# 1970–71 Los Angeles Kings season

The 1970–71 Los Angeles Kings season was the Kings' fourth season of operation in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Kings finished in fifth place in the West Division and did not qualify for the playoffs.

## Regular season
### Final standings

West Division vte :
| | | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | DIFF | Pts |
| 1 | Chicago Black Hawks | 78 | 49 | 20 | 9 | 277 | 184 | +93 | 107 |
| 2 | St. Louis Blues | 78 | 34 | 25 | 19 | 223 | 208 | +15 | 87 |
| 3 | Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 28 | 33 | 17 | 207 | 225 | −18 | 73 |
| 4 | Minnesota North Stars | 78 | 28 | 34 | 16 | 191 | 223 | −32 | 72 |
| 5 | Los Angeles Kings | 78 | 25 | 40 | 13 | 239 | 303 | −64 | 63 |
| 6 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 78 | 21 | 37 | 20 | 221 | 240 | −19 | 62 |
| 7 | California Golden Seals | 78 | 20 | 53 | 5 | 199 | 320 | −121 | 45 |

### Record vs. opponents
## Schedule and results

| No. | R | Date | Score | Opponent | Record |
| 1 | W | October 9, 1970 | 3–1 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) | 1–0–0 |
| 2 | L | October 14, 1970 | 5–8 | Boston Bruins (1970–71) | 1–1–0 |
| 3 | W | October 17, 1970 | 6–1 | California Golden Seals (1970–71) | 2–1–0 |
| 4 | W | October 21, 1970 | 4–2 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) | 3–1–0 |
| 5 | W | October 24, 1970 | 3–1 | St. Louis Blues (1970–71) | 4–1–0 |
| 6 | L | October 28, 1970 | 3–5 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) | 4–2–0 |
| 7 | L | October 29, 1970 | 1–3 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) | 4–3–0 |
| 8 | L | October 31, 1970 | 0–3 | @ St. Louis Blues (1970–71) | 4–4–0 |
| 9 | W | November 1, 1970 | 4–2 | Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) | 5–4–0 |
| 10 | W | November 4, 1970 | 3–2 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) | 6–4–0 |
| 11 | L | November 7, 1970 | 2–6 | New York Rangers (1970–71) | 6–5–0 |
| 12 | W | November 10, 1970 | 5–1 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) | 7–5–0 |
| 13 | L | November 11, 1970 | 1–3 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) | 7–6–0 |
| 14 | T | November 15, 1970 | 4–4 | Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) | 7–6–1 |
| 15 | L | November 18, 1970 | 3–5 | New York Rangers (1970–71) | 7–7–1 |
| 16 | L | November 20, 1970 | 1–7 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) | 7–8–1 |
| 17 | L | November 21, 1970 | 1–3 | Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) | 7–9–1 |
| 18 | W | November 25, 1970 | 3–1 | @ California Golden Seals (1970–71) | 8–9–1 |
| 19 | L | November 28, 1970 | 2–3 | Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) | 8–10–1 |
| 20 | L | November 29, 1970 | 3–5 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) | 8–11–1 |
| 21 | L | December 2, 1970 | 0–7 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) | 8–12–1 |
| 22 | T | December 3, 1970 | 4–4 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) | 8–12–2 |
| 23 | T | December 5, 1970 | 4–4 | Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) | 8–12–3 |
| 24 | T | December 9, 1970 | 2–2 | New York Rangers (1970–71) | 8–12–4 |
| 25 | L | December 12, 1970 | 1–8 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) | 8–13–4 |
| 26 | L | December 13, 1970 | 0–4 | @ New York Rangers (1970–71) | 8–14–4 |
| 27 | L | December 16, 1970 | 4–6 | @ Boston Bruins (1970–71) | 8–15–4 |
| 28 | L | December 17, 1970 | 3–4 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) | 8–16–4 |
| 29 | T | December 19, 1970 | 2–2 | Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) | 8–16–5 |
| 30 | W | December 20, 1970 | 7–2 | Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) | 9–16–5 |
| 31 | L | December 23, 1970 | 4–6 | Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) | 9–17–5 |
| 32 | W | December 26, 1970 | 9–3 | California Golden Seals (1970–71) | 10–17–5 |
| 33 | L | December 30, 1970 | 1–4 | Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) | 10–18–5 |
| 34 | T | January 2, 1971 | 3–3 | Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) | 10–18–6 |
| 35 | L | January 3, 1971 | 3–7 | St. Louis Blues (1970–71) | 10–19–6 |
| 36 | W | January 6, 1971 | 4–2 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) | 11–19–6 |
| 37 | T | January 7, 1971 | 5–5 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) | 11–19–7 |
| 38 | L | January 9, 1971 | 0–1 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) | 11–20–7 |
| 39 | T | January 10, 1971 | 2–2 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) | 11–20–8 |
| 40 | L | January 13, 1971 | 2–4 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) | 11–21–8 |
| 41 | L | January 14, 1971 | 5–9 | @ Boston Bruins (1970–71) | 11–22–8 |
| 42 | L | January 16, 1971 | 1–8 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) | 11–23–8 |
| 43 | W | January 17, 1971 | 4–1 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) | 12–23–8 |
| 44 | W | January 21, 1971 | 4–2 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) | 13–23–8 |
| 45 | W | January 23, 1971 | 3–2 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) | 14–23–8 |
| 46 | T | January 27, 1971 | 3–3 | Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) | 14–23–9 |
| 47 | T | January 30, 1971 | 3–3 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) | 14–23–10 |
| 48 | T | January 31, 1971 | 2–2 | @ New York Rangers (1970–71) | 14–23–11 |
| 49 | L | February 3, 1971 | 3–7 | @ Boston Bruins (1970–71) | 14–24–11 |
| 50 | L | February 4, 1971 | 2–5 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) | 14–25–11 |
| 51 | W | February 6, 1971 | 6–3 | Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) | 15–25–11 |
| 52 | W | February 10, 1971 | 5–2 | Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) | 16–25–11 |
| 53 | L | February 13, 1971 | 1–8 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) | 16–26–11 |
| 54 | L | February 14, 1971 | 0–4 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) | 16–27–11 |
| 55 | L | February 17, 1971 | 0–4 | Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) | 16–28–11 |
| 56 | W | February 20, 1971 | 5–4 | Boston Bruins (1970–71) | 17–28–11 |
| 57 | L | February 21, 1971 | 5–7 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) | 17–29–11 |
| 58 | L | February 24, 1971 | 1–5 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) | 17–30–11 |
| 59 | L | February 25, 1971 | 3–5 | Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) | 17–31–11 |
| 60 | L | February 27, 1971 | 1–4 | Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) | 17–32–11 |
| 61 | W | February 28, 1971 | 8–3 | @ California Golden Seals (1970–71) | 18–32–11 |
| 62 | T | March 3, 1971 | 3–3 | Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) | 18–32–12 |
| 63 | L | March 6, 1971 | 2–8 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) | 18–33–12 |
| 64 | L | March 7, 1971 | 2–4 | @ New York Rangers (1970–71) | 18–34–12 |
| 65 | W | March 9, 1971 | 4–0 | @ St. Louis Blues (1970–71) | 19–34–12 |
| 66 | L | March 11, 1971 | 2–7 | Boston Bruins (1970–71) | 19–35–12 |
| 67 | W | March 13, 1971 | 5–2 | Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) | 20–35–12 |
| 68 | L | March 16, 1971 | 2–7 | Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) | 20–36–12 |
| 69 | W | March 18, 1971 | 3–2 | Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) | 21–36–12 |
| 70 | W | March 20, 1971 | 8–4 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) | 22–36–12 |
| 71 | L | March 21, 1971 | 2–5 | @ California Golden Seals (1970–71) | 22–37–12 |
| 72 | L | March 23, 1971 | 1–3 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) | 22–38–12 |
| 73 | W | March 25, 1971 | 5–3 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) | 23–38–12 |
| 74 | L | March 27, 1971 | 3–6 | St. Louis Blues (1970–71) | 23–39–12 |
| 75 | L | March 30, 1971 | 3–4 | @ St. Louis Blues (1970–71) | 23–40–12 |
| 76 | T | March 31, 1971 | 2–2 | Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) | 23–40–13 |
| 77 | W | April 3, 1971 | 6–4 | California Golden Seals (1970–71) | 24–40–13 |
| 78 | W | April 4, 1971 | 4–2 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) | 25–40–13 |

## Player statistics

Regular season :
Scoring :
| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Juha Widing | C | 78 | 25 | 40 | 65 | 24 | −11 | 5 | 0 | 4 |
| Bob Berry | LW | 77 | 25 | 38 | 63 | 52 | −5 | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| Ross Lonsberry | LW | 76 | 25 | 28 | 53 | 80 | −35 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| Mike Byers | RW | 72 | 27 | 18 | 45 | 14 | −5 | 4 | 0 | 5 |
| Bob Pulford | LW | 59 | 17 | 26 | 43 | 53 | −15 | 6 | 1 | 2 |
| Eddie Joyal | C | 69 | 20 | 21 | 41 | 14 | −10 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| Bill Flett | RW | 64 | 13 | 24 | 37 | 57 | −30 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Gilles Marotte | D | 78 | 6 | 27 | 33 | 96 | −9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Doug Robinson | LW | 61 | 15 | 13 | 28 | 8 | −8 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Ralph Backstrom | C | 33 | 14 | 13 | 27 | 8 | −7 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Gord Labossiere | C | 45 | 11 | 10 | 21 | 16 | −22 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Noel Price | D | 62 | 1 | 19 | 20 | 29 | −15 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Matt Ravlich | D | 66 | 3 | 16 | 19 | 41 | −14 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Larry Mickey | RW | 65 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 46 | −15 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Lucien Grenier | RW | 68 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 12 | −1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Dale Hoganson | D | 70 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 52 | −16 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Larry Cahan | D | 67 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 45 | −29 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Paul Curtis | D | 64 | 1 | 13 | 14 | 82 | −18 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Harry Howell | D | 18 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Real Lemieux | LW | 43 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 22 | −7 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Butch Goring | C | 19 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Eddie Shack | LW | 11 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | −3 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Jean Potvin | D | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Al McDonough | RW | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Dick Duff | LW | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | −2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Denis DeJordy | G | 60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jack Norris | G | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jim Stanfield | C/RW | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Goaltending :
| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SO |
| Denis DeJordy | 3375 | 60 | 18 | 29 | 11 | 214 | 3.80 | 1 |
| Jack Norris | 1305 | 25 | 7 | 11 | 2 | 85 | 3.91 | 0 |
| Team: | 4680 | 78 | 25 | 40 | 13 | 299 | 3.83 | 1 |
    Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
    Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

## Transactions

The Kings were involved in the following transactions during the 1970–71 season.

### Trades

| May 11, 1970 | To Los Angeles KingsRay Fortin | To St. Louis BluesBob Wall |
| May 20, 1970 | To Los Angeles KingsMike Byers | To Philadelphia FlyersBrent Hughes |
| May 22, 1970 | To Los Angeles KingsLarry Mickey Lucien Grenier Jack Norris | To Montreal CanadiensGregg Boddy Leon Rochefort Wayne Thomas |
| September 3, 1970 | To Los Angeles KingsBob Pulford | To Toronto Maple LeafsGarry Monahan Brian Murphy |
| October 8, 1970 | To Los Angeles KingsBob Berry | To Montreal CanadiensCash |
| November 1, 1970 | To Los Angeles KingsCash | To Denver Spurs (WHL)Loan of Howie Hughes |
| November 24, 1970 | To Los Angeles KingsMike McMahon Jr. 7th round pick in 1971 – Pete Harasym 8th round pick in 1971 – Lorne Stamler | To Buffalo SabresDick Duff Eddie Shack |
| December 1, 1970 | To Los Angeles KingsEd Hoekstra | To Denver Spurs (WHLJimmy Peters Jr. |
| January 26, 1971 | To Los Angeles KingsRalph Backstrom | To Montreal CanadiensGord Labossiere Ray Fortin 2nd round pick in 1973 – Peter Marrin |
| February 1, 1971 | To Los Angeles KingsRed Armstrong | To Toronto Maple LeafsDon Westbrooke |
| February 5, 1971 | To Los Angeles KingsHarry Howell | To California Golden Seals8th round pick in 1971 – Rod Lyons Cash |
| March 3, 1971 | To Los Angeles KingsWayne Schultz Steve Sutherland | To Minnesota North StarsTerry Holbrook |

### Free agent signings

| May 22, 1970 | From Omaha Knights (CHL)Gord Smith |
| September 1, 1970 | From Winnipeg Jets (WHL)Bill Mikkelson |

### Intra-league Draft

| June 9, 1970 | From Montreal CanadiensPaul Curtis |
| June 9, 1970 | To Montreal CanadiensBill Inglis |
| June 9, 1970 | To Pittsburgh PenguinsLowell MacDonald |
| June 9, 1970 | From Pittsburgh PenguinsCraig Cameron |

### Reverse Draft

| June 9, 1970 | To Baltimore Clippers (AHL)Marc Dufour |
| June 9, 1970 | To Oakland SealsBob Sneddon |
| June 10, 1970 | From Minnesota North StarsGary Dineen |

### Expansion Draft

| June 10, 1970 | To Buffalo SabresCraig Cameron Skip Krake |
| June 10, 1970 | To Vancouver CanucksMike Corrigan |

## Draft picks

Los Angeles's draft picks at the 1970 NHL Amateur Draft held at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 2 | 24 | Al McDonough | Canada | St. Catharines Black Hawks (OHA) |
| 3 | 38 | Terry Holbrook | Canada | London Knights (OHA) |
| 5 | 59 | Billy Smith | Canada | Cornwall Royals (QMJHL) |
| 6 | 73 | Gerry Bradbury | Canada | London Knights (OHA) |
| 7 | 86 | Brian Carlin | Canada | Calgary Centennials (WCHL) |
| 8 | 98 | Brian Chinnick | Canada | Peterborough Petes (OHA) |