One day after the Los Angeles Kings announced that Rob Blake would not be back as general manager, team president Luc Robitaille met with the media. He talked about a few topics but the main focus was on the general manager search.
Up to this point, all indications have been that Marc Bergevin would be considered the favorite to replace Blake. He has been a senior advisor since 2022, and the Kings have tended to lean towards stability rather than shaking up the front office. However, for fans who have been disappointed after four straight first-round exits, the hope is that they could bring an outside candidate.
Robitaille's comments on Tuesday should have fans excited as it certainly sounds they will give serious consideration to candidates outside the LA Kings organization. Early in his press conference, Robitaille said that he met with Blake over the weekend and said "at one point we both realized and agreed that it was time to bring in a new voice to get us to that next level."
He also noted that the Kings have already started their search for the next general manager and while there is no timeline there is a sense of urgency with free agent and the NHL Draft right around the corner.
It is also worth noting that Robitaille did speak about Bergevin, but described it more as a relationship between Blake and Bergevin. This is not to say that he won't be a candidate, as he said he is a "great hockey mind," but he may not be the front runner as some have thought.
Next LA Kings general manager will have final decision on Jim Hiller's future with team
One other really surprising comment from Luc Robitaille was that the next general manager will have the final decision on if Jim Hiller returns as head coach next season. Earlier in the press conference, Robitaille said that Hiller is under contract but the next general manager will have the final say.
Later in the press conference he was asked a clarifying question about his answer and said in regards to Hiller, "I don't see that happening but for your general manager you want to give him the freedom to make that decision and you don't want to lock up a new person coming in but the record of what Jimmy did is really, really good."
There is no question that the regular season was really good and Jim Hiller was excellent in his first full season. He would lead the Kings to a franchise tying 105 point season but the playoff series against the Edmonton Oilers was an absolute disaster.
It will be interesting to see what direction the next general manager goes with that decision and will be his first big decision in that new role. However, the biggest positive from Tuesday is that Luc Robitaille indicated that this should be a much more exhaustive search than many people expected since the announcement that Rob Blake would not be back.