kings from 2003-present. |
In Game 4, played on April 18, 2001, the Red Wings took a commanding 3-0 lead after two periods, seemingly restoring order to a series they were supposed to win easily. And in the third period, it looked like nothing would change. But all that set the stage for yet another unbelievable playoff comeback for the Kings, highly reminiscent of the "Miracle on Manchester," back in 1982.
Seldom-used forward
Scott Thomas, a career minor-leaguer, scored a power play goal at 13:53, to give the Kings a bit of life. Jozef Stumpel would follow with another power play goal at 17:33, and then
Bryan Smolinski tied the game at the 19:07 mark.
And in overtime, Deadmarsh stole the puck from Red Wings' star defenseman
Chris Chelios in the right corner, and threw a centering pass to center
Eric Belanger, who scored the game-winning goal at 2:36 to lift the Kings to a miraculous come-from-behind win, now known as the "Frenzy On Figueroa."
[Ibid., p. 8.] |
Road jersey worn by the National Hockey League's Los Angeles Kings from 2003-present. |
The amazing win by the Kings in Game 4 took all the wind out of the Red Wings' sails, and the Kings eliminated them in Game 6 in Los Angeles, having won four straight games after going down 2-0 in the series. It was the Kings' first playoff series win since 1993.
[Ibid., p. 211.]In the second round, the Kings went up against another elite team, the
Colorado Avalanche, led by superstars like
Joe Sakic,
Peter Forsberg,
Patrick Roy, and of course,
Rob Blake. The Kings took the eventual Stanley Cup champions to seven games.
[Ibid., p. 211.][*]The
2001-02 NHL season was started off with tragedy as team scouts
Garnet "Ace" Bailey and
Mark Bavis were both casualties of the
September 11th attack.
[*] The team honored the two by wearing "AM" patches on their jerseys. Earlier in the season, the team acquired
Jason Allison who was involved in a contract dispute along with
Mikko Eloranta from the
Boston Bruins in return for
Jozef Stumpel and *
Glen Murray.
[*] At midseason they held the
2002 NHL All-Star Game[*] while still fighting for a playoff spot in which they clinched seventh place in the Western Conference where they were matched with the heavily favored
Colorado Avalanche. After being bounced out of the playoffs in the first round by the Avalanche, the next two seasons would be major disappointments, as the team failed to make the playoffs in both seasons.
[*]But even though the Kings refused to use it as an excuse, injuries were the primary reason for the team's failures. In the
2002-03 NHL season, the Kings just missed breaking the unofficial NHL record for the most man-games lost to injury in a season with 536. But they would easily surpass the record in the
2003-04 NHL season with 629 man-games lost.
|
Alternate (third) jersey worn by the National Hockey League's Los Angeles Kings from 2003-present. |
The Kings'
2004-05 NHL season was lost due to
labor strife between the NHL and the National Hockey League Players Union.
League play resumed for
2005-2006 and saw the Kings acquire
Valeri Bure,
Jeremy Roenick and
Pavol Demitra.
[Ibid., pp. 30, 38, 50.] Los Angeles began the new season strongly challenging for the Western Conference title. However, the second half of the season saw the Kings once again stumble badly, freefalling from second in the Western Conference in early January to tenth place.
[*]At the trade deadline, the Kings added another goal scorer in the
New York Islanders,
Mark Parrish, along with defenseman
Brent Sopel[*], and they fired head coach
Andy Murray on March 21, 2006
[*], replacing him with interim head coach
John Torchetti,
[Ibid.] but the moves failed to jump start the team, as they continued their losing ways. With three games left in the season, Luc Robitaille, the team's all-time leading scorer and the NHL's all-time highest-scoring left winger, announced that, at the end of the year, he would be retiring from pro hockey.
[*]Just one day after the end of the Kings' 2005-06 regular season, AEG decided to clean house on April 18, 2006, and they relieved President/Hockey Operations and General Manager
Dave Taylor of his duties, along with Director of Player Personnel Bill O'Flaherty. Interim head coach
John Torchetti and assistant coaches
Mark Hardy and Ray Bennett, along with goaltending consultant Andy Nowicki were also fired, and Vice President and Assistant General Manager Kevin Gilmore was re-assigned to other duties within AEG. Kings CEO
Tim Leiweke also announced that he will no longer be the team's Chief Executive Officer.
[*]On April 21, 2006, the Kings signed
Philadelphia Flyers scout and former
San Jose Sharks general manager
Dean Lombardi as their new President and General Manager. He was signed to a five-year contract, signaling big changes in the near future for the franchise.
[*]Soon after he was hired, Lombardi quickly began to revamp the Kings' hockey operations and just barely over one month into his tenure as President and General Manager, he hired
Marc Crawford to be the Kings' 21st head coach on May 22, 2006.
[*]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses/Shootout losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Season| GP | W | L | T | OTL | Pts | GF | GA | PIM | Finish | Playoffs |
| 1967-68 | 74 | 31 | 33 | 10 | -- | 72 | 200 | 224 | 810 | 2nd in West | Lost in 1st round (North Stars) |
| 1968-69 | 76 | 24 | 42 | 10 | -- | 57 | 185 | 260 | 698 | 4th in West | Lost in 2nd round (Blues) |
| 1969-70 | 76 | 14 | 52 | 10 | -- | 38 | 168 | 290 | 969 | 6th in West | Out of playoffs |
| 1970-71 | 78 | 25 | 40 | 13 | -- | 63 | 239 | 303 | 775 | 5th in West | Out of playoffs |
| 1971-72 | 78 | 20 | 49 | 9 | -- | 49 | 206 | 305 | 719 | 7th in West | Out of playoffs |
| 1972-73 | 78 | 31 | 36 | 11 | -- | 73 | 232 | 245 | 888 | 6th in West | Out of playoffs |
| 1973-74 | 78 | 33 | 33 | 12 | -- | 78 | 233 | 231 | 1055 | 3rd in West | Lost in 1st round (Blackhawks) |
| 1974-75 | 80 | 42 | 17 | 21 | -- | 105 | 269 | 185 | 1185 | 2nd in Norris | Lost in 1st round (Maple Leafs) |
| 1975-76 | 80 | 38 | 33 | 9 | -- | 85 | 263 | 265 | 1022 | 2nd in Norris | Lost in 2nd round (Bruins) |
| 1976-77 | 80 | 34 | 31 | 15 | -- | 83 | 271 | 241 | 1186 | 2nd in Norris | Lost in 2nd round (Bruins) |
| 1977-78 | 80 | 31 | 34 | 15 | -- | 77 | 243 | 245 | 903 | 3rd in Norris | Lost in 1st round (Maple Leafs) |
| 1978-79 | 80 | 34 | 34 | 12 | -- | 80 | 292 | 286 | 1134 | 3rd in Norris | Lost in 1st round (Rangers) |
| 1979-80 | 80 | 30 | 36 | 14 | -- | 74 | 290 | 313 | 1124 | 2nd in Norris | Lost in 1st round (Islanders) |
| 1980-81 | 80 | 43 | 24 | 13 | -- | 99 | 337 | 290 | 1627 | 2nd in Norris | Lost in 1st round (Rangers) |
| 1981-82 | 80 | 24 | 41 | 15 | -- | 63 | 314 | 369 | 1730 | 4th in Smythe | Lost in 2nd round (Canucks) |
| 1982-83 | 80 | 27 | 41 | 12 | -- | 66 | 308 | 365 | 1627 | 5th in Smythe | Out of playoffs |
| 1983-84 | 80 | 23 | 44 | 13 | -- | 59 | 309 | 376 | 1265 | 5th in Smythe | Out of playoffs |
| 1984-85 | 80 | 34 | 32 | 14 | -- | 82 | 339 | 326 | 1413 | 4th in Smythe | Lost in 1st round (Oilers) |
| 1985-86 | 80 | 23 | 49 | 8 | -- | 54 | 284 | 389 | 2004 | 5th in Smythe | Out of playoffs |
| 1986-87 | 80 | 31 | 41 | 8 | -- | 70 | 318 | 341 | 2038 | 4th in Smythe | Lost in 1st round (Oilers) |
| 1987-88 | 80 | 30 | 42 | 8 | -- | 68 | 318 | 359 | 2124 | 4th in Smythe | Lost in 1st round (Flames) |
| 1988-89 | 80 | 42 | 31 | 7 | -- | 91 | 376 | 335 | 2215 | 2nd in Smythe | Lost in 2nd round (Flames) |
| 1989-90 | 80 | 34 | 39 | 7 | -- | 75 | 338 | 337 | 1884 | 4th in Smythe | Lost in 2nd round (Oilers) |
| 1990-91 | 80 | 46 | 24 | 10 | -- | 102 | 340 | 254 | 2228 | 1st in Smythe | Lost in 2nd round (Oilers) |
| 1991-92 | 80 | 35 | 31 | 14 | -- | 84 | 287 | 296 | 2161 | 2nd in Smythe | Lost in 1st round (Oilers) |
| 1992-93 | 84 | 39 | 35 | 10 | -- | 88 | 338 | 340 | 2247 | 3rd in Smythe | Lost in Stanley Cup finals (Canadiens) |
| 1993-94 | 84 | 27 | 45 | 12 | -- | 66 | 294 | 322 | 2017 | 5th in Pacific | Out of playoffs |
| 1994-951 | 48 | 16 | 23 | 9 | -- | 41 | 142 | 174 | 978 | 4th in Pacific | Out of playoffs |
| 1995-96 | 82 | 24 | 40 | 18 | -- | 66 | 256 | 302 | 1460 | 6th in Pacific | Out of playoffs |
| 1996-97 | 82 | 28 | 43 | 11 | -- | 67 | 214 | 268 | 1638 | 6th in Pacific | Out of playoffs |
| 1997-98 | 82 | 38 | 33 | 11 | -- | 87 | 227 | 225 | 1763 | 2nd in Pacific | Lost in 1st round (Blues) |
| 1998-99 | 82 | 32 | 45 | 5 | -- | 69 | 189 | 222 | 1383 | 5th in Pacific | Out of playoffs |
| 1999-00 | 82 | 39 | 27 | 12 | 4 | 94 | 245 | 228 | 1313 | 2nd in Pacific | Lost in 1st round (Red Wings) |
| 2000-01 | 82 | 38 | 28 | 13 | 3 | 92 | 252 | 228 | 1196 | 3rd in Pacific | Lost in 2nd round (Avalanche) |
| 2001-02 | 82 | 40 | 27 | 11 | 4 | 95 | 214 | 190 | 1348 | 3rd in Pacific | Lost in 1st round (Avalanche) |
| 2002-03 | 82 | 33 | 37 | 6 | 6 | 78 | 203 | 221 | 1146 | 3rd in Pacific | Out of playoffs |
| 2003-04 | 82 | 28 | 29 | 16 | 9 | 81 | 205 | 217 | 1163 | 3rd in Pacific | Out of playoffs |
| 2004-052 | | | | | | -- |
| 2005-06 | 82 | 42 | 35 | -- | 5 | 89 | 249 | 270 | 1440 | 4th in Pacific | Out of Playoffs[*]|-bgcolor="#eeeeee" |
:
1 Season was shortened due to the 1994-95 NHL lockout.:2 Season was cancelled due to the 2004-05 NHL lockout.
*Current squad
As of July 13, 2006 [1] Click On Team; Click On Your KingsGoaltenders| Number | | !width=15%|Player | Catches | Acquired | Place of Birth |
|---|
| - bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 31 | | Mathieu Garon[*] | R | 2004 | Chandler, Quebec>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 35 | | Jason LaBarbera | L | 2005 | Prince George, British Columbia>- bgcolor="#eeeeee" | - | | Dan Cloutier[*] | L | 2006 | Mont-Laurier, Quebec>}Forwards| Number | | !width=15%|Player | Shoots | Position | Acquired | Place of Birth |
|---|
|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"| 7 | | Derek Armstrong | R | C | 2002 | Ottawa, Ontario>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 13 | | Michael Cammalleri[*] | L | C/RW | 2001 | Richmond Hill, Ontario>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 15 | | Jeff Cowan[*] | L | LW/RW | 2004 | Scarborough, Ontario>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 19 | | Sean Avery[*] | L | C/LW | 2003 | Pickering, Ontario>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 22 | | Craig Conroy - A | R | C | 2004 | Potsdam, New York>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 23 | | Dustin Brown | R | RW/LW | 2003 | Ithaca, New York>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 24 | | Alexander Frolov | R | LW | 2000 | Moscow, U.S.S.R.>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 25 | | Eric Belanger[*] | L | C | 1996 | Sherbrooke, Quebec>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 29 | | Tom Kostopoulos | R | RW | 2005 | Mississauga, Ontario>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 36 | | Raitis Ivanans[*] | L | LW | 2006 | Riga, USSR>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 39 | | Noah Clarke | L | LW | 1999 | LaVerne, California>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 40 | | Matt Ryan | R | C | 2004 | Sharon, Ontario>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 48 | | Petr Kanko | L | LW | 2002 | Pribram, Czechoslovakia>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 49 | | Ryan Flinn | R | RW | 2002 | Halifax, Nova Scotia>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 53 | | Jeff Giuliano | L | LW | 2005 | Nashua, New Hampshire>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 57 | | George Parros | R | RW | 1999 | Washington, Pennsylvania>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | 64 | | Patrick O'Sullivan[*] | L | C | 2006 | Winston-Salem, North Carolina>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | - | | Scott Thornton[*] | L | LW | 2006 | London, Ontario>-bgcolor="#eeeeee" | - | | Alyn McCauley[*] | L | C/RW | 2006 | Brockville, Ontario | |-bgcolor="#eeeeee"| _ | | Brian Willsie[*] | R | RW | 2006 | London, Ontario | |
Team captains* Bob Wall 1967-69
* Larry Cahan 1969-71
* Bob Pulford 1971-73
* Terry Harper 1973-75
* Mike Murphy 1975-81
* Dave Lewis 1981-83
* Terry Ruskowski 1983-85
* Dave Taylor 1985-89
* Wayne Gretzky 1989-96
* Luc Robitaille 1992-93, 2006 (Robitaille served as captain while Gretzky was injured, then again for the final home game of his career).
* Rob Blake 1996-2001
* Mattias Norstrom 2001- present
** Paul Coffey
* Marcel Dionne
* Wayne Gretzky
* Harry Howell
* Jari Kurri
* Larry Murphy
* Larry Robinson
Non players:
* Former head coach Roger Neilson was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on November 4, 2002, in the Builders category.[*]
* Former general manager Jake Milford was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1984.[*]
* Long-time Kings' broadcaster Bob Miller was the recipient of the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award, earning him induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2000.[*][*]
* The Kings' first broadcaster, Jiggs McDonald, was also a recipient of the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award, earning him induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1990.[Ibid.]Retired numbersincluding date of retirement
*30 Rogatien "Rogie" Vachon, G, 1972-78 (February 14, 1985)
*16 Marcel Dionne, RW, 1975-87 (November 8, 1990)
*18 Dave Taylor, LW, 1977-94 (April 3, 1995)
*99 Wayne Gretzky, C, 1988-96 (October 9, 2002)
*First round draft picks* 1967: Rick Pagnutti (1st overall)
* 1968: Jim McInally (7th overall)
* 1969: none
* 1970: none
* 1971: none
* 1972: none
* 1973: none
* 1974: none
* 1975: Tim Young (16th overall)
* 1976: none
* 1977: none
* 1978: none
* 1979: Jay Wells (16th overall)
* 1980: Larry Murphy (4th overall); Jim Fox (10th overall)
* 1981: Doug Smith (2nd overall)
* 1982: none
* 1983: none
* 1984: Craig Redmond (6th overall)
* 1985: Craig Duncanson (9th overall); Dan Gratton (10th overall)
* 1986: Jimmy Carson (2nd overall)
* 1987: Wayne McBean (4th overall)
* 1988: Martin Gelinas (7th overall)
* 1989: none
* 1990: Darryl Sydor (7th overall)
* 1991: none
* 1992: none
* 1993: none
* 1994: Jamie Storr (7th overall)
* 1995: Aki Berg (3rd overall)
* 1996: none
* 1997: Olli Jokinen (3rd overall); Matt Zultek (15th overall)
* 1998: Mathieu Biron (21st overall)
* 1999: none
* 2000: Alexander Frolov (20th overall)
* 2001: Jens Karlsson (18th overall); Dave Steckel (30th overall)
* 2002: Denis Grebeshkov (20th overall)
* 2003: Dustin Brown (13th overall); Brian Boyle (26th overall); Jeff Tambellini (27th overall)
* 2004: Lauri Tukonen (11th overall)
* 2005: Anze Kopitar (11th overall)
* 2006: Jonathan Bernier (11th overall);[*] Trevor Lewis (17th overall)[*]
*Franchise scoring leadersThese are the top-ten point-scorers in the history of the Kings. Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season.
Note: GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points*Clarence S. Campbell Bowl
*1992-93
Division Championships
*1990-91
Hart Memorial Trophy
*Wayne Gretzky: 1988-89
Lester B. Pearson Award
*Marcel Dionne: 1978-79, 1979-80
Art Ross Trophy
*Marcel Dionne: 1979-80
*Wayne Gretzky: 1989-90, 1990-91, 1993-94
James Norris Memorial Trophy
*Rob Blake: 1997-98
Calder Memorial Trophy
*Luc Robitaille: 1986-87
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy
*Butch Goring: 1977-78
*Dave Taylor: 1990-91
NHL Plus/Minus Award
*Marty McSorley: 1990-91 (shared with Theoren Fleury of the Calgary Flames)
King Clancy Memorial Trophy
*Dave Taylor: 1990-91
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
*Marcel Dionne: 1976-77
*Butch Goring: 1977-78
*Wayne Gretzky: 1990-91, 1991-92, 1993-94
Lester Patrick Trophy
*Terry Sawchuk: 1970-71
*Bruce McNall: 1992-93
*Wayne Gretzky: 1993-94*Most Goals in a season: Bernie Nicholls, 70 (1988-89)
*Most Assists in a season: Wayne Gretzky, 122 (1990-91)
*Most Points in a season: Wayne Gretzky, 168 (1988-89)
*Most Penalty Minutes in a season: Marty McSorley, 399 (1992-93)
*Most Points in a season, defenseman: Larry Murphy, 76 (1980-81)
*Most Points in a season, rookie: Luc Robitaille, 84 (1986-87)
*Most Wins in a season: Mario Lessard, 35 (1980-81)
*Most Shutouts in a season: Rogie Vachon, 8 (1976-77)
*General Managers* Larry Regan: 1968-1973
* Jake Milford: 1973-1977
* George Maguire: 1977-83
* Rogatien "Rogie" Vachon: 1983-92
* Nick Beverley: 1992-94
* Sam McMaster: 1994-97
* Dave Taylor: 1997-2006
* Dean Lombardi: 2006-present[*]
**List of Los Angeles Kings players
*Head Coaches of the Los Angeles Kings
*List of NHL seasons
*List of NHL players
*1967 NHL Expansion*Team Los Angeles Kings official website
*Kingshockey.com- Unofficial fan site
*Lets Go Kings - Unofficial fan site
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