Confidence from the media and the fan base for the Los Angeles Kings front office seems to be running pretty low going into the upcoming 2026-27 season.
Even though the Kings have made the postseason for five consecutive years, the team has also suffered five straight first-round exits. The combination of consistency in the regular season this decade and playoff disappointment has surfaced plenty of questions about the direction of the franchise.
In The Athletic's latest NHL front office confidence rankings for 2026, these concerns with the Kings' front office were reflected as LA ranked 29th out of 32 teams in the league.
Why confidence in the LA Kings' front office remains so low
There is a difference between the results in the standings and the confidence and long-term outlook for the roster construction for the Kings. The Kings definitely aren't a bottom-five organization in the NHL in terms of regular season results. Los Angeles has made the playoffs for five consecutive years. But the Kings have also been knocked out of the postseason in the first round in five straight playoff trips, including the Colorado Avalanche sweeping them in the first round last spring.
The Edmonton Oilers also knocked out the Kings in four straight postseason trips in the first round before the Colorado series in 2026.
I think these rankings are illustrating the point that the media and the fans don't think the Kings are one of the worst teams in the league. But the problem is that the fans don't have confidence that the front office can take this team from a first-round playoff team to a true Stanley Cup contender in the near future.
One part of this ranking that could be considered a bit unfair is the Ken Holland factor. Holland has only been the Kings' general manager since May 2025 when he replaced former general manager Rob Blake this past offseason.
Some of the frustration and impatience associated with these results for the Kings is tied to a past front office and moves that predate Holland.
On the other hand, Holland has still had over a year now to put his fingerprints on the Kings' roster construction and the direction of the franchise. In this past eight months alone, Holland has made significant moves including hiring new head coach Peter Laviolette, trading for star forward Artemi Panarin, and created a path for Quinton Byfield to become the No. 1 center.
However, there are real concerns about the way that the Kings' roster is constructed for the long haul. The Kings are the oldest team in the NHL going into the upcoming 2026-27 season, creating concerns about the age of some of the key players in the lineup.
The overall depth and bad contracts on the blue line have also been a common criticism of Holland and the Kings in this past year or so. The prospect pipeline has also been pretty sparse for the Kings in the last couple of years, leaving questions about the future stakes of the franchise in the next five or 10 years.
The fact of the matter is that Holland and the Kings are in a tough spot. Los Angeles is caught in that difficult in between stage where the team is too competitive to be truly considered a rebuilding franchise. But the Kings also don't have the elite talent necessary to be considered a true Stanley Cup contender this upcoming season.
All in all, the biggest concern surrounding the Kings' front office isn't a single veteran contract, trade, or draft pick. It's the overall direction of the franchise and whether the Kings can truly be good enough to not only consistently make the postseason, but also get over the hump in the Western Conference and make a run at a Stanley Cup Finals appearance.
This all leaves the Kings and Holland in the rough middle ground of being good enough to make the playoffs, but not having all the pieces in place to be a real Stanley Cup contender for multiple years in the future.
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