The Kings may have snapped their losing streak on Saturday night against the Calgary Flames, but that wasn’t enough to save Jim Hiller’s job as the club announced they will be parting ways with the head coach. Assistant coach DJ Smith will take over on an interim basis for the duration of the season the club announced.
“I want to thank Jim Hiller for his dedication, professionalism, and the commitment he showed to our players and our team every day: He is a respected coach and person, and we appreciate the work he’s done behind our bench,” GM Ken Holland said. “At this point in the season, we believe a change in leadership is necessary to give our group the best opportunity to reach its potential and compete at the level we expect. These decisions are never made lightly, but our responsibility is to position this team for success now and moving forward.”
The club also announced that player development coach Matt Greene will join Smith’s staff as an assistant in a corresponding move.
During his time in Los Angeles, Hiller went 93-58-24, and made the postseason twice. Unfortunately, that was as far as the Kings would go as they suffered first round defeats in both years. In his first full campaign as head coach, LA tied its franchise record for wins (48) and points (105) before being ousted by the Edmonton Oilers in round 1 of the playoffs.
Since winning the cup back in 2014, Los Angeles has yet to advance past the first round of the NHL playoffs, leading to some angst amongst the fanbase. Ownership clearly is banking on a late season turnaround under Smith so that the Kings (24-21-14) can claw their way back into the playoff picture.
The team is just 3 points behind Seattle for the final Wildcard spot with 23 games to play, so there’s plenty of time to make up ground. Their first test under their new head coach will come Monday night at 10:30pm ET against the NHL leading Colorado Avalanche.
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