The
1976–77 Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...
season was the Kings'
tenth season
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...
in the
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
.
Offseason
Regular season
The 1976–77 season was similar to the year before for the Kings. Dionne continued to lead the offense, the defense was unspectacular but solid, but it was a season of roster turnover as some aging veterans departed (e.g. Bob Nevin, Mike Corrigan) and others lost significant time to injuries (Larry Brown, Juha Widing, Sheldon Kannegiesser). Youngsters like Glen Goldup, Lorne Stamler, and Steve Clippingdale struggled although second year defenseman Gary Sargent was solid. The Kings added
Dave Schultz (the "Hammer") to replace Dan Maloney who left in the Dionne trade for toughness, but it took nearly all season for the roster to jell. In addition, backup goalie
Gary Edwards struggled and was eventually traded for
Gary Simmons; he was not the answer either, so #1 goalie
Rogie Vachon
Rogatien Rosaire "Rogie" Vachon (born September 8, 1945) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins in the National Hockey League.
Montreal ...
was overworked. The Kings were also stuck behind the
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...
who finished an amazing 60–8–12; many say this was the greatest team in NHL history.
After struggling near or below the .500 mark, the Kings won 5 of their last 6 games to finish 6th overall – the same as the year before although with 2 fewer points.
Final standings
Schedule and results
Playoffs
For the second straight year, the Kings faced the
Atlanta Flames
The Atlanta Flames were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta from 1972 until 1980. They played home games in the Omni Coliseum and were members of the West and later Patrick divisions of the National Hockey League (NHL). Along with t ...
in the mini series. And for the second year in a row, the Kings scored in the first minute of game 1 and won 5–2. But unlike the prior year, they lost game 2 in Atlanta 3–2, forcing a deciding game 3 back in L.A. Vachon was brilliant as the Kings took a 3–1 lead into the 3rd period. But Atlanta scored late to make it 3–2, and the issue wasn't decided until the Kings got an empty net goal for a 4–2 win.
For the second straight year, the Kings faced the
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...
in the quarter finals and again were heavy underdogs. Boston dominated the first two games in Boston, winning 8–3 and 6–2. The Kings offense woke up when they returned to L.A., but the defense continued to struggle and the Kings lost 7–6 to fall behind 3 games to none. Vachon looked exhausted (he had now played 74 games) and the Kings could not cope with Boston's size advantage. But they managed to outskate Boston in a 7–4 game 4 win, but it seemed a formality to go back to Boston for game 5. It was in that game that Vachon played one of the great games in playoff history. The Kings were badly outshot but in the words of Boston goalie
Gerry Cheevers
Gerald Michael "Cheesie" Cheevers (born 7 December 1940) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) and World Hockey Association (WHA) between 1961 and 1980. Cheevers is best known for ...
, "Vachon did everything but stand on his head to make great save after great save." The Kings led 2–1 and clinched the game with an empty netter, forcing a game 6 in Los Angeles. In that game, the Kings fell behind 3–0 but battled back to tie the game in the 3rd period at 3. Then, as Kings defenseman
Dave Hutchison went to clear the puck on a Boston power play, he broke his stick on the ice, turned the puck over, and Boston scored to win the game 4–3 and the series 4 games to 2.
Player statistics
Awards and records
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
The Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, formerly known as the Lady Byng Trophy, is presented each year to the National Hockey League "player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of ...
–
Marcel Dionne
Marcel Elphège "Little Beaver" Dionne (born August 3, 1951) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played 18 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers. Marcel Dionn ...
All NHL 2nd team –
Rogie Vachon
Rogatien Rosaire "Rogie" Vachon (born September 8, 1945) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins in the National Hockey League.
Montreal ...
, Goalie
Transactions
The Kings were involved in the following transactions during the
1976–77 season.
Trades
Free agents lost
Draft picks
Los Angeles's draft picks at the
1976 NHL Amateur Draft
The 1976 NHL Amateur Draft was the 14th NHL Entry Draft. It was held at the NHL office in Montreal, Quebec, on June 1, 1976. It's notable as featuring one of the weakest first rounds in draft history, as only two players ( Rick Green and Bernie F ...
held in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
,
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
.
Farm teams
See also
*
1976–77 NHL season
The 1976–77 NHL season was the 60th season of the National Hockey League. The Kansas City Scouts moved to Denver, Colorado, and became the Colorado Rockies and the California Golden Seals moved to Cleveland, Ohio, and became the Cleveland Baron ...
References
*
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:1976-77 Los Angeles Kings season
Los Angeles Kings seasons
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...
Los
LOS, or Los, or LoS may refer to:
Science and technology
* Length of stay, the duration of a single episode of hospitalisation
* Level of service, a measure used by traffic engineers
* Level of significance, a measure of statistical significance ...
Los
LOS, or Los, or LoS may refer to:
Science and technology
* Length of stay, the duration of a single episode of hospitalisation
* Level of service, a measure used by traffic engineers
* Level of significance, a measure of statistical significance ...