TheHockeyNews.com's new series ranking the off-seasons of every NHL team moves to team No. 22 – the L.A. Kings. The Kings have been a regular Stanley Cup playoff team in recent years, but post-season success has eluded them. Has Los Angeles done enough this summer to improve?
After star center and captain Anze Kopitar retired at the end of last season, the Los Angeles Kings decided not to turn the page on their current era and chart a new course for the franchise.
Instead, GM Ken Holland doubled down on his veteran-laden roster, adding multiple NHLers in their thirties in an effort to compete for a Stanley Cup.
The Kings are lucky to play in the Pacific Division, which is arguably the weakest grouping of teams in the league. With the talent they have, they're in a good spot to make the playoffs every season.
While Holland has spent almost to the salary cap ceiling in an effort to build out a competitive roster this summer, the Kings still remain one of the NHL’s oldest teams. That doesn't bode well in a division filled with young talent.
Let's explore the Kings' off-season and discuss why they ended up at this position in TheHockeyNews.com's rankings.
Arrivals:
Erik Haula (C), Corey Perry (RW), Mats Zuccarello (LW), Erik Gustafsson (D), Peter Laviolette (head coach)
The Kings already were a veteran-laden team last season when they acquired star winger Artemi Panarin from the New York Rangers. But the five additions Holland made this summer – counting the re-signing of veteran center Scott Laughton – have an average age of 36.
You can argue Holland is valuing their experience over anything else, but Father Time is undefeated, and Holland’s decision to go all-in with these older players could blow up in his face.
As individuals, each veteran Holland acquired have their upside. Perry has already been part of the Kings organization, while Laviolette is a Cup-winner and one of the NHL’s most-experienced coaches.
Meanwhile, Zuccarello has recorded over 50 points in each of the last five seasons he spent with the Minnesota Wild. His one-year deal worth only $1-million has the potential to be one of the best signings of the off-season.
Still, it’s hard seeing Holland’s moves as anything other than a desperate grasp at straws. Haula is 35, Gustafsson is 34, Perry is 41, and Zuccarello turns 39 in September.
This isn’t a trend Holland should want to continue, but the Kings’ lack of prospect development has pushed him in the direction where he’s forced to look externally for difference-making talent.
THN.com prospect expert Tony Ferrari noted the Kings had a strong 2026 NHL draft, but L.A.’s prospect cupboards were closer to bare than they were to being fully-stocked. The Kings don’t have enough long-term talent moving forward to keep up with the improving Pacific.
Departures:
D.J. Smith (interim head coach), Anze Kopitar (C), Andrei Kuzmenko (LW)
Losing Kopitar could be devastating for the Kings. His defensive acumen and dogged determination can’t be easily replaced, and his dressing-room leadership will be sorely missed.
The positive news is that, other than Kopitar and Kuzmenko, the only departure was Smith, who took a job as an associate coach with the Edmonton Oilers, working alongside Mike Babcock.
Kuzmenko produced 13 goals and 25 points in 52 games this past season, so his departure won’t move the needle one way or another. Especially with Holland essentially replacing Kuzmenko’s offense with Haula, Perry and Zuccarello’s anticipated contributions.
The Kings have $1.7 million left to provide a smidgen of cap flexibility, but the defensive core hasn’t changed. Ideally, you’d want more turnover for a team that was exposed in the post-season, getting swept by the Colorado Avalanche in the first round.
We’ll see if there are in-season changes for the Kings, but as the off-season nears its end, Los Angeles hasn’t changed enough.
The Bottom Line:
Holland is one of the league’s most accomplished GMs, but when he became Rob Blake’s successor in May of 2025, he clearly had a mandate to go all-in instead of embarking on a full roster rebuild.
There’s a lot to like about the way the Kings are constructed, but at a point in time when California rivals like the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks have the generational talent to push past them in the standings, the Kings have chosen to push all their chips behind the 36-year-old Drew Doughty, the 34-year-old Panarin, and the 30-year-old Kevin Fiala.
The Kings are too good to plummet to the bottom of the Western Conference standings, but they’re not true Cup contenders like the defending-champion Carolina Hurricanes and Vegas Golden Knights.
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