July 24: Robitaille returns to Kings

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: July 24
2003:
Luc Robitaille
signs on for a third stint with the Los Angeles Kings.

For Robitaille, a ninth-round choice (No. 171) by Los Angeles in the 1984 NHL Draft, it's a return to the city where his NHL career begins in 1986; he scores 45 goals as a rookie and has at least 44 in each of his first eight seasons with the Kings. He's traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1994 but comes back to Los Angeles in 1997 and scores at least 36 goals in three of his four seasons before signing a two-year contract with the Detroit Red Wings in 2001.
But after scoring 30 goals and helping the Red Wings win the Stanley Cup in 2002, his ice time is reduced in 2002-03 and he returns to the Kings for a third time. Robitaille scores 22 goals for Los Angeles in 2003-04 and leads the Kings with 51 points, then retires after scoring 15 goals in 2005-06. He scores 35 or more goals in 11 NHL seasons, all with the Kings. His 668 goals and 1,394 points are still NHL records for a left wing.
Robitaille rejoins the Kings again as president of business operations in May 2007. He is inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009.

MORE MOMENTS
1975:
Jamie Langenbrunner
, a Stanley Cup winner with the Dallas Stars and New Jersey Devils, is born in Cloquet, Minnesota. Langenbrunner, a forward taken by Dallas in the second round (No. 35) of the 1993 NHL Draft, joins the Stars for good in 1996; three years later, he helps them win the Cup. He's traded to New Jersey on March 19, 2002, and is part of the Devils' championship team in 2003. Langenbrunner finishes his NHL career after playing four games for the St. Louis Blues in 2012-13 with 663 points (243 goals, 420 assists) in 1,109 NHL games.

1994: The New York Rangers acquire center
Petr Nedved
from the St. Louis Blues, who receive forward
Esa Tikkanen
and defenseman
Doug Lidster
in a trade approved by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman that allows Rangers coach Mike Keenan to become coach and general manager of the Blues. It comes less than six weeks after the Keenan-coached Rangers win the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1940.