For the fourth consecutive season, the Los Angeles Kings were bounced from the opening round of the playoffs by the Edmonton Oilers. This year felt like the Kings’ best chance to turn their fortunes finally, and it certainly seemed likely after the Kings took a 2-0 series lead. But they would go on to lose four straight games, and in the end, the result was all too familiar. The Kings will have a lot to evaluate this summer, from management to coaching to the players donning the jerseys; everything will be on the table for a team that hasn’t advanced past the first round of the playoffs since winning the Stanley Cup in 2014.
The Kings were far from a perfectly built team but had a strong season, finishing as the second seed in the Pacific Division with a 48-25-9 record. The team struggled to hold leads, which ultimately proved to be their downfall, particularly the blown opportunities in Games 3 and 4 of the Oilers series. The primary reason for these blown leads was a lack of depth, as the Kings were forced to rely on their top nine forwards and top four defensemen almost exclusively, and the bottom of their lineup lacked effectiveness. This obvious issue falls on management, which couldn’t address a clear concern at the bottom of the lineup.
Speaking of management, the future of the Kings’ general manager, Rob Blake, was very much in question, but many Kings pundits believed that Blake and head coach Jim Hiller would stick around for next season. Yet, Blake and the Kings mutually agreed to part ways this week, marking the end of a run as GM that had both hits and misses. Blake took over from former GM Dean Lombardi a day after the 2016-17 season ended, previously serving as an assistant GM. He did not win a playoff series during his eight-year tenure and had no contract for the upcoming season. He was supposed to build the Kings into a team that could challenge for the Stanley Cup, but some questionable decisions left the Kings as more of a pretender than a contender.
Blake undoubtedly made some terrific trades, notably the Jake Muzzin trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs, which netted Los Angeles Sean Durzi, Carl Grundstrom, and a first-round pick. Another notable piece of work by Blake was the trade with Toronto for Jack Campbell, which included Trevor Moore and two third-round picks. There have been other solid moves, but the trade and extension for Pierre-Luc Dubois and some other poor salary cap management have overshadowed them.
Behind the bench, Kings fans will likely hope that the team moves on from Hiller, whose system has made the Kings look like a team playing not to lose rather than a club playing to win. Los Angeles would do well to hire a coach who can operate a creative offense that prioritizes high-pressure forechecking, such as Mike Sullivan. Unfortunately for the Kings, he has already been plucked out of free agency by the New York Rangers. Other options are available, but Los Angeles should move quickly if they plan to hire a new bench boss.
On the ice, the Kings will have some salary cap space available this summer, with roughly $23.27MM and just four players to sign. UFA defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov is one of those players who will eat close to a quarter of the space if he re-signs. Forward Alex Laferriere will also need a new deal, but shouldn’t break the bank. Should that happen, the Kings would have approximately $15MM available and just a couple of players to sign.
So, what should they do with the cap space? Upgrading their fourth-line and bottom defensive pairing is a must. The Kings bled chances with their fourth line on the ice this season, and it was a revolving door that was not addressed, ultimately costing them when the games mattered most. Fixing that issue is paramount; the fix isn’t necessarily complicated or expensive. The Kings need more forwards who can contribute offensively, which could push some of their third-liners down the lineup, thus creating a better overall forward group.
In the playoffs, the Kings’ fourth line mainly consisted of Alex Turcotte, Jeff Malott, Trevor Lewis, and Samuel Helenius. Of those players, only Turcotte averaged more than five minutes of ice time per game, highlighting an apparent roster construction flaw that put too much pressure on the top nine and ultimately wore the forwards down as the games continued.
On the back end, Brandt Clarke, Jordan Spence and Jacob Moverare played most of the Kings’ bottom pairing minutes, with just Clarke breaking the 10-minute per-game mark by averaging 12:47 of ice time per game. Clarke is part of the Kings’ solution on the bottom pairing and should improve from the experience, but finding a solid defensive partner for him would go a long way to buttoning up the defensive issues that plagued Los Angeles in the playoffs.
The Kings will likely run back the bulk of their core next season while trying to infuse a few younger players into the lineup and elevate them. It won’t be music to the ears of fans who are calling for radical changes. Still, given the salary cap corner the Kings are painted into with some of their long-term deals, it would be difficult to imagine a complete overhaul, especially when the team has been preaching about being “right there” for several years. The Blake move is a start for Los Angeles, and it will be interesting to see what other moves they make as they try to take the next step.
Photo by Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
If the only Kings’ games you watched all season were the Oilers series, I can see how you would come to this assessment for this article. But the Kings were one of the best 3rd period teams all season long, and every Kings fan is frustrated because that series is not how they played all year long.
When the Kings went on a tear post-trade deadline, it was because they were rolling all four lines and pushing pace of play. The issue is not ineffectiveness or lack of depth, it was coaching decisions made to change what got us there for no reason. This team proved all year long, even during their few slumps, that they could beat the best teams in the league consistently. Winning records against the Oilers, Knights, Jets, Stars, etc., prove that. This team, as currently constructed, should have won that series if not for coaching malpractice by Hiller, which is unfortunate because he showed all season he was a good enough coach to lead a team that tied for the best season ever by the Kings. But this article’s assessments are way off and show yet again that these writers have no real knowledge about most of the teams in this league, and especially not the Kings.
but they didn’t win the series. that’s kinda the point lol
Obviously, yes, but the reasons why are not what’s actually being presented in this article. You have to take the season as a whole and not just four games, even if they are the last four.
Ya. This is article is absolutely wrong on most of the points it’s trying to make to support its headline.
The team basically ran
Hiller blew the series. He was the problem way more than Blake. Their 4th line was good and drawing penalties. Spence and Clarke looked good. But he benched them all
Agree, hack job of an article. Way to tell everyone that you didn’t follow the Kings throughout the season without actually writing it.
Kings need a superstar. Marner would be a perfect fit if they can make it happen. But the roster is close they just don’t have anyone on McDari level
I agree, would love Marner. I think he’s a rare superstar that would fit the defensively responsible game the Kings demand from their forwards without sacrificing offense.
So let’s pretend they sign Mitch. Who do put him with? The AK line probably isn’t going to be split up. Do you put him with Byfield and Fiala? Thats a pretty nice 1-2 punch.
Kings were the better team but needed to win one of the two games in Edmonton. Theur biggest problem is that the Oilers got inside their heads. The coaching staff as well. That being said the Kings would be fools if they departed from Hiller. This team has been much better once he took over. Their on ice play would be helped by an addition of a Marner type.