Top 10 LA Kings Forwards of All-Time

By Jeff Duarte
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Updated: November 9, 2017

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1 – Wayne Gretzky – 1988 to 1996

(photo credit to kings.nhl.com)

Surprised? Well, you shouldn’t be. He IS the greatest player of all time and for good reason. Gretzky’s epic trade (or sale) to the Kings in August of 1988 was an explosion heard around the hockey world whose ripple effects are still felt today 29 years later. Why should Gretzky be considered the greatest Kings’ forward of them all? Well, before number 99 arrived in SoCal, the Kings barely made the playoffs (and that’s if they could make the playoffs at all), but had never made it past the second round or were never considered serious Stanley Cup contenders. To be honest and fair, outside of Southern California, (and sometimes inside it) the Kings were looked on as a joke of a franchise, that were filled with missteps, some unmotivated players (who cared more about their tan and the nightlife scene then their performance on the ice), unqualified head coaches and general managers who didn’t have a clue what they were doing, disastrous trades and the list goes on and on and it isn’t pretty. Then came Wayne and everything changed. It’s one thing to say that Gretzky brought attention to the Kings’ franchise and another to say the Gretzky’s arrival created a frenzy dubbed “Gretzky-mania” and “Kings-mania” that made seeing the Kings play the hottest attraction in town. And he did do that, but more importantly, Gretzky wasn’t just a sideshow spectacle that brought in the crowds and hockey media from around the world but he played his ass off as well and has an almost superhuman-like willpower, along with his phenom skill and talent that immediately affected and inspired his teammates to make the Kings’ not only legit Stanley Cup contenders but… FEARED AND RESPECTED AROUND THE LEAGUE!

Scoring a goal on his first shift in his first regular season game, “The Great One” led the Kings into the playoffs to face off against his former team and teammates, the reigning Cup Champion Edmonton Oilers, in a story and war that make the Hockey Gods the best scriptwriters in sports history! Down 3 games to 1 to the champs, Gretzky led the charge to come back and take out the Oilers in 7 games, (after a crucial game 6 victory on the road) to win the most-watched NHL playoff series of all time, at that time! For the first time ever, the Kings had eliminated the Cup champions and Gretzky was rewarded with his 9th Hart Trophy for League MVP, (still, the only LA King to do so). Then they did again in 1990 when they eliminated the reigning Cup champion Calgary Flames in 6 games in a brutally fought but highly entertaining series. In 1991, the Kings won their division for the first (and only) time in Kings’ history before eliminating the Vancouver Canucks in the first round, but falling short against the Oilers in a close and tight 6 game series, where four of those games went to overtime, including game 6 where the Kings lost 4-3 in OT. Almost retiring during the 1992-93 season due to a serious back injury, Gretzky came back during the second half of the season and was in prime mid-season form by the time the playoffs had arrived. He and the Kings then made a run for the ages eliminating the Flames and the Canucks to reach the Conference Finals for the first time ever. There, they squared off against the resurgent Toronto Maple Leafs in what turned out to be one of the greatest playoff series of all time! After some controversy in game 6 in OT when Gretzky clipped Leaf Captain Doug Gilmour accidently with a high stick, which caused blood but no penalty was called on the play, Gretzky added insult to injury by scoring the game-winning goal in OT to take the series to game 7 at the famed Maple Leaf Gardens, (an arena that Gretzky lived close to while growing up and always had a love for, though he wasn’t a Leaf fan), in front of a frenzied and rabid Toronto supporting crowd. Waking up that morning of the game, Gretzky was angered when he read that TSN’s Bob McKenzie had criticized Gretzky’s performance in the Conference Finals by saying it looked like, “Gretzky was playing with a piano strapped on his back.” Matters didn’t help either when Gretzky was riding in the elevator along with the operator when the operator, not knowing who he was sharing the elevator with, mentioned that he was going to be really busy later on that night. Gretzky asked, “Why is that?”, and the man replied that it was going to get crazy in the city after the Leafs beat the Kings. Staying quiet until the ride ended but fuming inside, before walking out of the elevator, Gretzky looked directly at the man right in his eyes and told him not to worry, because he wasn’t going to have a busy night tonight. Confused, the operator asked, “Why’s that?” and while walking out of the elevator and turning around, Gretzky answered, “Because I’m about to go to work!” And work he did, as Gretzky played like a man possessed scoring a hat-trick, plus an assist to lead the Kings to a 5-4 victory and a 4-3 Conference Final win that catapulted the Kings into the Stanley Cup Final (and say it with me) for the first time ever! Sadly the Kings lost the Cup Final to Montreal in 5 games, (3 of those went to overtime) but Gretzky led all players with points in that final, including over the “Habs'” players who won the Cup.

Also while as a King, Gretzky also broke two major NHL records that many thought would never be broken. On October 15, 1989, with “Mr. Hockey” in attendance, Gretzky scored a goal for his 1,851st point to break Howe’s all-time record, in Edmonton fittingly against his former team, (oh those Hockey Gods!), and then on March 23, 1994, Gretzky scored against the Canucks to get his 802nd career goal, breaking another longtime Howe record. After missing the playoffs for two straight seasons (though still winning the Art Ross Trophy for most points in the NHL with 130 in 1994), and now in his late’ 30’s, Gretzky had hoped for a commitment by the Kings’ management that they were going to try and build a strong team so the Kings’ could make another run at the Stanley Cup. The new owners at the time, AEG (who still own the Kings to this day), was new to the hockey business and had bought a team had gone bankrupt thanks to previous owner Bruce McNall, so they weren’t able or knew how to quickly build a serious Cup contending team. With free agency approaching and the Kings well short out of a playoff spot again, Gretzky, not wanted to leave the Kings’ franchise high and dry by just finishing out that remaining season and then sign somewhere else as an unrestricted free agent, therefore the Kings would get nothing in return, Gretzky encouraged the Kings to trade him instead, therefore they can get something in return at the very least. The Kings agreed and traded Gretzky to the St Louis Blues on February 27, 1996 for Patrice Tardif, Roman Vopat, Craig Johnson and two draft picks that turned out to Peter Hogan (no relation to The Hulkster) and Matt Zultek, (and I have still never forgiven the Kings’ GM at the time, Sam “The Disaster” McMaster for that blunder of a trade. Like really Sam, the best you could get for the greatest player of all-time was Tardif, Vopat, and Johnson???) Though Gretzky had moved on, he had left his mark and hockey flourished and blossomed in California to what we know it to be today. The financial and on-ice success that the Kings had with Wayne in the city of Los Angeles inspired the league to expand with more teams in the American southern belt, including Anaheim, San Jose, and Phoenix/Arizona, (you’re welcome Duck, Shark, and CRY-ote fans!) Gretzky’s impact also created new fans to the sport that spread and spread, including generationally, until grassroots hockey was strongly established in the sunny state of California, leading to many young prospects born and raised there to be drafted in to the NHL every year like Auston Matthews, Beau Bennett, Kevin Miller and Brooks Orpik. And most importantly of all, Gretzky gave Kings’ fans, old and new, a taste of victory and a hunger to get another chance at Lord Stanley’s Cup after coming off so close. Gretzky taught us all that even though it isn’t easy to achieve, it IS possible to get there to the Final and win it. AEG also learned a lot from that experience as well and yes we Kings’ fans still had to suffer through a couple of dark ages and more playoff heartbreaks, but in 2012 and 2014 the Kings finally got it right and won it all. And sitting there at rinkside at the Staple’s Center when it happened, was Wayne Gretzky and he couldn’t have been more proud.

Best Regular Season with the Kings – 1988-89

78 games, 54 goals, 114 assists and 168 points

Best Playoffs with the Kings – 1993

24 games, 15 goals, 25 assists, 40 points, 4 power-play goals and 3 game-winning goals

Career Total with the Kings

Regular Season – 539 games, 246 goals, 672 assists, 918 points, 63 power-play goals, 20 game-winning goals and 17 shorthanded goals
Playoffs – 60 games, 29 goals, and 65 points,

Awards and Achievements with the Kings

1989 Hart Memorial Trophy winner
1990, 1991, 1994 Art Ross Trophy winner
1991, 1992, 1994 Lady Byng Trophy winner
Leader with most goals in 1993 playoffs with 15
Co-Leader with most assists in 1993 playoffs (with Doug Gilmour) with 25
Most points in 1993 playoffs with 40
Broke All-Time NHL record of career goals with 802 (as a member of the Kings)
Broke All-Time NHL record of career points with 1,851 (as a member of the Kings)
1991 Canada Cup (as Captain and while as a member of the Kings)
Jersey number #99 retired by the Kings
Jersey number #99 retired by the NHL
Has a Statue in Tribute to him outside of the Staples Center (and in Edmonton and Brantford, ON)
Hall of Fame

*Honorable mentions to;

Okay, so there you have it. My Top 10 LA Kings’ Forwards of All-Time! Now instead of debating with me about how you disagree with my decisions, why don’t we do something different, and just have all of you do your own Top 10 list and post them down in the comments below! Or @JDStylz_ or @CaliSportsNews on Twitter! We’d love to read your feedback and selections!

So until next time my Kings’ brothers and sisters, I have been JD Stylz and I am out of here!

GO KINGS GO!!!

Stay with us at Calisportsnews.com as we will keep you up-to-date on all things Los Angeles Kings and the rest of the LA sports teams! All Cali, All the time

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