Junior career After playing hockey at
Ithaca High School for two years, Brown left his hometown to play
junior hockey at age 16. He was drafted in the second round, 26th overall, by the
Guelph Storm in the
Ontario Hockey League (OHL) Priority Selection Draft. Brown played three seasons for Guelph, scoring 194 points in 174 games. He was drafted by the
Los Angeles Kings in the first round, 13 overall, in
2003. As a junior in the
Ontario Hockey League, Brown won the
Bobby Smith Trophy as the OHL’s Scholastic Player of the Year in three straight seasons (beginning in 2000-01). He also won the
Canadian Hockey League’s Scholastic Player of the Year in 2002-03, his last season in junior hockey.
Los Angeles Kings (2003–2022) 2003–2008: Early seasons Brown signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Kings and made the Kings'
2003–04 team out of training camp. His first NHL game was October 9, 2003, against the
Detroit Red Wings. Brown saw fourth-line ice time in his rookie year, and he scored his first NHL goal on November 22, 2003, in a 2–0 win over the
Colorado Avalanche. He managed just 1 goal and 5 points in 31 games before his season was cut short by a high ankle sprain. Nonetheless, Brown's physicality made a favorable impression with the Kings' coaching staff. The following season was cancelled due to the
NHL lockout. Brown was assigned to the
Manchester Monarchs, the Kings'
American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, in order to develop his offensive game. He performed well in Manchester, averaging nearly a point per game and readying himself for an expanded NHL role. With the lockout over, and NHL play resuming in
2005–06, Brown cemented his place on the team. As a 21-year-old checking forward, he managed 28 points in 79 games. More impressively, he led the team (and ranked 13th in the NHL) with 175 hits, and he drew the second most penalties in the NHL despite his limited ice time. A
restricted free agent at the end of the year, Brown signed a two-year contract before the start of the
2006–07 season. Brown's third season saw an expansion in his role, as he was placed on the top line with star rookie center
Anže Kopitar. The two young forwards became frequent linemates, as Brown's hitting abilities and willingness to shoot complemented Kopitar's dynamic passing and puck possession skills. Receiving the third-most ice time among Kings forwards, Brown responded with career-highs of 17 goals and 46 points in 81 games. Brown also received the most short-handed ice time among Kings forwards, a sign of his growing defensive reliability. He finished second in the NHL in hits, the first of six consecutive years that he ranked top three in the NHL in that category. The contract was signed a full year before Brown hit
restricted free agency, partially because young forwards
Dustin Penner of the
Anaheim Ducks and
Thomas Vanek of the
Buffalo Sabres had just received lucrative offer sheets in restricted free agency, and the Kings did not want Brown to receive one. Brown's appointment filled the vacancy created when prior captain
Rob Blake left the Kings in free agency to sign with the
San Jose Sharks on July 3, 2008. Just 23 years old when he assumed the captaincy, Brown became the youngest captain and the only American captain in Kings history. On the ice, Brown's numbers dipped slightly from 2007–08, in part because of an 8.2% shooting percentage, his lowest since his rookie season. However, his 292 shots led the team, and his 24 goals were third. Brown was chosen to represent the
Western Conference at the
2009 All-Star Game. The Kings missed the playoffs for a franchise-worst sixth straight year. goaltender
Miikka Kiprusoff in February 2011 Brown again posted solid numbers in
2009–10, playing all 82 games for the first time and registering 24 goals and a career-high 32 assists. He scored his 100th NHL goal on January 14, 2010, against the
Anaheim Ducks. With Brown leading a rapidly improving young core that included center
Anze Kopitar, defenseman
Drew Doughty and goaltender
Jonathan Quick, the Kings finally snapped the eight-year playoff drought after clinching the sixth seed in the West to qualify for a playoff spot. Brown had one goal and four assists in six games as the Kings lost in the first round of the
2010 playoffs to the third seeded
Vancouver Canucks. Brown and the Kings entered the
2010–11 season with higher expectations. Brown again played all 82 games and scored 28 goals and 29 assists for 57 points. Anže Kopitar's late season ankle injury forced the Kings to settle for a seventh-seeded finish in the Western Conference and a matchup with the second-seeded San Jose Sharks in the first round of the
2011 playoffs. The Kings lost in six games for the second straight year, with Brown recording two points (a goal and an assist) in the series. Brown began the
2011–12 season on a line with newly acquired center
Mike Richards, but was shuffled throughout the lineup for most of the season. He maintained his consistent production, topping 20 goals and 50 points for the fifth-straight year. However, along with the rest of the Kings, he struggled to score in the first half of the season. Head coach
Terry Murray was fired midway through the season, and as the Kings fell further out of the playoff picture, they were rumored to be listening to trade offers for Brown. New head coach
Darryl Sutter called the Brown-Kopitar tandem "stale" and said Brown was not playing the "straight-line, up-and-down, go-to-the-net, shoot-the-puck, run-over-people" style Brown needed to be effective. Brown's scoring pace picked up amidst the trade rumors, and he scored three goals on
Corey Crawford and an assist on a
Willie Mitchell goal in the last game before the
NHL trade deadline, a 4–0 win over the
Chicago Blackhawks on February 25, 2012. The Kings retained Brown, who responded with 11 points in the nine games following the trade deadline. Brown later said he was playing with "a chip on his shoulder" and "whether those rumors are true or not, they're still out there, it gives you maybe a bit more motivation". With Brown producing and the trade-deadline acquisition of
Jeff Carter, the Kings were one of the highest-scoring NHL teams down the stretch and made the playoffs as an eighth seed. After moving up-and-down the lineup for most of the season, Brown found stability playing on the first line with Anže Kopitar and
Justin Williams. That line would remain intact throughout the entire
2012 playoffs. Brown recorded four goals and one assist for five points in the first round against the back-to-back
Presidents' Trophy-winning Vancouver Canucks, including two shorthanded goals on Canucks' goaltender
Roberto Luongo in a 4–2 game 2 win. Brown is the first and only player as of 2022 with two shorthanded goals in a playoff game. In game 3, he delivered a devastating open-ice check to Canucks center and captain
Henrik Sedin directly in front of the Vancouver' bench. The hit left Sedin uninjured but dazed on the ice for several seconds until fellow Canuck' center
Manny Malhotra, who was on the bench with his linemates at the time of the play, had to guide Henrik off the ice and on to the bench. Brown later scored the game-winning goal in the third period. Many observers, including
TSN's
Bob McKenzie and
Sports Illustrated' Michael Farber, called the hit the decisive moment in the series. The Kings upset the heavily favored top-seeded Canucks in five games, and then recorded the first sweep in franchise history over the second seeded
St. Louis Blues in the second round. Brown registered two goals and four assists in the series. Both of his goals came in the decisive game 4, a 3–1 Kings victory. The Kings then beat the third seeded
Arizona Coyotes in five games in the
Western Conference finals. Brown scored the game-winning goal in game 1 of that series and did not score again until game 6 of the
2012 Stanley Cup Final against the sixth seeded
New Jersey Devils, although he did manage five assists in that span. After being benched for the final minutes of a game 5 loss, Brown produced three points in game 6 to secure the Kings' first-ever Stanley Cup. He scored the first of three goals on a five-minute power play, and shortly afterwards, fired a shot that Jeff Carter deflected into the net for the eventual Cup-winning goal. Later, he assisted on another Carter goal. The Kings defeated the Devils 6–1, making Brown the second American-born captain to lead a team to a Stanley Cup championship and the Kings the second
California-based team to win the Stanley Cup. With eight goals and 12 assists for 20 points in 20 games, Brown tied teammate Anže Kopitar for the lead in overall playoff point total. On July 28, 2012, Brown had his "Day with the Cup". Each year after a team has won the Stanley Cup, players, front office and hockey operation staff each get a day with the Stanley Cup. Brown hinted on the
Tonight Show with Jay Leno he would bring the Cup back home. He did just that, bringing it to Ithaca High School in late July. During the
lockout-shortened season, Brown finished shortened regular season with 18 goals and 11 assists for 29 points in 46 games. The Kings reached the Western Conference finals for a second-straight year, but fell in five games to the Presidents' Trophy-winning and eventual Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks. On July 18, 2013, the Kings signed Brown to an eight-year, $47 million contract extension. In the
2014 Stanley Cup Final, Brown led the Kings to another Stanley Cup title, despite facing some criticism for more muted contributions on the team's run to the title. In the Cup Final against the
New York Rangers, Brown scored the overtime winner in game 2 to give the Kings a 5–4 victory and a 2–0 series lead, and he scored again during the Kings' 2–1 loss in game 4. At the conclusion of the
2013–14 season, Brown was awarded the
Mark Messier Leadership Award "in recognition of his commitment and service to charities in his community". On November 26, 2014, Brown recorded his 200th NHL goal in a 4–0 Kings win over the
Minnesota Wild. After the Kings missed the
playoffs entirely for the first time since
2009 in 2015, Brown and the Kings returned to the playoffs in
2016 only to fall in the first round in five games to the San Jose Sharks.
2016–2022: Later years Following back-to-back seasons of scoring less than 30 points, Brown was replaced as the Kings captain by
Anže Kopitar on June 16, 2016. Speaking on the decision to have his captaincy stripped, Brown stated, "I understand the decision and I respect the decision. Part of my problem was how it was handled. It just put me in an awkward spot." The 2017–18 season marked a resurgence for Brown. After earning 36 points the season prior, Brown managed 28 goals and 33 assists for a career-high 61 points in 81 contests played. On December 21, 2017, Brown played in his
1,000th career NHL game. The Kings defeated the
Colorado Avalanche 2–1 in overtime, where Brown scored the game-winning goal. On April 5, 2018, Brown scored four goals, including the overtime winner, against the
Minnesota Wild. In the
pandemic-shortened
2020–21 season opener in a 4–3 OT loss against the Minnesota Wild on January 13, 2021, Brown recorded his 300th NHL goal. Brown was eventually re-promoted to alternate captain since his demotion, and announced on April 28, 2022 before the
2021–22 season finale against the
Vancouver Canucks that he would retire after the completion of the
2022 Stanley Cup playoffs, for which his Kings team qualified for the first time since 2018. At the time of the announcement, Brown had 28 points (9 goals, 19 assists) in 64 games in the 2021–22 regular season. In the season finale against the Canucks, he was named team captain for the Kings. In the 2022 playoffs, Brown's Kings would be eliminated in seven games in the first round by the
Edmonton Oilers, with Brown skating in all seven appearances and recording two points, his final game was on May 14. Brown was honored with a
statue on February 11, 2023, joining
Wayne Gretzky and
Luc Robitaille as the only Kings players with statues. The Kings also retired his #23 jersey that night, making him the sixth King so honored. ==International play==