November 8, 2026
November 8, 2026
2009-2010 Los Angeles Kings: The Path to Winning
Ever since Wayne Gretzky left town to play for the New York Rangers at the tail end of his career, the Los Angeles Kings had been a team in search of an identity on the ice. The Kings were no longer a potent offensive team, and the overall talent on the roster was lacking. The franchise went through a long stretch of seasons that were either mediocre or below average. Toward the end of the 2000s, however, the Kings finally assembled a collection of players they could rely on to win hockey games in both the regular season and the postseason, and the 2009-2010 Los Angeles Kings were the first sign of that turnaround.
In 2009-2010, the Los Angeles Kings went 46-27-9 (wins, losses, overtime losses), finishing 12 points behind the San Jose Sharks in the Pacific Division. The Kings went 22-13-6 at home in the storied Staples Center and 24-14-3 on the road. With the exception of March, every month of the regular season was kind to the Kings, as they went 8-4-2 in October, 7-6 in November, 8-5-1 in December, 10-4 in January, 4-1-1 in February and 3-0-3 in April.
In head-to-head play, the Kings went 5-1 against the Dallas Stars, 4-1-1 against the Anaheim Ducks, 3-0-1 against the Colorado Avalanche, 3-1 against the Columbus Blue Jackets, 3-2-1 against both the Phoenix Coyotes and the San Jose Sharks, 2-2 against both the Detroit Red Wings and the Minnesota Wild, 2-0 against both the Boston Bruins and the New York Islanders, and 2-0-2 against the Edmonton Oilers.
Center Anze Kopitar had 34 goals and 47 assists for 81 points, with 14 power play goals and 24 power play assists on 259 shots. Right winger Dustin Brown served as team captain and had 24 goals and 32 assists for 56 points, with 7 power play goals and 10 power play assists on 248 shots. Left winger Ryan Smyth had 22 goals and 31 assists for 53 points, with 11 power play goals and 13 power play assists on 206 shots. Center Michal Handzus had 20 goals and 22 assists for 42 points, with 6 game-winning goals on 117 shots. Left winger Alex Frolov had 19 goals and 32 assists for 51 points, with 8 power play assists on 182 shots.
Defenseman Drew Doughty had 16 goals and 43 assists for 59 points, with 9 power play goals, 22 power play assists and 5 game-winning goals on 142 shots. Center Jarret Stoll had 16 goals and 31 assists for 47 points, with 17 power play assists and 4 game-winning goals on 164 shots. Right winger Wayne Simmonds had 16 goals and 24 assists for 40 points on 127 shots. Right winger Brad Richardson had 11 goals and 16 assists, with 4 game-winning goals on 148 shots. Center Scott Parse had 11 goals and 13 assists in 59 games. Right winger Justin Williams had 10 goals and 19 assists on 140 shots. Defenseman Jack Johnson had 8 goals and 28 assists, with 10 power play assists on 130 shots.
Goaltender Jonathan Quick would become one of the best goaltenders in the National Hockey League, and 2009-2010 offered the first sign of his improvement. Quick went 39-24-7, allowing 180 goals on 1,927 shots in 4,258 minutes. He recorded 1,747 saves, a .907 save percentage, a 2.54 goals against average and 4 shutouts.
The Kings’ talented core got its first taste of playoff hockey in the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Vancouver Canucks. The Kings would ultimately fall to the Canucks 4 games to 2 and take an early exit. For a brief time, though, it looked like the Kings would prevail, as they jumped out to a 2 games to 1 lead.
In Game 2 on April 17 at GM Place, the Kings beat the Canucks 3-2 in overtime. Vancouver struck first in the 1st period with a power play goal by right winger Steve Bernier at 7:33. About 2 minutes later, at 9:49, right winger Mikael Samuelsson scored for the Canucks. At 10:58 of the 2nd period, the Kings struck back with a power play goal by left winger Fredrik Modin, and at 11:33, Wayne Simmonds scored to tie the game. At 7:28 of the first overtime period, Anze Kopitar scored the game-winning power play goal.
In Game 3 on April 19 at the Staples Center, the Kings beat the Canucks 5-3. At 2:09 of the 1st period, Vancouver left winger Mason Raymond scored, and at 11:00, Drew Doughty tied the game 1-1 with a goal. Michal Handzus stepped up for Los Angeles in the 2nd period with 2 power play goals, at 4:06 and 12:18. At 13:21, Brad Richardson scored, and at 14:53, the Canucks answered with a goal from Samuelsson. At 4:18 of the 3rd period, left winger Daniel Sedin pulled the Canucks within 1 goal, but Los Angeles pulled away with a goal by Ryan Smyth at 9:21.
Though the result of this playoff run was disappointing, the 2009-2010 Los Angeles Kings laid the groundwork for what was to come. The team would return to the playoffs over the next few seasons, and the chance to win the Stanley Cup became all the more realistic.
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