Kings GM Rob Blake out after fourth-straight first-round exit - ESPN

The Los Angeles Kings will not bring back Rob Blake, the team's general manager and vice president of hockey operations, after a fourth-straight first-round playoff exit.

Blake didn't have a contract beyond the 2024-25 season. The status of coach Jim Hiller, whom Blake elevated to head coach this season and has two years left on his contract, will be in the hands of the next general manager.

Blake, 55, was elevated to the job in April 2017 after having served as assistant general manager under Dean Lombardi beginning in 2013-14, the last time the Kings won the Stanley Cup.

In eight seasons as GM, Blake's teams made the Stanley Cup Playoffs five times. However, Los Angeles failed to advance past the first round each time, getting swept by the Vegas Golden Knights in 2018 and then being eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers for four straight postseasons, including the Kings' Game 6 elimination last week.

The Kings had a .557 points percentage in the standings during his eight seasons as general manager, as Blake attempted to bridge the team's two Stanley Cup championships in 2012 and 2014 to the next wave of stars like 22-year-old forward Quinton Byfield.

«On behalf of the entire organization, I would like to thank Rob for his dedication to the LA Kings and the passion he brought to his role,» Kings team president Luc Robitaille said in a statement. «Reaching this understanding wasn't easy and I appreciate Rob's partnership in always working toward what is best for the Kings. Rob deserves a great deal of credit and respect for elevating us to where we are today. He has been an important part of the Kings and will always be appreciated for what he has meant to this franchise.»

Blake's tenure with the Kings saw them take big