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For more than a decade now, the LA Kings have been kicking around the idea of hosting an outdoor game on the beach in Southern California. And various sources have indicated this topic is once again gaining traction.<\/p>\n
The origins of the idea trace back to about 2010 \u2014 or a few years after the NHL debuted their Winter Classic concept in Buffalo on Jan. 1, 2008. We reported on the Kings and Ducks beach idea a few times through the years and then it all sort of died down once the two SoCal teams eventually squared off at Dodger Stadium, as part of the NHL\u2019s Stadium Series in early 2014.<\/p>\n
However, when team president Luc Robitaille was on an early Kings Of The Podcast episode<\/a>, he admitted talks between the two clubs occurred as recently as 2018 \u2014 so the idea of a beach game never really went away.<\/p>\n \u201cIt could be a great visual and certainly would be very special,\u201d Robitaille said at the time. \u201cI think the one thing that we have to be careful of is [if it\u2019s very] windy and a bunch of sand ends up on the ice. It can be a problem, but it\u2019s definitely something we\u2019ve entertained. And we\u2019ve discussed [with] the Ducks.\u201d<\/p>\n While it\u2019s probably too late to pull off in time for the 2026-27 season, Robitaille also indicated in that interview that it may not end up as a regular season game \u2014 at least that was the thinking back then.<\/p>\n \u201cI could see it maybe being like a preseason game or two,\u201d said the Hall of Famer. \u201cIt could be a lot of fun, just doing a big event outdoors, [similar to] the setting that we had in Vegas when we played there in \u201991.\u201d<\/p>\n So, about 10k people, in a small intimate setting? Sounds pretty cool.<\/p>\n In the past, there has been talk internally about doing this type of event in the South Bay, where the Kings are quite popular among the locals \u2014 so much so that the area hosted its own Stanley Cup parade, separate from the larger (more publicized) ones in Downtown LA.<\/p>\n Now, Mayor\u2019s Manor has confirmed the city of Santa Monica is in the mix. There\u2019s even a bit of a connection there, as Goldenvoice (a subsidiary of the Kings\u2019 parent company AEG) recently signed a three-year agreement to host a music festival launching later this year. Perhaps the various parties can work together again on bringing a beach outdoor game to life.<\/p>\n From what we\u2019ve learned thus far, the NHL initially reached out to the city of Santa Monica about a year ago. Talks have been \u201cpretty serious\u201d for a few months now, with things focused on Lot 1 North. The idea is to have the rink built in the parking lot by the pier, with the iconic Ferris wheel as the backdrop. At one point, there was even talk about this being a two-year contract, leading up to the Olympics in 2028. Exactly what a multi-year contract would look like remains to be seen.<\/p>\n There was even a meeting with Oliver Chi, Santa Monica\u2019s city manager, held during a closed-door portion of last night\u2019s city council meeting. This is quite common when parties are negotiating lease terms, as they were expected to do during that session.<\/p>\n If nothing else, Steve Mayer and the NHL brass were said to be in LA recently to do some sort of due diligence.<\/p>\n Some of the NHL events team was in LA last round. Hmm. https:\/\/t.co\/rK2odb9aLc<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) May 13, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n One thing is certain, when it comes to these types of events, the Kings organization is open to thinking outside the box. While it didn\u2019t get a lot of attention in the mass media, Robitaille also talked about a totally different outdoor concept. When fans couldn\u2019t attend games inside an arena during the pandemic, the Kings and NHL had ongoing talks about hosting 10-15 outdoor games at the soccer stadium in Carson.<\/p>\n Obviously, that never came to fruition, for a variety of reasons. Yet, one of the things Robitaille noted was the league\u2019s sensitivity toward possibly diluting the outdoor game experience.<\/p>\n \u201cAt the same time, if you have an opportunity to bring 10,000 fans to [such an event], it\u2019s certainly something worth looking at,\u201d he remarked.<\/p>\n We\u2019ll have more on this story as it develops further. In the meantime, for all the latest information regarding key issues facing the Kings this month, be sure to check out a pair of important articles linked below.<\/p>\n Follow @mayorsmanor<\/a><\/p>\n MORE LA KINGS NEWS:<\/p>\n Seven Names to Track: Who Might Be the Next LA Kings Coach?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n 5 Key Things to Watch with the LA Kings Starting Right Now<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n Note to webmasters\/reporters: When recapping news or interviews from this site please remember to include a link to www.MayorsManor.com<\/a><\/p>\n