Can LA Kings New Coach Amp It Up?

By Jim Ellis
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Updated: April 23, 2017

It’s official. The LA Kings have a new coach. The King is dead, long live the King. In other words, “next.”

Sunday morning the news came that John Stevens, a snoozer of an interview but hopefully not a loser of a head coach, will take the reins recently vacated by ousted LA-fave Darryl Sutter, who since late 2011 brought the Kings a 225-147-53 record, two Stanley Cups and four playoff appearances.

There will be press conference on Monday afternoon, so stay tuned.

History lesson: Stevens, 50, was the head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers between 2006 and 2010, with a 120-109-34 record. He even coached the Kings before – little known fact – leading the team to a 2-2-0 record for a week in late 2011 before Sutter took over the club. Stevens has also served as assistant coach and Associate Head Coach under Sutter shortly after the 2014 Cup season.

The big question in my mind is how will the change alter the team, and will it really be for the better? The quirky yet stern approach by Sutter appeared to focus and galvanize a bunch of wayward kids back in 2011. The low-key (shall we say drab?) approach by Stevens doesn’t seem to be the sort of fiery, passionate lift a team like the Kings need.

I always thought putting Anze Kopitar as captain was a huge mistake, given his talented yet modest and minimalist vibe. Why not put Drew Doughty in as the captain? He’s got some spark and spunk.

What appears to have been missing with the Kings recently is heart, passion and fire. Even with Sutter last year, there were times it seemed like he was OK with losing. We can’t have that. Right? Don’t we need some of the fiery nature that Doughty exhibits on the ice with everyone on the bench, and perhaps even everyone standing up behind the bench?

Stevens is not that. During the game interviews from the bench, I have to work hard to keep my eyes open and not drift into REM as he speaks. Drone city. Can this man amp it up enough for a team that needs to wake up to its own potential?

Or does he even have to? There are obviously things fans don’t see that the team and the front office does see. But it just may also be true that the fans see things that the team does not.

And in my estimation (and I’m willing to be oh-so-wrong), what this one fan sees is a potential lackluster season led by a man who lacks some much-needed luster.

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