35 Facts About Los Angeles Kings

1.

Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles.

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2.

Behind Dionne's offensive prowess, the strong goaltending of Rogie Vachon, and the speed and scoring touch of forward Butch Goring, the Los Angeles Kings played two of their most thrilling 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.

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3.

However, Los Angeles managed to upset the second overall Edmonton Oilers, who finished 48 points ahead of them during the season and were led by the young Wayne Gretzky.

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4.

The Los Angeles Kings made the playoffs for two seasons, but they were unable to get out of the first round given the playoff structuring forced them to play either the Oilers or the equally powerful Calgary Flames en route to the Conference Finals.

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5.

Gretzky's arrival generated much excitement about hockey and the NHL in Southern California, and the ensuing popularity of the Los Angeles Kings is credited for the arrival of another team in the region, as well as the arrival of a new team in Northern California and the NHL's expanding or moving into other Sun Belt cities such as Dallas, Phoenix, Tampa, Miami, Nashville, and Las Vegas.

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6.

In Gretzky's first season with the Los Angeles Kings, he 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.

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7.

The fourth overall Los Angeles Kings eliminated Gretzky's old team, the Oilers, in the first round of the 1989 playoffs before being swept out in the second round by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Flames.

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8.

The next season, where Gretzky became the league's all-time leading scorer, was the inverse of its predecessor, with the Los Angeles Kings eliminating the defending champion Flames before falling to the eventual champion Oilers.

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9.

Heavily contested series in the 1993 playoffs had the Los Angeles Kings eliminating the Flames, Canucks and Leafs en route to their first berth in the Stanley Cup Finals.

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10.

Los Angeles Kings's suspicions proved to be correct, as the curve of blade was too great, and McSorley was penalized.

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11.

The Los Angeles Kings entered the 2011 playoffs as the seventh seed in the West and played San Jose in the first round.

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12.

The Los Angeles Kings then headed into the 2012 playoffs against the Presidents' Trophy-winning Vancouver Canucks.

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13.

In doing so, the Los Angeles Kings became the first NHL team to enter the playoffs as the eighth seed and eliminate the first- and second-seeded teams in the Conference.

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14.

Los Angeles faced the New Jersey Devils in the Final, defeating them in six games to win their first Stanley Cup in franchise history.

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15.

The Los Angeles Kings became the first eight seed champion in any of the North American major leagues, the first Stanley Cup champion that finished below fifth in its conference, and the third to finish below second in its division.

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16.

The Los Angeles Kings finished the season as the fifth seed in the West and began the defense of the Cup on the road against the St Louis Blues, who they swept in the 2012 playoffs.

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17.

However, for the second time in the first two rounds of the playoffs, the Los Angeles Kings were able to rally back after being down in the series and defeated the Ducks in Anaheim in Game 7.

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18.

The Los Angeles Kings became the first team in NHL history to win three Game 7s en route to a Stanley Cup Finals berth.

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19.

The Los Angeles Kings won the Stanley Cup in five games, culminating with an Alec Martinez goal in the second overtime of Game 5 at Staples Center.

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20.

However, the Kings struggled often, with scoring slumps, defensemen losing games to injury and suspensions and frequent road losses.

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21.

On June 16,2016, the Los Angeles Kings named Anze Kopitar the 14th captain in team history, replacing Dustin Brown, who had led the team for the past eight seasons.

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22.

Backup Peter Budaj filled the void, earning his first starting duties since his time with the Colorado Avalanche six years earlier, but near the trade deadline, the Los Angeles Kings traded him to Tampa Bay for another goalie, Ben Bishop who shared the crease with Jonathan Quick down the stretch, the superstar having returned from his injury.

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23.

Los Angeles Kings hired Todd McLellan as their next head coach on April 16,2019.

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24.

Los Angeles Kings debuted in the NHL wearing purple – officially the shade "Forum blue" – and gold uniforms.

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25.

From 1980 to 1988, the Los Angeles Kings modified their uniforms to include a contrasting yoke that extends from sleeve to sleeve.

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26.

Three years later, the Los Angeles Kings completed the transition back to the classic black and silver by unveiling a new away jersey, which unlike the home jersey, features a black and silver tail stripe.

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27.

Los Angeles Kings wore silver jerseys with white trim, black stripes and shoulder yoke during the 2014 NHL Stadium Series.

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28.

Los Angeles Kings was named in honor of Garnet "Ace" Bailey, who served Director of Pro Scouting for seven years before dying in the September 11,2001 terrorist attacks.

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29.

The Kings eliminated both teams during the 2014 Stanley Cup run, and have played outdoor games with them for the NHL Stadium Series, losing to the Ducks at Dodger Stadium in 2014 and beating the Sharks at Levi's Stadium the following year.

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30.

Los Angeles Kings presently acknowledge an affiliation with a number of inductees to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

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31.

Inductees affiliated with the Los Angeles Kings include 18 former players and three builders of the sport.

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32.

Two athletic trainers from the Los Angeles Kings organization were inducted into the Hall of Fame, Peter Demers in 2007, and Mark O'Neill in 2016.

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33.

Three sports broadcasters for the Los Angeles Kings were awarded the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award for their contribution to hockey broadcasting including Jiggs McDonald, Bob Miller, and Nick Nickson.

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34.

Los Angeles Kings received the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award from the NHL Hockey Broadcasters Association on November 13,2000, making him a media honoree for the Hockey Hall of Fame, and he earned a star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2006.

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35.

Los Angeles Kings are currently affiliated with the Ontario Reign in the American Hockey League.

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