LA Kings Retired Trainer Pete Demers Dealt With Much More Than Injuries To Players

March 9, 2011 16 Comments

FROZEN ROYALTY EXCLUSIVE: In part five of an exclusive series based on an extensive interview with Los Angeles Kings head athletic trainer emeritus Pete Demers, Frozen Royalty takes a look at the most visible aspect of his job, caring for injured players…and trainers are definitely not immune from injury or illness, either…

Los Angeles Kings head athletic trainer
emeritus Pete Demers, circa 1982.
Photo: Demers Family Collection

LOS ANGELES — For athletic trainers in the National Hockey League, their most important job is to treat injured players and help them recover from their injuries, and in a 34-year career with the Los Angeles Kings, retired head athletic trainer Pete Demers has probably treated more injuries and illnesses than any of his colleagues, past or present, and not just those suffered by players.

To be sure, caring for injured players is the one aspect of the athletic trainer’s duties that is the most visible, and for Demers, it was no different. Like other trainers, he was most noticeable whenever he jumped over the boards and scurried out onto the ice to care for an injured player.

Even before he made it to the NHL, Demers already had experience dealing with serious injuries. Read more of this post

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LA Kings Trainer Emeritus Pete Demers On The Evolution of Treatment, Strength And Conditioning

February 23, 2011 13 Comments

FROZEN ROYALTY EXCLUSIVE: In part three of a multi-part series of stories featuring the career experiences of the Los Angeles Kings’ long-time, now retired, athletic trainer Peter Demers, Frozen Royalty takes a close look at a few of Demers’ memories from his early years with the Kings, along with the evolution of how injuries are treated and how much the emphasis on strength and conditioning has changed over the years.

Los Angeles Kings retired head athletic trainer Pete Demers (1970's photo).
Photo: Los Angeles Kings

LOS ANGELES — Back in the 1970’s when Pete Demers began his 34-year career as the head athletic trainer for the Los Angeles Kings, a career that would see him work in 2,632 consecutive games, as previously reported (see LA Kings Retired Trainer Pete Demers Had To Be A Jack Of All Trades), Demers and assistant athletic trainer John Holmes did the work of the athletic trainers, the equipment managers, the strength and conditioning coaches and the massage therapists that National Hockey League teams have today.

Demers, who retired in 2006, has vivid memories of years past, and even remembers his first road trip with the Kings.

“We went to Pittsburgh on a five or six-game trip,” he reminisced. “That was just a small trip. We’d go on the road for 16 days. We had two or three of those a year.” Read more of this post

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Marcel Dionne Still Looks Good In An LA Kings Jersey

September 5, 2009 7 Comments

The Triple Crown Line (from left to right: Dave Taylor, Marcel Dionne, and Charlie Simmer) addresses the crowd in the Nokia Theatre at LA Live during the Los Angeles Kings HockeyFest 09.
Photo: Thomas LaRocca/LAKings.com.

LOS ANGELES — Despite the fact that he is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, making him one of the all-time greatest players to have ever played the game, former Los Angeles Kings superstar center Marcel Dionne is not exactly a household name in Southern California.

Dionne was acquired by the Kings on June 23, 1975, along with Bart Crashley, from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Terry Harper, Dan Maloney and a second round draft choice (later transferred to the Minnesota North Stars) in the 1976 National Hockey League Entry Draft. Read more of this post

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Los Angeles Kings HockeyFest 09 Looks Like A Hit

August 31, 2009 11 Comments

Logo courtesy Los Angeles Kings

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles area hockey fans got a head start on the beginning of the 2009-10 hockey season this past weekend with the Los Angeles Kings wrapping up their inaugural HockeyFest on Sunday.

The event, which was held at the Nokia Theatre at LA Live, began on Friday evening and concluded late Sunday afternoon.

The weekend of events included several well-received panel discussions featuring current Kings players, front office staff and alumni, along with a large tent filled with hockey-related games for kids and adults alike and several exhibits, including all of the National Hockey League’s award trophies, except for the Stanley Cup.

HockeyFest 09 was highlighted by Saturday’s panel featuring the famed Triple Crown Line of Marcel Dionne, Charlie Simmer and Dave Taylor along with Sunday’s panel featuring long-time play-by-play announcer Bob Miller.

HockeyFest 09 drew a significant number of fans who were immersed in all things Kings and it appears that the event was a success. Read more of this post

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Los Angeles Kings HockeyFest 2009 Opens

August 29, 2009 Leave a Comment

LOS ANGELES — The dreaded lull is coming to an end.

For hockey fans, the period immediately following the July 1 unrestricted free agent signing spree through the opening of National Hockey League team training camps is usually so slow in terms of news that desperate hockey fans will eat up just about anything that’s published or broadcast, no matter how ridiculous, outlandish or just downright phony it might be.

Logo courtesy Los Angeles Kings

Thankfully, we are now about one week away from the opening of rookie camps across the league, with training camps opening a week later.

Here in the Los Angeles area, hockey fans are getting a head start on ending the dreaded lull.

For all of you Los Angeles Kings fans out there, unless you’ve been marooned on a deserted island, stuck in the middle of the Sahara Desert, on a long backpack trip through a wilderness area, or just taking a vacation from all things hockey, you have certainly seen and heard the total media blitz (television commercials, radio spots, Kings officials talking it up on radio interviews, newspaper and web stories) about the Los Angeles Kings HockeyFest 2009. Read more of this post

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