King was born in Thunder Bay, Ontario. He headed west from his hometown to join the Richmond Sockeyes of the British Columbia Junior Hockey League during his teenage years. A fast reflex goalie with a right-handed catch, King quickly earned the starting job for the Sockeyes and played 40 games that year, winning 23 and with a 5.05 goals against average. The 1985–86 season saw King heading to play for the Vernon Lakers and posting an even better 17–9–0 record in 29 games with a 4.64 GAA. These numbers for the young 18-year-old were impressive, and the Detroit Red Wings of the NHL decided to draft King 190th overall in the 1986 NHL Entry Draft. The draft had given King increased confidence, and he headed to the University of Maine after beginning the 1986–87 season with the Abbotsford Falcons. King had four successful years with the Black Bears, being named to all-star teams, his last three years there and winning the Hockey East championship game in 1989 against the Boston College Eagles.
Playing in the NHL
For the 1990–91 season, King had graduated from Maine and joined the Detroit Red Wings organization. He started play for the Hampton Roads Admirals of the East Coast Hockey League playing 15 games. His 8–4–1 record allowed him to be quickly called up to the Adirondack Red Wings of the American Hockey League. In 24 games King posted an 8–10–2 record, but showed promise and poise in the crease. When injury struck Red Wings goalie Tim Cheveldae, a slew of promising minors were called up to try and fill the void for the big club. King was called up on January 28, 1991 to back up goaltender Glen Hanlon in a game against the New Jersey Devils. New Jersey scored four goals against Hanlon in the first 15 minutes and he was pulled, putting King into his first NHL game. King gave up two goals on 11 shots but ended up with no record as the Wings lost 2–6. King finished out the year with Adirondack. The 1991–92 season saw more of the same for King, bouncing around between Adirondack, the ECHL affiliate Toledo Storm and the big club. King again was put into an NHL game on November 30, 1991 as he played the last 16 minutes of a game, replacing Cheveldae in a 3–7 loss against the St. Louis Blues. King played 33 games in Adirondack, finishing with a 14–14–3 record and a 3.53 GAA. Young goalie Chris Osgood was picked up by Detroit for the 1992–93 season and was instantly given the start in most of the games. King was relegated to Toledo where he had a productive year. Having a solid goalie veteran on the team, Toledo excelled and King finished with 26–11–7 record and a playoff berth. King ended the playoffs with a 10–3 record and a Riley Cup victory in six games over the Wheeling Thunderbirds.
