Division rivals can make or break an entire NHL team’s year, whether it’s in the regular season or the second round of the playoffs. That’s why the Vancouver Canucks are undoubtedly keeping tabs on all seven of their fellow Pacific Division teams.
Throughout July, we’ll take a look at a new Pacific rival, and how they fared last year, how they’ve improved in the offseason, and what to expect from them in 2024-25. Today we’ll be looking at the Los Angeles Kings.
The LA Kings were supposed to be one of the NHL’s teams on the rise. But over the last year, they’ve seen that reputation slip farther away.
The Kings have met the Edmonton Oilers in the opening round of the postseason in three straight seasons, and in every rematch they’ve lost by a bigger series margin. It all culminated in a roller coaster 2023-24 campaign where the Kings swapped head coaches, went all-in on playing a neutral zone trap under new bench boss Jim Hiller, and then got steamrolled by the Oilers in five games.
If it wasn’t for his on-ice resume for the franchise, Kings GM Rob Blake’s job security would be on borrowed time. His marquee trade last offseason sent a hefty package to Winnipeg for the polarizing P-L Dubois left the Kings with much less depth and a centre who struggles to find his killer instinct.
Then Blake gave Dubois an eight-year contract worth $8.5 million a year, and it immediately backfired in the biggest way. The Jets made the postseason with key contributions from Alex Iafallo and Gabe Vilardi, Dubois was a non-factor for most of the regular season and the playoffs, and LA ended up trading him to the Capitals for Darcy Kuemper to clean up the mess they’d created.
But even with all their struggles, the Kings gave the Canucks absolute fits last season. LA took seven out of a possible eight points against Vancouver during the regular season by playing a defensive game that the Canucks forwards struggled to break through. In the Canucks lone win of the year against the Kings, it took a massive Thatcher Demko save on Alex Turcotte and a late game rally to win 2-1 in overtime.
The Kings have made a few additions in the depth department during the offseason, including goaltender Kuemper, Tanner Jeannot, Joel Edmundson and former Oiler Warren Foegele. But outside of ending the Dubois debacle, the biggest move the Kings made was signing budding star Quinton Byfield to a five year extension worth $31.25 million. Byfield blasted his personal best out of the water in 2024, finishing with 55 points and rounding out a lethal first line next to Anze Kopitar and leading scorer Adrian Kempe.
Despite the obvious holes in their lineup, the Kings are still built to torment low shot volume teams like the Canucks. LA’s system got exposed in the postseason against a much faster Oilers team, but it holds up well against teams that rely more on their playmaking and physicality than skating. While their goalie depth isn’t anything to write home about, it doesn’t need to be when the defence is playing at its best.
Whether or not they’re still a top three team in the Pacific is up for debate.
Positional Advantage
Forwards: Canucks
Kempe and Kevin Fiala don’t always get the respect they deserve as NHL scorers, and Anze Kopitar is still Anze Kopitar. But the Kings just don’t have the horses behind those three to keep up with Elias Pettersson, J.T. Miller, Brock Boeser and Company.
Defence: Kings
Drew Doughty isn’t the scoring threat he once was, but he has a strong supporting cast that understands their role shutting down scoring chances well. The Canucks are a lot closer in this department than first glance might imply, but they’re getting a lot closer.
Goalie: Canucks
Darcy Kuemper is yet another goalie with a Stanley Cup ring, but Thatcher Demko has the clear edge as a game breaker.
Bold Prediction
The Kings will miss the playoffs entirely for the first time in four years.
Season Series
November 7 @ Crypto.com Arena
January 16 @ Rogers Arena
February 26 @ Crypto.com Arena
