KINGS UPDATE: LOMBARDI TO FILL PRESIDENT/GM JOBS.

Byline: RICH HAMMOND  Staff Writer

The Kings' new era officially begins this afternoon, with the hiring of Dean Lombardi.

Kings governor Tim Leiweke will introduce Lombardi as the team's new president and general manager, the replacement for Dave Taylor in both roles, a bold move by a franchise in search of a new direction.

Lombardi spent this season as a scout for Philadelphia but made his name as general manager in San Jose from 1996-2003, a period in which the Sharks reached the playoffs five times in seven seasons.

The hiring is something of coup for the Kings, considering Lombardi, who grew up in Massachusetts, was believed to be a finalist for the Boston Bruins' GM job. But the added title of team president, and the autonomy to run things his own way in the Kings' organization, proved to be a bigger draw.

During his 18 years of NHL experience, as both a scout and a front-office member, Lombardi developed the reputation of being a forceful and somewhat outspoken leader.

"The thing about him is he really does care about his players - you see that - and if you're going to go through the wall for him, he'll go through the wall for you," Boston defenseman Brad Stuart, who played under Lombardi in San Jose, told the New Bedford (Mass.) Standard-Times this month.

"He's an intense guy, and sometimes negotiations can get a little intense. My second contract, I ended up sitting out a few months, but I respect the guy. I like him; he's a good guy."

Lombardi will have plenty of work to do. Leiweke's purge of the organization Tuesday left the Kings without an assistant general manager, a director of player personnel and a coaching staff.

In hiring Lombardi, Leiweke arguably landed the hottest commodity on the market, and one he believes will help end the Kings' run of missing the playoffs for three consecutive seasons.

In 1996, Lombardi took over a San Jose franchise that won more than 20 games just once in its first five seasons. Under Lombardi, the Sharks improved their point total for six consecutive seasons, won one division title and twice advanced to the second round of the playoffs.

The highlight of the Lombardi era came in 2000, when the Sharks, seeded eighth in the Western Conference, upset the St.Louis Blues, who had the highest point total in the NHL that season.

Lombardi also drafted current Sharks standouts such as Jonathan Cheechoo, Vesa Toskala and Patrick Marleau and built the nucleus of a team that reached the Western Conference finals in 2004.

The Sharks fired Lombardi a year before, after the team went 28-37-9 and missed the playoffs, and Lombardi has spent the past two seasons as a scout for the Flyers.

"It was surprising; GMs do not get fired that easily," Boston center Marco Sturm, another former Shark, told the Standard-Times. "He brought the Sharks where they're at right now. He does a lot of work, especially with scouts and young (players), trying to develop. He was one of the reasons (for success).

"I like him. He knows what he's doing, I think."

A graduate of the University of New Haven, where he also played hockey, Lombardi earned a law degree at Tulane University and started his professional sports career as a player agent.

Lombardi also served as an assistant GM for the Minnesota North Stars and joined the Sharks in 1990 in the same role before he was promoted to vice president and director of hockey operations in 1992.

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