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Ken Holland takes old-school approach with desperate Kings: Off-Season Recap
Edmonton Oilers Connor McDavid Los Angeles Kings Darcy Kuemper shake hands
Photo credit: © Perry Nelson-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Aug 10, 2025, 14:00 EDTUpdated: Aug 10, 2025, 12:32 EDT
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This is Off-Season Recap, a summer series where we’ll look at what the other 15 teams in the Western Conference have done ahead of the 2025-26 NHL season. So far, we’ve looked at the two Canadian teams in the Pacific Division, the Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames. In this article, we’ll look at the Los Angeles Kings.

The Los Angeles Kings’ 2024-25 Season in a Nutshell

It really looked as if the 2025 postseason was when the Kings were finally going to get over the hump. The Kings’ 31-6-4 record on home ice in 2024-25 was the best in the league, and they even earned home-ice advantage in the first round, while the Oilers stumbled into the playoffs with a 14-12-0 record to earn third in the Pacific Division.
Game 1 was a wild one, as the Oilers mounted a huge comeback in the third period, just for the Kings to score in the final minute to win the series opener. In Game 2, the Kings took a 3-0 lead, with the Oilers cutting that lead to one. It was the Kings that took over, scoring three unanswered goals for a 6-2 win. So far, so good.
The Oilers had a 2-0 lead in Game 3, but the Kings stormed back to take a 3-2 lead. With less than three minutes left in the second, Connor Brown tied the game at three, but it took the Kings just nine seconds to regain the lead. Then, it happened.
With 6:42 left on the clock, Evander Kane was pushed into the Kings’ netminder, and the puck eventually found its way into the net. The referees reviewed it for kicking motion, and then the Kings used a coach’s challenge to see if there was goaltender interference. There wasn’t, and the Oilers received a power play. Just 10 seconds later, Evan Bouchard scored to give the Oilers a 5-4 lead, a lead they’d never relinquish in a 7-4 victory.
Although it may seem like the coach’s challenge was the beginning of the end for the Kings, it wasn’t. In the final minute of the third period of Game 4, the Kings clung on to a 3-2 lead. However, Quinton Byfield failed to clear the puck, and Bouchard ripped it home to tie the game with just 29 seconds left. Vladislav Gavrikov took a tripping penalty late in the first overtime period, and Leon Draisaitl scored the overtime winner.
Until the Stanley Cup Final, these were the only two wins the Oilers had where it felt like it could go either way. It seemed like everything clicked after Bouchard’s game-tying goal, as they dominated the Kings in Game 5, outshooting them 46-22 in a 3-1 win. Returning to home ice, the two teams traded goals, but Zach Hyman’s deflection goal midway through the first gave the Oilers a 3-2 lead. They scored the next two goals to make it 5-2, but the Kings added two more to make it interesting, ultimately falling 6-4.
As you know, the Oilers cruised through both the Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars before ultimately falling short to the Florida Panthers for the second consecutive season. It’s still fresh. For the Kings, they went home after a first-round exit to Edmonton for the fourth consecutive season.

Who drove the Kings’ success?

There are definitely some positives to take away from this series and season for the Kings, as they certainly showed improvement. Netminder Darcy Kuemper is legitimate, as he posted a .921 save percentage and 2.14 goals against average, finishing third in Vezina Trophy voting. They have their netminder of the future.
Although the 2025-26 season will be Adrian Kempe’s final season under his current contract, he’s a consistent 30-goal scorer, finishing with 35 goals and 73 points last season. Kevin Fiala also scored 35 goals, finishing with 60 points. As always, Anže Kopitar was excellent, scoring 21 goals and 67 points in his age-37 season.
Quinton Byfield didn’t take a step forward, but his play was still good as he finished with 23 goals and 54 points, the former being a career-high. Alex Laferriere did take a step forward, though, as the right winger scored 19 goals and 42 points in 77 games. Newcomer and former Oiler Warren Foegele scored 24 goals and 46 points in his first season in L.A.
All of that is good, but the question is, how did the Kings address their needs in the off-season?
Apr 14, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Dallas Stars defenseman Cody Ceci (44) looks on during the first period against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brian Bradshaw Sevald-Imagn Images

Off-Season Transactions

The Kings took a philosophy of “if you can’t beat them, acquire their former players”. First, it started with the hiring of former Oilers’ general manager Ken Holland. He proceeded to sign former Oilers Corey Perry and Cody Ceci, the latter to a weird contract. Additionally, they added Joel Armia, Brian Dumoulin, and Anton Forsberg.
Ceci is set to replace Vladislav Gavrikov, one of the best defensive defencemen in the league. Also on the backend, the Kings traded Jordan Spence to the Ottawa Senators for a pick in the 2025 draft and one in the 2026 draft. David Rittich departed for the New York Islanders, and Tanner Jeannot signed one of the worst contracts of the off-season.
Additionally, the Kings re-signed Andrei Kuzmenko to a one-year deal worth $4.3 million and extended Laferriere to a three-year deal worth $4.1 million annually.

What’s Next for L.A.?

Here’s a fun fact: Of the Big Four North American Leagues, Edmonton owns the longest drought without winning a division title, as it’s now been 37 seasons. This is to say that unless there is a serious drop-off from either the Kings or the Oilers, or the Kings finish first in the Pacific Division, the two teams have a significant chance of meeting the Oilers once again in the first round.
So how do they beat them? Well, depth is important, as a big reason why the Kings fell in six games is due to running just 13 players late in games, allowing the Oilers’ pace to overwhelm them. They sort of addressed that, especially with the addition of Joel Armia.
That said, their biggest hope is that the Oilers are exhausted and disheartened from falling to the Florida Panthers in two consecutive Stanley Cup Finals.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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