NHL '94 The 2012 LA Kings Stanley Cup Championship "Jonathan Quick Wins the Conn Smythe Trophy"

The 2011–12 Los Angeles Kings season was the 45th season (44th season of play) for the National Hockey League (NHL) franchise. Although they finished the season with 95 points, and the eighth seed in the Western Conference playoffs, they went on to capture the first Stanley Cup championship in team history. On December 12, 2011, the Kings fired head coach Terry Murray and named John Stevens interim head coach. On December 20, 2011, the Kings hired Darryl Sutter to be their head coach, replacing Stevens. With only one month to play in the regular season, the Kings were tenth in the Western Conference, two seeds away from a playoff spot. Their defense and goal tending being the only highlights throughout most of the season, highlighted by Jonathan Quick and Drew Doughty. The offense was loaded with talent, but unable to find any kind of significant consistency. Until the final month and a half, when they proceeded to go 12–4–3 in their final 19 games as their offense finally caught fire and started scoring the goals they lacked earlier in the year. Securing the eighth and final playoff seed in their 81st (and second-to-last game), a shoot-out loss to their arch rivals, the San Jose Sharks. Out of the Kings' 82 regular season games, 21 ended in a shutout; the Kings were shut-out ten times, the most of any NHL team in the regular season. The Kings made the playoffs for the third consecutive season, needing a win in the final game to secure the eighth seed. The Kings also became the second team to eliminate the first, second and third seeds from the playoffs in the same post-season (after the 2003–04 Calgary Flames), as well as the only team to win the Stanley Cup after defeating the first, second and third seeds in sequence. (Darryl Sutter was the head coach of both the 2003–04 Flames and 2011–12 Kings.) They then defeated the New Jersey Devils in the Stanley Cup Finals, becoming the first eighth seed in North American professional sports history to win a championship. They are also one of the few teams to win a championship after never benefiting from home-venue advantage in the post-season after the 1994-95 New Jersey Devils. Los Angeles would start every series by winning the first three games, only sweeping the St. Louis Blues. Pacific Division Pos Teamv t e GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts 1 y – Phoenix Coyotes 82 42 27 13 36 216 204 +12 97 2 x – San Jose Sharks 82 43 29 10 34 228 210 +18 96 3 x – Los Angeles Kings 82 40 27 15 34 194 179 +15 95 4 Dallas Stars 82 42 35 5 35 211 222 −11 89 5 Anaheim Ducks 82 34 36 12 31 204 231 −27 80 Western Conference Pos Div Teamv t e GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts 1 NW p – Vancouver Canucks 82 51 22 9 43 249 198 +51 111 2 CE y – St. Louis Blues 82 49 22 11 45 210 165 +45 109 3 PA y – Phoenix Coyotes 82 42 27 13 36 216 204 +12 97 4 CE x – Nashville Predators 82 48 26 8 43 237 210 +27 104 5 CE x – Detroit Red Wings 82 48 28 6 39 248 203 +45 102 6 CE x – Chicago Blackhawks 82 45 26 11 38 248 238 +10 101 7 PA x – San Jose Sharks 82 43 29 10 34 228 210 +18 96 8 PA x – Los Angeles Kings 82 40 27 15 34 194 179 +15 95 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs Western Conference Quarterfinals: vs. (1) Vancouver Canucks – Los Angeles won series 4–1 Western Conference Semifinals: vs. (2) St. Louis Blues – Los Angeles won series 4–0 Western Conference Finals: vs. (3) Phoenix Coyotes – Los Angeles won series 4–1 Stanley Cup Finals: vs (6) New Jersey Devils – Los Angeles won series 4–2