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Kings unveil monument outside Staples Center to celebrate 50th anniversary

Los Angeles Kings/ Twitter

Los Angeles is a hockey town, don't forget it.

That was the message as the Kings unveiled a monument outside Staples Center on Saturday. The monument includes many Kings greats of then and now and pays homage to many of the franchise's greatest moments including its first game, the historic Wayne Gretzky trade, and the team's 2012 and 2014 Stanley Cup victories.

Here is the monument described in detail:

Various legends were selected to represent the eras of LA Kings hockey. From left to right, Rogie Vachon is laser-etched in granite mid-save, which seamlessly transitions into a sculptural Jonathan Quick and his cat-like reflexes as he stops a sure goal. Drew Doughty is also laser etched as he dishes off a pass to a five-player figurative bas-relief sculpture. Through energy, the sheer force of a slap shot flows into players celebrating hockey's ultimate goal of winning Lord Stanley's Cup. The wind-up of Marcel Dionne leads to Dave Taylor driving his stick into the puck, as Rob Blake follows through with his lethal slap shot. As one's eyes move through the motion, Anze Kopitar's arms begin to raise towards Dustin Brown's iconic moment of lifting the Stanley Cup. The energy in these figures simultaneously represents hockey's grit and toughness.

Here's to 50 more.

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