The Los Angeles market almost seemed like a natural place to support an NHL franchise. It had the population base and it had at one time supported teams from the Pacific Coast Hockey League which later became the Western Hockey League. One of the most notable contributions from the area was Bill Barilko who later played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and scored the winning goal in the 1951 Stanley Cup finals against the Montreal Canadiens. Barilko was tragically killed in a plane accident later that year while fishing in Ontario.

One of the major considerations given to the locating of any club is the facility in which it will play, and Los Angeles did not have a major arena where an NHL club could play. But entrepreneur Jack Kent Cooke felt that he could get an arena built. He subsequently paid $2 Million for the franchise in the early 60's and committed to building what Cooke called, "the most beautiful arena in the world". He lived up to his word, and built the "Fabulous Forum" in Inglewood California.

Cooke wasted little time in surrounding himself with those who knew the game of hockey. He hired as his first coach "Red" Kelly who had played for both Detroit and Toronto. Former Leaf great Larry Regan became the new general manager as the Kings went into their first season. Talent was not limited to the front office as Cooke went after some of the most highly regarded players in the game, while at the same time he had purchased the Springfield Indians of the American Hockey League to use a farm club.

When the dust settled after the first season, the Kings were solidly in second place, only 1 point out of first. The next few years proved to be problematic for the Kings. They were finishing close to the cellar in their division and did not make the playoffs again until the 1973-74 season. There were also problems between Cooke and the other owners and the NHL and consequently Cooke was often left on his own. Red Kelly quit the team in 1969 and Regan was replaced by Fred Glover. Veteran center Bob Pulford retired the next season and took up the coaching duties while Terry Harper and Gilles Marotte strengthened the defense, but the Kings were lacking someone who could put the puck in the net.

Meanwhile, back in Detroit, Marcel Dionne was having his problems with Detroit management. Despite having his best season as a Red Wing in 1974-75, Dionne was not feeling like he belonged in Detroit and it now became a question of who would sign him for the next season. Jack Kent Cooke also owned the LA Lakers of the NBA and had just finished signing Kareem Abdul Jabbar so he(Cooke) had plenty of cash and outbid 5 other teams who were after Dionne and signed him to a $1.5 million, 5 year contract.

Coach Pulford was not overly pleased because of Dionne's style of play. Pulford played a more defensive game and wanted his forwards to come back into the defensive zone to help the defensemen. Dionne was more used to floating around centre waiting for the play to breakout, and Pulford was worried that Dionne's offensive style would sit well with the team's direction. But Dionne rose to the challenge and adjusted his style of play and made sure he wasn't caught up ice, finishing his first season with the Kings with 40 goals and 54 assists. On a lighter note, Pulford put Dionne in with the "Fat Squad" to do extra skating after practice to help improve his wind and speed.

Dionne had made the full transition to the Kings style of play by the 1976-77 season and was now playing both center and right wing. He had become a total team player sacrificing scoring opportunities to pass off to other players in a better position. For his efforts he was recognized by many as a team player and was aptly rewarded that year with the Lady Byng Trophy.

The 1979-80 season saw the formation of the Triple Crown Line of Charlie Simmer, Marcel Dionne and Dave Taylor. Simmer had played in the minors before coming to LA and in that season he posted a league leading 56 goals in 64 games. Dave Taylor was a grinder who fit well with Dionne and Simmer. Taylor would later become the general manager in 1996.

Up to the mid '80's the Kings were just another club which became deeply riddled in mediocrity and it wasn't until Bruce McNall came on the scene as a co-owner in the mid '80's that things began to change for the Kings. Perhaps his biggest deal ever was the trading of Jimmy Carson, Martin Gelina, 3 first round draft picks and $15 million in cash for Wayne Gretzky, Marty McSorley and Mike Krushelnyski.

Gretzky's presence in LA had an obvious positive effect. In the 1992-93 season the Kings went all the way to the finals, facing the Montreal Canadiens. It was a brief flirtation with greatness, but the Kings lost the Cup, Gretzky moved on to St Louis and McNall was imprisoned for fraud. The Kings did not make it to the playoffs again until the 1997-98 season.

Larry Robinson came to the Kings for the 1989-90 season and immediately began anchoring the Kings defense. He lasted 3 years with the Kings before he retired and became the assistant coach of the New Jersey Devils and helped them to the Stanley Cup in 1995. The Kings saw something in Robinson and hired him in 1995 to help coach the Kings. Robinson accomplished two major feats. First he guided the Kings back to a plus .500 record, a first since the 1992-93 season, and second he saw a bright light in defenseman Rob Blake.

Blake came to the Kings for the 1989-90 season and continued to improve under Robinson and became the Kings top scoring defenseman 3 separate times. Blake played in the 1994 All Star Game and put up his highest numbers to date in 1993-94 with 20 goals and 48 assists. Blake pushed himself and in 1998 won the Norris Trophy.

The new GM, Dave Taylor wasted no time in making deals beginning with Jozef Stumpel and a second stint for Luc Robitaille. Stumpel led the Kings in scoring for the 1997-98 season and Robitaille had 16 goals and 24 assists in 57 games that same year. In 1995, Philip Anschutz and Edward Roski Jr took over the ownership of the Kings. In late 1997-98 they unveiled plans for a new arena scheduled to be located in down town Los Angeles, and not in the suburbs. Clearly the new owners were looking to rebuild the team from the ground up. In June of 1999, the Kings acquired Zigmund Palffy from the New York Islanders who finished the 1999-2000 season with 66 points. The Kings finished 2nd in the Pacific Division that year and were eliminated by Detroit in the Conference Quarter Finals. Perhaps the spark brought in by players like Gretzky, Dionne, Taylor and Simmer has dulled a bit, but the Kings have the infrastructure in place to try to once again rise up and meet their destiny.