1990–91 Los Angeles Kings season

1990–91 Los Angeles Kings
Smythe Division champions
Division1st Smythe
Conference3rd Campbell
1990–91 record46–24–10
Home record26–9–5
Road record20–15–5
Goals for340
Goals against254
Team information
General managerRogatien Vachon
CoachTom Webster
CaptainWayne Gretzky
Alternate captainsLarry Robinson
Dave Taylor
ArenaGreat Western Forum
Team leaders
GoalsLuc Robitaille and Tomas Sandstrom (45)
AssistsWayne Gretzky (122)
PointsWayne Gretzky (163)
Penalty minutesJay Miller (259)
Plus/minusMarty McSorley (+48)
WinsKelly Hrudey (26)
Goals against averageKelly Hrudey (2.90)

The 1990–91 Los Angeles Kings season, was the Kings' 24th season in the National Hockey League. It saw the Kings finish first in the Smythe Division with a 46–24–10 record for 102 points. This was the first (and as of 2024, only) regular season division title in Kings history. It also served as the second-best regular-season finish in franchise history. The team defeated the Vancouver Canucks in the Smythe Division Semifinals in six games before falling to the Edmonton Oilers in the Division Finals in six games.

Offseason

NHL Draft

Los Angeles's draft picks at the 1990 NHL Entry Draft held at the BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
1 7 Darryl Sydor  Canada Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
2 28 Brandy Semchuk  Canada Canadian National Team
3 49 Bob Berg  Canada Belleville Bulls (OHL)
5 91 David Goverde  Canada Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
6 112 Erik Andersson  Sweden Danderyds HC (Sweden)
7 133 Robert Lang  Czechoslovakia HC CHZ Litvinov (Czechoslovakia)
8 154 Dean Hulett  United States Lake Superior State University (CCHA)
9 175 Denis LeBlanc  Canada Saint-Hyacinthe Laser (QMJHL)
10 196 Patrik Ross  Sweden HV71 (Sweden)
11 217 Kevin White  Canada Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
12 238 Troy Mohns  Canada Colgate University (ECAC)
S 12 Peter Sentner  United States University of Massachusetts Lowell (Hockey East)

Regular season

Final standings

Smythe Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Los Angeles Kings 80 46 24 10 340 254 102
Calgary Flames 80 46 26 8 344 263 100
Edmonton Oilers 80 37 37 6 272 272 80
Vancouver Canucks 80 28 43 9 243 315 65
Winnipeg Jets 80 26 43 11 260 288 63

[1]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Campbell Conference[2]
R Div GP W L T GF GA Pts
1 p – Chicago Blackhawks NRS 80 49 23 8 284 211 106
2 St. Louis Blues NRS 80 47 22 11 310 250 105
3 Los Angeles Kings SMY 80 46 24 10 340 254 102
4 Calgary Flames SMY 80 46 26 8 344 263 100
5 Edmonton Oilers SMY 80 37 37 6 272 272 80
6 Detroit Red Wings NRS 80 34 38 8 273 298 76
7 Minnesota North Stars NRS 80 27 39 14 256 266 68
8 Vancouver Canucks SMY 80 28 43 9 243 315 65
9 Winnipeg Jets SMY 80 26 43 11 260 288 63
10 Toronto Maple Leafs NRS 80 23 46 11 241 318 57

Divisions: NRS – Norris, SMY – Smythe

bold – Qualified for playoffs; p – Won Presidents' Trophy


Schedule and results

No. R Date Score Opponent Record
1 W October 4, 1990 4–1 New York Islanders (1990–91) 1–0–0
2 L October 6, 1990 3–6 Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 1–1–0
3 W October 9, 1990 6–2 @ Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 2–1–0
4 T October 11, 1990 5–5 OT Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 2–1–1
5 W October 13, 1990 7–1 Boston Bruins (1990–91) 3–1–1
6 W October 14, 1990 4–1 St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 4–1–1
7 W October 17, 1990 5–2 Minnesota North Stars (1990–91) 5–1–1
8 W October 19, 1990 5–2 Hartford Whalers (1990–91) 6–1–1
9 W October 23, 1990 6–4 Calgary Flames (1990–91) 7–1–1
10 L October 26, 1990 2–6 @ Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 7–2–1
11 W October 28, 1990 6–2 @ Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 8–2–1
12 W October 30, 1990 4–1 @ New York Islanders (1990–91) 9–2–1
13 L October 31, 1990 4–9 @ New York Rangers (1990–91) 9–3–1
14 L November 2, 1990 3–4 @ Washington Capitals (1990–91) 9–4–1
15 W November 4, 1990 2–0 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 10–4–1
16 W November 8, 1990 5–1 Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 11–4–1
17 W November 10, 1990 7–4 Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 12–4–1
18 W November 14, 1990 4–2 Buffalo Sabres (1990–91) 13–4–1
19 W November 17, 1990 2–1 OT Pittsburgh Penguins (1990–91) 14–4–1
20 W November 20, 1990 5–4 New Jersey Devils (1990–91) 15–4–1
21 L November 22, 1990 3–6 @ Calgary Flames (1990–91) 15–5–1
22 W November 24, 1990 4–2 @ Montreal Canadiens (1990–91) 16–5–1
23 T November 25, 1990 4–4 OT @ Quebec Nordiques (1990–91) 16–5–2
24 L November 27, 1990 3–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 16–6–2
25 T November 29, 1990 4–4 OT @ St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 16–6–3
26 L December 1, 1990 3–4 Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 16–7–3
27 T December 5, 1990 3–3 OT Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 16–7–4
28 T December 8, 1990 4–4 OT Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 16–7–5
29 L December 11, 1990 4–6 New York Rangers (1990–91) 16–8–5
30 L December 13, 1990 1–4 Calgary Flames (1990–91) 16–9–5
31 W December 15, 1990 8–3 Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 17–9–5
32 L December 18, 1990 3–4 @ Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 17–10–5
33 W December 20, 1990 4–3 OT @ Calgary Flames (1990–91) 18–10–5
34 L December 22, 1990 3–4 @ Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 18–11–5
35 L December 27, 1990 5–7 Philadelphia Flyers (1990–91) 18–12–5
36 L December 29, 1990 2–3 Montreal Canadiens (1990–91) 18–13–5
37 W December 31, 1990 4–2 @ Minnesota North Stars (1990–91) 19–13–5
38 L January 2, 1991 1–4 @ New York Rangers (1990–91) 19–14–5
39 W January 3, 1991 6–3 @ New York Islanders (1990–91) 20–14–5
40 W January 5, 1991 4–2 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 21–14–5
41 W January 6, 1991 3–1 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 22–14–5
42 W January 8, 1991 4–3 OT Hartford Whalers (1990–91) 23–14–5
43 W January 10, 1991 5–2 Buffalo Sabres (1990–91) 24–14–5
44 W January 12, 1991 6–2 Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 25–14–5
45 W January 14, 1991 6–1 @ New Jersey Devils (1990–91) 26–14–5
46 L January 16, 1991 3–4 @ Hartford Whalers (1990–91) 26–15–5
47 L January 17, 1991 3–5 @ Boston Bruins (1990–91) 26–16–5
48 L January 22, 1991 2–4 @ Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 26–17–5
49 W January 25, 1991 5–1 @ Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 27–17–5
50 W January 26, 1991 5–4 Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 28–17–5
51 L January 30, 1991 2–4 New Jersey Devils (1990–91) 28–18–5
52 W February 2, 1991 9–1 Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 29–18–5
53 W February 4, 1991 6–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 30–18–5
54 W February 5, 1991 3–2 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1990–91) 31–18–5
55 T February 8, 1991 4–4 OT @ Buffalo Sabres (1990–91) 31–18–6
56 L February 9, 1991 4–5 @ St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 31–19–6
57 T February 12, 1991 4–4 OT Calgary Flames (1990–91) 31–19–7
58 W February 14, 1991 4–2 @ Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 32–19–7
59 L February 16, 1991 4–5 OT Boston Bruins (1990–91) 32–20–7
60 W February 18, 1991 5–2 Washington Capitals (1990–91) 33–20–7
61 W February 20, 1991 6–1 Quebec Nordiques (1990–91) 34–20–7
62 W February 22, 1991 6–4 @ Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 35–20–7
63 W February 24, 1991 5–3 @ Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 36–20–7
64 W February 26, 1991 8–2 Pittsburgh Penguins (1990–91) 37–20–7
65 W February 28, 1991 4–2 Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 38–20–7
66 W March 2, 1991 6–3 Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 39–20–7
67 T March 5, 1991 3–3 OT @ Washington Capitals (1990–91) 39–20–8
68 L March 7, 1991 2–3 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1990–91) 39–21–8
69 W March 9, 1991 3–0 @ Quebec Nordiques (1990–91) 40–21–8
70 T March 10, 1991 4–4 OT @ Montreal Canadiens (1990–91) 40–21–9
71 W March 12, 1991 6–0 Philadelphia Flyers (1990–91) 41–21–9
72 L March 14, 1991 3–6 Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 41–22–9
73 W March 16, 1991 4–3 @ Calgary Flames (1990–91) 42–22–9
74 L March 17, 1991 4–5 OT @ Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 42–23–9
75 T March 20, 1991 4–4 OT Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 42–23–10
76 W March 23, 1991 8–4 Calgary Flames (1990–91) 43–23–10
77 W March 24, 1991 4–3 OT @ Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 44–23–10
78 W March 26, 1991 2–0 Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 45–23–10
79 W March 28, 1991 6–5 Minnesota North Stars (1990–91) 46–23–10
80 L March 31, 1991 3–5 @ Calgary Flames (1990–91) 46–24–10

Player statistics

Regular season
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Wayne Gretzky C 78 41 122 163 16 30 8 0 5
Luc Robitaille LW 76 45 46 91 68 28 11 0 5
Tomas Sandstrom RW 68 45 44 89 106 27 16 0 6
Tony Granato RW 68 30 34 64 154 22 11 1 3
Steve Duchesne D 78 21 41 62 66 19 8 0 3
Todd Elik C 74 21 37 58 58 20 2 0 4
Dave Taylor RW 73 23 30 53 148 27 6 0 2
Rob Blake D 75 12 34 46 125 3 9 0 2
Marty McSorley D 61 7 32 39 221 48 1 1 1
Bob Kudelski RW 72 23 13 36 46 9 2 3 3
Brian Benning D 61 7 24 31 127 12 2 0 1
John Tonelli LW 71 14 16 30 49 3 2 0 5
Steve Kasper C 67 9 19 28 33 3 0 1 1
Larry Robinson D 62 1 22 23 16 22 0 0 0
Brad Jones LW 53 9 11 20 57 11 0 1 1
Jay Miller LW 66 8 12 20 259 9 1 0 0
John McIntyre C 56 8 5 13 115 6 0 1 0
Mike Donnelly LW 53 7 5 12 41 3 0 0 2
Rod Buskas D 57 3 8 11 182 14 0 0 0
Scott Bjugstad RW 31 2 4 6 12 -5 0 0 1
Mike Krushelnyski LW/C 15 1 5 6 10 7 1 0 0
Francois Breault RW 17 1 4 5 6 -1 0 0 0
Bob Halkidis D 34 1 3 4 133 8 0 0 0
Tim Watters D 45 0 4 4 92 7 0 0 0
Jim Thomson RW 8 1 0 1 19 0 0 0 1
Rene Chapdelaine D 3 0 1 1 10 1 0 0 0
Sylvain Couturier C 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Daniel Berthiaume G 37 0 0 0 10 0 0 0 0
Rick Hayward D 4 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0
Kelly Hrudey G 47 0 0 0 14 0 0 0 0
Ilkka Sinisalo RW 7 0 0 0 2 4 0 0 0
Dennis Smith D 4 0 0 0 4 3 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Kelly Hrudey 2730 47 26 13 6 132 2.90 3 1321 1189 .900
Daniel Berthiaume 2119 37 20 11 4 117 3.31 1 1086 969 .892
Team: 4849 80 46 24 10 249 3.08 4 2407 2158 .897
Playoffs
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Luc Robitaille LW 12 12 4 16 22 -2 5 0 2
Wayne Gretzky C 12 4 11 15 2 0 1 0 2
Steve Duchesne D 12 4 8 12 8 7 1 0 0
Steve Kasper C 10 4 6 10 8 4 0 1 0
Mike Donnelly LW 12 5 4 9 6 6 0 0 0
Todd Elik C 12 2 7 9 6 0 0 0 0
Tomas Sandstrom RW 10 4 4 8 14 1 3 0 0
John Tonelli LW 12 2 4 6 12 1 1 0 0
Bob Kudelski RW 8 3 2 5 2 4 0 0 0
Rob Blake D 12 1 4 5 26 -1 1 0 0
Tony Granato RW 12 1 4 5 28 1 0 0 0
Larry Robinson D 12 1 4 5 15 7 0 0 0
Brian Benning D 12 0 5 5 6 1 0 0 0
Dave Taylor RW 12 2 1 3 12 -3 0 0 1
Brad Jones LW 8 1 1 2 2 2 0 0 1
Rod Buskas D 2 0 2 2 22 2 0 0 0
John McIntyre C 12 0 1 1 24 -2 0 0 0
Ilkka Sinisalo RW 2 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0
Scott Bjugstad RW 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Bob Halkidis D 3 0 0 0 0 -2 0 0 0
Kelly Hrudey G 12 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
Marty McSorley D 12 0 0 0 58 -1 0 0 0
Jay Miller LW 8 0 0 0 17 -1 0 0 0
Tim Watters D 7 0 0 0 12 -4 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Kelly Hrudey 798 12 6 6 37 2.78 0 382 345 .903
Team: 798 12 6 6 37 2.78 0 382 345 .903

[3]

Note:
Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Transactions

The Kings were involved in the following transactions during the 1990–91 season.[4]

Trades

August 15, 1990 To Los Angeles Kings
Shawn McCosh 		To Detroit Red Wings
8th round pick in 1992 - Justin Krall
September 6, 1990 To Los Angeles Kings
Daniel Berthiaume 		To Minnesota North Stars
Craig Duncanson
September 30, 1990 To Los Angeles Kings
Mike Donnelly 		To Buffalo Sabres
Mikko Mäkelä
November 9, 1990 To Los Angeles Kings
John McIntyre 		To Toronto Maple Leafs
Mike Krushelnyski
March 5, 1991 To Los Angeles Kings
Ilkka Sinisalo 		To Minnesota North Stars
8th round pick in 1991 - Michael Burkett

Free agent signings

July 1, 1990 From Hartford Whalers
Tom Martin
July 2, 1990 From New Jersey Devils
Jim Thomson
July 11, 1990 From Montreal Canadiens
Stéphane Richer
July 11, 1990 From Boston Bruins
Billy O'Dwyer
July 15, 1990 From Calgary Flames
Rick Hayward
July 16, 1990 From Edmonton Oilers
Steve Graves
July 27, 1990 From Boston Bruins
Brian Lawton
September 28, 1990 From Washington Capitals
Dennis Smith
April 5, 1991 From Boston University (HE)
Peter Ahola

Free agents lost

July 11, 1990 To New York Rangers
Eric Germain

Waivers

October 1, 1990 From Pittsburgh Penguins
Rod Buskas

Playoffs

Round 1: (S1) Los Angeles Kings vs. (S4) Vancouver Canucks

April 4 Vancouver Canucks 6–5 Los Angeles Kings Great Western Forum
April 6 Vancouver Canucks 2–3 OT Los Angeles Kings Great Western Forum
April 8 Los Angeles Kings 1–2 OT Vancouver Canucks Pacific Coliseum
April 10 Los Angeles Kings 6–1 Vancouver Canucks Pacific Coliseum
April 12 Vancouver Canucks 4–7 Los Angeles Kings Great Western Forum
April 14 Los Angeles Kings 4–1 Vancouver Canucks Pacific Coliseum
Los Angeles won series 4–2


Round 2: (S1) Los Angeles Kings vs. (S3) Edmonton Oilers

April 18 Edmonton Oilers 3–4 OT Los Angeles Kings Great Western Forum
April 20 Edmonton Oilers 4–3 2OT Los Angeles Kings Great Western Forum
April 22 Los Angeles Kings 3–4 2OT Edmonton Oilers Northlands Coliseum
April 24 Los Angeles Kings 2–4 Edmonton Oilers Northlands Coliseum
April 26 Edmonton Oilers 2–5 Los Angeles Kings Great Western Forum
April 28 Los Angeles Kings 3–4 OT Edmonton Oilers Northlands Coliseum
Edmonton won series 4–2


Awards and records

  • Wayne Gretzky, Art Ross Trophy
  • Wayne Gretzky, Longest Consecutive Games Assist Streak, 23 games (48 assists during the streak)[5]
  • Marty McSorley, NHL Plus-Minus Award
  • Dave Taylor, Masterton Trophy Winner[6]
  • Tom Webster, runner-up for the Jack Adams Trophy

References

  1. ^ Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN 9781894801225.
  2. ^ "1990-1991 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
  3. ^ "1990-91 Los Angeles Kings Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 25, 2009.
  4. ^ "Hockey Transactions Search Results".
  5. ^ National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p. 187, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, ISBN 0-920445-98-5
  6. ^ National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p.220, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, ISBN 0-920445-98-5