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Los Angeles Kings celebrate a goal (Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images)

Kings’ Early Season Observations

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Raz Devraj | Last updated Nov 14, 2025 10:05 AM ET

Coming into the 2025-26 season, there was no doubt that this version of the Los Angeles Kings would be different from last season. With the shake-up of the defensive group, most expected a dip in play on the back end, while bringing back the entire top nine was expected to aid an improvement in offensive production, given that the Kings were second in goals per game after the trade deadline last season.

18 games have passed, and still, it’s difficult to reach a clear conclusion about this team and what the realistic expectations are. On a surface level, 9-5-4 and sitting in second in the Pacific Division seems like a pretty good spot (which it is), but the general vibe and feeling of the Kings so far doesn’t exactly match their record. At the end of the day, feelings don’t matter; points do, and it looks as if the Kings are finally finding their game and with that some consistency, having gone 8-2-2 in their last 12 games.

Here’s what we are seeing from the Kings early this season.

Home NOT Sweet Home

There wasn’t a better, more dominant team on home ice than the Kings last season. With a record of 31-6-4, they were almost unbeatable inside Crypto.com Arena. For whatever reason, this season is quite literally the complete opposite. Maybe it was the pressure to continue that dominance at home, or maybe it’s something completely different. The point is, it’s been far from pretty in downtown Los Angeles so far. Through seven games played at home, they have an abysmal 1-4-2 record, the second-worst home record in the NHL at the moment.

You would think, with the ability to take advantage of line matchups, home fans, and a comfortable environment, they (or any team for that matter) would thrive at home, but for the Kings, it’s their road performances that have driven them to the winning record they currently possess. They have played 11 games on the road, which has included one five-game road trip as well as part of a six-game road trip they are currently on.

The extent of the Kings’ trouble on the road is just one regulation loss. 8-1-2 is their road record right now, and it’s a complete 180 degrees from last season. It’s their play on the road that has driven them out of their early-season slump and to their 9-5-4 record. Now with five straight road wins and points in their last nine, they look unbeatable away from home.

Penalty Crazy

The number of times penalties have drastically changed the outcome or direction of games for the Kings has been concerning, especially throughout the first handful of games. As of late, they have gotten much better at staying out of the box, but, generally speaking, this season has seen them struggle to remain disciplined.

It’s been penalties at inopportune times that have made an impact, and they are finding themselves shorthanded right at the start of games a lot of the time, which either leads to them chasing the game early or allowing the opposition a chance to get going quickly.

Not only are the Kings taking a lot of penalties, but they also aren’t doing a great job at killing them off. Their penalty kill percentage is operating at 77.8% so far this season, which is good for 11th-worst league-wide. The aggressiveness and structure the Kings showed last season are just not there this season, and both on the penalty kill and at even strength, they have been more susceptible to breakdowns.

As the Kings continue to settle into the season and continue ironing out the kinks, their penalty trouble has been something that has improved, and for a team that hasn’t done a great job on the penalty kill and doesn’t draw too many penalties themselves, staying out of the box will continue to play a massive role in their ability to win games.

Power Play in Need of a Major Shakeup

Speaking of being shorthanded, it hasn’t been pretty when the Kings are on the man advantage either. Last season, they elected to go with a five-forward unit late in the season, and it proved successful. Returning most of the same forward group, opting to run it back made sense, and it was sort of like an if it ain’t broke don’t fix it type attitude. The problem is that it’s essentially been broken long enough this season that it is in need of a change.

The Kings currently have the seventh-worst power-play percentage in the NHL, and it’s operating at just 16.1 percent. The five-forward unit, and every version of it, has been disappointing to say the least, and it’s getting to the point where it makes no sense to keep it together. It’s not just that the Kings aren’t scoring on the man advantage, but at times, it’s gaining the zone and setting it up that has proved difficult, and creating quality chances and getting pucks through to the net, which there hasn’t been enough of.

It’s one thing when a team isn’t scoring on their power-play opportunities, and it’s a whole other thing when they are giving up goals on them. The Kings have allowed the most shorthanded goals in the NHL, with four. There have been just 18 games played this season, and they have already managed to give up four shorthanded goals. If that isn’t enough to make a drastic change, then I don’t know what is.

It made sense to see what five forwards could do to start the season based on last seasons success, but with how ineffective it has been, along with the fact that the Kings’ most dynamic defenseman in Brandt Clarke, who thrives at generating offense and creating space along the blue line, is barely getting any time in that situation, it’s a bit of a head scratcher as to why there hasn’t been a complete shakeup of the units.

This is what I’d like to see the Kings roll out on the power play moving forward:

PP1: Quinton Byfield, Adrian Kempe, Kevin Fiala, Corey Perry, Brandt Clarke

PP2: Anze Kopitar, Andrei Kuzmenko, Trevor Moore, Warren Foegele, Drew Doughty

Defensively Not As Strong

Like we have mentioned many times, this Kings team is not the same, especially defensively. The departure of Vladislav Gavrikov and Jordan Spence has made more of an impact than most thought, and we are seeing those holes early on this season. The two new additions, Brian Dumoulin and Cody Ceci, got torched to start the season. So much so that they ended up needing to be separated. Dumoulin was paired with Doughty, and Ceci was paired with Mikey Anderson. Even though those new pairings were an improvement to the back end, as of late, the pairings have returned to what they were to start the season. Dumoulin and Ceci are back together, and so far it’s gone better than their first stint did.

Los Angeles Kings defenseman Cody Ceci and Colorado Avalanche center Gavin Brindley battle along the boards (Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images)

That being said, this defensive group is much weaker, and we are seeing it with the number of defensive zone breakdowns the Kings have had. Losing man coverage, not getting to the right spots quickly enough, leaving players wide open in the slot, and that solid defensive structure the Kings took so much pride in last season has not been nearly as evident.

The early trend has shown that the Kings are going to be a team that gives up more goals than they did last season, which means they are going to need to combat that with more goals of their own, and so far, they have been able to do that.

Few Kings Cooking Early

A positive for the Kings early on has been the production from their top players, and even someone who wasn’t expected to do nearly as much as he has.

Fiala has been someone to watch, especially as of late, with goals in three straight games. He has collected nine goals so far and is on pace to hit 41 goals, which would be six more than his career high of 35, which came last season. Every year since he was traded to the Kings, he has been able to take a step forward with his production, and this season he’s off to a terrific start in the goal department. He’s playing more freely and confidently, and right now it’s working for him.

The other elite talent everyone is talking about right now is Kempe, who is still without an extension. The 29-year-old forward currently leads all Kings in points with 19 and is on pace to finish with a career high of 87 points in his contract year. He has been the definition of clutch, already with three game-winning goals, two of which came in overtime. He is doing everything to earn that massive extension, and as the games go by, so does his worth.

It would be a crime not to mention Kings newcomer Corey Perry and the production he’s been able to provide after missing the first six games with an injury. Perry’s scored seven goals and picked up 11 points in the 12 games he’s played, and at times has singlehandedly given the Kings’ offense life. The 40-year-old has been everything and more that the Kings were hoping to get, and he’s made more of an impact than most. He has the second-most goals out of any King so far this season and is on pace to hit 70-plus points for the first time since 2014. While it’s unlikely his production levels will remain this high over the course of the entire season, he wasn’t brought in for his point production, but right now it’s what has propelled the Kings toward their winning record.

Kuemper Remains Strong

There was a big question of whether or not Darcy Kuemper could replicate his Vezina-caliber season after bouncing back from his time with the Washington Capitals. As of now, it’s safe to say the Kings have an elite netminder and should have no worries about Kuemper. He’s been good enough to the point where his name has been brought up in conversations regarding Team Canada’s Olympic roster.

The Kings are a completely different team and in a completely different spot if not for Kuemper and the stability he has been able to provide through the 13 games he has played so far this season. For goaltenders who have played at least 10 games, his save percentage of .903 ranks ninth best, and his goals-against average of 2.44 is the fourth lowest.

For a team that has and will continue to struggle more defensively than they have in the past, Kuemper’s continued excellence will be needed.

It’s important to understand that we are just 18 games into a long 82-game season, and there is more than enough time for all of these to change. These are just some early trends that might be good to keep an eye on as the season progresses.