Scouting Reports main page | Division Rankings
Los Angeles Kings
Overall: 8
Pacific Division: 2
| |  |
| Blake is the foundation for the ascendent Kings. (Robert Beck) |
|
The
kings are
dead. Long live the Kings. Though Wayne Gretzky's
eight-year reign in Los Angeles ended in February 1996, the
Kings only now are emerging from the Great One's grip.
Night after disappointing night, players and fans would
leave the Great Western Forum,
gaze longingly into their rearview mirrors and reminisce
about the Gretzky-led run to the Stanley Cup finals in
1993. "I believe that's over," says general
manager Dave Taylor. "We finally have a new
identity."
What's changed? The Kings went 38-33-11 last season, their
best record in five years. They did it behind defenseman
Rob Blake, Los Angeles's first post-Gretzky
superstar. Blake dominated games
en route to winning the Norris Trophy and also cut a fine
public image. He's a genial blue-eyed blond (sound
familiar?) whose seaside ubiquity has locals calling him
the Mayor of Manhattan
Beach.
As they await their move to a new downtown arena next year,
the Kings already have a new look. They have changed their
logo from a crown to a coat of arms and have added purple
sleeves to their home jerseys. In that fancy garb Los
Angeles will send out
a tough, able defense. Mattias Norstrom has developed a
nasty hip check, and the
off-season signings of 14-year veteran
Doug Bodger and premier puck-mover Steve Duchesne provides
strong blueliners for the power play. However, the Kings
need another scorer before they can contend with the NHL
elite. Center Jozef Stumpel, though, is a precise passer
who elevates the play
of solid wingers Glen Murray and Vladimir Tsyplakov. The
Kings also have more young
talent—notably 19-year-old center Olli Jokinen—than they've
had since they mortgaged their future in a vain attempt to
assemble a championship team around
Gretzky. Says
Luc Robitaille, who has played 10 years with the Kings,
"Gretzky was what the Kings were about for a long
time. But this is a new team. And we're
good."
—By Kostya Kennedy
Fast Fact
Last season
Stephane Fiset led the league
in a dubious category: He allowed five
players (Erik
Andersson, Shawn Bates, Daniel Briere,
Mike Crowley and
Alexei Morozov) to score
their first NHL
goals.
Keys To Success
- With the addition of superb puck-moving defenseman Steve
Duchesne, the Kings must improve on a power play that finished
17th in the league last year.
- Jozef Stumpel, who had a breakout season in 1997-98, needs a
repeat performance because L.A. is suspect in the middle.
Scouting Reports main page | Division Rankings
|
