NHL Kings GM Dean Lombardi and coach Darryl Sutter "were dismissed" yesterday, "less than 24 hours after the team’s second non-playoff finish in the past three seasons," according to Helene Elliott of the L.A. TIMES. The Kings promoted President of Business Operations Luc Robitaille to President, where he will oversee hockey and business operations. The club also promoted Assistant GM Rob Blake to VP & GM, where he "will be in charge of the team’s day-to-day hockey operations." Lombardi "had a year left on his contract," while Sutter "just completed the first year of a contract for two years plus an option." Lombardi was "handcuffed by salary-cap problems that were caused by the team’s success, his own misjudgment and his overestimation of players’ worth." Since winning the Stanley Cup in '14, the Kings have won just one playoff game. AEG President & CEO Dan Beckerman announced the changes. The Kings will hold a news conference today at Staples Center to "further address the moves" (L.A. TIMES, 4/11).
LASTING IMPACT: ESPN.com's Pierre LeBrun notes Lombardi was "let go after 11 years at the helm." He built a team that won the Kings two Stanley Cups in '12 and '14, both with Sutter as coach. Lombardi "patiently rebuilt the franchise after taking over" in April '06, but then "undermined it by handing out lucrative long-term contracts to fading veterans" (ESPN.com, 4/11). In California, Elliott Teaford writes the Kings under Lombardi and Sutter "seemed unable or unwilling to budge from their old-school ways and failed to adapt to a faster, younger, cheaper NHL" (Torrance DAILY BREEZE, 4/11). In L.A., Mark Whicker writes the pair "created a howling atmosphere at Staples, among the best in the league with nightly sellouts." They also "created identity" in which the Kings "wore out teams." Their "mistakes will be listed painstakingly in the coming days, but they should be remembered for those two black carpets that hang from on high" (L.A. DAILY NEWS, 4/11).
