Particle.news

Kings Dismiss Coach Jim Hiller as D.J. Smith Takes Interim Role

The team says a leadership reset offers the best chance to regain form before a late playoff push.

Overview

  • General manager Ken Holland announced the change Sunday and added longtime development coach Matt Greene to the bench as an assistant.
  • Los Angeles is 24-21-14 (62 points), sitting three points behind the West’s final wild-card spot with 23 games remaining.
  • Hiller exits with a 93-58-24 record over 175 games, having reached the playoffs twice without winning a series, with repeated first-round losses to Edmonton.
  • The move follows a post-break slump highlighted by a 6-4 loss to Vegas and an 8-1 home defeat to the Oilers that drew “Fire Hiller” chants.
  • Context for the slide includes one of the NHL’s lowest scoring rates despite trading for Artemi Panarin, plus injuries to Kevin Fiala (season-ending leg fracture) and Andrei Kuzmenko (meniscus surgery, week-to-week).