The Los Angeles Kings will not be signing their longest-tenured player, defenseman Drew Doughty, to a contract extension this summer.
Although Doughty was hoping to sign an extension with the Kings this summer, general manager Ken Holland said he will not give Doughty an extension right now, opting to kick it down the road.
“Breaking news… LA Kings will not be signing Drew Doughty to an extension this summer. Per Ken Holland. He wants to stay here. Holland said let’s address it down the road. Next summer,” wrote Kings reporter John Hoven on X.
LA Kings will not be signing Drew Doughty to an extension this summer. Per Ken Holland.
He wants to stay here. Holland said let’s address it down the road. Next summer.
Doughty is entering the final season of his contract, which pays him $11 million next year. Given he is now 36 years old and entering the decline phase of his career, the Kings likely only want to pay him half of that on his next contract, if that.
We’ll see where this goes, but given that the Kings aren’t in a rush to sign Doughty to an extension, it’s possible that the writing is on the wall and this will be his last season in Los Angeles.
If this is it, then he will go down as one of the greatest Kings players of all time, and despite his recent downturn in play, he will always be remembered as one of the best Kings ever.
Drew Doughty Has Been a King Since 2008
Drafted with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, Doughty is the Kings’ longest tenured player, having spent 18 years with the franchise.
With the Kings, Doughty has been one of the NHL’s best defensemen for nearly two decades, winning two Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014, plus winning the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the NHL’s top defenseman in 2016.
In 1,279 career regular-season games, Doughty has scored 165 goals and 709 points. In the postseason, he has scored 19 goals and 61 points in 101 career playoff games.
When it’s all said and done, Doughty is a lock for the Hockey Hall of Fame.
However, in recent years, his play has declined. After scoring over 50 points in 2023 and 2024, he scored only 17 points in 2025 and then just 23 points this past season. Notoriously durable, he has also dealt with injuries over the last few years. His ice time has also been in decline, as he played the fewest minutes per game of his career this past season.
Still, he’s a Kings legend, and it would be jarring seeing him in another jersey.
Drew Doughty Wants to be the Kings’ Captain
Now that Anze Kopitar has retired from the NHL, the Kings do not currently have a captain.
Doughty is a natural choice to be the team’s captain, and he has expressed interest in wearing the “C” on his chest after wearing an “A” for many years.
However, with the Kings choosing not to extend Doughty this summer, it seems unlikely they would give him the captaincy since he only has one more year left on his current contract. It’s possible, then, that the Kings enter next season without a captain and choose to go with three players wearing the “A” instead.
Kings Won’t Give Longest-Tenured Player Contract Extension