1995–96 Los Angeles Kings season explained

League:	NHL
Season:	1995–96
Year:	1995
Team:	Los Angeles Kings
Conferencerank:	12th
Divisionrank:	6th
Record:	24–40–18
Homerecord:	16–16–9
Roadrecord:	8–24–9
Goalsfor:	256
Goalsagainst:	302
Captain:	Wayne Gretzky Vacant
Attendance:	13,551
Goalsleader:	Dmitri Khristich (27)
Assistsleader:	Wayne Gretzky (66)
Pointsleader:	Wayne Gretzky (81)
Plusminusleader:	Kevin Todd (+6)
Pimleader:	Marty McSorley (148)
Winsleader:	Byron Dafoe (14)
Gaaleader:	Jamie Storr (2.75)

The 1995–96 Los Angeles Kings season, was the Kings' 29th season in the National Hockey League. It involved Wayne Gretzky being traded to the St. Louis Blues. For the third consecutive year, the Kings failed to make the playoffs.

Regular season

February 27, 1996: Wayne Gretzky was traded from the Los Angeles Kings to the St. Louis Blues for Patrice Tardif, Craig Johnson, Roman Vopat, 1st round pick in the 1997 draft and a 5th round pick in the 1996 draft.^[1] ^[2]

Final standings

Schedule and results

|- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |1||W||October 7, 1995||4–2 || align="left"| Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) ||1–0–0 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |2||W||October 10, 1995||6–5 OT|| align="left"| Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) ||2–0–0 || |- align="center" |3||T||October 12, 1995||7–7 OT|| align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) ||2–0–1 || |- align="center" |4||T||October 15, 1995||3–3 OT|| align="left"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) ||2–0–2 || |- align="center" |5||T||October 18, 1995||1–1 OT|| align="left"| Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) ||2–0–3 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |6||W||October 20, 1995||7–4 || align="left"| @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) ||3–0–3 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |7||W||October 21, 1995||3–2 OT|| align="left"| @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) ||4–0–3 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|8||L||October 23, 1995||3–6 || align="left"| @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) ||4–1–3 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|9||L||October 26, 1995||4–5 || align="left"| @ Ottawa Senators (1995–96) ||4–2–3 || |- align="center" |10||T||October 28, 1995||2–2 OT|| align="left"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) ||4–2–4 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|11||L||October 31, 1995||1–2 || align="left"| Calgary Flames (1995–96) ||4–3–4 || |-|- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |12||W||November 2, 1995||5–3 || align="left"| New York Rangers (1995–96) ||5–3–4 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|13||L||November 4, 1995||2–4 || align="left"| New Jersey Devils (1995–96) ||5–4–4 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |14||W||November 7, 1995||1–0 || align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1995–96) ||6–4–4 || |- align="center" |15||T||November 8, 1995||3–3 OT|| align="left"| @ Dallas Stars (1995–96) ||6–4–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |16||W||November 11, 1995||3–2 || align="left"| Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) ||7–4–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |17||W||November 13, 1995||4–2 || align="left"| @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) ||8–4–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|18||L||November 14, 1995||5–6 || align="left"| Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) ||8–5–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |19||W||November 16, 1995||9–2 || align="left"| New York Islanders (1995–96) ||9–5–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |20||W||November 18, 1995||3–2 || align="left"| Florida Panthers (1995–96) ||10–5–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|21||L||November 21, 1995||2–5 || align="left"| @ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) ||10–6–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|22||L||November 22, 1995||2–5 || align="left"| @ New York Islanders (1995–96) ||10–7–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|23||L||November 24, 1995||1–2 || align="left"| @ Boston Bruins (1995–96) ||10–8–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|24||L||November 26, 1995||1–5 || align="left"| @ Florida Panthers (1995–96) ||10–9–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|25||L||November 27, 1995||0–2 || align="left"| @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) ||10–10–5 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |26||W||November 30, 1995||3–2 || align="left"| Washington Capitals (1995–96) ||11–10–5 || |-|- align="center" |27||T||December 2, 1995||2–2 OT|| align="left"| Dallas Stars (1995–96) ||11–10–6 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |28||W||December 6, 1995||6–3 || align="left"| Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) ||12–10–6 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|29||L||December 9, 1995||1–2 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1995–96) ||12–11–6 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|30||L||December 11, 1995||2–6 || align="left"| @ Calgary Flames (1995–96) ||12–12–6 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |31||W||December 13, 1995||6–2 || align="left"| Ottawa Senators (1995–96) ||13–12–6 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|32||L||December 16, 1995||3–6 || align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) ||13–13–6 || |- align="center" |33||T||December 20, 1995||2–2 OT|| align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) ||13–13–7 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|34||L||December 22, 1995||3–4 || align="left"| @ San Jose Sharks (1995–96) ||13–14–7 || |- align="center" |35||T||December 23, 1995||2–2 OT|| align="left"| Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) ||13–14–8 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |36||W||December 27, 1995||7–1 || align="left"| Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) ||14–14–8 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|37||L||December 29, 1995||4–5 OT|| align="left"| @ Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) ||14–15–8 || |- align="center" |38||T||December 31, 1995||2–2 OT|| align="left"| @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) ||14–15–9 || |-|- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|39||L||January 3, 1996||4–5 || align="left"| Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) ||14–16–9 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |40||W||January 5, 1996||5–2 || align="left"| @ San Jose Sharks (1995–96) ||15–16–9 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |41||W||January 6, 1996||7–5 || align="left"| San Jose Sharks (1995–96) ||16–16–9 || |- align="center" |42||T||January 8, 1996||4–4 OT|| align="left"| @ Dallas Stars (1995–96) ||16–16–10 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|43||L||January 10, 1996||4–5 || align="left"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) ||16–17–10 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|44||L||January 12, 1996||2–3 || align="left"| @ Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) ||16–18–10 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|45||L||January 14, 1996||2–5 || align="left"| @ Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) ||16–19–10 || |- align="center" |46||T||January 16, 1996||5–5 OT|| align="left"| Calgary Flames (1995–96) ||16–19–11 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|47||L||January 22, 1996||1–3 || align="left"| @ New York Rangers (1995–96) ||16–20–11 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|48||L||January 23, 1996||1–3 || align="left"| @ New Jersey Devils (1995–96) ||16–21–11 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|49||L||January 25, 1996||2–8 || align="left"| @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) ||16–22–11 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |50||W||January 27, 1996||5–4 || align="left"| Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) ||17–22–11 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|51||L||January 31, 1996||4–6 || align="left"| Hartford Whalers (1995–96) ||17–23–11 || |-|- align="center" |52||T||February 1, 1996||6–6 OT|| align="left"| @ San Jose Sharks (1995–96) ||17–23–12 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|53||L||February 3, 1996||1–2 || align="left"| @ Calgary Flames (1995–96) ||17–24–12 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|54||L||February 6, 1996||2–5 || align="left"| Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) ||17–25–12 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |55||W||February 8, 1996||4–3 || align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) ||18–25–12 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|56||L||February 10, 1996||1–6 || align="left"| San Jose Sharks (1995–96) ||18–26–12 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|57||L||February 13, 1996||4–9 || align="left"| @ Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) ||18–27–12 || |- align="center" |58||T||February 14, 1996||2–2 OT|| align="left"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) ||18–27–13 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|59||L||February 17, 1996||1–2 OT|| align="left"| Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) ||18–28–13 || |- align="center" |60||T||February 19, 1996||3–3 OT|| align="left"| Boston Bruins (1995–96) ||18–28–14 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|61||L||February 21, 1996||2–7 || align="left"| @ Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) ||18–29–14 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|62||L||February 23, 1996||2–6 || align="left"| @ Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) ||18–30–14 || |- align="center" |63||T||February 24, 1996||2–2 OT|| align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1995–96) ||18–30–15 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|64||L||February 26, 1996||3–4 || align="left"| @ Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) ||18–31–15 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|65||L||February 28, 1996||1–5 || align="left"| Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) ||18–32–15 || |-|- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |66||W||March 2, 1996||5–4 || align="left"| Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) ||19–32–15 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |67||W||March 6, 1996||3–2 || align="left"| Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) ||20–32–15 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |68||W||March 8, 1996||4–2 || align="left"| @ Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) ||21–32–15 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|69||L||March 10, 1996||2–3 || align="left"| @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) ||21–33–15 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|70||L||March 13, 1996||2–6 || align="left"| Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) ||21–34–15 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|71||L||March 16, 1996||2–5 || align="left"| Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) ||21–35–15 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|72||L||March 18, 1996||1–3 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1995–96) ||21–36–15 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|73||L||March 20, 1996||2–5 || align="left"| Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) ||21–37–15 || |- align="center" |74||T||March 23, 1996||4–4 OT|| align="left"| Dallas Stars (1995–96) ||21–37–16 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|75||L||March 25, 1996||1–4 || align="left"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) ||21–38–16 || |- align="center" |76||T||March 27, 1996||3–3 OT|| align="left"| @ Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) ||21–38–17 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |77||W||March 29, 1996||4–3 || align="left"| @ Calgary Flames (1995–96) ||22–38–17 || |-|- align="center" |78||T||April 3, 1996||2–2 OT|| align="left"| Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) ||22–38–18 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|79||L||April 6, 1996||2–4 || align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) ||22–39–18 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |80||W||April 10, 1996||6–2 || align="left"| San Jose Sharks (1995–96) ||23–39–18 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#FFBBBB"|81||L||April 12, 1996||3–5 || align="left"| @ Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) ||23–40–18 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#CCFFCC" |82||W||April 14, 1996||5–4 OT|| align="left"| @ Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) ||24–40–18 || |-|-| Legend:

Player statistics

Scoring

Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
= Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Kings only.
= Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Kings only.

	Player
	Player		scope=colgroup colspan=6	Regular season
99		C	62	15	66	81	−7	32
8		LW	76	27	37	64	0	44
43		RW	80	19	34	53	−3	16
44		C	78	25	24	49	−11	16
12		C	74	16	27	43	6	38
17		RW	57	17	23	40	−12	37
22		RW	44	13	23	36	3	117
21		RW	49	17	18	35	−5	46
28		LW	72	16	16	32	−11	110
33		D	59	10	21	31	−14	148
26		D	53	7	16	23	−26	31
13		RW	68	6	16	22	−15	10
19		RW	64	9	12	21	−26	14
27		D	31	6	11	17	5	10
14		RW	33	4	10	14	3	12
25		LW	20	3	10	13	−11	22
2		D	58	1	11	12	−11	34
77		D	46	5	5	10	−16	32
9		LW	23	5	5	10	1	4
23		RW	11	5	4	9	−4	6
15		C	35	5	2	7	−8	18
6		D	71	2	5	7	3	127
5		D	51	0	7	7	−13	29
20		C	11	4	2	6	−13	10
24		C	12	2	4	6	−3	6
3		D	18	1	5	6	0	22
29		D	50	3	2	5	−6	102
40		LW	33	3	2	5	−7	104
22		C	10	2	3	5	−2	15
3		D	11	1	4	5	3	4
4		D	6	1	2	3	0	8
11		RW	11	1	2	3	−9	37
20		C	7	1	2	3	0	4
15		D	9	0	3	3	−4	6
37		C	15	1	1	2	−9	37
7		RW	7	1	0	1	−2	4
55		RW	15	1	0	1	−3	42
2		D	16	1	0	1	−6	22
35		D	2	0	1	1	1	0
11		D	11	0	1	1	−8	18
24		D	9	0	1	1	−1	27
45		D	2	0	0	0	0	6
42		LW	4	0	0	0	0	0
31		G	47	0	0	0		6
32		G	36	0	0	0		4
34		LW	1	0	0	0	0	5
1		G	5	0	0	0		0

Goaltending

	Player
	Player	scope=colgroup colspan=10	Regular season
31		47	14	24	8	1539	172	3.87	.888	1	2666
32		36	7	15	10	1214	113	3.26	.907	0	2077
1		5	3	1	0	147	12	2.75	.918	0	262

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (in-season)	NHL All-Star Game selection	Wayne Gretzky	^[3]
NHL Rookie of the Month	Vitali Yachmenev (October)	^[4]
Team	Best Newcomer	Vitali Yachmenev	^[5]
	Bill Libby Memorial Award	Dmitri Khristich
	Defensive Player	Kevin Todd
	Jim Fox Community Service	Rob Blake
	Jim Fox Community Service	Eric Lacroix
	Leading Scorer	Dmitri Khristich
	Most Inspirational	Tony Granato
	Most Popular Player	Eric Lacroix
	Outstanding Defenseman	Steven Finn
	Unsung Hero	Steven Finn

Milestones

Milestone	Player	Date	Ref
First game	Aki Berg	October 7, 1995	^[6]
	Vitali Yachmenev	October 7, 1995
	Vladimir Tsyplakov	November 7, 1995
	Dan Bylsma	December 13, 1995
	Barry Potomski	January 6, 1996
	Jan Vopat	March 16, 1996
	Ruslan Batyrshin	April 3, 1996

Transactions

The Kings were involved in the following transactions during the 1995–96 season.^[7]

Trades

May 31, 1995	To Los Angeles Kings Jan Vopat	To Hartford Whalers 4th round pick in 1995 - Ian MacNeil
June 7, 1995	To Los Angeles Kings 5th round pick in 1995 - Jason Morgan	To Dallas Stars Jeff Mitchell
July 8, 1995	To Los Angeles Kings Byron Dafoe Dmitri Khristich	To Washington Capitals 1st round pick in 1996 - Alexander Volchov 4th round pick in 1996 - Justin Davis
November 13, 1995	To Los Angeles Kings Steven Finn	To Tampa Bay Lightning Michel Petit
December 28, 1995	To Los Angeles Kings John Slaney	To Colorado Avalanche 6th round pick in 1996 - Brian Willsie
January 14, 1996	To Los Angeles Kings Steve Larouche	To New York Rangers Chris Snell
January 25, 1996	To Los Angeles Kings Kevin Stevens	To Boston Bruins Rick Tocchet
February 10, 1996	To Los Angeles Kings Craig Ferguson	To Calgary Flames Pat Conacher
February 17, 1996	To Los Angeles Kings Shane Churla Doug Zmolek	To Dallas Stars Darryl Sydor 5th round pick in 1996 - Ryan Christie
February 27, 1996	To Los Angeles Kings Craig Johnson Patrice Tardif Roman Vopat 5th round pick in 1996 - Peter Hogan 1st round pick in 1997 - Matt Zultek	To St. Louis Blues Wayne Gretzky
March 14, 1996	To Los Angeles Kings Mattias Norstrom Ray Ferraro Ian Laperriere Nathan LaFayette 4th round pick in 1997 - Sean Blanchard	To New York Rangers Marty McSorley Jari Kurri Shane Churla
March 19, 1996	To Los Angeles Kings 4th round pick in 1996 - Mikael Simons	To Philadelphia Flyers John Druce 7th round pick in 1997 - Todd Fedoruk
March 20, 1996	To Los Angeles Kings Jaroslav Modry 8th round pick in 1996 - Steve Valiquette	To Ottawa Senators Kevin Brown

Free agent signings

August 30, 1995	From St. John's Maple Leafs (AHL) Steve Bancroft
September 12, 1995	From Phoenix Roadrunners (IHL) Nicholas Vachon

Free agents lost

July 14, 1995	To St. Louis Blues Grant Fuhr (2 years, $2.1 million)
July 17, 1995	To Chicago Wolves (IHL) Rob Brown
August 1, 1995	To Ottawa Senators Dan Quinn (2 years, $1.05 million)
August 25, 1995	To Chicago Blackhawks Andre Racicot
September 19, 1995	To Edmonton Oilers Rem Murray
October 4, 1995	To Buffalo Sabres Randy Burridge (1 year, $350,000)

Waivers

October 2, 1995	To Ottawa Senators Justin Hocking

Draft picks

Los Angeles's draft picks at the 1995 NHL entry draft held at the Edmonton Coliseum in Edmonton, Alberta.^[8]

Round		Player	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	3	Aki Berg	TPS (Finland)
2	33	Donald MacLean	Beauport Harfangs (QMJHL)
2	50	Pavel Rosa	HC Litvinov (Czech Republic)
3	59	Vladimir Tsyplakov	Fort Wayne Komets (IHL)
5	118	Jason Morgan	Kingston Frontenacs (OHL)
6	137	Igor Melyakov	Torpedo Yaroslavl (Russia)
7	157	Benoit Larose	Sherbrooke Faucons (QMJHL)
7	163	Juha Vuorivirta	Tappara (Finland)
9	215	Brian Stewart	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)

References

Web site: Los Angeles Kings 1995-96 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . August 25, 2023.
Web site: 1995-96 Los Angeles Kings Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts . Hockey-Reference.com . August 25, 2023.

Notes and References

Web site: Lapointe . Joe . HOCKEY;Finally, Gretzky Is Traded to Blues . The New York Times . August 17, 2023 . February 28, 1996.
Web site: Wayne Gretzky Hockey Stats and Profile at hockeydb.com.
Web site: 1996 NHL All-Star Game Rosters . Hockey-Reference.com . August 29, 2024.
Web site: NHL Rookies of the Month . Hockey-Reference.com . August 28, 2023.
Los Angeles Kings 2014–15 Media Guide, p. 201–03
Web site: 1995-96 NHL Debuts . Hockey-Reference.com . October 6, 2024.
Web site: Hockey Transactions Search Results. www.prosportstransactions.com.
Web site: 1995 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . August 28, 2023.