Earlier this offseason, various rumors and discussions surrounding the organization turned up the heat on the speculation that the Los Angeles Kings could make changes to the coaching staff and the front office, including replacing head coach Jim Hiller.
Jim Hiller's seat is hot for the Los Angeles Kings going into the 2025-26 season
The Kings ended up replacing former general manager Rob Blake with Ken Holland early in the summer months. This came after Blake was with the organization serving in various roles for over a decade (since the 2013-14 season).
Holland probably expects Hiller to be delivering on results in the standings in the Pacific Division a few months into the upcoming regular season in the 2025-26 campaign.
After back-to-back disappointing results in the playoffs in the West in the past two postseasons (since 2024), Hiller had fallen short of expectations for the Kings in LA. While Hiller did lead the Kings to a 105-point season in the Pacific Division in the 2024-25 campaign, the expectations are for this team to be contending deeper into the postseason in the West.
The Hockey Writers' Mike Fink listed Hiller among the head coaches in the NHL who are "on the hot seat" in the upcoming 2025-26 season.
Hiller led the Kings to the playoffs in the West in the past two years in the postseason. But the Kings have the talent and depth on the projected roster for the upcoming 2025-26 season that gives fans hope that this team should be making it over the postseason hump and deeper on a playoff run in the West.
If LA is unable to make a deep postseason run in the playoffs this upcoming spring in 2026, that could also lead Holland to replace Hiller behind the bench for the Kings next offseason after the 2025-26 season. The Kings have the talent on the roster to at least make it out of the first round against the Edmonton Oilers in the Pacific Division in the playoffs.