Kings to name Ken Holland new general manager

A Stanley Cup-winning executive is finding a new home.

According to Daily Faceoff insider Frank Seravalli, the Los Angeles Kings will be hiring Ken Holland to become the team’s first general manager.

Sports personality Rod Pedersen was the first to report the hiring.

Holland’s name around the Kings started to pick up steam late last week, as Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reported that he had met with team president Luc Robitaille last Thursday.

The opening in Los Angeles came after the Kings announced the team parted ways with Rob Blake last Monday after eight seasons on the job. The team had lost to the Edmonton Oilers in the first round for the fourth consecutive season.

The Vernon, British Columbia native has been a “free agent” since he left the Oilers last June. It came shortly after his team made it all the way to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, ultimately losing to the Florida Panthers. It came at the end of a topsy-turvy five seasons as GM and president of hockey operations for the club, where Holland was often criticized for his decision-making, even though the team made it to the postseason each season he was on the job.

Since departing from Edmonton, Holland has been working for the NHL as a hockey operations consultant.

Holland will bring an immense amount of experience to the role in Hollywood. He worked for the Detroit Red Wings for 34 years, going from an amateur scout to GM and executive vice president of hockey operations. He was an assistant GM to Jim Devellano when the Red Wings won the Cup in 1997, taking over as GM and putting together teams that won championships in 1998, 2002 and 2008.

While Holland did everything he could to get the Red Wings to an incredible 25 straight playoff appearances, his legacy in Detroit has been slightly discredited, as many believe the moves he made to keep the team in the postseason set them up for a rebuild that has been ongoing for close to a decade.