Rich Hammond

LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Kings Wednesday announced the appointment of long-time Los Angeles Daily News hockey writer Rich Hammond as beat writer/columnist for LAKings.com, the club’s official website. Hammond, who will travel with the Kings full-time during the 2009-10 season, will begin providing exclusive content to LAKings.com on Oct. 1.

"In this changing world as it relates to the landscape and consumption of sports news content, we are making an organizational commitment to give our fans one place to go - LAKings.com - to satisfy their appetite for Kings news and information " said Kings President, Business Operations Luc Robitaille. "We feel this is a landmark step for us as Rich will have full editorial control in his new position. Kings fans deserve the best Kings coverage, and we’re excited that LAKings.com will be the new home for Rich’s insightful, objective and thorough reporting and analysis."

Hammond will cover all Kings games and practices. He will also provide feature stories, commentaries, video stories and more on the Kings and on the NHL.

Hammond leaves the Daily News after having spent the last 10 years with the paper.He initially began covering the Kings in 2000 before taking over full-time coverage in 2005. In October of 2006, Hammond - who also held the title of Deputy Sports Editor at the newspaper - began developing and spearheading the Daily News’ on-line coverage of the Kings. His "Inside the Kings" blog consistently ranked as the paper’s top pro sports team blog.

Said Hammond, who also covered the Kings on the road for the Daily News briefly during the 2005-06 season: "I’m grateful to the Daily News for allowing me to develop my passion for covering hockey, and I’m excited about the opportunity to bring even better, more comprehensive coverage to Kings fans while maintaining the same journalistic standards."

Hammond is a Carson native and USC graduate who has also worked for the Orange County Register and the South Bay Daily Breeze.