Jim Hiller was fired as coach of the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday and replaced by associate D.J. Smith for the rest of the season.
The 56-year-old went 93-58-24 in three seasons after taking over for Todd McLellan, who was fired Feb. 2, 2024.
The Kings are 24-21-14 this season and fifth in the Pacific Division. A 2-0 win against the Calgary Flames on Saturday was just their second win in eight games (2-5-1) after allowing 22 goals in their previous four. They host the Colorado Avalanche on Monday (10:30 p.m. ET; FDSNW, KTVD, ALT2).
"I want to thank Jim Hiller for his dedication, professionalism, and the commitment he showed to our players and our team every day," Kings general manager Ken Holland said. "He is a respected coach and person, and we appreciate the work he's done behind our bench.
"At this point in the season, we believe a change in leadership is necessary to give our group the best opportunity to reach its potential and compete at the level we expect. These decisions are never made lightly, but our responsibility is to position this team for success now and moving forward."
The Kings are 26th on the power play (16.3 percent) and 28th on the penalty kill (75.7 percent). They're 29th in goals per game (2.53) and 9-13-7 at Crypto.com Arena after tying the Carolina Hurricanes for the NHL lead with 31 wins at home last season. Artemi Panarin has one assist in two games since signing a two-year, $22 million contract (average annual value of $11 million) following a trade to Los Angeles from the New York Rangers on Feb. 4. The 34-year-old forward led the Rangers with 57 points (19 goals, 38 assists) in 52 games prior to the break for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.
Smith was in his second full season as associate coach. The 48-year-old joined the Kings after coaching the Ottawa Senators from 2019 to 2024 and was a Toronto Maple Leafs assistant from 2015 to 2019. He went 131-154-32 in 317 regular-season games with the Senators before he was fired Dec. 18, 2023.
Player development coach Matt Greene will join Smith as an assistant.
Hiller was retained by the Kings following the 2023-24 season after going 21-12-1 as interim coach and signed a three-year contract through the 2026-27 season. Los Angeles was 48-25-9 last season, but lost to the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference First Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the fourth consecutive year.
He joined the Kings as an assistant July 19, 2022, and held the same role with the New York Islanders (2019-22), Maple Leafs (2015-19) and Detroit Red Wings (2014-15). He coached Alberni in the British Columbia Hockey League and Tri-City of the Western Hockey League, where was named WHL and Canadian Hockey League coach of the year for the 2011-12 season. Hiller also played 63 regular-season games as a forward with the Kings, Red Wings and Rangers from 1992-94 after he was chosen by Los Angeles in the 10th round (No. 207) of the 1989 NHL Draft.
Hiller is the second coach to be fired this season. Rick Bowness was hired by the Columbus Blue Jackets to replace Dean Evason on Jan. 12.
