The Los Angeles Kings are paying tribute to firefighters battling wildfires throughout Southern California with a special center ice logo.
The National Hockey League team unveiled the design on their ice surface at Crypto.com Arena on their social media channels on Saturday, January 18, and played on it for the first time on Monday, January 20, when they hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The center ice design features a black shield in the shape usually found on the front of firefighter helmets. The Kings’ logo is in the middle of the shield, with “LOS ANGELES” in an arched white bar overtop and “LAFD” in a horizontal white bar underneath.
Around the shield are two silver circles; in between, “LOS ANGELES” is written in black along the top half and “FIRE DEPARTMENT” along the bottom half. In between the lettering, a silver Maltese cross and three silver four-pointed stars appear on each side. The edges of the red center line run through the design.
“I don’t think we can thank the first responders enough, so just for the rink to have that and to come out and skate on it will be pretty special,” Kings forward Trevor Lewis told NHL.com.
The Kings also wore “LA Strong” hoodies prior to the game. Both teams wore LAFD caps during warmups.
“When we left, the fires were still going, and it was pretty emotional,” added Kings forward Trevor Moore, who is from nearby Thousand Oaks, California. “We didn’t know what was going to happen, how much devastation was going to happen, so a little more clarity now.”
Wildfires started in the Los Angeles area on Tuesday, January 7, destroying thousands of structures and killing 27 people.
The Kings only had one game postponed due to the fires, as they were already scheduled for a long road trip through Western Canada and Seattle for a week and a half. The game against the Calgary Flames originally scheduled for Wednesday, January 8, has been rescheduled to Thursday, April 17.
The Kings wore special helmet decals honoring the LAFD throughout their recent road trip. The Winnipeg Jets also wore the decals when the Kings visited Canada Life Centre on January 10. The Kings also wore special “LOS ANGELES FIRE DEPARTMENT” shoulder patches throughout the road trip.
While the team was on the road, the Kings organization started a donation drive at their practice facility in El Segundo, set up a relief fund and, along with other L.A. teams, pledged more than $8 million to charities. They’re currently auctioning game-worn jerseys and helmets not just from their own team, but also items donated by the Jets, Flames and Seattle Kraken.
There was no indication from the Kings on how long the special design will remain at center ice.
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