Is Darcy Kuemper Still The Kings Starting Goalie?

The goaltender position is the most important role in the NHL if you want to win at the highest level and compete for a Stanley Cup title. With that being said, this is one of the biggest priorities the Kings needed to fill, yet the same goalies are back, and no prospect is being fast-tracked to push either of them.

The Los Angeles Kings opted not to sign or trade for a new goaltender this offseason and decided to stick with what they have, the same unit: Darcy Kuemper and Anton Forsberg. It's hard to overstate how much of a step back Kuemper took in the 2025-26 season after being recognized as one of the best goaltenders the year prior. 

In the 2024-25 season, the Canadian goaltender posted a 31-11-7 record, a 2.02 goals-against average, a .921 save percentage, and was a Vezina Trophy nominee, which validated the Kings' decision to bring him back. 

However, in the following season, Kuemper played 50 games and finished with a 19-14-15 record, a 2.78 GAA, and an .891 save percentage. The biggest reason for the drop was a midseason head injury and, a month later, a pinched nerve in his neck, which interrupted his season; by the numbers, he never fully recovered from it. 

Fast forward to a disappointing second half of the season: Kuemper's numbers dropped significantly, leading to his benching in the final week of the regular season and throughout the entire first round of the playoffs against the Colorado Avalanche, where the Kings went on to lose in a sweep. 

The eye test matched the numbers; Kuemper's season would be described as a roller coaster ride, excellent in one game and unplayable in the next, shaping into losses and turning winnable games in overtime into frustrating losses repeatedly. 

It was a full changing of the guard by a coaching staff that lost confidence in a $5.25-million-a-year starter.

This is the part of the story that should worry Kings fans because, heading into a new season, the front office decided to roll with the same ship rather than exercise a more talented, younger goaltender, with Kuemper being 36 years old and Forsberg going on 34 midseason. 

General Manager Ken Holland has suggested adding a new defenseman to strengthen the blue line to take pressure off the goaltenders, but tight cap space has prevented it. If the defense is already stretched thin, either Kuemper or Forsberg- whoever gets the start- will do so behind a blue line that didn't get better, putting more pressure on the goaltenders to play like superheroes again late in games.

Does Kuemper open the season as the clear No. 1, or will Forsberg get the start after a strong finish to last season?

How much time does Kuemper have if he starts off slow again until the Kings pull the plug on him? 

Can Kuemper bounce back this season, or was last season a sign that he's no longer a starting-caliber goaltender?

The Kings retooled their forward group and hired a new coach, but the biggest factor in whether LA can finally break its five-year first-round losing streak will come down to the position they did nothing to improve this summer. 

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