Los Angeles Kings’ fans are abuzz, coming off a lengthy post-season campaign that saw them lift the Stanley Cup. With very few changes to throw askew the team chemistry, they are surely poised to become the first repeat champions in the post-lockout era.
Players In:
| Player | Position | Regular Season Stats | Post-Season Stats |
| Adam Cracknell (Free Agency) | RW | 19 GP, 0G 2A (with St. Louis Blues) 28 GP, 12G 13A (with Chicago Wolves) |
5GP, 1G 0A (with St. Louis Blues) 7 GP, 3G 1A (with Chicago Wolves) |
| David Van der Gulik (Free Agency) | RW | 2 GP, 0G 0A (with Colorado Avalanche) 33 GP, 13G 9A (with Lake Erie Monsters) |
N/A |
Players Out:
| Player | Position | Regular Season Stats | Post-Season Stats |
| Willie Mitchell (Free Agency) | D | 76 GP, 1G 11A, +14 | 18 GP, 1G 3A, +10 |
| Andrew Cambell (Free Agency) | D | 3 GP, 0G 0A, even (with LA Kings) 69 GP, 3G 13A (with Manchester Monarchs) |
4 GP, 1G 0A (with Manchester Monarchs) |
| Colin Fraser (Free Agency) | C | 33 GP, 0G 2A, -4 (with LA Kings) 10 GP, 3G, 3A (with Manchester Monarchs) |
N/A |
| Linden Vey (Traded to TBL for 2014 2nd round pick) | RW | 18 GP, 0G 5A, even (with LA Kings) 43 GP, 14G 34A (with Manchester Monarchs) |
4 GP, 0G 2A (with Manchester Monarchs) |
Showing no signs of rust in the pre-season as of this writing, the Los Angeles Kings have gone 5-0-1 with 1 game remaining. With 3 shootout wins and only 1 Jonathan Quick start, the Los Angeles Kings are the endurance champions of the NHL, proving that they can go the distance as a continuation of last year’s Stanley Cup run.
Perhaps the most intelligent move that head coach Darryl Sutter can pull in the early season is to let Goalie Jonathan Quick rest for as much as he can, as he is notorious for suffering from post-season hangover after lengthy Stanley Cup Playoff runs, highlighted by a softie from half scored against him last season. Quick is ripped apart, then comes back stronger than ever to make his naysayers eat their words.
The loss of veteran defenseman Willie Mitchell during free agency to the Florida Panthers may exacerbate the difficulties Jonathan Quick faces in the early season; however, the Kings are deep enough defensively to overcome his absence.
With core players Anze Kopitar, Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, Marian Gaborik, Drew Doughty, Jonathan Quick, and captain Dustin Brown signed for the very long foreseeable future, expect much of the same from last season from the Los Angeles Kings when it comes to offensive output, though expect huge offensive contributions from Justin Williams and Jarret Stoll, as they look for a contract re-up in the City of Angels, or to increase their stock in the free agent markets. In addition to Williams and Stoll,
As a strong offensive and solid defensive squad, the Los Angeles Kings have no immediately evident holes in their lineup that they need to fill, though an upgrade on backup goaltending (currently Martin Jones), and a refresh on defensive depth may be on order, so watch for those trades as the season unfolds.
Pedro Rengel
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