After spending months being on the hot seat for the Los Angeles Kings this regular season in the West, head coach Jim Hiller was announced today earlier on Sunday morning (March 1) that he is relieved of his duties with the franchise late this weekend.
Ken Holland gives some insight and clarification to the decision to let go of head coach Jim Hiller for the Los Angeles Kings late this weekend on Sunday
General manager Ken Holland and the Kings' front office management officially parted ways with Hiller after he spent one full seasons behind the bench as the team's head coach in the West. Hiller was with the Kings' organization since the 2022-23 season, before he was promoted to being the head coach in February 2024 a couple of years ago in the 2023-24 campaign.
"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."Ken Holland on Jim Hiller
This news comes as the Kings announced earlier today on Sunday morning that assistant coach and former Ottawa Senators head coach DJ Smith will serve as the interim head coach for the rest of the 2025-26 season, and fifth-year player development coach/staffer Matt Greene will be an assistant coach for LA.
Smith joined the franchise a couple of years ago in the West after spending four full seasons as the Senators head coach in the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference in the early 2020s decade. He spent a half decade as the Senators' head coach in the Atlantic Division (from the 2019-20 season to the 2023-24 season).
Holland said that he does not anticipate the 2026 first-round pick being in play at the trade deadline, considering where the Kings sit in the standings.
— Zach Dooley (@DooleyLAK) March 1, 2026
He will make the calls, if there’s a good deal there he’ll make it, but sounds like nothing reckless considering the risk.
Greene has spent eight years in the Kings' franchise organization, and this past five years as a player development coach. He was also a longtime defenseman for the Kings in the past couple of decades.
It sounds like Holland and the Kings' front office management were unpleased with the results in the standings in the West in the Pacific Division this regular season and since the three-week break for the Winter Olympics this past month in mid-to-late February in the last few weeks. Despite the Kings shutting out the Flames in the Pacific Division yesterday by a score of 2-0 on the scoreboard, LA had suffered humiliating losses in the West to the Vegas Golden Knights and Edmonton Oilers while giving up a combined over a dozen goals in those couple of games.
Between the Kings getting key players back in the active roster lineup from injuries and trading for star forward Artemi Panarin from the Rangers in New York, LA had reasons for hope and optimism for confidence coming out of the three-week break for the Olympics this past couple of weeks in the West.
"Couple of tough games going into the Olympic break and I was hoping that the time off and then the mini training camp, that our team was able to respond. Tough couple of games coming out, especially the game against Edmonton on Thursday night. On Friday, I did lot of thought, I talked to Luc quite a bit and eventually came to the decision that I needed to make a coaching change. I didn’t do it on Friday because Friday was an off day, the players weren’t here and we played at four o’clock on Saturday. I didn’t want just a new coach behind and make the move going into a game."
The Kings must contribute the active roster lineup to help the areas where the team could improve on the trade block and before the trade deadline early this month in a few days. Holland and the Kings could get a boost offensively scoring the puck with a move or two at the trade deadline on the block this regular season in the West.
But this problem with the Kings' coaching staff and front office personnel is not something that will resolve right away for the team. We'll see if the Kings can have the pieces to put it together in the West this regular season in the Pacific Division.