5 Assistant Coach Options for the LA Kings

2. Jay McKee

Jay McKee is another former NHL player looking to make his way into the coaching world at the highest level. The former defenseman played 802 games, accumulating 125 total points.

McKee has been coaching since 2010 when he started as an assistant coach with Niagara University. He then worked his way to an assistant role with the Rochester Americans in the American Hockey League and then assistant positions with both the Erie Otters and Kitchener Rangers of the OHL before the Rangers gave him a head coaching job.

McKee spent four seasons with the Rangers, going 120-88-17 and making the postseason in three of them. He left Kitchener after the 2019-20 season, and joined the Hamilton Bulldogs as a head coach this year, where he went 51-12-0, won the OHL championship over the Spitfires, and is now heading to the Memorial Cup, which starts on Monday.

The Bulldogs’ power play ranked second in the OHL at 27.6%.

3. Jukka Jalonen

Jukka Jalonen is an intriguing option. The Riihimaki native has never coached in North America, but he’s been a successful coach in the numerous European leagues and competitions he has been a part of.

He led Finland to the IIHF World Championship in 2011, 2019, and 2022 and won Finland’s first-ever Gold Medal in ice hockey in 2022. He has 15 medals in international competitions, including six gold medals.

He is a three-time KHL all-star coach, a two-time Finnish coach of the year, and is even in the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame.

My only issue here is I’m not sure if Jalonen would come over to North America if he weren’t guaranteed a head coach role, but if he is willing to accept an assistant coach position, the Kings need to be all over that.

4. Jim Hiller

Jim Hiller is another option for the Kings’ assistant coaching vacancy. Ironically enough, he was drafted as a player for the Kings in 1989 and played 40 games with the franchise.

Hiller has been coaching since 2002 as an assistant coach in the Western Hockey League. Since then, he had head coaching stints in the BCHL and WHL from 2005-to 2014. He made the playoffs in seven of his eight seasons as a head coach in the WHL.

Since the 2014-15 campaign, Hiller has been an assistant all over the NHL, with the Detroit Red Wings, Toronto Maple Leafs, and most recently, New York Islanders.

Hiller has considered some clubs as a head coaching option, but if he doesn’t get those, I’d like the Kings to look for him due to his experience in coaching.

5. Kris Knoblauch

Kris Knoblauch is the last option for me on this list, but still a very intriguing option for the Kings. Despite being only 43 years old, he has been in the coaching world since 2006-07, when he began as an assistant with the Prince Albert Raiders of the WHL.

Knoblauch spent seven seasons as a head coach in juniors, winning a championship with the Kootenay Ice in 2010-11 and the Erie Otters in 2016-17.

He has coached the likes of Connor McDavid, Alex DeBrincat, Sam Reinhart, Connor Brown, Adam Pelech, Andre Burakovsky, etc., before their stardom at the NHL level.

Knoblauch spent two seasons as an assistant in Philadelphia before taking over as the head coach of the Hartford Wolf Pack, where he currently resides.

He was once expected to take over the Rangers head coaching vacancy once David Quinn departed. Still, with Gerard Gallant taking over, it doesn’t look like he’ll get an opportunity in the NHL with New York, which could allow the Kings to snatch him up for their assistant slot.