NHL Passed Over Kings, Oilers GMs Despite Big Names

The Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings are learning a tough lesson this season: past success doesn’t guarantee future results.

Both teams took gambles on general managers who won Stanley Cups years ago. It’s not working out.

The Kings just fired head coach Jim Hiller, making him the scapegoat for Ken Holland’s questionable moves since taking over before the 2025-26 season. Meanwhile, the Oilers are still trying to figure out what to do with Stan Bowman’s mess.

Here’s the thing about Holland and Bowman – they’re not exactly rookies. Holland built four Cup winners in Detroit, while Bowman helped bring multiple championships to Chicago. Pretty impressive stuff.

But the NHL has changed. A lot.

Today’s game is all about salary cap wizardry, analytics, and modern player development. It’s not enough to just rely on old playbooks anymore.

Holland’s struggles are particularly telling. He left Detroit’s roster and salary cap in such rough shape that it’s taken Steve Yzerman seven years just to get them close to playoff contention.

Then he went to Edmonton, where he couldn’t build a strong enough team around superstars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Now with the Kings, he’s made things worse – overpaying for defenders Cody Ceci and Brian Dumoulin while the offense remains stuck in neutral.

Even his recent trade for Artemi Panarin feels like too little, too late.

Bowman’s story isn’t much better. Sure, he inherited a ready-made champion in Chicago, but when it came time to rebuild around 2016, things fell apart. Now with the Oilers, his moves keep backfiring.

The Trent Frederic contract looks like a disaster for a fourth-line player. The Tristan Jarry trade has turned into a win for Pittsburgh instead of Edmonton.

Just yesterday, they had to put Andrew Mangiapane – one of Bowman’s big offseason additions – on waivers.

It’s kind of ironic. These teams have faced each other in the playoffs four straight years. Both thought bringing in championship-winning GMs would push them over the top.

What they didn’t realize was that those championships happened over a decade ago. The game has moved on.

Maybe next time they’ll look for someone who knows where hockey is going, not where it’s been.