The Los Angeles Kings fired head coach Marc Crawford Tuesday; only two years into his tenure. Crawford posted a 59-84-21 record with the Kings and was never able to make the playoffs. The search for a new coach will begin immediately.

"We appreciate Marc's commitment the two seasons he has been here," Kings president and general manager Dean Lombardi said in a press release. "However, we believe that in evaluating where we are at and, more importantly, where we are going as an organization, we feel this coaching change was the right decision to make. We wish Marc the best in his future endeavors."

Crawford became Los Angeles’ 21st head coach in Kings history on May 22, 2006. The Kings never made the playoffs under Crawford and never finished with more than 71 points. The Kings finished the 2007-08 season tied for last in the league with 71 points and was the third worst team in 2006-07 with 68 points.

"I think it's fair to say we did not expect the team to be out of the playoffs in January this year," Lombardi added. "I don't think we were kidding ourselves into thinking we were world beaters, we set realistic expectations."

The Kings weren’t expected to be strong Stanley Cup contenders, but they also weren’t expected to be one of the worst teams the previous two seasons.

Lombardi and the Kings owners decided in postseason meetings that they have decided to get younger rather than try to create an immediate cup contender, and Crawford wasn’t the coach they wanted to lead the youngsters.

"It's clear they're committed to building a young core," Lombardi said. "We have the illusion of being young because our better players are young, but on the back end, there's a transition that needs to come until we are in fact a young team."

Crawford’s season was marked with controversy because of an on-ice incident that happened four years earlier when Crawford was coach of the Vancouver Canucks. On March 28, Todd Bertuzzi, a former player under Crawford, filed a lawsuit claiming negligence of his former coach.

Crawford has been known as a brutal coach that demanded the most of his players. Sometimes he could come off as a coach that would scream more than he would explain. It’s unclear if anyone wants to take a chance with Crawford, but he has proven that he can win.

In 12 seasons as a head coach, Crawford coached 905 games and compiled a regular season record of 438-342-125 and a playoff record of 43-40.