During the Kings' dominant run to the 2012 Stanley Cup Final, it's been impossible not to notice goaltender Jonathan Quick.

In his fourth NHL season, the University of Massachusetts product already had a Vezina Trophy nomination sewn up before leading L.A. to the Final with a miniscule 1.54 goals-against average and .946 save percentage, both postseason highs among goaltenders who have played more than three games. The only other goaltender in history to lead the Kings this far has also noticed Quick's play, and he likes what he sees.

Three weeks after the Blues were swept in the second round of the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs by the Los Angeles Kings, St. Louis director of player personnel Dave Taylor remains busy.

He's just returned from meetings with the team's American Hockey League staff and is preparing for scouting meetings in anticipation of the upcoming NHL combine. From there, between the NHL Draft and free agency, Taylor has a very busy summer ahead of him. But he's still watching the Kings' run to the Stanley Cup Final.

After all, there aren't many people who have contributed more to the Kings organization than Taylor. The Kings 15th-round selection in 1975, Taylor played his entire 17-year career in Los Angeles, serving as the team's captain for four years before handing the "C" to Wayne Gretzky. Three years after his retirement in 1994, Taylor was named the team's general manager, a role he served until 2006. Despite being one of the most recognizable players in team history, it was in the team's front office that he may have made his biggest contributions.

NEWARK, N.J. -- The New Jersey Devils haven't had to get on a plane for more than a month. That's all going to change soon -- but not quite yet.

After advancing to their first Stanley Cup Final since 2003 with Friday night's 3-2 overtime win to close out the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Devils will get to enjoy a few days off and then play the Los Angeles Kings in Game 1 on Wednesday (8 p.m., ET; NBC, CBC, RDS) with something they haven't had yet in these playoffs: home-ice advantage.

Not to say that's necessarily a good thing against the West champs. The Devils will be putting a 6-2 record at Prudential Center this spring up against the Kings' perfect 8-0 mark on the road, an NHL record.

When the New Jersey Devils and Los Angeles Kings last faced off, the 2011-12 NHL season wasn't even a month old. Darryl Sutter was still months away from replacing Terry Murray as the Kings coach and the Devils were in the early stages of figuring out what kind of team they had coming off their first season of not making the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 15 years.

Now they're set to renew acquaintances with the Stanley Cup on the line.

LUC ROBITAILLE

Left Wing - LAK

G: 668 | A: 726 | PTS: 1394
PPG: 247 | +/-: +72

After all, who could have thought that a player taken with the 171st pick would have scored 45 goals as a rookie or 668 in a career that earned him a berth in the Hockey Hall of Fame. Six years after retiring and ultimately becoming the team's president of business operations, Robitaille and his Kings are again defying expectations -- and the face of the franchise couldn't be happier.

On the first day of training camp before the 1992-93 season, Los Angeles Kings spine specialist Dr. Robert Watkins announced that Wayne Gretzky would be out indefinitely with a herniated thoracic disk in his upper back. Almost immediately, rumors began swirling that the world's greatest hockey player might miss the entire season, or even retire. Just like that, the Kings' season was potentially over before it even began.

With 36-year old coach Barry Melrose entering his first season behind an NHL bench, the deck was already stacked against the Kings. But the youthful coach came together with a team that blended young talent and veteran experience to work through the adversity. The end result would make a huge impact on both the city and the sport.

"I remember how Barry Melrose handled that and I give him credit. There was no panic at all. His attitude was 'no problem. This is how we're going to deal with this,'" said forward Tony Granato, now an assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins. "We established ourselves as a hard-working, competitive team. I think it made Wayne excited to come back."

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. – The Los Angeles Kings hadn't faced the Phoenix Coyotes for three months when they squared off in the Western Conference Finals, but there was some familiarity with their Pacific Division foe.

Los Angeles will now face either the New York Rangers or New Jersey Devils in the Stanley Cup Final, teams it last played in October.

How long ago was that?

The Kings played the Rangers on Opening Night in Stockholm and got a 3-2 victory on an overtime goal by now-traded defenseman Jack Johnson.  The Kings lineup that night including Simon Gagne, Scott Parse, Trent Hunter and Ethan Moreau – players who are either no longer in the organization or haven't played since December.