Rob Blake will have his No. 4 jersey retired by the Los Angeles Kings at a ceremony prior to the Jan. 17 game against the Anaheim Ducks at Staples Center.
Blake was selected by the Kings in the fourth round (70th overall) of the 1988 draft and spent 12-and-a-half seasons playing for the team.
“It is an honour to be included with the former great L.A. King players who have their jerseys retired,” Blake said in a press release after the announcement Monday. “I have always felt L.A. was a special place to play and it was and is a tremendous privilege to put on an L.A. Kings jersey.”
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The 44-year-old, who is currently the franchise’s vice president and assistant general manager, holds Kings records for most goals, assists, power-play goals, game-winning goals, shots and games played among defencemen. He won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s top blueliner while with the Kings during the 1997-98 season.
Blake will become the sixth Kings player to have his number raised to the rafters. Luc Robitaille (No. 20), Wayne Gretzky (No. 99), Dave Taylor (No. 18), Marcel Dionne (No. 16) and Rogie Vachon (No. 30) have also been honoured by the franchise.
The native of Simcoe, Ont., also spent time with the Colorado Avalanche and San Jose Sharks; he registered 777 points in 1,270 total regular season games. He won a Stanley Cup with the Avalanche in 2001 and an Olympic gold medal with Canada in 2002.
In June it was announced that Blake — along with Dominik Hasek, Peter Forsberg, Mike Modano, referee Bill McCreary and late coach Pat Burns – would be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
