Kings confident pieces are in place to win Stanley Cup

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Kings' goal isn't to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs. It isn't to win the Western Conference First Round, either, after back-to-back losses in the first round to the Edmonton Oilers.

"We're trying to win a Stanley Cup, and that's the goal," Kings president Luc Robitaille said. "We're going to do everything possible to get to that goal. We're going to make life as best possible for our players, our entire organization. But there's no secret about it. That's the goal, and that’s what this team is built upon."

The Kings open the season against the Colorado Avalanche at Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; TNT).

"We've got to take that next step," defenseman Drew Doughty said. "It can't be a, 'We're almost there'-type thing. We've got to take it this year."

Doughty said there are no excuses.

"It's within the room, within the team," he said. "Just all the players, we've got to step up and make it happen. It doesn't matter what everyone's saying. It just matters what we think, and we think we have a very good squad, and we think we've got a good chance of doing some damage."

Los Angeles won the Cup in 2012 and 2014.

Over the next seven seasons, the Kings made the playoffs twice and won one playoff game. They began to rebuild. They made progress by battling the Oilers in a seven-game series in 2021-22 and a six-game series last season, and they made key moves in the offseason.

The biggest was acquiring center Pierre-Luc Dubois in a trade with the Winnipeg Jets on June 27 for forwards Alex Iafallo, Gabriel Vilardi and Rasmus Kupari, and a second-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. The 25-year-old signed an eight-year, $68 million contract ($8.5 million average annual value) the same day.

That means the Kings can roll out Dubois, Anze Kopitar and Phillip Danault down the middle, though coach Todd McLellan said he might deploy Kopitar and Danault on the wing at times to ensure each of the three gets enough ice time.

"I think that we're going to have one of the best center lineups in the League, without a doubt," Doughty said. "I think it's going to make us more of an intimidating team to play against and hopefully make us a better team.

"'P-L' is a great player. I've had some battles with him over the years. He's hard to play against when he's fired up. He's a big dude too (6-foot-4, 214 pounds), with a lot of skill. I think he's going to be a great fit for us."

Goalie Cam Talbot signed a one-year, $1 million contract July 1. The 36-year-old saw an opportunity to compete for the Cup and for starts with Pheonix Copley. He had some of his best seasons under McLellan in Edmonton from 2015-19.

"First and foremost, at this point in my career I want to win, and this is a team that's at that stage, and they're ready to take the next step now and win a championship again," Talbot said. "That was a big factor in my decision."

An indication of Los Angeles' evolution is the return of forward Trevor Lewis.

He was selected by the Kings in the first round (No. 17) of the 2006 NHL Draft and played for them from 2008-20. After leaving as an unrestricted free agent -- playing for the Jets in 2020-21 and the Calgary Flames from 2021-23 -- he signed a one-year, $775,00 contract with the Kings on July 1.

The 36-year-old rejoins Doughty and Kopitar, the remaining members of the Cup teams of 2012 and 2014.

"At the time when Trevor left our team, we were in a completely different situation than we are now," McLellan said. "We were trying to inject youth, find new players. … Now we're at the other end of the scale, and Trevor Lewis fits our organization much better now than he did that year, and that's why I think he's even going to be more effective. He's in a different environment right now."

Danault tried to be realistic. There are a lot of good teams in the Pacific Division, let alone the NHL.

The Vegas Golden Knights are the defending champions and have kept most of their roster intact. The Oilers have proven an obstacle for the Kings in the playoffs and have two of the best players in the world in forwards Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. The Seattle Kraken came within a game of the conference final last season, their second in the NHL. The list goes on.

What would be a successful season?

"Obviously past the first round," Danault said. "But once you're past the first round, you want to pass the second round. I don't think we should aim for something specific. We're climbing, you know? It's a mountain. We're climbing the mountain and we're almost there."

McLellan has used the mountain metaphor, coaxing the Kings to “finish the climb.”  The summit is in sight. Robitaille said the Kings are in a group of eight to 10 teams with a chance to win the Cup.

"It's definitely time," Kopitar said. "We feel that we have the team. I like the looks of our team. To get bounced in the first round again this year would be definitely an unsuccessful season."